Affiliate Marketing Considerations

So you want to be an affiliate marketer? Here are some basic tips and snags you may want to consider before you get started.

Do not put all you eggs in one basket - Companies change affiliate programs more frequently than the sun rises. Companies drop out of programs and just plain quit when they don't feel the program is worth their time. If you have all your efforts invested in one product or company you could be out of business tomorrow if the company goes bankrupt or just closes the affiliate program.

Try to divest your affiliate holdings - Not only should you market products for many different companies, you should look at many different markets. Markets change, trends and fads change daily, so what is selling today might not sell tomorrow.

In broad terms, if you spend all your resources promoting the HomeDepot affiliate program, when the bottom dropped out of the housing market your income went with it. If you did not have any backup markets you now have nothing and are starting all over from the beginning.

In less dynamic terms, products that are seasonal will only sell on peak times. Halloween costumes sell great in October but the rest of the year sales are flat or nonexistent. Toys are booming in December but almost dead in January and February. Gardening is big online, but only in the spring and summer months.

Try to spread out the marketing so that your products can give you a steady monthly income and not just when spending is high in your market.

There are products that sell all year like clothing, shoes and housewares but the market is saturated with affiliates and its a hard sell. So having a broad product base is important if you want a steady income.

Getting Paid - Don't use affiliate programs that are run by the merchant. They are the biggest waste of time because they are volatile, erratic and they don't have anyone to answer to. If they say you did not have any sales, how would you know?

If you use an affiliate network like Commission Junction they only make money if you make money. So they monitor compliance and make sure you are being treated fairly. They also collect funds in advance to insure the merchant wont run out of money and default on payments to you.

There are some good affiliate programs run independently, but it is hit and miss and even a good company could default on payments if business is bad. Affiliates tend to be the people that do not get paid when money is short since they do not impact the bottom line if you screw them.

Don't spend money! - Of course you will need to spend something to market products, but you should keep it as low as possible. A $10 website is fine, but spending $10 on a single click through on google adwords is a mistake. You should not invest in something you do not control. You can lose a fortune and never get paid back the money you spent.

I have seen affiliate marketers spend upwards of $5,000 a month to $5,000 in profit. That is a bit risky since the $5,000 could result in a $5,000 loss. Of course if the same $5,000 yields you $100,000 then go for it. But if you are spending more than 5% of the return, it is too much.

How much do you know? - Do not expect to get into one of the most competitive markets with a wing and a prayer. You need to learn what you are doing first or you will lose your shirt and pants. Do some research, learn as much as possible and read what everyone has to say. Spending a couple of weeks now will save you tens of thousands of dollars in losses later.

Success - There is a great feeling if you are successful. Particularly when check for thousands of dollars appear in your mailbox. But it wont be easy and spending cash is not the route to success. It will take hard work and lots of patience. If you make it to the finish line, there is a pot of gold. But not everyone finishes the race.