Affiliate marketing is truly an amazing business opportunity but can be a tragedy for those of you expecting to make thousands of dollars by tomorrow.
For the record, I make most of my income through affiliate marketing and I am still looking for that one program that will make you thousands of dollars in one day, so bare with me.
I’m sure we all think it exists, but keep thinking that way and you will start thinking that everything is a scam, to include affiliate marketing.
Not to say that there isn’t any, as there are more scams than legit money makers out there, but I would like to tell you what to expect if you do decide to take one one of the few legitimate ways to make money online, which is affiliate marketing.
I am very much an affiliate marketer and I actually make my living online doing it, so you can expect nothing but the truth from someone who actually makes money from it.
So allow me to show you what you can expect so you can actually become one of the few that makes a living online, just like me and others are doing.
First of All, What in the World is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is nothing more than selling other people’s products from which you will be rewarded a commission in return, which is done through an external website just like the one you are on right now.
Becoming an affiliate is typically free, but there have been several schemes that I have come across that has you paying for a product before you can start promoting it and it might just be ruining things for everyone.
There are a lot more that happens behind the scenes (which I’l be getting into later), but let me show you some of the things I feel are necessary to know before taking on something as challenging as this.
You Need Your Own Website
Becoming an affiliate with Amazon, Ebay, Clickbank or any other mainstream online retailer requires you to own your very piece of online real estate.
Most people think they are going to become an affiliate with different companies and then go out there throwing their links on Facebook, Instargram and other social media sites and making thousands of dollars in commissions.
That’s not the case, so do expect to get stuck somewhere in the signup process if you don’t have your very own website.
There are also other things you need to know, like, no fair spamming and sending your links directly to others, so do know that there are more rules to follow besides owning a website.
Affiliate Marketing is a Long Term Investment
Forget about making money in a short amount of time because that’s not going to happen here.
There are several ways that you can go about promoting your website without getting penalized and one of the main ways to do this is through blogging and search engine traffic.
If you plan to use this method, it is going to require a lot of building before you can even see a single organic visitor to your site.
Sometimes most people don’t see see any traction in their first 6 months and sometimes others see results within 3 months.
There are many factors that determine how much traffic your site will get and everything starts with your chosen niche.
Then you need to put your site’s age, the amount of competition you are facing, and most importantly the amount of work you are putting into your site.
The more you build out your site and remain consistent, will of course give you better results compared to another blog that does little to no work.
This also leads me into my next point and something you really need to understand if you do plan on becoming an online marketer.
Most Affiliate Marketers Don’t Last
When people ask me if I think they are too late when it comes to making money with affiliate marketing, this is the one thing I try to stress.
Affiliate marketing is not dead!
Not only is it still alive but there are many opportunities for anyone to make money as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into.
I say this simply because even if there are millions of websites on the web today, there are more than half of them that are sitting there collecting dust before they eventually their domain eventually expires and gets thrown back on the market for others to purchase.
On top of all these failed attempts at affiliate marketing, there are people like me that own over 20 websites that are just sitting there without anything being done on them.
So when you think you don’t stand a chance, remember this post and I’m sure it will make all the difference.
You Will Not Make Money Overnight
Technically, you can, but in a realistic, by the book standard, it is not going to happen.
You will need to keep pushing forward even if you don’t make a single penny and most people aren’t patient enough.
Affiliate Marketing Requires Patience and if you don’t have that, you might want to try something else that gives you instant gratification.
People used to think I was crazy for writing a bunch of blogposts when I wasn’t making a single penny.
The difference with me and most failed marketers is the fact that I knew how it was going to happen and there was nothing that could stop me.
Once I made that first $1, that’s when things really took off.
It went from $1, to $500, and then now, where I’ve been doing this full-time for the past 3 years, writing this post by the pool.
The best part about this whole work hard now play hard later model is that not only does my income continue to grow but I am consistently making an income that can support the lifestyle I live.
Put in the work now and the reward is exactly that.
Rewarding.
Profits May Vary
When someone asks me how much money they will make with one sale, it really baffles me and only because I know how everything works.
But if you have some general idea of how business works, you will know that there are many factors that will contribute to the type of money you can bring in.
For the most part, you can expect anywhere from 1-75% commissions, which is about standard in the world of affiliate marketing.
There are some 100% schemes out there though, so don’t get sucked into them as they are solely there to benefit the person introducing it to you along with the owner of that company.
These products usually come in digital form, will cost you thousands of dollars, and require you to purchase the same exact product in order for you to make those 100% commissions.
You Do Not Need to Purchase Any Products
Affiliate marketing is a free gig.
You are doing nothing more than taking other people’s products, selling them, and in turn getting rewarded for doing so.
Some may offer 5% and others might even offer 75%, but it all depends on the product and who you’re getting the product from.
Now when someone approaches you about making 100% commissions, you might want to sound the alarm as these people might have some kind of hidden agenda.
Not all, but probably 99% of the time it’s some type of lure that will have you forking out thousands of dollars in the end like I mentioned earlier.
Affiliate Marketing Pays
Not only is affiliate marketing a “thing” and 100% legit, but it can pay you for a very long time if you stick with what you learn and apply those same strategies on a daily basis.
If you can make $1, you can very much make $1,000 so don’t let the small commissions deter you from building out your very own affiliate marketing business.
I sell different products online as an affiliate marketer and the commissions is never something I pay too much attention too as I am more about providing value, rather than trying to cash in all the time.
Conclusion
I got my online career started with affiliate marketing and it continues to bring in 80% of my income.
I do nothing more than provide information people are already looking for in the first place and I make money in the process.
Not once do I ever have to lie to anyone as there really is an affiliate program for anything, whether it be a great product or one that flat out sucks.
Affiliate marketing requires helping others and that is what makes this one of a kind business my #1 recommendation to anyone looking to make a living on the internet.
I hope this post has given you a better understanding of what is needed to succeed with affiliate marketing and I also hope that you too can create the type of success most only dream of.
To get started, I recommend you use a program called the Wealthy Affiliate as they literally have everything you need to start, run, run and maintain an affiliate marketing business.
If you have any questions about this or any other make money from home method, feel free to leave them in the comments section below and I will get back to you as soon as I can.
Until next time, get out there and make something happen.
The internet lifestyle awaits you!
Click Here to Join Wealthy Affiliate For Free!
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