Affiliate Marketing - The 10 Keys To Success

Copyright 2005 Michael Gates

Where can an average person start a home business without investing any money? The wonderful world of affiliate marketing.

For those looking to enter the world of affiliate marketing, there are some key concepts that can help you succeed. These 10 tips will help you maximize potential profit in the affiliate marketing
industry.

1. Focus on a specific area of interest. It can be tempting to sign up for a variety of programs on different topics, or areas of interest, to appeal to a large audience. You need to understand, there are already hundreds of thousands of online shopping malls, which is essentially what you'll have. It will be almost impossible for you to compete with well established sites offering a variety of products. You need to focus on a particular topic, or niche.

2. Find the best affiliate programs for your niche. This seems to be a "no brainer", but there are some things you need consider when choosing the most profitable affiliate program. Does the merchant offer products that people will buy? Is the commission you will be paid high enough to pay for some advertising and still be profitable? Usually, products that are difficult to sell, or are higher priced, offer a higher commission. And products that are easy to sell, and have a lower price, offer lower percentage cuts. Try to find the best commission rate for products that are priced at mid range, and products that will be easy to sell.

3. Build a content-filled web site focused on your niche. The primary focus of your web site is to sell the affiliate products you have chosen. But, if your site does not attract visitors, sales conversion will be virtually impossible. Create a site that focuses on the area of interest you have chosen, and populate it with rich, informative content that people would love to read. Good content will establish you as an expert in the niche. Plus, search engines love content which will give you a better position in the search engine listings.

4. Market your web site. You have to let the online community know about your site. Just because you now have a web site, doesn't mean people will come. Submit online press releases related to your niche, submit your site to search engines. Exchange links with well-visited sites related to your niche, promote your site in online communities, and start a blog (web log). You have to spread the word that your site exists, and that it contains information that will fill the need of your target audience.

5. Market your affiliate products. After you have a consistent number of visitors, it