I'm often asked in the affiliate forums that I moderate - questions like "what's the best way to get started?" or "how do I find the best programs?" Here are a couple answers that I thought would help spur some good discussion over here.
Ohhhhhhhhhh there are so many different ways to get started and so many options. I could write a book... "the best programs?" Yes, I know where you can find a few good ones.
As far as the question of what’s the "best" affiliate program to get started with - well that's a big question but the answer can be defined by YOU!
What is your current site about and who are your visitors? What are they interested in? Find products and services that will appeal to them and THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX! For instance if you have a site about travel, don't just promote hotel and airline affiliate programs, add travel insurance, Amazon books about travel and Luggage.
What are you passionate about??? What do you know a lot about? If you can find an affiliate program that ties into your interests or hobbies you will be ahead of the game!!! WHY? Because it can take some time to generate income and if it's something you are interested in it will give you the incentive to keep building more pages PLUS you can add valuable content to your site based on your knowledge of the subject.
LEARNING THE ROPES
One way to minimize the learning curve and get into revenue more quickly is to learn from a guru - or a marketing training system. There are many out there and some are just hype. Two in the affiliate marketing world that I happen to believe in, because I have talked to affiliates that have found success and swear by the methods are James Martell - jamesmartell.com and the Affiliate Classroom - affiliateclassroom.com. I also know the owners personally and believe strongly in their integrity and commitment to helping others.
The Affiliate Classroom has a full access 2 week trial for $1 so I would jump in there and learn all you can in 2 weeks. They teach you step-by-step exactly what to do.
If you can research and find a training program that you feel is good - you can pay to learn more quickly and overcome some of the trial and error that can burn people out and make them want to give up.
I just touched on a couple different areas, but I hope I have given you some guidelines and tips to ponder. Please post any other specific questions on this board and I will do the best I can to help you.
What do you guys think? What are the best success tips for getting started? What's the best way to learn the ropes in this biz?
Linda Buquet - Affiliate Management Consultant