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Writing a blog can be so much more than just a passion project. In fact, it can provide you with an income. Whether that income is your main income or a side income is up to you.
How is this possible you ask? Simply put: affiliate marketing.
Bloggers can make great money through affiliate marketing, and it’s not complicated to get started. The only limit you will encounter is you. It will just take time, effort, and a bit of luck.
In this article, we’ll talk about the steps to getting started in affiliate marketing for bloggers. You’ll learn how to turn your blog into a cash-making machine and how you can increase your income to the amount you desire. Let’s get started!
Step One: Choose the Product
It’s critically important that you choose to represent a product you like that is related to an industry you want to write about. Once you’ve decided on a product, check to see if individual companies you prefer have affiliate marketing programs. Not all will, but you’ll find that it’s more common than you might think.
Step Two: Set Up as an Affiliate
With your product picked out, it’s time to set yourself up as an affiliate. Take some time in this step to read through all the information provided by the affiliate program. You’ll want to pay attention to:
Payment amounts
Payment schedule
Legal obligations
Restrictions
Individual programs will require you to take different steps to get started. Be sure to follow them carefully. This can be a lengthy process depending on who you’re doing business with.
Rest assured, affiliate programs want your help in selling their products. Even if it takes some time, they’ll make the setup process worth your while in the end.
The commission you earn per sale will depend on the program and the product. The more value the product has, the higher the commission is likely to be.
Step Three: Promote the Product
With everything in place, it’s time to turn your blog into a cash machine. The affiliate program will assign you a URL for linking to its product. You’ll want to make sure you’re using the link strategically to maximise click- throghs.
The ThirstyAffiliates plugin is a great place to start. It allows you to cloak long, unattractive affiliate links, protect your commissions from theft, and
automatically insert affiliate links into blog posts easily.
Speaking of blog posts, long form content is one of the best ways to promote products. Things like product reviews allow you to go in depth on a product, which provides plenty of opportunities to drop in your affiliate link.
Take some time to look through Google for investigational keywords. Words you’ll come across frequently include:
Best
Review
Compare
Alternative
These words help you to figure out the types of posts to create. As you start to see results, take some time to see what brought people to you. You can use Google Analytics to see exactly what keywords people used to find your site. Simply go to Google Analytics, type in Acquisition > Search Console > Queries.
Also, make sure to include methods to generate email lists. Check out post on email marketing for some helpful ideas. You might also consider running special offers whereby email follow up automation will help you maintain contact with your new audience members. Follow Up Fred is a great platform offering this type of automation.
Step Four: Get Paid – Repeat
As you develop more posts on your website, the chances to make sales will increase. As long as you’re following the legal obligations of the platform, you’ll enjoy regular payouts. Keep seeking new products you can promote to maintain a steady flow of income.
Also, make sure to there’s a common thread running between the products you promote. If you decide you’d like to branch out into new territory, your best bet is to start a new blog. This will help to maintain your position as an authority in one subject and will prevent your blog from looking like an affiliate marketplace.
Final Thoughts
It is possible to promote affiliate products using various methods. But blogging is one of the easiest and best ways to start on the path to earning some passive income.
Just keep repeating these four steps, and you’ll keep making money. It’s that simple! Expand on the different steps, and your rewards will be even greater. Most importantly, have fun! You’ll find that the more engaging your content, the higher returns you’ll enjoy.