Affiliate Programs-an Easier Alternative

Being new to the web and wanting to start your own business, you probably are feeling a little intimidated by the new vocabulary you've encountered, not to mention the sheer number of opportunities you've got to chose from.
Never Fear! There is an easy Solution.

Starting your business with Affiliate programs might be your best bet. Why? Simplicity.


Selling a product or service of your own means creating and building a website. Will you hire a web designer or attempt to do it yourself? Learn how to write ad copy or hire a freelance writer to do it for you? Set up a marketing plan, be able to accept payments online and obviously you must create this product or service. If you're selling a physical product then you'll either need to make it or buy it.Where will you get it? What will it cost? How will you pay for it? How will you accept payments online? With all these factors to consider, How do you plan on handling the workload?

Getting started in an online business using affiliate programs is a whole lot quicker and easier.You can, In fact, be making money within hours of signing up with your first affiliate program. There are some folks out there earning huge incomes from affiliate programs. Also referred to as "Super Affiliates." Assuming you are, in fact, New to the Web you're probably wondering what an Affiliate program is.

Essentially, an Affiliate is a salesman or a subcontractor, if you like. You enter into an agreement with an individual or company, to sell their product or service. They, in turn, provide you with a webpage with it's own unique we address, which identifies you. The company takes care of tracking your unique address, completes and delivers the product or service to anyone purchasing through your page, and makes sure the sale is credited to you. Your only job is to drive traffic to your affiliate sales page and collect the commissions.

Some companies offer what's known as a "Two Tier" Program. What this means is, If someone is interested in selling the same product as you. They can sign up as an affiliate from your unique web page and you get a small percentage of everything they sell. Once again, the company tracks it and you get paid.

Picking an affiliate program can be as easy as matching your interests with any one of the thousands of programs available. Whatever that may be, you'll first need to see if there is a market for it. Go to the Overture keyword tool. located here: http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/ Put the main keyword or phrase into the search box and hit Go. Don't be fooled into thinking that just because your particular word or phrase has been searched for a Kazillion times that you've got a winner. If it has, chances are there are half a Kazillion other people marketing the same thing. You'll need to make another choice.

Once you've found something popular yet not too popular, you can go to your favorite search engine to see what programs are available. When you find a program you feel you'd like to try, don't forget to read the Terms and Conditions as well as the (FAQ) Frequently Asked Questions. Make sure the payout structure isn't one that is so high that you'll never see your money. 50% payout is pretty much the standard. If the cost of the product or service is high enough you can probably settle for less than 50%. Do the math and decide if it will pay you what you can live with.
(Here's a Tip. It takes as much effort to market a high priced item as it does a low priced item.) If you can comfortably agree with the Terms and Conditions then go ahead and sign up.

Being the smart, savvy person you are it is probably pretty obvious why marketing affiliate programs is great for beginners. All you need to do is Drive Traffic to Your Affiliate Sales Page. Everything else is taken care of by the company!

So, What are You Waiting For? Get Out There and Create the Great Income You've Been Dreaming About!