Affiliate marketing has benefits for publishers and advertisers. Affiliate marketing generates 15% of revenue for publishers. For advertisers, it can contribute between 5% and 25% of their revenues.
Content creators turn to affiliate marketing because it’s a simple way to monetize a website. All they have to do is create quality content and add affiliate links.
They get a commission when someone clicks on the link and makes a purchase.
It sounds simple, but you need to know the best affiliate marketing programs. Some have higher commission rates than others. They offer different products and payment structures.
You need to know which ones are the best affiliate programs so you can start earning money immediately.
Don’t worry because we’ve got your back. Read on to learn the best affiliate marketing programs so you can earn commissions from your content.
Amazon Associates
The most popular affiliate program is Amazon Associates. That’s mostly because everything is available on Amazon.
No matter what your niche is, you can find products on Amazon to link to. If you have a blog about grilling, you can link to the top grills.
A blog about gardening can link to gardening tools and supplies. You can have affiliate links for anything on the site. It’s free to sign up. There aren’t thresholds to meet, which makes this affiliate program perfect for new bloggers.
The issue with Amazon Associates is that they like to change the commission structure regularly. In 2020, commissions got cut dramatically.
Some categories had their percentages cut in half. If this was your primary source of income, you’d panic. That’s why it’s always smart to have several income streams for your blog.
That being said, it’s still widely used by video creators, blogger outreach services, and the top influencers online.
Rakuten
Rakuten is a network of over 1,000 retailers that range from Decathlon to Wine.com. This is another good program for new bloggers because it’s free to sign up for.
There are also plenty of tutorials and a user-friendly interface.
There are a couple of drawbacks to this program. One is that the payouts tend to be slow. Rakuten pays affiliates once a month and the dates vary.
Customer service has mixed reviews, though it’s decent for the most part.
ClickBank
ClickBank is one of the first companies to offer affiliate marketing to retailers and publishers. They offer a huge range of products and offer training and support to help you get started.
You can promote digital products and physical products. Health and fitness products, supplements, and gardening supplies do very well on the platform.
It’s free to sign up. You can just pick your products and link to them on your site.
CJ Affiliate
CJ Affiliate is another affiliate marketing program that’s been around for years. It’s attracted thousands of top brands such as Verizon and Crock-Pot.
CJ Affiliate functions differently from Amazon and ClickBank. With those programs, you just have to get a link and promote it.
CJ Affiliate is the go-between for publishers and retailers. A retailer offers an affiliate program on CJ Affiliate. Publishers have to contact the retailer through CJ Affiliate to get approval.
Retailers want to see established sites with a fair amount of traffic before they approve them. It takes work to contact publishers and get approved.
This isn’t a good program for new bloggers or content creators. Sign up for this program when you have a steady stream of traffic and affiliate sales.
eBay Partner Network
eBay Partner Network gives you access to promote millions of products on the platform. This program is free to sign up for.
It’s a great program because you can promote nearly anything. The commission structure is better than most affiliate programs.
Platform Affiliate Programs
Software platforms often have their own affiliate marketing programs. Instead of signing up with a marketplace that offers everything, you can sign up with multiple platforms and promote their products.
This is common in blogging and how to make money online niches. That’s because bloggers have to rely on software tools to get started.
You can have an affiliate link for your hosting company, another one for domain name purchases, and other ones for email marketing and social media tools.
The commissions for platform affiliate programs tend to be more generous than marketplace programs.
Some of the best platforms to promote online include Namecheap, ClickFunnels, LeadPages, Teachable, ConvertKit, and BigCommerce.
How to Choose an Affiliate Program
One of the challenging aspects of affiliate marketing is choosing the right affiliate partner.
Remember that people visit your website because you’re a trusted source of information. You need to maintain that level of trust so you can’t promote bad products so you can earn a commission.
Start by thinking about your brand and your audience. What kind of blog do you have? What do your audience members want and need?
Make a list of products that your audience needs to accomplish their goals. You should be able to create plenty of content around these products.
Look for brands that you would love to sell. See if they have a direct affiliate marketing program or have one through a marketplace.
Once you sign up for a marketplace, you should install a plugin on your website to track affiliate links. There are plugins like getlasso for Amazon Affiliates.
Some marketplaces and retailers have their own plugins to make tracking easy.
The Best Affiliate Marketing Programs to Make Money
Content creators look to make money online with affiliate marketing. It’s pretty simple as long as you join the best affiliate marketing programs.
You just learned which ones are worth considering and how to find the best programs. Always look for the best products for your audience to earn and maintain their trust.
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