Is Affiliate Marketing Dead?

Is affiliate marketing dead?  No, no and again No!  It’s alive and vibrant.

In fact, it’s getting exponentially bigger.  Affiliate marketing has become one of the top online businesses to earn revenue.

Many marketers have made it a full-time income, quitting their day jobs and enjoying the flexibility of working from home.

In 2016 alone, a staggering 4.7 billion was spent through affiliate marketing links, online.  And by 2020, they expect that number to rise to a whopping 6.8 billion.

Forrester Consulting went on to say that between 80% and 90% of advertisers and publishers use affiliate marketing strategies, bringing in more than 20% of their annual revenue.

They regard affiliate marketing to be very important to their overall marketing strategy.

So you see, as more and more people become accustomed to and enjoy the convenience of online shopping, the use of affiliate marketing strategies has become increasingly relevant.

Would you like to start your business today?  Click here!

Why Do We Still Hear “It’s Dead”?

I suspect most people who say this are those who were finding easy success before the big Google updates, primarily Google’s Panda and Penguin updates.

The Panda update was a…

“…change aimed to lower the rank of “low-quality sites” or “thin sites”, in particular, “content farms”, and return higher-quality sites near the top of the search results.”

These marketers were just throwing up tons on content that really didn’t say anything.  It was considered to be “thin content” filled with advertising.

The Penguin update was…

“…aimed at decreasing search engine rankings of websites that violate Google’s Webmaster Guidelines by using now declared black-hat SEO techniques involved in increasing artificially the ranking of a webpage by manipulating the number of links pointing to the page.”

Black-hat SEO techniques were readily used, meaning these marketers were manipulating the backlinks to their sites, along with keyword stuffing and who knows what else.

Tactics like these made it very hard for those entrepreneurs who wanted to offer real advice and helpful solutions to people’s problems.  They kept getting outranked by all the “shady” and dishonest marketers.

After Google’s updates, most of their businesses tanked the next day and cut off their affiliate income.  Now they have to put in the work that the rest of us do, and many quit because it’s too hard.

Well, that just goes to show you their real character, right?

Is it ok to still ask this question?  Of course it is, especially if you’re new to affiliate marketing.  You want to make sure that it’s still a viable way to make money online.  You certainly don’t want to invest your time and money into something that may be dying.

And of course, it depends on who you ask.  Those who aren’t successful will say “yes”.  But why are they unsuccessful?

It’s not because affiliate marketing is dead, but rather:

1. Their business is too new and not making anything yet.  They expected immediate results that never work.
2. Their blog has only 1 or 2 articles on it.
3. They have no social media presence or a following.
4. They don’t answer their blog comments or emails.
5. They only work at their business a couple of hours a week.
6. There’s no consistent publishing of blogs.
7. They’re still following blackhat SEO strategies.

There can be so many reasons why they’re not succeeding, and it’s easier for them to say that online marketing is dead rather than admit their mistakes.

OK, now go ask successful marketers…like me!  We’ll all say that’s it’s an amazing way to create an online income, and there’s NO WAY it’s dead, lol.

In fact, personally speaking, it’s getting better every year.

The more time and effort you invest in your business, the more results you get!

You see, when you honestly want to help people with solutions to their problems, they begin to trust you and follow you.

And when they trust you, they will be more willing to purchase those products or services you recommend.  And when that happens, you make money.

How, you ask?  Keep reading…

What is Affiliate Marketing?

According to Wikipedia,

“Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing in which a business rewards one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought by the affiliate’s own marketing efforts”.

In the simplest of terms, it’s when a merchant (advertiser) rewards you (publisher) for bringing them a buying customer, in the form of a commission.

Take a look at the image below…

There are always 3 parties in the affiliate marketing cycle.

1. The advertiser, or manufacturer, is the company that creates the product or service you wish to promote.

It’s the “solution” you’ve found to help your readers with whatever problem they’re experiencing.

2. You are their affiliate, or publisher, that has agreed to promote or advertise this product.

You can do this for free, and it benefits the manufacturer because he is getting free advertising.

3. The customer is the visitor to your website, who agrees with your solution.

When they click the link, they are brought to the manufacturer’s site and purchases the product. When that’s completed, the manufacturer (or creator) pays you a portion of the profits in the form of a commission.

There can sometimes be a 4th party called an “affiliate network”.  Clickbank is one, for example.  Many creators of digital products, like software or ebooks, etc, sell their stuff on platforms like this.

Affiliate networks attract a lot of affiliates, which helps sell their products.

If you’d like even more detail, please read “What Is Online Affiliate Marketing”.

Types Of Affiliate Marketing

There are many different ways to perform affiliate marketing, from email marketing to blogging, and much more.

But I believe it ultimately comes down to two types of people.

1. Those that are just in it for the money and push products to email lists or on social media platforms.

That’s not my style, nor the style of most high-earning successful businesses.

2. Those whose primary purpose is “helping people” solve their problems.

You spend time writing content that offers valuable information that keeps them coming back to you.  You give out a lot of free stuff because that’s what entices your readers to return.

Ultimately, if you keep in mind that it’s all about your visitors, and not yourself, you’ll succeed.

If you have some time, this is a great video by one of this industry’s icons, Neil Patel.  This was his keynote speech at the Affiliate Summit West 2019.

He offers some great stats and advice here…

Why Use Affiliate Marketing?

Wouldn’t you like to make extra money?  In the comfort of your own home?  Or a cabin? Or on the beach?

Anywhere really!  I would, and I do.  And I would love to see you successfully do this as well.

We all need extra income from time to time, usually for debts owed, wanting to be a stay-at-home parent or early retirement.

Wouldn’t it be fantastic to be financially free of all the debts holding us back?  To be able to enjoy life and not worry about the future?

Affiliate marketing is the way to go.  The risk to value ratio is ridiculously small.  Start-up costs range from zero to very little, compared to the mind-blowing income some of my friends make.

I’m not at mind-blowing yet…but I will be, lol

At this point, I’ve been successful at creating a comfortable monthly income to help with our retirement.  From here it’s scaling and growing.  The sky’s the limit if you truly want it.

Most people start their businesses part-time, and many become so successful, they quit their day jobs and work their online business full time.

Here are some reasons why you SHOULD use affiliate marketing:

• There are very small start-up costs (sometimes free…).
• Absolutely no experience is needed with the right training.
• No need to store merchandise or inventory.
• No customer service or refunds to worry about.
• Affiliate programs are free to join (don’t join if you have to pay).
• You can be your own boss.  How great is that!
• You can work from anywhere with a laptop and an internet connection.
• The personal satisfaction of having a following that you’re helping.

The following are some statistics to help you see the value of this type of business.

#1:  As I stated above, it’s expected that 6.8 billion dollars will be spent through affiliate marketing by 2020.  That’s in the United States alone.

#2:  81% of Brands and 84% of Publishers use affiliates to generate revenue.  It’s a very cost-effective strategy for them.

#3:  In one year’s span, the search term “affiliate marketing” increased by 30%.  As more people shop online, and brick and mortar stores decline, the interest in this business model is increasing.

#4:  As newsprint and magazine sales decline, more publishers are generating revenue through social media, making up 20% of their sales.

#5:  16% of all online orders are through affiliate marketing.  This may seem low to you, but if you consider the billions spent each year, your slice of the pie could be significant.

#6:  Fashion, sports, then health/wellness are the three most popular categories in affiliate programs.

#7:  Affiliates of Amazon can earn anywhere from 1% to 10% commission, depending on the product promoted.

#8:  Jason Stone, better known as the “Millionaire Mentor” on Instagram, generated $7 million in one year’s time with affiliate marketing alone.  Wow!

As you can see, this industry is very much NOT DEAD!  

The size of this industry is growing each and every year.  More affiliate networks keep popping up giving affiliates more options to choose from.

These networks keep improving their sales techniques as well as payment platforms because they know the industry isn’t going away.

There are increasingly more big-name businesses who are jumping on the bandwagon to increase their revenue

The percentage of the population with access to the internet is growing exponentially each year, taking advantage of all that available for sale online.  It isn’t just physical products, but digital products and even online education.

So as long as we have the internet, businesses will continue to find ways to create and market their products and services, giving affiliates even more ways to make a passive income.

Getting Started With Affiliate Marketing

Getting your own business started is easier than ever before.

The following is a very simplified view of what affiliate marketing entails.

There are generally two types of businesses to choose from, but not limited to:

1. A resource site that focuses on “how-to” articles and videos, to help your reader’s problem in that particular niche.
2. A review site that focuses on products within your chosen niche.

Once you’ve thought about what kind of business you’d like to build, there are basic steps you need to perform.

Step 1 – Niche

Start by choosing your preferred niche.  This can be anything from soup to nuts, haha.

You want to choose something you’re familiar with, passionate about, or want to become an expert in.

Or, you can choose a niche that’s known to be profitable because it’s always popular.  Such industries include fashion, beauty, make money online, self-help, parenting…

I know these may not be something you’re totally passionate about, but think about it.  If it starts making you a great income, don’t you think you’d become passionate, lol…

Step 2 – Domain and Website

Unlike years ago, choosing your domain name and building your website can now be done in minutes.

Service providers like DreamHost or BlueHost will register your chosen domain (business name), have a free website building platform and offer hosting services.

Many services will offer you a great introductory price for one year of their services, but keep in mind that it will revert to their regular rates the year after.

Step 3 – Content

Now is the time to start adding content to your site.

With the use of low competition keywords in your articles, and using the current SEO strategies, you will become noticed by search engines and start ranking on page one.

This is how your preferred audience will notice you and want to read your article.

Step 4 – Monetization

There are endless ways to monetize your website, but today we’re talking about affiliate marketing.  For this, you will need to apply for affiliate links.  This is free to do.

No legitimate merchant will charge you for applying or using their links.

This can be done through the merchant’s site directly, or through affiliate networks like Clickbank, Commission Junction, JVZoo, and countless others.

From this point, there are many other strategies you can employ to monetize your website and articles, and this comes along with your affiliate education.

Conclusion

This may sound like a lot at the moment, but please don’t feel overwhelmed.  If you take it one step at a time, it’s actually quite easy.

That is if you have a proper teaching platform.  And I can help you there as well.

I would love for you to come and see where I learned everything about affiliate marketing, and where I run my own successful business to this day.

Not only do they provide excellent training, but they provide domain name registration, website building, and hosting, all for one price.

They also have their own, powerful, keyword research tool to help make ranking your business easier than ever before.

Their certification courses are designed for beginners with no experience, and take you by the hand, step by step.

Or maybe you’ve already started a business and it’s struggling.  They can help you get back on track and start earning.

Their live community support is the only one of its type online today.  This is one of the biggest reasons I stay there now.  Having a large and active community of like-minded people is the best thing for any entrepreneur.

And…you can start for free (no credit card needed) and give it a test drive.  

Yes, that’s right…FREE.  How could you not try? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain!!

If you click on the image below you can read all about it.  And when you join, I’ll be there to meet you.  I’ll help you along as long as you wish, OK?

Are you already thinking about what kind of business you’d like?  Let me know in the comments below.  I’d love to hear from you.

Do you have friends who might be interested?  Please share this post with them.

Your friend,

Suzanne