Affiliate Marketing

What is Affiliate Marketing?

At it’s basic level, affiliate marketing is simply a way for the owner(s) of a website to earn a commission by referring sales and/or traffic to an online retailer.

Although the above is a simple, straight-forward explanation, it really doesn’t tell you how it all works.  The purpose of this page is to introduce you to affiliate marketing and help you to see how it can not only supplement, replace, or even exceed your current income streams, but do so passively, so you can earn whether your working, sleeping or on vacation.

Don’t worry about what other people think.  The only opinion that matters is your own.

Do those lines sound familiar?  Sure they do.  What’s missing is context.  If we’re talking about self-esteem or judging your performance in something then, yes, those sayings hold truth (with some exceptions – i.e. your coach’s opinion may have weight if you’re training for the Olympics, etc.).

Now consider those sayings from the perspective of someone doing research before making a purchase.  Are you researching about a car, school for your kids to attend, laptop or tablets?  Chances are you’re looking for reviews, opinions and other information to help you make your decision.  When’s the last time you bought something of consequence (we’re not talking a pizza here)?  Did you do a little research before the purchase?  I’m willing to bet you did.

This is where affiliate marketing comes in.  Companies and individuals recognize the role people and their opinions play in purchase decisions.  Friends, family and  co-workers reach out to each other for opinions every day. “Hey man, how do you like that iPhone XS?  Is it better than your Samsung Galaxy Note 9?”.  Simple, personal opinions carry weight and can influence purchase decisions.

OK, so my opinion matters, but it really only matters to a select few who know me and, even then, only for certain things.  Now what?

Now you leverage your knowledge and passion.  Imagine if you had 1000 people who valued your opinion and trusted your recommendations.  Now imagine if even half of them bought whatever it was you recommended.  Great, company X just made a lot of money.  Now what if company X paid you a commission for your referrals?  That’s what affiliate marketing is all about.

Next, you expand your sphere of influence.  Take your opinions and share them with more than friends and family.  Take your opinions to social media, you own web sites and so on.  As you engage with others you’ll build a rapport and trust level with them.  Your opinion will hold more weight over time as that trust grows.

Companies all over the world have built affiliate programs or distribute through other companies that offer affiliate programs, all willing to pay a small portion of the sale price as a commission for your referral.

Let’s say you just love a Bluetooth speaker that runs about $100 and you recommend it to everyone.  Now let’s say you’d get about $4 for each one sold through your referral link.  If your friends and family each bought one you might have $40 (assuming you have 10 friends and family members).  Not bad, an extra $40 is nice.  Now let’s multiply that to the 1000 people that value your opinion and they’re all in the market for a new portable Bluetooth speaker.  If half of them buy that speaker via your affiliate link that $4 just jumped to $2000 and that was just from one recommendation.

I’m willing to bet that an extra $2000 would be quite welcome.  Now, I’m sure you have opinions about more than just one product.  Do you see where this is going?  Let’s say you now have 10 and the same numbers hold true.  That’s now $20,000.  This is how you can build those income streams.  Better yet, now you’re using social media and have one or more websites that run 24/7.  Those income streams just keep flowing whether you’re at the keyboard or not.

What other benefits does affiliate marketing offer?

For me, the best part of all of this is flexibility and freedom.  All you need is an internet connection and computer or tablet (you can use a phone but a computer is preferred).  This means you can do it at any time (freeing you up for those important events you’d otherwise miss at a regular 9 to 5) and from anywhere (how about from the veranda of your cruise ship or maybe you’d like to stroll down to the beach and put your feet in the sand, pull out your laptop and do a little “work”).  Here’s my list of benefits:

• Time – I can work when I want to work.  No more missing important events.
• Reach – My sphere of influence is the world through the web and social media.
• Passive – My site and links work whether I’m there or not.  Money continues to flow even while I’m asleep.

I’m sure there are more but those are the ones that come to the top of the list.

OK, this makes sense.  How do I go about making it a reality?

First off, this is not a get rich quick scheme.  It requires learning, work and dedication, especially to get it started.  Once established, you can continue to build, full steam ahead or move into a maintenance mode, freeing up time for other endeavors (maybe on the beaches of Tahiti or a boat in the Caribbean).

This page was just about introducing you to affiliate marketing and the potential it holds.  Please check out the What is Wealthy Affiliate? page to learn more about Wealthy Affiliate and the How Does This Program Work? page for more details on how the Wealthy Affiliate training program can help you reach your goals.

What is Wealthy Affiliate? –  A Little Bit About Scott Hinkle… – How Does This Program Work? – Let’s Get Started