Affiliate for Newbie, Best Ways to Make Money With Affiliate Programs

Best Ways to Make Money With Affiliate Programs

By Bryan Curry

I am a big fan of affiliate marketing programs. The reason being with affiliate marketing, if done appropriately, everyone wins. You make money with affiliate programs and your podcast audience and website visitors receive valuable services and products that are recommended by someone they have a relationship and level of trust with. To maximize your earning potential we have provided you here with the 8 best practices to make money with affiliate programs.

1. Choose Appropriate Affiliate Partners – You have built a podcast audience around a specific topic, category or niche. Use what you know about your audience to identify services or products that you feel will be beneficial to them. If you are podcasting about music or movies, choose an affiliate partner like Netflix, or a music and movies retailer. Don’t choose an affiliate partner like a flower shop which is completely unrelated to your podcast topic. The flower store may have better commission rates but your conversions will be very low and you will not make money.

2. Placement Of Affiliate Ads – Most first time visitors to your website will make a determination about whether to stay and read your website or bounce to another site in the first 10 seconds. If your landing page is plastered with ads from top to bottom, making the content hard to read or hard to find then most people will leave your site. You want your affiliate ads to be contextual whenever possible, within a post discussing their products or services or on a page dedicated to affiliate partners. Having affiliate program ads as part of your page template is fine as long as they are not obnoxious or excessive in number. There are a number of ways to experiment with the placement of affiliate ads. You can place banner ads across the top of the page, block ads on the sides or within the content as well as text ads which can be incorporated into your site content. There are no rules about what works best, you will have to experiment and see what works for your audience.

3. Don’t Overdo It – If your site has too many ads, visitors to your site will feel like you have designed the site to sell products and services and not to offer them valuable content. Having a site that feels like an online store only works when your visitor is looking to buy something and they have come to your site specifically to make a purchase. For some podcasts, this is exactly what you want. If your podcast is promoting your business or a product you sell then you should absolutely tailor your site to cater to people who have heard the podcast and are coming to your site to make a purchase. If you are relying on affiliate program ads to try and convert some of your podcast listeners into affiliate revenue then they are coming to your site for a different reason. They are coming to your site for content, quality content. If they arrive at your site and there is nothing but a string of ads then they will be turned off and may not return to the site, so don’t overdo it when placing ads on your page.

4. Don’t Be Afraid To Promote Your Partners – Through your podcast and interaction with your listeners you will over time build a relationship with them. If you have a product or service that you use and you think will be beneficial to your audience then that is a prime candidate to select as an affiliate program partner. Once you have the affiliate program setup promote it to your listeners. This is not cold-call marketing. These people trust and want your opinions. If they didn’t they wouldn’t be listening to your podcast.

5. Be Honest When Reviewing Affiliate Partners Products – Inevitably, you will have some listeners who claim that you have sold-out by trying to make money through your podcast. There are two ways to address this. First, be honest when reviewing or promoting an affiliate partner. Tell everyone up front that this is an affiliate program and if they buy the product or service you will make money. Then be honest about the product or service. Why are you recommending it? What is good about it? What is bad about it? People will be more trusting of someone who is up-front about these programs than someone who dances around the issue and doesn’t reveal the relationship between what you are doing and what you are selling. Remember, these people want your opinion, give it to them. Secondly, for those people who criticize you for trying to make money off of your podcast remember a few things. It is very easy to criticize someone anonymously over the internet. You have put a lot of hard work, invested money and time into your podcast; you should not feel like a sell-out for trying to recoup some of that investment. You are providing entertainment, information, advice, and now a potential product or service, there is nothing wrong with being compensated modestly for doing all of that. When you receive emails or comments from people like that, do not shy away from them. Bring them up in the next podcast or address them in the comments on your site. Be very polite, do not respond venomously, just let everyone know what the affiliate programs are, why they are there and tell them that you are in no way trying to deceive any of them, that is why you were so up-front about letting everyone know from the beginning that you were being compensated by the affiliate program.

6. Choose Partners That Pay A Commission You Are Happy With – The types of affiliate program commissions vary widely. Some will pay you a % commission on any purchases made, others pay a flat rate. Some will continue to pay you monthly commissions for subscription services they receive, others pay a one time payment. The % commissions vary as well. Some pay 10% up to 40 or maybe even 50%. Look around and find one that you like. Try it out, if you aren’t happy with the program, try something different. You have to be flexible and keep trying until you find something that works.

7. Traffic And Conversion – For a successful affiliate program you need traffic and lots of it. Not everyone who visits your site will click on an affiliate link and complete the “call to action”. Getting a visitor to complete that “call to action” is called conversion. The number of visitors who act vs. the total number of visitors to your site is called your conversion rate or conversion ratio. This ties back to what we discussed earlier. You can have hundreds of thousands of visits to your site, but if your affiliate partners are not relevant to the content on your site, or if they are obnoxious and overwhelming your conversion rate will remain low. Translation, you will not make money. By adhering to the tips I have provided you, you will see that those conversion rates will climb. Watch your conversion rate and then if you feel its necessary, change your ad placement, change your affiliate program partners, and then watch the reaction to your conversion rate. The goal is to monitor that rate and constantly adjust your marketing to try and maximize it as much as possible.

8. Widgets Vs. Editing CSS/HTML Code – I think that WordPress is a great platform for affiliate programs and affiliate marketing. WordPress makes it very easy to set up a site that will make money through affiliate programs. One of the big advantages is the use of WordPress Plugins and WordPress widgets. These allow you to seamlessly integrate ads into your site and your site content. It eliminates the need for knowledge about editing CSS or HTML. If, however, you do have the knowledge required to edit CSS and HTML then you have a lot more freedom and flexibility in terms of ad placements, and rotation. It may be to your benefit to utilize some of the space on your site that is otherwise wasted when using a typical WordPress template.

So all of that sounds great but how do you get started? Well the first step is to think about what companies or products you think would most benefit your audience and them seek them out. Many of the large companies with an online presence already participate in affiliate programs, the trick is finding them. Once you have done that, the process is relatively simple. You find the affiliate site they are associated with, sign up and then connect with the company. Often times they will have you fill out a short application for their program and once you are approved they will provide you with the code that you need to place their advertisements on your site. The great news they have done all the design and coding for you already. All you have to do is cut and paste.

Bryan Curry is the author of PodcastingTips.com [http://podcastingtips.com/] an ‘How To’ resource for podcasters. Starting a podcast, website design, making money and search engine optimization are covered on one site. The best part, it’s all free. There is no ebook to buy or subscription membership.

Resource :  http://www.harmenbatubara.com/8-best-ways-to-make-money-with-affiliate-programs/

Make Money Online: How to Make a Living From Affiliate Marketing

Make Money Online: How to Make a Living From Affiliate Marketing

By Larissa Vinci 

Affiliate marketing is one of the most popular ways to make money online. This system gives you the opportunity to earn passive income once you have everything in place. It also allows business owners to reach a wider audience and generate more sales through the word of mouth from the partnership with affiliate marketers. Those who promote affiliate products are only paid when a specific action is performed. Depending on the company, commissions can range from 10 percent to 60 percent. The most successful affiliate marketers earn tens of thousands of dollars a month.

Here are a few strategies to help you succeed in affiliate marketing and make money online:

Identify Your Audience : The best way to use affiliate marketing is to anticipate and meet your customers' needs. The products that you are promoting should offer a solution to their problems. If you have an insurance website, don't put up affiliate banners for discount clothes just because those programs pay well. The people who are reading your articles aren't thinking about fashion when they're on your site.

Create Strong Relationships. Creating lasting relationships with your audience is essential for your online success. It is important to promote products and services that provide value to your customers. It's all about focusing on their needs, over and above your own. If your customers trust you, they will follow your advice and recommendations.

Promote Quality Products. It is much easier to promote a product that you are familiar with than one that you have never tried. Advertise products and services that you can genuinely recommend. Use common sense backed by enthusiasm. Whatever you are selling, it's got to be worth the price. There are millions of products out there, so you need to come up with something that provides value in order to succeed.

Write Product Reviews. Product reviews are responsible for the majority of affiliate sales. Statistics show that nine out of 10 customers read reviews before making a purchase. You can write reviews around the product that you are promoting, or you may choose to frame it around your customers' needs. Describe your products in detail and specify their features, benefits, size, number of pages, shipping details, expected results, and ordering process. Share your personal experiences and thoughts. Create video tutorials to show prospects how to use the product. Make sure you include a call-to-action to tell customers exactly what they should do next.

There are dozens of legitimate ways to make money online from your computer. Like any other business, working from home requires dedication. If you do proper research and familiarize yourself with this type of business, you can easily avoid the most common make money online scams.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Larissa_Vinci

How to Motivate Yourself When Nothing Your Affiliate Is Working Out

How to Motivate Yourself  When Nothing Your Affiliate Is Working Out

By Eve Grant  

Of all the millions of resources out there for Affiliate Marketing newbies, there is not a single resource I found that is focused on motivating the struggling, confused and sometimes dejected affiliate marketing newbies who are ready to give up. That is why I took it on to myself to write this article for you if you need a lift today. One thing that must be clear to you by now is that affiliate marketing is not as easy as they told you. It is a challenging field with lots of competition, a steep learning curve and money hungry sharks lurking at every corner waiting to lure in the next affiliate marketing newbie and make them their prey. That said, affiliate marketing is not a scam, it is real and it is possible for a hardworking, sincere person to make it and make it big.

A big percentage of Affiliate Marketing newbies eventually fail but you should not be one of them. I will tell you why. The ones who failed, did so because they gave up. How will they ever know if they were just one step away from that sale? Will you ever be able to stop thinking about that now? Won't that stop you from giving up? You must understand that even very seasoned marketers need at least 50-100 hops to make one sale. Let us do the math, say you have one article out there and let us assume 100 people read your article. Say your click-through-rate is about 20%, which is good for an affiliate marketing newbie, the you will have 20 people who will end up on your landing page, say 10 of them clicked through to the merchant's page, you have a very slim chance of getting a sale. Now consider you have been here longer and put 9 more articles out there, then you have a good chance of making that sale. Say you have 50 articles out there, you can only imagine.

So what did you learn from the math example. Here are the three things you should get out of it.

One, the more articles you have out there, the closer you are to that sale.

Two, since you are an affiliate marketing newbie and have to do everything on your own with possibly no budget for outsourcing your tasks or helpful software to speed up your work, it will take time to get those 50 articles out there.

Three, you will be doing yourself no good by changing your niche every day. The only way you will get 50 articles out for that one product, is by focusing on that one product till it starts making you money and then move on to another while this one will keep working on auto pilot for a few months at least.

If you think your only motivator can be that sale, then you are setting yourself up for failure. Because as I have illustrated above, it just plain takes time to build a network of articles and in that time, sales are hard to come. So change your motivators. Set goals about what you can do and not the results. You can control your actions not the results. It is only when you put in consistent, quality work out there that the results will start to come.

Every time you think you don't have it in you to go on anymore, take a break, seriously. Just cut yourself loose from the computer, the smart phone, anything that will make you think about affiliate marketing. Clear your mind, detach yourself from the money aspect of it and come back with a fresh approach the next day and tell yourself that all the effort you have put in, deserves another try. Maybe, this is the last blow you need to break through. Think about all the hours you have spent, while your family and friends had to give up on time with you. Think about all the things you are learning and how affiliate marketing is going to teach you so many skills which you can still use even if someday, you don't want to do this anymore.

I really believe that this is something that has the potential to change your life for the better as it has done so from me. It will not only help you improve your living standard but something that an Affiliate Marketing newbie is not thinking of is, it will show you your potential, you will gain a new respect for yourself and feel a sense of accomplishment that no other job can give you. Just hang in there and keep working at it and it will work out.I put up a page on my blog for affiliate marketing newbies with my favorite inspirational videos and other stuff that has helped me over time.

 You can find it at www.affiliatemarketingguidetips.com/motivation-for-affiliate-marketing-newbies [http://www.affiliatemarketingguidetips.com/motivation-for-affiliate-marketing-newbies]

Visit my blog to find a 5 step plan to help affiliate marketing newbies [http://affiliatemarketingguidetips.com] build a successful campaign. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eve_Grant

Wealthy Affiliate & Profit Academy, Build Your Affiliate Business

Wealthy Affiliate & Profit Academy, Build Your Affiliate Business

By harmen batubara

Affiliate  marketing has been going for more than 15 years. There are many programs out there that say they'll help teach you how to make money online. The only problem is a lot of them are very expensive. They also say they make $1,000's using their marketing strategies. The $1,000's they're making though is the money which you spend to get their program. There are many Guru and their Courses, but unfortunately a lot of them failed leaving our pockets even emptier. From my stumbled upon some good programs like Tycoon Cash Flow, Operation Affiliate Domination,  Wealthy Affiliate and Profit Academy. They will all teach you the think about internet marketing, what kind of tool you must have,  how it works, and how to make money. Here's a little bit about the last two programs ( Wealthy Affiliate and Profit Academy), what they offer, and how I rated them. 

Profit Academy. Recommended for-Beginners to Experienced.  What Is Profit Academy?  Ican say It is one of the most comprehensive training programs by Anik. The main course is 12-weeks course where each week you get access to one brand new training session. This isn’t just about 12-weeks step-by-step training instead there are several other learning methods included like webinars, workshops, live events and direct coaching. The question Is?  What you should expect from 12-weeks training program and from the entire Profit Academy course?

Well you should expect a complete business with your own website setup and running successfully by the end of 12th week of training. The course content is based on what Anik personally has learned over years. He shares his personal strategies and methods that he used to grow his business and what he used to make money from the internet. You get access to a proven money making system that has worked not only for Anik himself but for his hundreds of students. So one thing is pretty sure – as soon as you enter the course, you are sure to succeed.

Features of Profit Academy. Profit Academy comes with numerous free as well as paid resources. Whatever you are taught, you are also taught how to do it. The methods and strategies work. You learn money making strategies and secrets that Anik have used personally and the same strategies have been used by lot of his students who are making massive income online.

Entire training is practically applicable. It is not just theory so whatever you learn, you can implement it practically.The training program covers everything from creating a website to driving traffic to outsourcing to making massive income. The author has tried not to leave any stone unturned.

There are a lot of different training methods for instance PDFs, videos, workshops, webinars, live sessions, forum, question and answer session and many others. Not only that members are trained by Anik but there are other several industry experts on board that will be training you. This makes it one of the best courses to make money online. The entire training program is authored by Anik Singal who happens to be a well-known entrepreneur with intensive experience with starting and successfully running internet businesses.

What you should expect from Profit Academy. You will create your own website, landing pages, squeeze pages and other marketing pages. You will get access to builder that will help you create pages on autopilot with extreme ease. You will learn all about email marketing and how to build your own list of subscribers.

Monetizing your website and making money from it. Traffic generation is something that you cannot go without. You will learn all about solo ads, Facebook traffic, paid traffic, SEO, traffic from forums and from kindle publishing.  How to create your own funnel. Everything you need to know to create your own digital product from scratch.By the end of the 12 week training session, you will have your own website and you will be in a position to generate traffic, build your own list and make money from it.

Wealthy Affiliate. Recommended for-Beginners to Experienced. This is a program with literally thousands of members. It's good for any level or type of online marketer because of all the tons of tools, resources, video tutorials, and great support they give for if you have any questions. It is a paradise for any online business owner or affiliate.

Best Quality Training Materials. Wealthy Affiliate University has the best training materials available. They offer more than 500 individual tutorials and two levels of training. Introductory clients should enroll in the 30-Day success club. The club gets you going on making money pronto. Intermediate clients - those with some prior experience - can jump into the 8-Week Action Plan. The Action Plan helps you scale-up your business to a full time operation.

Unbeatable Tech Support. They offer the best tech support on the web. You'll get one on one support whenever you need it. And you'll also have the support of the entire WA community, including the owners, Kyle and Carson.

Great Tools. Wealthy Affiliate offers the best tools around to help your business succeed. Use the Keyword tool to find out what words people are using to search, and then use the Rapid Writer platform and the keyword density tool to incorporate those keywords into great articles that drive traffic to your marketing sites. And there are tons of other tools, including the Site Rubix website builder and the WordPress express tool.

Excellent Contacts. When you're with Wealthy Affiliate, you're not alone. There are hundreds of other website entrepreneurs just like you using WA. They'll help you and you'll help them. You're a team, working together, and you're bound to succeed.

It offers great courses for all marketing strategies like PPC, SEO, Article, Email, Forum, and many others. You have direct e mail contact with the owners Kyle and Carson who are millionaires. They have all sorts of tools like a link cloaker, website builder, clickbank research tool, keyword research tool, rapid writer, and lots more. The greatest part is being able to go to the forum. Here you can leave posts to ask questions you may have or give advice.

There are all sorts of great money making tips in the forum. Some people actually leave videos and show how they make $100-$200 a day. When you start applying all sorts of information like that your almost guaranteed to succeed. The members create a lot of the tutorials on specific topics on internet marketing. So you literally get to hear their marketing strategies on how they became successful and learn tons of new ways to make money.

Which One Should You Buy?  the Profit Academy is not cheap. You are charged $797 for 4 months. When you sign up, you will be charged $797 instantly and then you will be billed $797 every 30 days for next 3 months. Here is a good news. It comes with complete 30 days money back guarantee. Yes, you can ask for full refund within first 30 days of your purchase if you are not satisfied with your purchase. The money back guarantee makes Profit Academy an absolute risk-free investment. 

       

Wealthy Affiliate is a monthly fee $19.00. With Wealthy Affiliate you get even more videos, courses, along with tons of tutorials, resources, tools, 1 on 1 support, and the forum for if you have questions. I would highly recommend you getting Wealthy Affiliate. It will help you learn everything you need to know and answer any questions you might have and make you become a highly successful internet marketer.