To monetize your website and generate passive income, there is a well-known method: affiliation . If it is quite simple to set up, it still requires a long reflection beforehand. Indeed, your remuneration will depend on the products/services selected and your ability to promote them.
80% of brands use affiliate marketing to generate leads. An excellent strategy since it generates 15 to 30% of sales.
Right now the average affiliate marketing conversion rate is between 0.5-1%. Even if it fluctuates according to the sectors of activity… and your commercial performance! Whether you are below, above or average, there are always solutions to evolve.
To help you get started in affiliation and convert on your campaigns, here is a short guide that lays the foundations of affiliation marketing .
What is Affiliate?
The concept of affiliation is simple: you contribute to the sale of a company's product or service and, in exchange, you receive a commission.
This method allows brands to increase their sales by relying on a network of affiliates. For their part, they can earn money and make their blog or site profitable.
Compensation level, you will find everything: from 4% to 90%. It basically depends on the nature of the product and its price.
5 things to know before getting into affiliate marketing
Are you convinced by affiliate marketing ? Do you want to make it your business model?
This method, which is easy to implement, still requires the development of an effective communication strategy, an analysis of the repercussions and constant questioning.
Focus on 5 things to know before launching your affiliate business!
1. Choose the right products
To make a living with affiliate marketing, you need to choose products or services with high demand and, if possible, little competition.
This first element will be decisive for your success or failure rate. However, in order for your audience to trust you and follow your recommendations, you should only recommend products that you have used and verified yourself.
Look around you: what are the objects or services that you use regularly, which deserve your recommendation? The more specific the good, the better!
2. Master web marketing
A blog and an active presence on social networks remain the best techniques for making your products/services known to your prospects. To this end, you must master content marketing and community management codes. If this is not the case, you can always train yourself or delegate this part to an external service provider .
Regularly write articles about your affiliate products and provide advice on how to use them. Finally, never forget to share the reasons why you personally approve of the product.
Essential, email marketing will also allow you to publicize your affiliate services and increase your sales. Think about setting up automated emails that will lead the prospect to turn into a customer.
Last technique, and not least, respect SEO best practices! To earn money with affiliation, start investing in paid referencing, without forgetting to work on natural referencing in parallel. Again, if you need guidance, hire a professional SEO .
3. Be 100% honest
Provide accurate information about the products you promote, in order to convince your readers to buy them.
However, never exaggerate the benefits of the good or service to make a quick sale. Potential customers may doubt! And if they give in to your wonderful pitch and the promises don't live up to their expectations, they'll never trust you again.
Very important point: be transparent about your relationship with the merchant ! It is legally required that you disclose your affiliate relationship. So every time you share an affiliate link, you need to notify your audience.
4. Anticipate the competition
Affiliate marketing has become a very popular way of earning money with bloggers and web entrepreneurs, because of its profit margins. Therefore, the competition is fierce!
To establish yourself in this market:
- Select a niche market
- Run creative campaigns
- Test several programs
- Offer content with high added value by conveying your passion to your audience
- Humanize your business
5. Compare commission rates
Before choosing your affiliate program, compare the commission rates of the sellers. For example, if you want to sell books, you can choose between Amazon, Cultura, Fnac…
But which one offers the best remuneration? Make sure you have checked out the affiliate platforms and companies to choose the most interesting commission.
Also remember to check that the chosen program is available in your country!
How to succeed in affiliate marketing?
1. Find a niche topic
Getting into affiliate marketing is a thoughtful act. Like an entrepreneur who launches his project, you must ensure the viability of your market.
The products or services sold must have buyers and, if possible, few sellers. In other words: go to a niche market! Avoid general sectors to target a very specific need.
Have an idea come to you? Good. It's time to check its relevance:
- Do a search on Google to check if there are already affiliates advertising it and more importantly, how many there are.
- Request sales statistics for the product/service from the company.
- Assess the market for this product/service on marketplaces : Amazon, PriceMinister, RueDuCommerce, La Redoute, etc. If there are multiple sellers, there are buyers. Good news for your project!
- Look for reviews of the product/service, to ensure that it satisfies consumers. If necessary, avoid promoting it, you risk tarnishing your image.
2. Register on affiliate platforms
If you have found your product or service, all you have to do is register on the platform that offers the program. Generally, you will find it on the company's or brand's website.
However, if you need inspiration, then do not hesitate to consult the various existing affiliation platforms : Affilia, NetAffiliation, Effiliation, AffiliNet, Affiliaweb, etc. Note that Amazon also offers its “Partners Club”, valid for its entire catalog!
3. Promote the selected product/service
To get paid, you have to sell. So here we go, sharpen your communication tools!
If the most popular channel to promote affiliate links is the blog, other avenues remain to be explored.
You can, for example, promote your affiliate links via social networks or in your emailing campaigns. The key is to use the best marketing practices in force to make Internet users want to visit the site and make a purchase.
4. Create a blog dedicated to the product
We have just mentioned it, a blog dedicated to the product and its universe remains an idea way to promote your affiliate links. So remember to create your blog quickly!
If you don't know how to proceed, you can find a freelancer available immediately to create your blog on Qined.com .
If you already have a blog, great. You just need to add:
- Advertising inserts and banners, offered by your brand new partner, on the home page;
- Eye -catching pop-ups ;
- A landing page per product that encourages conversion;
- Call-to-action on your blog posts.
Also, consider highlighting the product or service in your articles, citing it as an example. Of course, remember to link to your landing page or the advertiser's site.
5. Add links on thank you pages
The thank you page, following a download or a subscription, is a powerful place to promote your affiliate offers. Think about the steps a prospect needs to take to get to the latter:
- Enter the email in the form
- Click the link in the inbox
- Download content
- And finally reach the thank you page
At this point, your leads are highly qualified . This is the perfect time to offer them a product or service that meets the needs identified by the downloaded content.
Give them the impression that they can get a lot of extra value if they also buy your offer. You can, for example, add a customer testimonial just before the affiliate link. Social proof is often a conversion driver.
6. Automate promotional emails
Instead of sending the same series of emails to new subscribers to your mailing list, create separate sequences based on their expressed interests. You will surely need to add a line to your form to better understand their objectives, aspirations or needs.
The objective is to segment these newcomers, to offer them THE affiliate product that meets their expectations. Then, launch an automated campaign that focuses on promoting (direct and indirect) that product. This will support the prospect more effectively in his purchase thinking and help boost conversions.
7. Produce white papers around your affiliate products
White papers , but also checklists or workbooks, allow you to develop an important subject for your prospects. You can clearly explain the benefits of the affiliate product or service, which increases the chances of conversion.
Of course, for this technique to work, you must first think about the practical value of the content. Avoid overselling the product throughout the white paper, but instead deal with the general problem of the prospect.
For example, if you want to sell a project management tool , write a white paper on “best practices for managing a project from A to Z”. You will be able, at the end, to talk about the importance of an intuitive and collaborative software to fulfill this mission.
8. Insert affiliate links in top pages
Leverage your best content to optimize the performance of your affiliate links!
Go to Google Analytics to identify the pages that receive the most traffic. Then select the ones that may include affiliate links.
You may have to rewrite some of the content to fit them naturally, but it will help you maximize your sales in the medium term.
9. Use deep linking
Are you getting clicks, but no sales? You may need to review the way you distribute your links. If you want to sell, the most effective is to put a link to the sheet or sales page. If you send visitors to the homepage, it takes extra effort for them to access product or service information.
Hence the importance of segmenting your content by offer, rather than talking about a brand or a range, in general. In addition to being more effective with prospects, this technique allows you to integrate deep links and therefore boost your affiliate sales.
10. Create a resource page
One of the effective ways to increase conversions is to create a resource page. On the latter, list advice, guides, demonstrations and bestsellers to make the best use of affiliated products or services. You will surely be able to pick up items on the brand's website!
By showing prospects how offers work, how to use products, or how easy tools are to use, you increase your chances of conversion. Potential customers will be able to project themselves better and know directly whether the products / services offered correspond to their needs.
11. Think About Other Methods of Affiliate Promotion
Among the other methods of promotion, also bet on:
Social networks
Google Ads
Social Media Ads
The forums
If the market is correctly selected and your communication reaches a targeted audience, you should quickly earn your first commissions!
Conclusion
Affiliate marketing follows the same rules as "classic" online sales. If you want to increase your conversions, avoid trying to sell at all costs. Distribute useful content and help your prospects progress through the purchase funnel . This is the key to increasing your conversions!
Need help managing your affiliate campaigns, creating your landing pages or your emailings? Find a freelancer quickly by posting your free project on Qined.com !
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