How To Start An Affiliate Marketing Business

David Phineas

Affiliate marketing is a huge multinational industry with numerous career prospects for creatives. It’s quickly becoming a popular way for eCommerce and other ventures to promote their business. Let’s review how it works and how you can get started even without any marketing background.

How Affiliate Marketing Works

Affiliate marketing entails promoting other people’s products or services in other to get a commission.

How is work in a few steps

• You put an advertisement or a product link to Store X on your webpage, blog, or social network.
• A consumer clicks on your unique link.
• The customer purchases something from Store X.
• The affiliate network records the transaction.
• Store X confirms the purchase.
• You are compensated with a commission.

The compensation rate varies according to the firm and the offer. You’ll receive about 5% of the purchase on the lower end of the spectrum. Still, you can receive up to 50% with certain agreements, typically when promoting a class or event. Affiliate marketing initiatives pay a flat rate per sale rather than a percentage.

How to Get Started with Affiliate Marketing

1. Find a Niche 

The most significant route to success in affiliate marketing is to specialize in a niche. Here are some of the best niches you should consider:

• Hobbies
• Health
• Lifestyle
• Money
• Technology
• Home
• Alternative

People will not regard you as a professional if you suggest various products from different niches. You have to prove to your audience that you are a specialist or expert in a particular field before they can see you as an authority figure or a reliable marketer. 

2. Choose a Suitable Affiliate Program.

After deciding on a niche, the next step is to select which affiliate program(s) to join. Make sure to pick a program or affiliate product relevant to your niche or brand. If you have a blog or online presence that provide information on sport, you can decide to start an affiliate for a sports brand. 

3. Choose a Platform

Every affiliate marketer has a unique platform and strategy. Therefore, to be a successful affiliate marketer, you need to decide on a platform for your company. For example, while blogger Ryan Robinson has an Instagram account, his primary source of income ($300,000+ per year) comes from his blog. Other affiliates only use Instagram or TikTok to earn affiliate commissions. You can test various channels and choose what works for you.

4. Create Content 

Whatever platform(s) you choose for your affiliate marketing initiatives, the next step is to start creating content that will build trust with your primary audience. 

Content creation takes time, so make a plan and start creating a calendar or approach ahead of time. Your calendar would include descriptions of the types of content you plan to release on any specified day.

5. Build an Audience

Building an email list has proven to be the most effective means of promoting affiliate marketing products.

You can grow your email list by offering potential buyers or visitors freebies in exchange for their email addresses. After collecting their email, you can be engaging them with valuable content and update about your affiliate product and services. Other mediums to promote your affiliate offers include; blogs, PPC Advertising, social media, and partnerships with brands or influencers.

6. FTC Regulations

The FTC protects consumers from misleading marketing techniques. Sadly, some affiliates promote scams and deceptive offerings to maximize profits, which is a shame to the affiliate marketing industry.

To avoid this, the FTC instructs affiliate marketers to reveal any financial relationships they might have with the products and brands they promote. 

The FTC law states that you must inform your audience if you will benefit financially from an offer or not.

Pros and Cons of Affiliate Marketing

Pros

• Easy to scale
• Low risk
• Easy to execute

Cons

• Requires patience
• Commission-based
• No control over the program

Conclusion

Affiliate marketing does not require an initial investment. Following the steps highlighted in this guide can be a low-risk way to begin your affiliate marketing career.