Familiarize yourself with the advances in the Internet world today. There are a lot of improvements in the way a business can be developed in the virtual online markets. For one, let me introduce affiliate marketing and how it works in generating commission and revenues for you.
Affiliate Marketing Definition and History
Affiliate marketing is a way to conduct business through a channel (affiliate) which promotes the product of the seller to consumers. For the marketing efforts of the affiliate, a monetary reward looms like a carrot on a stick, which is, every visitor brought to the seller who buys is rewarded with a commission.
This concept of revenue sharing in the form of commissions has been developed approximately four years after the conception of the World Wide Web. It has grown into a bigger business than offline businesses.
Due to the success of affiliate marketing, it has now become a part of the business plans of many industries. Unusually, many advertisers overlook this kind of marketing strategy. The use of another website to drive traffic to another has been advantageous in the e-retailer’s world to incredible levels.
How it Works
In affiliate marketing there are four key players:
1. Merchant – also known as “brand” or “seller”. They provide the products that get endorsed by the affiliates.
2. Network – these are mediators between the online merchants and publishers. They offer services to merchants such as tracking technology and contact to a population of publishers.
3. Publisher – these are the people who endorse the products of the seller or merchants. They direct traffic into the site of the seller and that way, earn their commission. They are also known as affiliates.
4. Consumer – or buyers. They are the ones who look for products and when they come upon the affiliates’ marketing site, are redirected to the seller, they are then able to purchase the item they want.
These are the key elements behind affiliate marketing. It might seem confusing but in affiliate marketing, the dynamic interactions of these players are sophisticated no-hassle transactions.
Now, when a consumer stumbles upon the publisher’s site and finds that the products there are worth checking out, they will be redirected to the seller’s site. The marketing approach and description of the publisher must grab the attention of the buyers so they will click through. Hopefully, they get to the merchant’s site and buy the product. When a purchase is completed, a commission will be sent to the publisher or affiliate. Networks earn revenues by charging an initial setup or a membership fee for merchants. They can also demand a percentage of the commission paid to affiliates.
Affiliate Networks to Consider
With the excellent opportunities offered by affiliate marketing, you should not be surprised to find there are lots of affiliate networks out there. Here are some affiliate networks that are regarded as the most productive today. These are not affiliate links BTW –
Commission Junction – for advertisers and publishers alike, this is one of the leading affiliate networks. They offer various services for advertisers such as managed search and affiliate program management which aims to guide you through and ensure your success in affiliate marketing. It also allows you to tap a global network of publishers who will effectively drive consumers to the products.
Click Bank – this network presents almost the same services to advertisers and publishers. It is also one of the pay-per-click networks. Aside from efficient publishers, Click Bank assures advertisers of reliable payment processing and low startup costs. Its fraud prevention scheme is one of the industry’s leading methods.
It is very important to look for affiliate networks with superior customer support. This is vital for both advertisers and publishers. Now you know what affiliate marketing is, you should give it a go. Don’t be in a rush, tread carefully and think about your supporting content.
…good luck,
Ray Baker