Whether you’re thinking about getting into affiliate marketing or you’ve only just heard of it and are wondering what all of the fuss is about, then you’ve come to the right place. Over the course of the next few articles we’re going to be looking at the key concepts behind affiliate marketing and seeing how they work. Affiliate marketing isn’t for everyone and that’s why we’re here to help you decide whether or not it’s right for you!
What is Affiliate Marketing?
In its broadest sense, affiliate marketing is all about making sales online but it’s a little bit more complicated than that. Affiliate marketing can be broken down into 3 main parts:
- Affiliates: People who drive sales by linking customers to products and services.
- Affiliate Programs: These are where affiliates can get offers and products to promote.
- Affiliate Networks: Networks provide affiliates with sales tracking, payment platforms which are linked to affiliate programs. Converting Team is a little different as we make it easier by providing our own programs! ;)
Therefore, in a nutshell, affiliate marketing, at least from the affiliate side of things, is about creating campaigns which will lead customers to products and offers. Affiliates then get a commission for every product/offer which has been purchased by a customer using their link. Sounds easy right? Well, in theory it is, but in reality it can be a bit tricky.
Are you a risk taker?
The first question to ask yourself before you even consider getting into affiliate marketing is, ‘am I a risk taker?’ If the answer is no then affiliate marketing isn’t for you. Why? Because it really is high risk and it doesn’t always pay off. It’s also not a quick fix way to make money, despite what a lot of people online will tell you.
Happen you’ve seen courses online that tell you that they can teach you everything you need to know about affiliate marketing for the low low price of $5000! Which, when compared to the returns they offer, may actually seem good value. Guess what…they are affiliates and they want to make money too. That is perhaps one of the key issues for people trying to enter the industry to begin with. They need to get through a lot of marketing to get to the heart of the matter. If you’re here, however, then you’ve finally managed to get some honest advice.
Aha! How do you know it’s honest? After all, in your eyes, we’re an affiliate network and we just want to get our hands on you so we can make more money! See, it’s a vicious cycle and the truth is you can’t know that we aren’t pulling the same tricks, however strongly we may try to prove otherwise.
Down to Business
It’s true, we do want to make money, but that can only happen if our affiliates make money. You see, affiliate marketing isn’t just about giving all of your income to someone who promises to make you rich. It’s business, pure and simple, and anyone wanting to start up in the industry has to remember that if they want to be successful.
The biggest risk for affiliates is that it costs money to make and run campaigns. The point of success only comes when the profit made from a campaign outweighs the money spent to implement it, but you will potentially have to run a lot of campaigns before that can happen. Therefore, if you are thinking of starting out as an affiliate, make sure, as with any business, that you have enough capital. This amount should be in the region of a few thousand dollars but the more the better.
A few thousand dollars!!! Yep, you can see why a lot of people get put off straight-away! Plus, when you mention this it sounds like another dodgy sales pitch. Unfortunately, affiliate marketing isn’t free and if you pay for an expensive course you’ll still need capital to get started so really, you’re just paying double what you have to.
‘But Why?’ Campaigns aren’t cheap, especially if it takes you a long time to get it right. Don’t worry though, in our next article, we’re going to give you a breakdown of everything you need to get started. We’ll also be looking at some of the costs involved, so stay tuned!