People often ask me what the best home-based business is for someone with limited business experience and little or no start-up capital. Without fail, I point them toward affiliate marketing.
Put simply, affiliate marketing is a business of selling other people’s stuff. Well, actually, it is pre-selling. Affiliate marketers allow the merchant to do most of the “heavy lifting” when it comes to making a sales presentation.
How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?
Here are the steps, in the simplest terms, to give you a basic understanding of the process:
- The affiliate marketer builds a website or a blog centered around a topic or “niche.”
- The affiliate marketer (AM) then joins the vendor’s affiliate program and is provided with links to the vendor’s website.
- The AM puts these links on his/her website.
- A visitor to the AM’s website, clicks on the link, goes to the vendor’s website and buys the promoted product.
- The AM receives a percentage of the proceeds as a commission.
Obviously, these five steps just barely scratch the surface of this topic. There is more to it than this, but these are the basic steps. It really is a simple process. Really. It’s not rocket science, although some try to make it much harder than it really is. Don’t fall into that trap.
So, What Do You Need To Get Started In Affiliate Marketing?
- A blog or website. I personally recommend using a blog as it is much easier to update, and search engines love them. For more information on starting a blog, visit our article entitled “Blog Your Way To HomeBiz Success.”
- Affiliate programs to promote. There is no shortage of affiliate programs to promote. Just about every online merchant has one. Many are managed by “networks” such as Commission Junction, Clickbank, Share-A-Sale, etc. If you have a specific merchant in mind, it’s easy to find out if they have an affiliate program. All you do is search Google for the merchant’s name followed by the words “affiliate program.”
- Training. In any business, you need training. After all, you wouldn’t go out to be a doctor without going to medical school, right? Well, fortunately, affiliate marketing doesn’t require twelve years of higher education and thousands of dollars in student loans. It does, however, require a certain level of skill and knowledge. Now, you could study the Internet and pick up most of what you need to know via trial and error, but that is time consuming and could be very expensive. That is why I strongly encourage all new marketers to read Rosalind Gardner’s “Super Affiliate Handbook.” Rosalind is the “Queen of Affiliate Marketing” and her book is considered to be the definitive text on the subject. I purchased Ros’ book several years ago and I love it. I still refer to it to this day.
Realistically, that is all you really need to get started. Yeah, there are other things you can add to your business to augment it, but those can be added later once you’re making money. Yes, you really can get started in a real business, that you create, for under $200. Depending on the options you choose, it could actually be much less than that.
On a personal note, I must say that I’ve been an affiliate marketer for several years and there is still such a rush when I go to the mailbox and find checks waiting for me. Let me tell you, it beats the devil out of only finding bills in there.
So, if you are looking for a fairly simple and inexpensive business to start, I strongly urge you to consider affiliate marketing.
PS: If you think you might need a little more step-by-step instruction or “hand holding” than a book can provide, I’ve got good news. Ros also has an affiliate marketing training site called “Affiliate Blogger Pro.” It features the information from her handbook as well as videos and an interactive community where you can ask questions and get answers from other members and “Coach Ros” herself. I’m a member and I highly recommend it.
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In fact, affiliate marketing is not a difficult procedure which needs any education BUT it needs continuous efforts, hardworking and choosing a right path and direction. Without these, one can not achieve the high success rate.
Brilliant! Affiliate marketing is so effective. To make it successful, the AM must first work on the traffic on his website so he can attract good vendors.