More people than ever are trying their hand at online businesses of one type or another. Most of these people are either trying to supplement their 9-5 incomes or in some cases, make it their main source of income. The primary reason so many people chose online marketing is because of the many benefits it has to offer.

One of the biggest reasons online marketing is so attractive is the fact the you can reach a world wide audience. You are now able to sell your products to anyone with Internet access. Having this broader market can ultimately lead to a larger income. Another reason this business is so attractive is the cost of setting it up is minimal as compared to a conventional brick and mortar business. There is also minimal risk involved with an online business.

Another great advantage of starting an online business is the fact that you don’t need your own products or services. As an online marketer, it is possible to make money by selling OPP’s (other people’s products). This is also better know as affiliate marketing. Using this type of marketing strategy is really very easy to get started with. Once you enter into an agreement with a merchant/vendor to market their product or service, you can start earning some money.

Affiliate marketing has become one of the fastest and most popular ways to sell OPP’s. For those of you not familiar with affiliate marketing, I think Wikipedia.org gives a great definition for Affiliate Marketing:

“Affiliate Marketing is a widespread method of promoting a website, in which an affiliate is rewarded for every visitor, subscriber and/or customer provided through his efforts. It is a modern variation of the practice of paying finder’s-fees to individuals who introduce new clients to a business. Compensation may be made based on a certain value for each visit (Pay-per-click), registrant (Pay-per-lead), or a commission for each customer or sale (Pay-per-Sale).”

You will probably find that most merchants provide their affiliates with resources such as banners, text ads, e-mails, etc. that link back to the merchant’s site. The affiliate will use these resources on their web sites or blogs to direct traffic to the merchant’s site and earn a commission if a sale is made. In most cases, the affiliate is paid an agreed upon percentage of the sale or a fixed rate as compensation for their effort.

Getting yourself set up as an affiliate marketer is quite easy. Basically, all that is required, is signing up as an affiliate with any company that offers an affiliate program. You can also sign on as an affiliate with some of the larger affiliate programs such as ClickBank, Commission Junction, Share-A-Sale, and Plimus. With these companies you have the ability to promote many different products or services through one network. Becoming an affiliate is usually free with most companies but there are a few who do require a fee. The reason they charge a fee is because of some additional resources and tools they offer that may help your online business.

As I mentioned, signing up as an affiliate is easy. Generally, all you need to do is; fill out a short form which contains information about yourself. Several programs may want the URL of your site with a brief description. They require this so the merchants have the ability to verify that you really do have a site and your content is relevant to their products and services. There are also many programs that do not require you to have a web site or blog. Once you complete their form, you should get approved in a very short time…sometimes instantly. You can start browsing through the products and pick the ones you want to start promoting.

Now that you’ve become an affiliate, the real challenge begins. You’re all pumped up and ready to start making some money…right? Well, I’m not going to mislead anyone and tell them that making money as an affiliate is easy. Yes, there are people who do very well and make lots of money but that’s not the norm. In fact, less than 5% make serious money. If you’re not willing to put in some hard work, be patient, dedicated and motivated, affiliate marketing may not be right for you.

So, how do people make money as affiliate marketers? Actually, there are several ways affiliates earn money and it usually depends on the various types of programs they’re associated with. Generally, there are three ways affiliates are compensated.

1. PPS (pay-per-sale) With PPS, the affiliate gets paid only when the potential customer makes a purchase.
2. PPC (pay-per-click) Affiliates are compensated for each referral that is directed to a merchant’s site.
3. PPL (pay-per-lead) In a PPL program, the affiliates are paid a fee when the referral is converted to a lead for the merchant. This is common with credit card and insurance companies.

There are also programs known as a two-tier programs. In this type of program, the affiliate is compensated for their sales and is also allowed to recommend affiliates to the merchants. When the recommended affiliates make sales, the affiliate who recommended them earns a commission on those sales as well. In the long run, this type of program can be very lucrative.

Last but not least, are the residual affiliate programs. With this type of program, affiliates earn commissions over and over as long as the customer continues on with the merchant. An example of a residual type program would be web hosting or a membership site where the customer is required to make a monthly payment to continue receiving services. Each month that the customer makes a payment, the affiliate is compensated.

As you can see, there are many options for an affiliate to make some money. It’s no wonder that affiliate marketing has become so popular. It’s an easy business to set up and the cost and risk factor is minimal. With regard to how much money an affiliate can earn, it’s all dependent on the individual. Many people get into the business of selling OPP’s with lots of excitement and enthusiasm but they give up to easily because the money don’t start coming in right away. If you’re a person who’s willing to put in the time, work hard and take action, you have the ingredients to become a successful affiliate.

Are you currently selling OPP’s? Which programs have you had any success with?

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Filed under: affiliate marketing • affiliate programs • home based business • internet marketing • resources and tools

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