Introduction To Affiliate Marketing

      Affiliate marketing is a marketing strategy practiced on the Internet. It can also be referred to as associate marketing. Instead of hiring multiple in-house employees to create campaigns for Internet marketing, a business can allow Internet marketers (affiliates) to sign up to its free affiliate marketing program. Affiliates can then refer customers to that business’s website and products. The affiliate will receive a commission if the customer performs an action that the business desires. This is similar to a finder’s fee.

A business can create their own affiliate program, or they can join an affiliate network, which will provide them with business tools and access to affiliates. As a part of an affiliate marketing program, a business is typically referred to as an advertiser or merchant, and an affiliate is referred to as a publisher or reseller.

There are many affiliate marketing directories that connect businesses with affiliates. These directories group businesses and their affiliate programs into a particular niche or category. Clickbank and LinkShare are examples of affiliate networks that may be included in these directories.

Businesses prefer using affiliate marketing for online marketing methods, since they do not have to pay an affiliate for advertisements unless a customer has performed the action that the merchant desires. Depending on the business model, affiliates can receive commissions for actions such as sales, leads, and referrals to the business’s website. Amazon is a good example of a website that has had success with their affiliate program.

A business does not typically recruit affiliates. Instead, an affiliate applies to the business’s affiliate program. Once the affiliate is accepted into the program, the company may provide the affiliate with product, image, and shopping cart links. The affiliate will display these links on his website. A cookie is used for tracking the sales, form sign-ups, or clicks generated from the affiliate’s links.

In addition to the advertising tools provided to affiliates, they may use some of their own methods. Pay Per Click, also known as PPC, is an advertising method that uses a web media outlet, such as Google, to display advertisements. When using this method, an affiliate pays for each click on his advertisement link, hoping that the click converts into a commission.

Using social networking sites for marketing products is a new branch of affiliate marketing. Facebook and Twitter are examples of social networks. Using these services, an affiliate can create a page or profile dedicated to a particular product. Other users of the social network can then connect with the affiliate’s page and encourage others to buy the product being promoted.

Advertising on a forum, article, or blog discussion is another marketing option for an affiliate. Promotion of a product not related to the discussion is frowned upon, since some may consider it spam. However, if an affiliate adds value to the discussion, other users may find him trustworthy and visit his product link.

There are many benefits of affiliate marketing. Merchants and affiliates can be successful with little monetary risk. Merchants can hire affiliate managers to decide what promotional materials should be given to affiliates in order for them to be successful. There are many web resources that teach affiliates how to successfully market their products using search engine optimization for their websites, PPC, and other techniques. Affiliates can attend affiliate marketing summits where accomplished affiliates explain how they became successful at affiliate marketing.