Affiliate Marketing Training:
Successful Affiliate Marketing Strategies
By Sarah Jamieson
Affiliate Marketing Training: Successful Affiliate Marketing Strategies: There is, I believe, only one affiliate model that works. Other models that may work are modifications of the model shown below.
For example, you could focus entirely on PPC as a marketing tool. But if you did, you would still need to set up content web pages and social media marketing for your market. These are designed to increase your Google Quality Score and thus lower your PPC costs.
In addition, you MUST set up an email marketing system – otherwise your affiliate business will fail. My affiliate marketing model is very similar to my merchant marketing formula. The major difference is the level and degree of participation. Let’s look at the items involved.
How to Find Profitable Markets
I believe Market Evaluation is very important and is the same as discussed above. See our course on Online Market Research.
Survey Prospects and Customers
You do not need to undertake a full market survey. But as an affiliate you should survey your intended market with just a few questions. See our course on Online Market Research.
Understand Your Market
To be a successful affiliate you need to understand your market and how to market. See: Online Market Research.
Find Affiliate Products
Finding Affiliate Products is relatively easy after you have conducted your Online Market Research. The major merchants should be evident from your research.
Create Themed Sites
Creating themed sites is an excellent way to bring traffic to your eMail opt-ins.
To create your themed sites, social networks, and PPC marketing you will need to complete a Keyword Blueprint for your affiliate business.
Create Educative and Social Relationships
You cannot rely on your merchant to create and deliver educative and relationships with prospects. If you did of course – you’d simply be a referrer and you’ll probably only obtain ONE commission payment – the first reference.
You MUST create your own relationships. This is the only way to becoming a super affiliate. YOU create the relationship with the prospect and then the prospect buys the affiliate product only upon YOUR recommendation.
You must therefore build up a strong relationship where you begin as the prospect’s advocate. Prospects must trust you.
Affiliate Marketing Numbers
Marketing Numbers are essential for affiliate success. To succeed you must continually test test test! The key to exponential eBusiness growth for your affiliate business model is continuously to make small, incremental improvements in performance across multiple areas.
One of the best things about running an eBusiness is its inherent ability to provide a large and useful range of statistics - almost instantaneously. With an affiliate business you can test an idea and obtain a picture of its potential success within hours.
Knowing your numbers gives you the means to constantly improve your affiliate marketing and therefore your profits.
The next image shows the marketing numbers you CAN test as against the Merchant’s sales and marketing numbers which you cannot test.
This is a very large disadvantage for the affiliate business model. The only numbers you can obtain are for your OWN marketing:
You can see that left of the red line you simply cannot know what’s happening with your sales referrals.
Nevertheless, you must measure and test as best you can on the right side of the red line.
Set Up Your Affiliate Business AS a Business
Affiliate marketing success is the result of running your affiliate marketing as a business.
Making money from affiliate links is a great side effect of having a successful website, not a cause of success.
Affiliate marketing is not an easy way to make lots of money overnight.
It's tough to make a profit on the first sale, and if you don't have a backend you are leaving the vast bulk of your potential profits on the table.
You need a clear reason for prospects to visit your site, join your list, buy through your link - and then come back and buy from you again and again.
In other words, you need your own compelling, engaging site that keeps customers coming back. You can't build a business with a one-page site that has nothing to offer.
Just like any business that wants to be around for the long haul, affiliate marketers need three things to be successful:
- A unique selling proposition (USP)
- An email list
- A backend
As an affiliate, you must give prospects a reason to buy through your link - and then come back and spend money with you again and again.
In a sea of cookie-cutter lookalikes, what will make you stand out?
Affiliates need to offer their own content, value, and user experience.
Don't just build your business around the program with the highest commission level!
The best affiliate programs are the ones that will dovetail with an existing passion, hobby, or skill you have.
You need to have an interest in your market because otherwise you'll get bored and give up.
If you want a long-term income from affiliate marketing, you need to keep creating content, marketing, and building relationships with customers.
Look at your passions and skills. What do you love doing? Maybe it's a hobby or even your current job. Whatever your passion is, it's likely there are other people out there who will also be interested in what you love.
Start with what you enjoy and the goal of helping other people and you'll be going in the right direction.
For example, if you love gardening, you can start your own gardening website that provides great content. Gardening-related affiliate links will be a natural fit for your site, but they're not the main attraction for visitors - your content is.
Content is the value you provide that will help you achieve search engine rankings, attract social media followers, and build an email list of loyal subscribers.
Next, create your own products or services to sell - you'll be offering something truly unique and more profitable!
Let's recap - these are the building blocks of affiliate success:
- You need your own website or blog with your own content.
- Create your site around a topic you're really interested in, not just whatever product has the highest commission.
- Offer a great user experience and quality content - that's what will attract visitors and keep them coming back.
- You must build an email list. This allows you to follow up with visitors and deepen the relationship.
- Don't rely totally on affiliate programs. Create your own products and services using all the market research insights your affiliate programs have given you.
Affiliate Marketing Training > Do Affiliate Marketing Programs Work? > What is Affiliate Marketing? > How to Find the Best Affiliate Programs > Affiliate Marketing for Beginners > Affiliate Marketing Pitfalls > Successful Affiliate Marketing Strategies.
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