What Is Affiliate Marketing? A 2023 Guide to Getting Started (2024)

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This complete guide will walk you throughthestepstomakemoneywithaffiliatemarketingandgiveyouonline marketing tips and tricksthatwillhelp youmakemore money.

Smart entrepreneurswhorunsuccessfulbusinessesknowthereisalwayssomethingthey can do tohelptheirbusinesses grow. One ofhiswaystotakethings to the next level istofindanothersourceofincome.

Whatis affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing istheprocessbywhichapublisherearnsa commission by promotinganotherretailer’soradvertiser’sproductsorservicesthroughan affiliate link.Affiliatepartnersreceivepaymentfordeliveringspecificresultstoretailersoradvertisers.The result isusuallya sale.However,some affiliate marketing programsmayreward leads,freetrialusers,websiteclicks,orappdownloads.

Most affiliate programs aregenerallyfree to join, so you don’t have to worry about highinitialcosts.Withtherighteffective affiliate marketingstrategy,youcanturnyourside hustleintoaprofitable online business ideaandearna healthyincome.Thisishowaffiliate marketing works.

Affiliate marketing involvesendorsinga product or service by sharing it onyourblog, social media platform, podcast, or website.Affiliatesearna commission each time someone makes a purchase through the unique affiliate link associated withyourreferral.

Forexample:

DisplayStore Aadsorlinkson your website, blog, or social network.

A customer clicksonyour unique affiliate link.

AcustomerisshoppingatstoreA.

The affiliate network records the transaction.

The purchase is confirmed bystoreA. Youreceivea monetary commission.

Affiliatesalescommissionrates varybycompany andoffering.On the low end,youcangetabout 5% of the sale, butyoucangetupto50%with somedeals,usually when promotingcoursesandevents.Someaffiliate marketing programsoffera flatfeeper sale instead of a percentage.

Types of affiliate marketing

Affiliatesarealways a bit ofamystery.Wedon’tknow if the person hasactuallyused the product or ifthey’rejustadvertisingit formoney. Bothcases still exist today.

In2009,renowned affiliate marketer Pat Flynndividedthe different types of affiliate marketers into three groups. Understanding these types of affiliate marketingwillallowyoutoseethe different ways people in thisfieldaremakingmoneyonline,regardless of moralhecompass.

Independentaffiliate marketing

The first type of affiliate marketing iscalled“loose”.Orifyoudon’thave authority in the niche of the product you’repromoting.There is norelationshipbetween you and the customer.Theyoftenuseaffiliatelinkstorunpay-per-click advertising campaignsinhopesthatpeople will clickonittobuyaproductand earn a commission.

Independentaffiliate marketing is attractive becauseitishassle-free.Affiliate marketingcompaniesrely ontheirreputation and trust withtheirtarget audienceontheInternet.Some affiliate marketers don’t have the time or desire to buildtheserelationships, so this type of marketing isthebest option.“Freelanceaffiliate marketing isn’treallya business model, it’s for people who just want tomakemoney,”explains Elise Dopson, founder of Sprocker Lovers.“OurfocusatSprocker Lovers istofirstbuildacommunity andprovidefree educationinaspecificniche,in our caseshe’saSprockerSpanieldog breed, andthensell.”

Related affiliate marketing

Related affiliate marketing isawaytopromoteproducts and servicesthatyou don’t use but are related to your niche.Inthiscase,affiliatemarketershaveanaudiencethroughblogs,YouTube, TikTok, orotherchannels.ConnectedAffiliateMarketersarealsoinfluentialandcanbea trusted source forproductendorsem*nts,even iftheyhavenever usedtheproduct.

Connectedaffiliate marketing can generate more affiliate incomebutatthe risk of promoting something you’ve never tried before. Itmaybe the worst product or service ever,butyou wouldn’tknowit. Ittakes one bad recommendation to lose the trust of your audience.Withouttrust and transparency,buildinga sustainable affiliate marketingbusinessisdifficult.

AffiliateMarketingInvolvement

Engagedaffiliate marketingmeansonly recommending products and servicesthataffiliatemarketersactuallyuseand trulybelievein. “Involved affiliate marketing is the waytothefuture,”says Elise. “It’s rooted in trust and authenticity, which is best for your audience and business.”

In this type of marketing, an affiliate marketer uses his or her influence to promote products and services that followers may actually need, instead of paying to get clicks on a banner ad. It takes more time to build this type of credibility with an audience, but it’s necessary for building a sustainable business.

Elise explains that the involved approach makes advertising much easier for affiliate marketing partners. “You don’t have to hide behind expensive PPC ads and hope for clicks and sales. An organic Instagram Story or blog post about your experience with a product will go a long way.” Elise prefers this method because it’s honest and is “the only genuine way to become a trusted source on any topic.”

Involved affiliate marketing is the only genuine way to become a trusted source on any topic. Says Elise Dopson,Founderof Sprocker Lovers.

Pros andConsofAffiliateMarketing

Yes,it’sworth it, giventhegrowingpopularityofaffiliatemarketing.Statistic estimatesthatthe affiliate marketing industry will be worth $8.2 billion by 2022, up from $5.4 billion in 2017.

Herearefivecommon ways affiliates getpaid:

Pay-per-salewhere you earn a commissiononeverysale.Thisisa commonpaymentmodel for e-commerce offers.

Apay-per-actionwhereyoureceivea commission forcertainactions.Many affiliate programs use thispaymentmodel.

Newslettersign-ups,clicks,contactrequests,formsubmissions,etc.

PayPerInstall.Youpayforeachinstall generatedbyyour website traffic.

The goal ofthecontentisto promote mobile apps and software so that peoplecandownload or install them.

PayPerRead.Itpays you every time someone signs up for something.

Thisisa popularpaymentmethodasbusinessesuse it for sweepstakes, lead generation, and other types of offers. Cost-per-lead offers are common for beginners because it’s easier to generate leads than to sell products tocustomers.

PayPerClickis a rare payout systemthatearnsacommission everytimeyour affiliatelinkisclicked.Pay-per-clickprograms are used bylargeretailerstoincreasebrand awareness. Customers don’t need to sign up or buy anything,theyjust visit theretailer’swebsite.

How much youearndepends on your affiliate niche. For example, the research found thatbusiness-relatedprogramshadthe highest average commission rate($70.99).Thebook,media,andapparelcategories,ontheotherhand,madejust over $6 per commission. Thehighestaverage commission we found was around $289.06 per sale.