subject: How To Select The Best Affiliate Product [print this page] Affiliate marketing is getting more popular each and every day. Potential affiliate marketers are attracted to the many benefits of being an affiliate marketer. The fact that you can work from the comfort of your own home and reach a large consumer base make it one of the fastest growing ways to earn money online.
You don't have to have any particular qualifications to be an affiliate marketer. If you have access to a computer and some basic writing skills, you can start an affiliate marketing business. The biggest obstacle for a new affiliate marketer to overcome is finding the right product to promote.
There are so many different types of products that finding the right one can be a daunting task. It's also one of the most important things you can do as you begin your affiliate marketing venture. It's importance lies in the fact that choosing the wrong product can directly affect your earnings. If you pick a product that is hard to promote or has little demand, you may find yourself doing a lot of work and not making any money. Here are some pointers that will help you pick the right product to promote:
1. Do your research.
This tip may seem obvious, but you'd be surprised how many affiliate marketers dive head first into a product without researching it. The first thing you should do is turn to the search engines. Do a simple search on the product and see what people have to say. Read several reviews that buyers have written and make sure that they are satisfied. The second thing you should do is to read through some affiliate marketing forums. See if there are others who are promoting the same product, and find out if they have had any success with it. Lastly, if you join an affiliate network, you should be able to view some of the sales statistics of the product and you should always try to contact the vendor directly. Ask the vendor why you should promote their product instead of hundreds of others.
2. Make sure the product has a good website.
When you are deciding whether or not to promote a product, one of the best things you can do is to look closely at the sales page. Read it from top to bottom and pretend you are a potential customer who has just landed on the website. Are the graphics good? Is the sales copy convincing? Remember, these are the first things that a potential buyer will notice. Ask yourself if you would purchase the product? If not, it may be time to move on.
3. Make sure you will be compensated sufficiently.
Make sure you find out how much your commission will be. If you are going to be investing your valuable time and effort in promoting a product, you want to make sure that you are going to be paid well. As a general rule, I base my compensation rate on the sale of 10 products. In other words, if the commissions from 10 sales don't equal a full week's pay, the commissions are too low. Now, bear in mind that everyone has a different idea of how much they want to make in a week, but I base it on minimum wage. If minimum wage is $8 per hour, then a 40 hour work week would be a gross pay of $320. Therefore, I need to make at least $32 per sale for it to be worth my time.
4. Test the product on family and friends.
Ask a few trusted family members to visit the web site and then get their feedback. Ask if they would purchase the product. Find out what they thought of the web site. Don't tell them that you are thinking of promoting the product. Instead, tell them that you are thinking about purchasing it, and find out what they think. If they would purchase the product, chances are others will too.
If you follow these four tips when you find a product you would like to promote, you'll ensure that it's one that will make you commissions. You have to think of affiliate marketing as a full time job, and take it very seriously. If you want to achieve success, you'll need to remain motivated and always give 100 percent.
In closing, you should always weigh the pros and cons of promoting an affiliate product. Sit down with a pencil and paper and write down the advantages and disadvantages of promoting a particular product. If there is more positive than negative, you've got yourself a good product to promote.
