Chapter 4: Getting Started With Affiliate Marketing
Now you know what affiliate marketing is and how it works. If you think this may be something that will work for you, here are the basic steps you need to do to get started:
• Choose the right niche—When you’re ready to create your affiliate website, you need to decide the type of product you want to promote on the site. If you plan to place them on your blog, you’ll want to think of products that are related to the subject matter of the blog. Remember, you’re not stuck with this product. If it doesn’t sell, you can drop it. Choosing a well-paying product that will benefit your audience is the goal.
• Selecting the right affiliate program—You need to research and find businesses that offer you a commission-sharing program that is profitable. High commissions don’t necessarily mean it’s something you want to sell. The products need to be quality products that fit into your niche.
• Planning the right strategy—The right promotional strategy is important. You need to define your target market. Knowing who your customers are and what they’re interested in will make it easier for you to develop topics and discussions that will attract them and bring traffic to your site. You’ll want to be creative when you place your affiliate links. This will make your visitors be tempted to want to know more.
The more traffic you can bring to your site the better. To make a substantial amount of money, it is best to have a site that has at least 500 visitors a day. Traffic, however, is not all you need.
You can have all the traffic you could ever want, but if they don’t click the merchant’s link, it means nothing. You have to entice them to click that link.