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First affiliate program
Since Amazon launched what is perhaps the best known affiliate program, but not the first, in 1996, other merchants in every imaginable business category have followed suit. And although many webmasters have earned money with these programs since then, there are still many questions about affiliate programs (also known as associates or referrals). So, maybe it's time to revisit some basic concepts for new or future Internet marketers.
An affiliate program is, in the end, a commissioned sales job. Like the former Fuller Brush seller, you are an independent representative of a company and offer your products or services to potential customers. When one of them buys, you get a percentage of the sale. But, in the high-tech version, it has some very powerful advantages over the classic door-to-door sales representative.
To start, you can represent multiple products from more than one company at a time, on as many websites as yours, in all the markets you choose. You don't have to travel anywhere, however, the web places you in front of a world market. This gives you an incredible diversity of products, markets and "neighborhoods" to sell, all right in front of your computer screen. You could possibly make multiple sales at the same time, however, you will never have to deal with slamming rejection. On the Internet, you don't always have to make a sale to earn a commission. Some affiliate programs will pay you if someone simply clicks on a link on your site, completes an application or even requests more information. And this is the best part: their websites work for you 24 hours a day, every day.
Commission rates vary according to the type of product. Physical products (which must be sent) tend to pay lower rates than products such as software or e-books that can be delivered digitally. However, 5% of a $ 2000 television is more than 50% of a $ 50 ebook, so remember to look at the big picture when deciding which affiliate products to offer. To get the best affiliate sales results, you will want to offer products and services designed to attract the target audience of your website. For example, it makes no sense to place affiliate links to mechanics' tools on a kitchen site, while it makes a lot of sense to place them on a car restoration site.
There are several ways to join affiliate programs. Some companies operate their own program, and you will apply through the company's website. These third party companies offer registration, tracking, payment and general administration services of the affiliate program to affiliated merchants and vendors. Some important names are Commission Junction, LinkShare and Clickbank. Simply search for "affiliate program" or "affiliate network" and you will surely find more.
Your sales and clicks are tracked by software. It is your responsibility to ensure that your links follow the guidelines established by your merchant or affiliate network. Some browsers, ad blocking software, link concealrs and coding techniques (such as frames) can prevent tracking links on your site from working properly, and you may not get credit if one of your clicks leads to a sale. Most affiliated marketers sooner or later encounter this, and when it happens, it is not intentional, so do not feel victimized. The technology is very good, but it is not perfect.
For almost all Internet marketers, affiliate marketing offers a quick and economical way to get started in an online business. These programs can help you generate income while learning the ropes and working to develop your own product or service, if that is your goal. And yes, you can even become a member of Fuller Brush Company!
