What is affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing , also called shopify site design partner marketing or commission system, allows you to earn money by selling products of another company . It works on the basis of linking the websites of a specific brand (company) with pages that recommend the given service or product. The brand thus gets another promotional channel (intermediary’s website) and the intermediary gets a share of the sales.
What affiliate marketing is not
A lot of beginners believe that affiliate marketing will bring them effortless income while they are enjoying themselves on the beach somewhere. Bridge error. It is true that affiliate marketing will start to bring you passive income over time, but it will take time and energy to fine tune the whole system before you get there. Even then, affiliate marketing will require ongoing adjustments and improvements.
ATTENTION: You cannot take affiliate marketing as your only or main source of income. Unless you have a site with a global reach and millions of visitors, don’t expect your affiliate to make huge money.
How affiliate marketing works
Affiliate marketing stands on four pillars:
- Company (advertiser)
- Intermediaries (affiliate partners)
- Affiliate system
- Customers.
Several factors affect the hair transplant digital marketing effectiveness of the entire system: the quality of the product or service as such, targeting the right customers, communication between the company and the affiliate partner, knowledge of the market and customer needs.
GOOD TO KNOW: In order to earn commissions, the company you want to partner with must have an affiliate program.
Pillars of affiliate marketing in detail
1. Companies (advertisers)
Companies or individuals who offer their products or services on the Internet.
2. Intermediaries (affiliate partners)
Companies or ef leads individuals (for example, influencers) who can reach the target group of advertisers. Through their marketing channels (websites, social networks, e-mailing…) they reach out to potential customers. They then receive a commission from sales to these customers.
3. Affiliate network (affiliate system)
Every brokered sale must be recorded in some way. In other words, you need to have a system that correctly identifies and matches a visit to a website with a specific purchase (via an intermediary link).
Records can be solved in two ways:
- the company will create its own affiliate system
- the company joins an existing affiliate network that has its own sales matching system
4. Customers
In addition to the mentioned pillars, customers are also very important. If they do not buy the offered services or products, you will not receive any commissions from them. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the market in advance and focus on partner sales of goods for which there is really a demand.
How affiliate marketing works technically
Since this is a type of online marketing, a necessary condition is a website that offers the goods and a website that mediates the sale with the help of a special link that allows identification of the purchase.
The company creates an affiliate link for advertisers either through its own affiliate system , or obtains it from an affiliate network after an intermediary joins the program. The mediated purchase is recorded in the system via a cookie file. The file’s validity period is set in the system, usually 30 days. If a visitor to the intermediary’s website makes a purchase within this period, the intermediary receives a commission.
It doesn’t matter if the customer buys based on clicking on a banner, an offer in an e-mail or on social networks. Some companies pay commissions immediately, others only after reaching a minimum set amount. Each company has its own rules for the affiliate program.
What affects the success of affiliate campaigns
On the company side
- You have to have a product that’s in demand, because if you’re selling something that no one needs, an army of middlemen won’t help you.
- Several effective marketing channels should be used. You cannot rely on an affiliate by itself. If sales do not go well, partners may suddenly leave you.
Recommended reading: The article Personas: What Your Customers Really Solve shows you how to find out what people really need.
On the side of intermediaries
- You need to promote goods that are of interest , or choose a good brand that sells the desired products or services.
- You need to be able to reach a relevant target group .
- You need to have a well-established relationship with your audience .
- You should be knowledgeable in the area.
On both sides
The smaller the market you reach, the smaller the earning potential. This has to be taken into account in the Czech Republic. Therefore, do not expect commissions corresponding to the size of the US market (over 300 million inhabitants) or the UK market (over 60 million inhabitants).
How to run an affiliate campaign as a business
Launching an affiliate program
Once you have a product that is sought after, you can start an affiliate program. You can either create your own affiliate system in cooperation with a programmer, or use ready-made services such as Affilbox .
The second option is to join an existing affiliate network, where you will find a lot of programs. We offer, for example, Affial .
