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It wasn't very long ago when the word
"affiliate" left a bad taste in many a mouth. The reason was that the larger
percent were Multi-Level-Marketing programs that had products or services of
little value, but emphasized the way to the big bucks was in generating a
downline. Reaching a large number of people without getting too involved was
the pattern. It was referred to as the "some will, some won't, so what"
approach. The gizmo, or product was not the object of your ads or your
marketing.
Today, if you are new to the Internet and you
want to start an online business but you don't have a product, a web site,
or an idea of how to begin --- then listen up because things are not as bad
as they used to be when we speak of "affiliates".
Begin by joining an already established
company to start a small but steady income. Since most Affiliate programs
are free to join, you need only to read their Terms and Conditions (carefully),
and agree to them. They will welcome you with open arms, give you a webpage
with your own ID on it, and frequently offer you professionally worded ads
that you can post, again mostly free.
Without spending a single dime, you are
already in business. But let's put a speed-bump here to caution you in your
"selection" of what you choose to attach your name to. You won't earn
trust with a worthless product or a company that ignores customer
complaints. So here we go!
Why do they "welcome you with open arms"?
Because they too make a profit without spending a dime - you are their
profit source, you will advertise their program or their product, and they
will pay you in one of several ways for your efforts. Let's examine these
ways:
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Pay per sale - either a set amount,
or a percentage of each sale that you make.
-
Pay per impression - if you have a
high-traffic site (in our example, you do not), they will pay you a few
cents for every visitor to that site that sees their banner or link.
-
Pay per click - for every visitor
that clicks on their banner or link, you are paid a bit higher than the
"impression" rate.
-
Pay per lead - this does not pay as
much as a "sale", but by filling out a form, your visitor has given the
program owner an email address. This is a valuable "lead", and they will
pay you to gather them.
How much does the company pay their
affiliates and is it a flat rate or percentage?
Another useful indicator to your future
profits is the importance of "levels" or "tiers" any affiliate program
provides. Some are two or three tiers, others may go up to ten. This means
that if your refer another affiliate to their program, you will earn a
commission on the sales they make. Two tier is the minimum in order
to make a "residual income".
A replicated website, or duplicate website
with your identification on it, is vital. When someone buys the product from
this web page the program owner will know that you made the sale and where
to send your money.
Hopefully, your choice of Programs will pay
you a commission on all future purchases that your referrals make as well as
a portion of their monthly payments that are collected from some
sales. State-of-the-Art affiliate programs have well-tracked identifications
of their affiliates. After all, you are their bread & butter.
The advantages of beginning with an Affiliate
Program to generate your first few dollars online, are many but suffice to
say you do not have to buy their product, and you don't have to ship them to
any of your customers. Your full time attention need only be directed at
getting traffic, traffic, traffic to your replicated website.
Once you have made your selection, market the
"product or service" for the purpose of a sale (and thus a commission) but
tack on, almost as a PS, that "affiliate positions are lucrative". If the
product or service they buy is praiseworthy, they will join as a free
affiliate themselves. Now you have doubled your income with a single ad.
© 2004 Esther Smith
About
the Author: Smith has published numerous articles and writes a blog for
all artists:
http://the-self-taught-artist.com/blog.html
She also coaches new students on how to leave the time-for-money trap and set up
Leveraged Income for life.
http://thepermanentventure.com/dcc.htm If you can’t sing or ride a
bull, you better learn how to make your money work for more money. |