Are you interested in earning more money as an affiliate marketer? If so, you’re in the right place!
Affiliate marketing has grown in popularity over the last several years. Essentially, this strategy involves promoting products and services you think your customers will love. You then earn a monetary kickback if a visitor clicks a link on your site and makes a purchase on a partner website.
If done right, affiliate marketing can quickly evolve from a side hustle to a full-fledged career. As you find more partners and connect with your target audience, you’ll find countless products and services that could benefit your readers.
Research shows brand leaders are invested in using affiliate marketing to grow their businesses. In fact, nearly 80% of online companies have an affiliate program. I believe this is tied to the fact that affiliate sales account for 15-30% of a brand’s total revenue.
Below, you’ll find several helpful ways to earn more with affiliate marketing. I’ve successfully used these strategies for years, and I believe you can see similar results.
Focus on One Niche
One of the biggest mistakes I see new affiliate marketers make is they cast a broad net when promoting products and services. I understand the thought process. They believe promoting a ton of different things means they are more likely to attract customers.
But there’s a flaw to this way of thinking. Here’s an example so you can see what I mean.
Let’s say you’re walking down the street one day and spot a new grocery store. You walk in, and you’re pleased with the selection. After grabbing a few things, you leave and think, “I’ll come back tomorrow to grab a few more things.”
You walk into the store the next day, and there’s not a single food product on the shelves. Instead, the business is packed with clothes and fashion accessories. Odds are, you’d be a little confused and frustrated.
One thing is for sure; you probably won’t return to that store again because they are inconsistent, and you never know what they will have in stock.
Now, apply this same line of thinking to your affiliate website. You want to meet expectations and help them find value every time they engage with your site.
The best way to win over new visitors and keep existing customers returning is to focus on one central niche. For example, if you want to promote tech products, find affiliates that match these criteria and form partnerships.
You have a much better chance of building a consistent audience if your products, content, and brand identity match the needs of specific audience segments.
As an added note, sticking to one niche is important, but you should always diversify your offerings. I recommend a system where one affiliate brand should not account for more than 30% of your total revenue. This strategy will ensure a consistent profit margin if one brand changes its revenue share or terms and conditions.
Publish Top-Notch Content
Now, let’s talk about content. Affiliate marketers generally use a business blog to promote their partners. Blogging is a powerful way to connect with your target audience and skyrocket your sales.
If you want people to engage with your business and click your affiliate link, you have to deliver top-notch, valuable content.
Blogging is an excellent way to build an audience and promote your products. Research shows that people who publish 16+ posts each month see 4.5x more leads, which means more opportunities to sell. Furthermore, it’s reported that bloggers who make $7,500-$25,000 every month earn around 42% of their revenue from affiliate links.
The key to getting people interested in your content is to offer value and an engaging personality around your product promotions. Think of the difference between a blogger posting a long list of cooking supplies with affiliate links compared to a blogger who publishes a recipe and strategically uses links for affiliate products within the recipe.
One option is saying, “buy this stuff,” while the latter example says, “here’s a free recipe for you and the products I used to make it – if you’re interested.”
You should always find a way to add value to your blog posts so users feel like they are getting something from your website without pulling out their wallets. As a result, these people will trust you more and return to your website. If you keep impressing them with impactful content, you can bet that some readers will become affiliate customers.
Ask Visitors to Join Your Email List
Another great way to improve affiliate sales is to ask readers to join your email list. Email marketing allows you to connect with your audience and send them offers and content that matches their specific interests and goals.
When you consider that over 80% of online shoppers say personalization affects their purchasing decisions, it’s easy to see how this tip can help you boost profits.
There are plenty of clever ways to invite users to sign up for your newsletter. For instance, you could create an exclusive lead magnet, like an eBook, webinar, or online course for your readers. People are more likely to join if there’s something in it for them.
I’m also a fan of creating coupon codes for people who join your list. Sometimes we send our subscribers exclusive offers that are not available on our site. We found that by using coupons as a unique incentive for signing up, we dramatically improved engagement and conversions.
As your list grows, you can segment your subscribers based on their preferences and demographics. Before long, you’ll have several lists of highly active subscribers ready and willing to look at your affiliate offers.
Market Products on Social Media
Did you know that about 59% of people turn to social media when thinking about buying a new product? There are several reasons for this phenomenon.
For starters, social media is an excellent place to find social proof. If someone is on the fence, a few positive reviews and real customer experiences can sway their opinion.
You’ll likely write and film many product reviews as an affiliate marketer. When a potential customer is browsing Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube and sees your post, there’s a good chance your content will impact their decision. Add a special coupon to the mix, and it’s easy to see why many marketers turn to social media to promote their products and affiliate brands.
I suggest frequently sharing your thoughts on products (with links and codes) on social media. But you should also consider the benefits of creating a social media storefront. In this instance, you’re making it easy for users to complete their orders and move on with their day.
The 59% statistic mentioned earlier matches closely with another statistic that claims a whopping 60% of Instagram users have discovered a new product with the platform. In most cases, this discovery came from an Instagram storefront.
So, if your affiliate sales are lower than you would like, amplify your social presence and start engaging with your subscribers. You’ll find that this one change can dramatically impact your revenue stream.
Track Your Progress
Finally, let’s talk about tracking your analytics. Many affiliate marketers don’t track their partners, leading to less-than-satisfactory business decisions.
Let’s say you have 5 affiliate brands you work with consistently. At the end of the month, you check the results to see how you did. Four partners accounted for 95% of your revenue, while the last partner only brought in 5%.
If you’re spending just as much time on the 5% as you are with the profitable brands, it may be time to rethink your strategy. You may want to consider the following:
Spending less time on the struggling brand
Developing a new approach to boost sales for the product in question
Leaving the outlier partner program and focusing on more lucrative deals
You would never come to this conclusion unless you regularly review your analytics and weigh traffic, conversions, and sales with each partner.
I prefer to check out analytics once a month to see how we are doing. There have been several instances where I cut an affiliate partner or reworked our agreement based on the results.
Final Thoughts on Affiliate Marketing
As you can see, affiliate marketing is still a viable way to make a living. It’s not as easy as some people would have you believe. You probably won’t set up your website and make tons of money overnight. However, if you’re patient, persistent, and spend plenty of time building a solid foundation, you can start earning more from your affiliate marketing website.
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Syed Balkhi is an award-winning entrepreneur and online marketing expert. He is the co-founder of OptinMonster, WPBeginner, MonsterInsights, and WPForms