Affiliate Marketing: Strategies for Success

Anyone looking to supplement their income online has likely heard the term “affiliate marketing.” Although forms of affiliate marketing have existed for decades, the practice experienced a meteoric rise with the dawn of e-commerce. Why?

Savvy affiliates could now advertise their favorite products to customers around the world.

With the affiliate marketing platform market expected to be worth $36.8 billion by 2030, now is the perfect time to capitalize on this rising trend*. Whether you have an existing platform that you want to leverage to boost your income or are looking to start affiliate marketing from scratch, exploring affiliate marketing strategies can help you optimize your success.

What is affiliate marketing?

To start, what is affiliate marketing exactly?

Affiliate marketing is a promotional strategy in which a third party, known as an affiliate, advertises a company’s products and earns a commission from any purchases resulting from their referrals. It’s essentially an advanced referral system that rewards a company’s customers for spreading the word about their products and convincing others to give them a try.

As an affiliate for a company, you make money anytime someone purchases a product through your referral link, uses your personalized code, or makes a purchase through your affiliate storefront. Payments are typically made based on conversions, ensuring you earn when your referrals lead to completed sales.

Although most modern affiliate marketing takes place online, the basic idea has existed offline for decades. For instance, many companies offer rewards like discounts or coupons to customers who make referrals. In the ‘90s, entrepreneur William J. Tobin launched the first version of affiliate marketing as we know it by creating the first-ever affiliate network**. In exchange for allowing his company to advertise on third-party websites, he would offer the site owners a portion of the money he made off of those ads.

Soon, other websites started offering affiliates commission pay on every purchase that was linked back to their referral. Most companies only offer payment for conversions, meaning you earn commissions when someone completes a purchase through your referral link, uses your personalized code, or buys a product through your affiliate storefront. Today, many companies have advanced affiliate programs that allow people to make money by increasing traffic to their sites.

Affiliate marketing is an appealing prospect for many entrepreneurs because it can provide you with the opportunity to generate passive income. Once you create content promoting your affiliate products,you can earn money when someone completes a purchase through your link or uses your promotional code during checkout.

As such, you can turn affiliate marketing into a full-on business endeavor or use it to supplement other income streams as a content creator, influencer, or digital marketer.

Key strategies for affiliate marketing success

Like any marketing initiative, successful affiliate marketing requires a strategic approach. Although the internet provides you with limitless opportunities to connect with an audience and share your link, it can be challenging to stand out in a sea of other content creators and affiliate marketers.

By implementing these best practices, you can develop a solid foundation for your affiliate marketing efforts:

Mapping products to your audience

Making money from affiliate marketing and creating a passive income stream hinges on aligning the products you promote with the needs of your audience. If you already have an existing audience, choose products that match their interests and needs. When your audience has a genuine interest in the products you’re advertising, they’ll be more likely to follow through with a purchase.

While it can be helpful to find and promote trending items, it’s also important to have a strong focus on your niche to bring in consistent income. With this strategy, your audience can enjoy a curated experience and explore highly relevant products on your website or blog, rather than sifting through a list of random items.

When picking out affiliate products, start by looking for options that relate to your existing niche. For example, if your content focuses on beauty, makeup and skincare products would be a natural choice for your affiliate promotions. If you’re just starting out as an affiliate marketer, you can also brainstorm ideas for your niche based on your interests and areas of expertise. Look at what types of products other people within your niche promote, and assess their audience’s reaction to those products.

Keep in mind that there are several affiliate marketing platforms that allow you to work with brands and pick out which products you want to promote. Popular platforms include:

• Impact
• ShareASale
• Amazon Associates

Try searching by category to explore available options that are still relevant to your branding and content. You can also start by applying to affiliate programs of brands that create products you already use. Brands typically have an application process for affiliates, which might look like this:

• Research the brand: Identify brands that align with your niche and products you genuinely use and love.
• Visit their website: Look for an “Affiliate Program” or “Partner with Us” section, usually found in the footer or main menu.
• Fill out the application form: Provide your personal information, website or social media links, and details about your audience.
• Explain your experience and enthusiasm: In the application, explain why you love their products and how you plan to promote them.
• Submit the application: Complete and submit the form for review.
• Wait for approval: Brands will review your application and notify you if you are accepted into their affiliate program.
• Start promoting: Once approved, you will receive affiliate links and resources to start promoting their products.

Refine your product portfolio

Once you start promoting products as an affiliate, pay careful attention to which types of products generate the most interest—and, as a result, generate the most income. Alongside your initial audience research, tracking the performance of your affiliate links can help you improve your understanding of your audience’s interests.

You may be surprised to see that your audience has a strong preference for certain brands or product categories. So, use your affiliate analytics to refine your product portfolio and ensure that you get the greatest impact from each product you feature.

Build trust with your audience

One of the main benefits of influencer marketing and affiliate marketing is the focus on authenticity. Many people prefer making purchases based on recommendations from their favorite creators simply because they trust their opinions. Some example affiliate sites that effectively build trust with their audiences include:

• Wirecutter: Known for its in-depth reviews and trusted product recommendations.
• Smart Passive Income: Offers detailed guides and personal insights on affiliate marketing and product choices.
• TechRadar: Provides comprehensive reviews and buying guides for tech products.

However, to maintain this trust with your audience, it’s important to thoroughly vet each product you promote. Research the brands you work with, and test out the products on your own to ensure that your promotional content is honest, accurate, and above all, authentic. Promoting low-quality products can discourage your audience from clicking your affiliate links in the future, or following your content altogether.

It can also be helpful to establish your expertise whenever you promote affiliate links. For example, someone may be more likely to purchase a skincare product if they get a recommendation from a dermatologist. Remember to disclose that you may earn a commission from the affiliate links, as this is required and helps maintain transparency with your audience.

Tools for effective affiliate marketing

Modern affiliate marketing requires you to leverage online tools to connect with a wider audience—namely, your website and social media platforms. Having a strong online presence is a critical step in gaining exposure for your links. By advertising your links on social media or consolidating them on your website, you can develop an online presence with a wide reach throughout your niche.

But successful affiliate marketers don’t just share links and hope that their target audience finds them; they create content to promote their storefront or specific affiliate products. By creating a website to house this content, you can start developing a cohesive digital identity and building a reputation as a trusted resource for product recommendations. Incorporate affiliate links into blog posts, vlogs, and other digital content to use your site as an effective promotional vehicle.

Even if you primarily create content on social media, you can still leverage your website as a hub for your various affiliate links. This approach not only centralizes your affiliate content but also allows you to be found in organic search results, expanding your reach and potential earnings. Additionally, by using a memorable URL or a link-in-bio tool, you can easily guide viewers to these relevant affiliate links.

Fortunately, with Name.com’s website building tools, you can develop an affiliate website quickly and easily. Get started with Wix to house your featured links, or set up a more advanced website through a website builder such as Wix. With the intuitive Wix platform, you can effortlessly personalize your affiliate site and streamline your digital presence.

Learning from success stories

Affiliate marketing has provided content creators and website builders with a powerful avenue for generating income. In fact, many people have been able to supplement their income with an affiliate marketing side hustle or even turn it into a full-time business. The journeys of successful affiliate marketers can provide you with valuable insights into your own marketing strategy as you grow your affiliate site.
For example, one affiliate marketer was able to net thousands a month by creating sites within microniches, such as DogFoodInsider.com and CatFoodInsider.com***. The powerful SEO value and authoritative domains of these sites helped him attract a motivated audience actively looking for the products he had to offer. By diversifying his affiliate marketing attempts with multiple highly specific sites, he was able to scale his business and promote more products while still remaining true to the interests and the needs of his audience.

Another blogger, Michelle Schroeder-Gardner, leveraged her knowledge of personal finance to build a thriving financial advice blog. Affiliate marketing was a perfect match for her blog because she provided genuine value for her readers through relatable, digestible posts on topics related to money and financial freedom. She was able to cultivate a dedicated audience that viewed her as an authority, making her endorsement of her affiliate products more meaningful. And, by using her site as a way to share her affiliate links, she was able to turn her blog into a full-time source of income.
Kickstart your affiliate career with Name.com

Affiliate marketing gives you the opportunity to further monetize the content you share online while promoting items that align with your brand message and values. By finding your content niche and sharing relevant products, you can passively earn commission and diversify your digital income streams—and Name.com can help. Join the Name.com affiliate program to start earning today.

Name.com’s website builder tools—such as Wix, our One-Page Website Builder, and the domain name search tool—make it fast, easy, and convenient to set up your affiliate marketing page with a unique and memorable domain name that accurately reflects your brand. You can even use Titan Email to create a professional email address and effectively manage your brand communications—all on the same Name.com platform.

Set up an affiliate hub with a custom Name.com site, and launch your affiliate marketing strategy today.

Sources:

* Verified Market Research. Global Affiliate Marketing Platform Market Size By Type of Platform, By Pricing Model, By Target Market, By Geographic Scope And Forecast.  https://www.verifiedmarketresearch.com/product/affiliate-marketing-platform-market/ 

** Commission Academy. How & When Did Affiliate Marketing Start: A Brief History. https://commission.academy/blog/when-did-affiliate-marketing-start/

*** Affiliate Marketer Training. About Mike & His Affiliate Marketing Success Story. https://www.affiliatemarketertraining.com/about/

**** Forbes. This Blogger Earns Over $1 Million Per Year While Sailing a Luxury Sailboat. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jrose/2019/05/09/this-blogger-earns-over-1-million-per-year-while-sailing-a-luxury-sailboat/?sh=39381fd840de