How to Set up Your Own Affiliate Program
Decide which program will work for your site's needs., Seek to stand out., Remember, the easier you make it to promote you, the more sales both you and the affiliate will make. , Communicate with your affiliates regularly., You may discover that a...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Decide which program will work for your site's needs.
One of the first decisions you'll have to make is which program or script you'd like to use to process payments and manage your affiliate program.
There are many different options, so it's helpful to weigh the cost and benefits of each service or program.
You can use your own script, join an affiliate network, or use a shopping cart service with a built in affiliate program.
Running it yourself on a script:
Your own script and server will track your affiliates' sales and the amount owed for those sales.
It is then your responsibility to go in and pay your affiliates when their commission is due.
Affiliate network:
An affiliate network will generally do all the tracking and affiliate recruiting for you, as well as make the payments each month.
The affiliate network will then charge you a percentage for utilizing their service.
Shopping Cart Services:
There are also shopping cart services that will help you to manage your info product business and your affiliate database.
You will normally have to do more affiliate recruitment rather than depending upon an affiliate network's large database, but you are much more in control than with the other alternatives. -
Step 2: Seek to stand out.
Affiliate marketers are inundated with different products in many different niches.
It can be extremely difficult for you to stand out from all of the options.
As a product seller, you'll want to do everything in your power to stand apart from the crowd and grab the attention of potential affiliates.
One of the best ways to do that is to offer your affiliates plenty of resources so they can get their promotions up and running quickly and easily.
Some resources you might consider offering your affiliates might be Graphic banners Articles Sample excerpts of your product Marketing plans, and more. ,, The best way to find out what is working and what isn’t working is to communicate with your affiliates.
If one month there is an abundance of sales and the next nothing, it is wise to communicate with your affiliates to see if something is up.
You can easily create a survey online with OneMinuteSurveys.com or SurveyMonkey.
Or, just email your affiliates and ask them to respond.
Any number of factors may be causing the dip in sales. ,, Whatever their answers may be, it will help you to make the necessary changes to get sales moving in the right direction again. , If you are not willing to set aside time to ensure the success of your affiliates, you most definitely will lose them.
Make sure your contact information is easily displayed for those who might want to get a hold of you with questions or concerns.
Be sure to offer an option other than a single email address, just in case there might be email glitches that prevent your affiliates email from reaching you.
Set up a forum, blog, or social media hub where your affiliates can connect with you.
Other options – offer phone help or host question and answer webinars. , It shows that you are a credible and experienced marketer.
This is especially important if you're running your affiliate program through your own script.
Unfortunately, too often affiliates work hard promoting and selling a program and never receive their commissions.
You should always make sure that your affiliates are confident that this will never happen to them while they are working with you. -
Step 3: Remember
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Step 4: the easier you make it to promote you
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Step 5: the more sales both you and the affiliate will make.
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Step 6: Communicate with your affiliates regularly.
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Step 7: You may discover that a new competitor is enticing your affiliates more
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Step 8: they may think that your resources are not doing the job they should
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Step 9: or maybe your payments haven't been on time.
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Step 10: Make changes as required.
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Step 11: Make time for your affiliates.
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Step 12: Provide contact information.
Detailed Guide
One of the first decisions you'll have to make is which program or script you'd like to use to process payments and manage your affiliate program.
There are many different options, so it's helpful to weigh the cost and benefits of each service or program.
You can use your own script, join an affiliate network, or use a shopping cart service with a built in affiliate program.
Running it yourself on a script:
Your own script and server will track your affiliates' sales and the amount owed for those sales.
It is then your responsibility to go in and pay your affiliates when their commission is due.
Affiliate network:
An affiliate network will generally do all the tracking and affiliate recruiting for you, as well as make the payments each month.
The affiliate network will then charge you a percentage for utilizing their service.
Shopping Cart Services:
There are also shopping cart services that will help you to manage your info product business and your affiliate database.
You will normally have to do more affiliate recruitment rather than depending upon an affiliate network's large database, but you are much more in control than with the other alternatives.
Affiliate marketers are inundated with different products in many different niches.
It can be extremely difficult for you to stand out from all of the options.
As a product seller, you'll want to do everything in your power to stand apart from the crowd and grab the attention of potential affiliates.
One of the best ways to do that is to offer your affiliates plenty of resources so they can get their promotions up and running quickly and easily.
Some resources you might consider offering your affiliates might be Graphic banners Articles Sample excerpts of your product Marketing plans, and more. ,, The best way to find out what is working and what isn’t working is to communicate with your affiliates.
If one month there is an abundance of sales and the next nothing, it is wise to communicate with your affiliates to see if something is up.
You can easily create a survey online with OneMinuteSurveys.com or SurveyMonkey.
Or, just email your affiliates and ask them to respond.
Any number of factors may be causing the dip in sales. ,, Whatever their answers may be, it will help you to make the necessary changes to get sales moving in the right direction again. , If you are not willing to set aside time to ensure the success of your affiliates, you most definitely will lose them.
Make sure your contact information is easily displayed for those who might want to get a hold of you with questions or concerns.
Be sure to offer an option other than a single email address, just in case there might be email glitches that prevent your affiliates email from reaching you.
Set up a forum, blog, or social media hub where your affiliates can connect with you.
Other options – offer phone help or host question and answer webinars. , It shows that you are a credible and experienced marketer.
This is especially important if you're running your affiliate program through your own script.
Unfortunately, too often affiliates work hard promoting and selling a program and never receive their commissions.
You should always make sure that your affiliates are confident that this will never happen to them while they are working with you.
About the Author
Nicholas Ramirez
A passionate writer with expertise in lifestyle topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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