Ever wondered why most affiliate marketers never earn a full time living, yet alone make 6-figures? Here’s the fix. Use this 10 Step Affiliate Marketing Plan.
I have to think it’s because they are missing some of the basics to affiliate marketing, as well as never discovering the ‘secrets’ to taking their income to the next level.
This is what I’m proposing you try to greatly increase your affiliate income:
Doing the work up front to get it right, so that sales come in like clockwork, rather than ‘winging’ it and hoping you get a few sales.
If you lay a good foundation, then you avoid the struggle of trying one thing and another to make it work. Plus it will help steer you away from needing gimmicks or shady sales tactics.
Sales will come in more effortlessly because you’ve laid the groundwork for a thriving affiliate business.
These tips aren’t super exciting because there is no magic formula such as, “Go to this secret website and post this 10-word magic message to make massive commissions.”
Yes, I really did see those exact words in a sales letter once. No, I didn’t buy the product, so I have no idea what the supposed “secret site” or “magic message” was. Although now that I think about it, maybe I should have, just for a laugh.
I’ll be candid with you – these steps are more work than some wannabe affiliates are willing to do. Sure, it sounds great to just post some stuff and lead traffic to buy products, and once in awhile that still works. But certainly not consistently.
Long-term vision
But if you want to build a long-term viable business that will take care of you for years to come, then you’ve got to build a solid foundation first.
Treat your affiliate business as a REAL business and you’ll build massive trust with your audience, leading to a good income, some super large paydays and a stable, reliable business you can be proud of.
Let’s get started…
Step 1: Choose your niche W-I-S-E-L-Y.
This is the most elementary and basic step of all but be aware it can make a H-U-G-E difference in your results. If you choose a niche that doesn’t have a lot of demand or many products to promote, you may find your income ceiling is much lower than you would like.
Ideally your niche is something you and your tribe are passionate about. There must be a demand for products in this niche, as well as a good supply and variety of products you can be proud to promote. Notice I used the words “proud to promote”.
Too often an affiliate marketer will lean toward products that may make some good sales, however they really aren’t something that they are really sold on, or believe in. This just makes it that much harder to promote. So choose wisely so you will be comfortable and have confidence going forward.
If you find you must choose between passion and demand, then choose demand and leave your passions for your personal time. You can’t expect others to get excited about something and pay money for that thing if they are not interested in it, but you can work and make substantial money in a niche that does not entirely excite you.
Just focus on how you are helping others and let that be your passion and motivation, and the money will come.
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Step 2: Build a solid brand.
It’s important to consider what your brand will be and to have a professional and consistent brand image across all your online platforms. This helps build trust with your audience and makes it easier for them to recognize you.
Branding is really important, so here are a few more branding tips:
First, define what your brand is all about. What are your values, your mission, and your unique selling proposition? Who is your target audience and how will you relate to them? What makes your brand different from your competitors? When you’ve clearly defined your brand then you can create a consistent message and visual identity.
Next, develop a strategy for building your brand that includes creating your visual identity, developing a content strategy and deciding which channels to use to reach your audience. (Hint: Find out where your audience hangs out.)
Consistency
Create a consistent brand message. Your goal is to make your messaging and visual elements consistent across all of your channels, including your website, social media, and any other marketing materials.
Notice how big brands do this, and then do it on a much smaller scale for yourself. And you don’t necessarily need to brand a business name. In many cases your own name will also be your brand.
Monitor and adjust your strategy. Building a brand is an ongoing process, and you need to be willing to monitor your progress and adjust your strategy as needed. Pay attention to what is working and what isn’t, and be willing to make changes to your strategy based on your results.
Overall, building a brand takes time and effort, but with the right strategy and a commitment to consistency and engagement, you can create a brand that resonates with your audience and helps you achieve your business goals.
Note: It takes time and work to build a great reputation. Never do anything to sully your brand or associate it with something negative, such as promoting a lousy product.
Step 3: Offer v-a-l-u-a-b-l-e content.
People come to your website or social media to learn something new or to be entertained. That’s why by creating valuable content that adds value to their lives, you’ll be attracting them and warming them up to whatever offers you might be making.
I know some new affiliates will ask why they need content of their own. Can’t they just post an affiliate link? Of course you can, but if your visitor doesn’t trust you, why would they trust your recommendation?
Your goal is get your audience to know, like and trust you. And when they do, you can sell them something not just once, but over and over again.
And the way to begin building this relationship is with great content.
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Step 4: Be honest and transparent.
Always disclose your relationship with the brand you’re promoting. Your audience will appreciate your honesty and transparency, plus it’s the law. “Links on this site / in this article may be affiliate links and help to support this site.” You don’t need to plaster this everywhere, but it must be somewhere near the top where people can see it.
Don’t worry, most people really aren’t bothered by it. Frankly, by the time they’re clicking on a link it’s really what is more important to them. If it is something of value or need, the issue that you may make a small commision doesn’t really matter. I hope that didn’t sound derogatory because the fact is everyone’s favorite subject is themselves, including me.
That’s why a sales message that focuses on the buyer will do 10 times better than one that doesn’t. Provide value in all that you do and remember that it really is all about helping the customer.
Step 5: Optimize your campaigns.
There are many tools available that can help you track your links and optimize your affiliate marketing campaigns. Some popular options include Google Analytics, clicktrakr and Bitly.
Make sure to compare functionality and pricing. I am going to prove a point here. I have used many tracking programs and am comfortable stating that one of the best is clicktrakr. Compare it to bitly’s features HERE.
So to my point, yes, I am an affilate for clicktrkr, and will receive a small commission should you purchase it. But the key point here is the value that I am providing. Some people are paying $29 per month for bitly.
The comparable “unlimted” clicktrakr is a single, one-time payment of $15 for life. And oh, by the way, note the huge differences in the features and functions between the two. Nuff said!
Test and track everything: Keep track of your campaigns and test different strategies to see what works best. This is critical to your success. If your an affiliate marketers, I know you have experienced this issue. You have likely posted, or advertised your affiliate link in many different locations and platforms. And then you start making sales, which is great. This will help you optimize your campaigns for better results.
Even a small improvement in conversions can result in a large difference in income over time. So even the boring and mundane tasks require attention to detail if you are going to succeed.
Step 6: Build an email list.
Building an email list is a great way to continuously connect with your audience and keep them engaged with your content as well as seeing your offers. Some marketers don’t like email and it does seem tedious. But your email list is like owning a tangible asset or a piece of property. A good list of buyers has incredible value!
So don’t listen to any naysayers. You ALWAYS want to capture your buyers on your email list whenever possible. Not only were they interersted in this particular offering, but they will likely be interested in similar, complementary offerings. If you do a good job of keeping your list engaged, and providing them value, you will have buyers that will repeat again and again.
Take special care to provide the time and effort to nuture and grow your email list. Use a combination of interesting, entertaining and helpful content as well as affiliate offers to keep them interested. Add in a variation of content related to your niche that will resonate with your audience and provide value, along with interest and intertainment.
And also consider incorporating SMS and voice marketing as cell phone use continues to rise and have a greater influence on marketing.
Step 7: Choose the right products and program.
Make sure you’re promoting products that are high quality, relevant to your niche and convert well. If possible, promote products that offer a monthly residual income instead of a one-time commission.
And don’t be afraid to promote high priced products, too. A 50% commission on a $1000 product means you only need one or more sales to make it worth your time. Consider investing in your own tiered sales funnel program. These business models typically start off with free or low cost products at the front end of the funnel, and offer progressively higher products or offerings as the funnel progresses. Memberships and coaching are prime examples of higher ticket items.
Reseller affiliate marketing plan
Another very successful business model is the reseller funnel. This model includes a product offering on the front end, with one or more progressive upsells, and then a final offer for allowing the customer to become a reseller of the product. This works great in the internet maketing arena, as many customer who liked the product enough to buy it to begin with, will also desire to purchase the right to own, brand and sell the product. The best reseller models include a complete pacakage with a platform and full sales funnel, plus all the supporting marketing materials.
Here are some examples of products with the reseller option, allowing the customer to purchase the rights to sell the product and pick up the entire sales funnel. The package includes a full sales funnel, platform, sales page, and marketing materials. They are basically products in a box that are fully integrated for payment and ready to go.
Reseller example #1 – StoriAp
Reseller example #2 – Smart Community
Reseller example #3 – SoloPreneur
Reseller example #4 – SEO Profits
Reseller example #5 – InstaVidz
Reseller example #6 – AI Trace
Reseller example #7 – EZ Leads
Reseller example #8 – Vid Toon
Reseller example #9 – Viral Leads
Reseller example #10 – 10 membership funnels
So for any affiliate marketer that needs products to sell, this business model is as simple as it gets!
Step 8: Remember your SEO.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is crucial for driving organic traffic to your website. Make sure you’re using the right keywords and optimizing your content for search engines.
Check online for tutorials on how to do this for long tail keywords that are easy to rank for.
Step 9: Engage with your audience.
Building a relationship with your audience is key to your success as an affiliate marketer. Make sure you’re engaging with your audience on social media and responding to their comments and questions.
Keep a close eye on what’s currently important to them as well as the latest news in your niche and respond accordingly, creating content that is designed to start a conversation, and asking for feedback from your audience.
Step 10: Build relationships with product creators.
Sometimes you can get special deals for your customers, or even a higher commission rate if you have a friendly relationship with product creators in your niche.
It’s also possible you can get your posts published on their blogs, thereby increasing your own audience and driving traffic to your landing page.
And should you ever create your own products, these product creators may become your first affiliates, too.
Building a truly successful, profitable affiliate business really isn’t all that different than building your own information business, and it’s a great way to get started making money online.
I hope these10 basic steps will provide you with a solid foundation on which to build your business. As I noted at the beginning, there isn’t anything magical or secret about this. Sorry if you’re disappointed, but this is just good old-fashion honesty and telling you like it is.
Create your business outline, model and strategy, and solidify in your specific marketing plan. Use these 10 steps to guide you and keep you grounded. Try not to stray and stay focused. If you are having problems staying focused, consider our 12-Day Challenge free training. It addresses shiny object syndrome, creating your plan, and building for success!
As always, we strive to provide value and help you to find your success!
Dave,
davesethagency.com, davesethonline.com, davesethonline.blog
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Updated 6/21/2023
