Read Articles: 5 Mistakes To Avoid When Choosing An Aff Affiliate Programs Golden Opportunity Internet Affiliate Programs The Fundame Choosing the Best Affiliate Program Wh How to make money with Affiliate Program 7 Tips to Choosing a Successful Affiliat What To Look For When Choosing Affiliate Why TwoTier Affiliate Programs are Best Affiliate Programs Are Wonderlands Of Op Choosing an Affiliate program How To Maximize Your Profit Promoting Af How to Evaluate an Affiliate Program The truth about affiliate programs and h 101 Affiliate Research Results Affiliat 5 Tips To Choosing The Right Affiliate P Affiliate Programs The Fast Track to W Choosing the Best Affiliate Programs for How To Cash In Promoting Affiliate Progr How to select an affiliate program that 6 Things You Must Know Before You Chose Affiliate Programs Points To Consider Getting Rich from Affiliate Programs 12 Tips For A Successful Affiliate Progr Affiliate Program Basics Build A High Profit Business With Online How to Find An Affiliate Program For Any How to Find an Affiliate Program For Any “7 Powerful Tactics To Promote Any Affil 7 Reasons Why You Should Start with Affi Affiliate Programs 101 What is an Affiliate Program and How Can Affiliate programs guide 7 Reasons Why You Should Start with Affi Affiliate Program Intro Are You Making These Mistakes With Your Choosing Affiliate Programs The Good T Affiliate Program As It Should Be Design Web Site Around Affiliate Program What You Should Know About Affiliate Pro Top 5 Tips for Frustrated Affiliate Prog Think: Your affiliate program fortune is 11 Tips for Joining Affiliate Programs Affiliate programs made easy Earning from PPC Search Engine Affiliate How To Profit From 2 Tier Affiliate Prog Vital Things To Check At Any Affiliate P Affiliate Programs Finding the Best and Most Lucrative Affi Five Fantastic Ways To Promote Your Affi Five Things to Look For to Join Any Affi How to Create a Lifetime Commissions Aff Affiliate ProgramsAn Easy Start to Onli Are Affiliate Programs Sensible How to join Affiliate Programs Affilia How to start your own Affiliate Program Mining For Gold With The Best Affiliate Choosing the Right Affiliate Program for Make Sure Affiliate Programs Pay for eve 3 Tips To Succeed With Affiliate Program "Affiliate Programs to Avoid 8 Basic Rules for Choosing The Right Aff Affiliate Program Primer Affiliate Program Scams To Watch Out For Affiliate Programs Which One Are Your Affiliate Programs Eating Away Free Ways to Promote Your Affiliate Prog Generate More Sales in ANY Affiliate Pro How To Profit From Affiliate Programs Wo How To Profit From Affiliate Programs Affiliate Programs Can Be Very Beneficia How to Run A Successful Affiliate Progra How to Succeed with Affiliate Programs Index Pages:  1 2

Choosing an Affiliate program by: Kevin Sinclair What should you consider when choosing an affiliate program? You need to think about two key things: what business are you in and what can the affiliate program provide to your customers. No matter what business you are in, the largest investment you make will be customer acquisition. If you have your own product, and have acquired a base of satisfied customers, then single product affiliate programs could work very well for you. However, if your business is acquiring customers for other businesses, that is, purely affiliate programs, then a better choice for you could be affiliate programs with multiple products or services. This will help you to capitalise on your investment in customer acquisition. The key to choosing successfully is to ensure that the affiliate program offers products that meet the needs of your potential customers. Coupled with this is the need for the products to be high quality and for the supplier to provide excellent customer service. Remember, your credibility is on the line every time you refer someone to buy through your affiliate relationship. Some of the other factors I consider when evaluating affiliate programs include: + Is the affiliate program a reputable business? You can check out a business you are considering a relationship with in variety of ways. Talk to the Better Business Bureau in your local area or a similar body. In addition, I find web sites that monitor affiliate programs to be worth looking at. The best I have found is Associate Programs http://www.AssociatePrograms.com. Allan Gardyne pulls no punches and tells it as it is. + Does the program enable you to share in the lifetime value of the customer? Great programs will give you commissions on all future purchases of the customers you introduce. This is where the real profits are. These types of programs, in effect, allow you to partner with the supplier. + Does the program reward you for introducing other affiliates? This type of program is commonly referred to as a two-tier program. Often your customer may become an affiliate also and you will be rewarded for this. + Is the supplier interested in your success as an affiliate? The top affiliate programs engage in a process of coaching or information sharing to help you succeed. Affiliates are provided with regular newsletters outlining what is working for successful affiliates and providing updates and details on new products. + Is the commission reasonable? Commission rates on commodity products such as books and CDs are low. This is because there is very little margin in the products due to competition. Look for products that have a commission rate of 15% or more that are not commodities - that way you will be better able to recoup your customer acquisition investment. + Are statistics provided? The higher the level of statistics provided, the better off you are. This will enable you to measure the success of your marketing efforts and to determine the best places to invest your marketing dollars. Insufficient statistics is a sign that the affiliate program is not sufficiently interested in your success. + Are new products being developed regularly? To get the full value from lifetime commissions, new products need to be introduced on a regular basis. Without this, lifetime commissions can be worthless. Also, look for consistent high quality in new products introduced. + How frequently are commissions paid? The more frequently commissions are paid, the better off you are. Good quality affiliate programs will pay you monthly. In some situations, commissions are not paid until a certain level is reached. If the program you are considering has this requirement, check how many sales need to be made before the level is reached. + Have you read the affiliate agreement? This is a key area that you should look at. Some affiliate agreements are totally in favour of the supplier. Others are more balanced. Some agreements restrict your ability to promote similar products from other suppliers. Most agreements have anti-spam provisions. Look for agreements that are fair and that do not stack everything against you as the affiliate. While there are other factors that can be considered when choosing an affiliate program, following the suggestions above will help you to make superior business choices that will lead to long-term success. About the author: Article by Kevin Sinclair, CPA, of Be Successful! Business & Personal Success Resources ( http://www.ksinclair.com/ ). He is the author of 2 free ebooks: "Success Secrets" & "How To Choose A Home Based Business". Kevin is also the publisher of "Be Successful News" - a free ezine dedicated to your online business success - to subscribe, visit http://www.ksinclair.com/pbs_news.htm

More Resources

12/05/2008 04:22 AM

Kostenloser Leitfaden zum Thema Affiliate-Marketing (Internet World Business)

Wie Affiliate-Marketing funktioniert, erklärt ein kostenloser Leitfaden von Icrossing und dem Bitkom.

12/05/2008 02:01 AM

CashRake Affiliate Program - December 2008: CPA and Rakeback Programs Released (PRWeb via Yahoo! News)

Poker Affiliate Program CashRake has released CPA and Rakeback commission options for promoting JamPoker.

12/05/2008 03:17 AM

Chris Hutcherson, CEO of The Elevision Network™, Announces Master Affiliate Launch of Elevision Network™ (PRWeb)

According to CEO, Chris Hutcherson ( www.chrishutcherson.com ), The Elevision Network intends to become the world's largest Internet Television Network and premier Affiliate Training Site. The Elevision Network is seeking Master Affiliates and portals with large Affiliate lists. Internet Marketing Affiliates and Master Affiliates are about to be presented the most comprehensive Affiliate ...

12/05/2008 02:01 AM

Flexible Affiliate Management On Tradebit.com (PRWeb via Yahoo! News)

The download marketplace Tradebit announces new functionality for affiliate marketing and offers now additional payment options. Over 9,000 merchants benefit.

12/04/2008 10:44 AM

Aventure Launches Affiliate Program (Web Host Industry Review)

December 4, 2008 -- ( WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- UK web host Aventure Host has launched a web hosting affiliate and partner program that gives web hosting customers and marketing professionals the chance to advertise and sell its web hosting products for up to 20 percent commission.

12/04/2008 03:38 PM

Aventure Host Launches Web Hosting Affiliate Program (TopHosts.com)

Belfast-based provider's new Web hosting affiliate and partner program paying 10-20% commission per sale.

12/04/2008 02:01 AM

Aventure Host Launches Web Hosting Affiliate Program (PRWeb via Yahoo! News)

International web hosting company Aventure Host based in the United Kingdom and Ireland hosting approximately 15,000 websites has today announced the availability of it's new web hosting affiliate and partner program paying 10-20% commission per sale.

12/03/2008 02:10 PM

Regulator relaxes rules for affiliate investments in multifunds - Chile (Business News Americas)

Chile's pension regulator SP has relaxed rules for affiliate investments options in the mandatory pension system's five multifunds. Each AFP offers a family of five funds with different risk profiles with fund A having the highest ceiling of variable income investments.

12/03/2008 08:44 AM

Admirals affiliate disbands (Daily Press)

The Augusta (Ga.) Lynx minor-league team, an affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning and AHL's Norfolk Admirals, suspended operations and relinquished its membership in the ECHL. The league said Augusta players will become unrestricted free agents. ...

12/04/2008 11:17 PM

Elfstrom Stadium to offer luxury suites (Chicago Tribune)

With a $10.5 million renovation to Elfstrom Stadium, the Kane County Cougars will offer fans something new next  season: luxury suites. As part of a stadium overhaul that began Sept. 11 but had been in the works since 1999, the Class A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics will add 15 skyboxes and nearly 1,000 seats to the stadium. General  manager Jeff Sedivy said the construction project ...