10-Minute Guide to Set Up Your Own Affiliate Marketing Income Source

The pandemic has sparked the interest of many online users in affiliate marketing. You can market and earn money from different products/services without any prior experience. 

However, for a beginner like you, it might be difficult to find your way through and sign up for an affiliate program. 

Here you can learn how to set up an income source based on affiliate marketing.

How to Set Up an Affiliate Marketing Income Source?

Before we get into the guide, there are some things you need to have first. 

Firstly, you will need an active bank account. Secondly, you’ll need credentials for your business.  

Once you have these things with you, follow the steps below to set up an affiliate income source. 

1. Find and Select a Niche

A niche is the specific segment of a wider market that you can use to uniquely represent your business. The first thing you need to do is find a niche related to your business.

Let’s say you are an online course creator. Your brand/website has a wide variety of courses ranging from technical to academic. 

You will have to select a category that has concentrated and focused content on a certain top. For example, it can be about coding guides for Python. 

Do I have to compare it against a benchmark?

After you find your niche, compare it with content available on the market. Make sure that there isn’t an overflow of information related to that topic. 

This will help you further narrow down your niche and find an exclusive area to work with. 

Moreover, you need to keep the following things in check as well:

• Your niche area should be easily understandable by beginner-level affiliate marketers. 

• It should be directed towards problem-solving rather than vague topics.

• There should be room for profit scaling. 

2. Platform Selection

The next step is to find a platform that has a similar orientation to your business model. It means your content and the platform should mirror each other.

For example, for an online course selling business, you should choose platforms like Udemy, Pluralsight, or CodeAcademy.

Why is it important to select the right platform?

In order to capitalize on your sales conversions, you need a platform that resonates with new users. Otherwise, people landing on your page through referral links will never buy a product/service. 

Moreover, if the platform is integrated with your content, it makes surfing for users easier. They can look at multiple products without any confusion. 

Which platforms can I use for online courses?

There are a bunch of useful platforms you can use to build a solid interface for your brand. Some of these platforms are given below:

• Treehouse
• Pluralsight
• Udacity
• Udemy 
• Coursera

You can check our various comparisons for Udemy vs Course vs Udacity, Udacity vs Treehouse, and Pluralsight vs Treehouse.

3. Select a Suitable Affiliate Marketing Program

The online market is filled with a bunch of affiliate marketing programs. Some are high-paying upfront while some have a gradual incline. 

So, it is important to find a program that yields enough payout to cross your break-even point. Otherwise, your effort and resources will amount to nothing. 

Do I have to look for a specific program?

To some extent, yes. The products you market should resonate with your audience. Because if they don’t, your sales conversion rate will be less than desirable. 

Moreover, you should also keep the reputation of the program in check. Spend some time on research through the program’s reviews and determine if it is worth your time. 

Is the commission rate important?

The commission rate is your main source of income through affiliate programs. You can either get a flat-out rate or a percentage-based commission. 

Either way, your goal is to find the right paying program. Given the right circumstances, you can get up to $50 per click. 

4. Develop Appealing Content

Affiliate marketing doesn’t just consist of referral links. You can innovate and create new content to get better engagement from users. 

One easy way to do so is through blog posts. You can link various problems and solutions to give your audience a better representation of a product/service. 

How is that beneficial for me?

To put it simply, people respond better to an elaborate explanation rather than a straight advertisement. 

If you communicate efficiently, your chances of sales conversion increase drastically. 

This will develop a sense of credibility among your audience. Once it reaches that stage, marketing new affiliate offers will be a piece of cake. 

5. Build a Community

It might be hard to get clicks and sales conversion from your targeted audience. However, as time goes on, you will find yourself interacting with the same people. 

This is an indication that you are building a community around your affiliate marketing process. Engage with them through various posts and Q/A sessions to develop trust. 

How can a community help my process of marketing?

Once you build a community, your process of marketing new affiliate offers will become easier. Your audience will keep coming back because they have developed trust in you. 

In the long run, your time and effort will decrease whereas your sales conversion rate will keep climbing. 

6. Follow Regulations

The Federal Trade Commission (US) has various rules and guidelines related to online marketing. You have to abide by them at all times. 

You can check the FTC rules and guidelines regarding the boundaries. It is important because there is a lot of grey area when it comes to affiliate marketing. 

Is there anything specific I should be careful about?

There are two things you need to keep in check. Your marketing techniques should not be deceptive. Moreover, your services should not fall under the category of scams. 

Failing to do so can impose serious criminal charges. 

Wrapping Things Up…

Affiliate marketing is an efficient way to engage your targeted audience through a third party. 

You can attract potential customers from communities that would be out of your reach otherwise. In the long run, it helps you maintain a strong brand image as well. 

With this, we come to the finish line of our guide on how you can set up your own affiliate marketing and earn from it. We hope this information helps you maximize your earnings.