Are you using affiliate marketing to earn full or part time income? Are you struggling to make commissions from your programs? If so, here are a few tips that can boost your commissions.
I admit, it took a lot of trial and error to build my affiliate business. I struggled with knowing the right kinds of links to place in my advertising as well as how to build relationships with people who responded to my marketing efforts.
Following these tips has made it easier to build a larger following that regularly buys the products I recommend.
I was able to make simple changes that made a big difference in my business and I hope they will help you too.
1. Stop Using Ugly Links
If you're an affiliate, you've likely experienced affiliate links from your sponsoring merchants that look like the one below. These long ugly links definitely work... BUT...
Have you ever tried putting a link that looks like the one above in a social media post?
When you use "ugly links", you might as well have a sign on your post that says "something is not right... stay away".
Avoid these ugly links by using text links on a platform that you can edit and control, like a blog. Then share the post or page that includes your text links in your social media posts.
This is the same link, that has been converted to a short, pretty link. A solution to the problem of long, ugly links is using a branded link shortener like Pretty Links to create links like the one in the black box above labeled "Pretty Link".
For example, the link in this paragraph for the Nikon Camera uses an ugly link. But it looks a lot better because I'm able to hide the ugly link behind the "orange" text.
However, you're not able to create a text link like the one in the paragraph above on most social media sites.
The work around we'll discuss provides places where you can add text links that can be shared on social media. This work around is another plus for having a blog that you own and control.
You can hide ugly links in a blog post in the following ways:
- Text - add your affiliate links, hiding them behind text in a blog post, as in the "Nikon Camera" example above
- Images - add your affiliate link to an image
- Product descriptions - add your link to a product description that allows for HTML.
Social Media:
There are several places that will enable you to create text links on social media. For example:
- If you use the Notes feature on a Facebook page, it allows you to create text and image links that can lead potential customers to a landing or sales page.
- Create text and image links on Twitter, Tumblr and other social platforms. Take note, that Twitter won't allow you to hyperlink your tweets, but you can hyperlink blog posts in tweets. Tumblr is a kind of microblogging site, so you can do a mini blog post that can include hyperlinks.
It's important to make the distinction between places that allow for hyperlinks and those places that do not, like many social media posting sites. - In the places that do not allow links, the work around includes placing the links in blog posts and using them to link to your social posts.
Another way to hide ugly links is to use a link shortener that is approved by your affiliate merchant.
This is Important: It's important to use a merchant approved link shortener because unapproved shorteners may break the code that contains your affiliate tracking link. If that happens, you won't receive your affiliate commissions.
Learn More About Affiliate Marketing
2. Building Relationships with Prospects
The reality when it comes to online marketing is that people who don't know you (or your business) are less likely to pull out their credit card and buy from you.
If you're putting your affiliate products in front of a cold audience, and you don't provide a way to follow up with that audience to build a relationship, chances are you will never see them again.
The reason is, that it normally takes more than one exposure to you and your business, before people will make a purchase, especially when it comes to higher ticket items. It may take many "touches" before you convince someone to make a purchase.
It's important to establish the know, like and trust factor with an audience of people who are looking for what you have to offer and are comfortable doing so.
I've heard lots of affiliate marketers say that they have success with affiliate marketing without a blog. They run ads that take their readers to their affiliate's websites and earn each time a purchase is made.
If this sounds like the method you use, you are probably asking, "How do I build a relationship when I'm running ads to my sponsoring merchant's website?" And why would I want to do that since I'm earning income?
Some may have great success selling affiliate products this way and if it's working, that's great!
But even in that scenario, you are utilizing an audience. Think about it, when you were creating that ad, you probably had to give the platform information about an audience you wanted to reach with your ad.
The difference is that the audience you create on Facebook and Google, for example, are not the same as an audience you create through a blog that serves as your central hub.
Google and Facebook took care of making sure your ad was served to the people who met your criteria. But you have no idea who those people are.
When you run ads that go directly to the merchant's website, you (and your brand) are left completely out of the loop.
Just having your ads on Google and Facebook may have helped people in your audience have the confidence to click your ad. Google and Facebook have name recognition and for the most part people trust their ads.
For that reason, those platforms automatically give your ad more credibility that makes buyers feel secure. So you're making the sale.
But again, you will probably never see those folks again, because they are interacting with Facebook and Google.
Having an audience that uses your blog as a central hub, is a better way to build an audience. If you're not using your blog in this way, you may be leaving money on the table.
Here are a few additional ways to build and establish relationships with an audience that has the opportunity to build trust with you:
(1) Build a blog: that serves as a central hub for your business. Blogs provide a consistent location that visitors and potential customers can use to learn more about you.
(2) Create effective landing pages: that will not only promote your affiliate products, but ones that will also convert website visitors to leads on your blog that you can follow up with. Avoid sending potential buyers directly to your merchant's website.
If your landing pages aren't working or you're not sure how to build effective landing pages, take a free mini course hosted by Thrive Themes that will show you what it takes to create really effective landing pages quickly.
I took the course and learned a lot about landing pages, sales pages and testing. You'll need these skills and knowledge to sell any product or service online to the free training is totally beneficial.
Take the tips you learn in the course to improve your landing and sales pages and convert more customers.
(3) Use Live Platforms. Create live opportunities to interact with people who are interested in your business.
Tools like like (Facebook Live and Zoom) can be used to host live events and Q&A sessions.
(4) Build a list. Building an email list will help you build an audience of people who you can follow up with. People who will get to know your brand and a place that will allow you to build the know, like and trust factor with your audience.
3. Use Short Review Videos to Promote Your Affiliate Products
Establishing the know, like and trust factor is so important for a number of reasons. The biggest advantage is that it helps you build an audience of people that are in tune with your message.
Video marketing is a great way to build an audience of like minded people who are going in the same direction as you. Creating a YouTube Channel to promote affiliate products is an excellent way to build an audience and earn passive income.
Video is also something that's relatively easy to do with equipment you already have. It's also something that you can complete in less than 15 minutes to promote your affiliate products.
Contrary to what a lot of people think, when they try to create effective videos, it's not about elaborate gimmicks or props.
It's more about showing people who you are, and providing valuable information. Specifically, you want to show how your affiliate products will benefit them.
Notice, I highlighted the word benefit. In online marketing, it's important to know the difference between benefits and features.
Benefits are the results that users will experience by using your product or service – the very reason why a prospective customer becomes an actual customer.
It's not as effective to talk about features, a feature is something that your product has. For example, razors with five-blade heads, power drills with interchangeable bits, or refrigerators that can make crushed ice etc., will not help you sell more.
Potential customers want to know what's in it for them. So benefits are what you want to highlight during your videos.
Several short videos with useful information, will help you establish a connection with an audience of people who are looking for what you have to offer.
Once completed, upload your videos to a video platform like YouTube or Vimeo. Place these videos in your blog posts and other marketing materials.
Videos are very effective when it comes to converting people who are interested in certain products or service. Here's an article on how to Use YouTube to Make Money Online.
Become a trusted resource, the link between your audience and the benefits they will receive from your affiliate products. This relationship will help you sell more products.
4. Be Genuine and Honest in Making Recommendations
The best affiliate products to promote are those that you use in your daily life. It's also a great fit to showcase the products you use to run your business.
Maybe you have tools, resources, ingredients or components that make your product or service great. Those products would be a great fit for an affiliate referral because you use them all the time.
No matter whether it's a product you like or one that you use each day, show that you've actually used the product, be genuine and transparent. Avoid promoting affiliate products that you have no knowledge of. And if you have never used the product, point to some credible source for customer reviews.
Many products look great online but those looks can be deceiving. When you get the products home and you hold them in your hands, the experience can be quite different.
If you recommend an affiliate product that you haven't seen in person, that doesn't deliver in terms of quality or functionality, it can make you look like a rooky. And if you do it enough it can hurt your business.
Realistically speaking, how can you expect to do a good job of convincing someone to buy a product that you have no experience with?
If you can, purchase the product, open it and use it. If you do a video, show the product, or even demonstrate it in your video.
Talk to your experience with the ordering process, your delivery experience, the product itself, return policies, and customer service.
Tell your audience about options like color, pricing, size or anything that will help the buyer make a decision about whether to buy the product.
Help people understand your experience with your affiliate products with stories. People relate to stories, and they don't want to be sold, so keep that in mind.
If buying the product is out of the question, you can also interview someone who has used the product and use their feedback in your review.
You can also take a look at customer reviews and reactions. Disclose what your review is based on, whether it's your opinion or the opinion of others.
5. Deep Link to Your Products
Don't do the work and then hand the commission to someone else. It's important to control the process from the time a prospect clicks on your link.
Deep link to your affiliate products to make it convenient for potential buyers. Deep linking means that you take the prospective buyer straight to the product you want them to buy.
It's not enough to get them to the homepage of your sponsoring merchant. When you send potential buyers to your merchant's homepage, that makes them have to hunt around for the product you want them to buy.
Most people will not hunt around, they will leave without making a purchase. If you're not using deep linking, please check out this article on deep linking that walks you through the process.
Deep linking is the method to use If you've done the work to convince customers to buy to ensure as much as possible, that you get the commission.
Learn about the different kinds of links you can use with different marketing strategies to promote your affiliate products.
6. Disclose Your Affiliate Relationships
The FTC requires that affiliates disclose their relationships with merchants and sponsors.
Their goal is to keep affiliate marketers honest in their relationships and not make false claims about the products and services they promote.
It's also important that you don't exaggerate your review to mislead a potential customer to make a purchase just so that you can receive a commission.
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