If you’re new to blogging, you’ll eventually find out that one of the best ways to make money blogging is by signing up for an affiliate program.  This is an especially good tactic for blogging neophytes who still haven’t established their online presence, and who need a bit of a push towards earning extra money.

First things first, however. What exactly does it mean to be an affiliate? When you sign up for an affiliate program, you agree to drive traffic to your partner’s site or sell products in exchange for a commission. Affiliate programs like these abound; some of the most popular ones include Google Adsense, Amazon.com Associates, Clickbank, and Azoogle.

As it stands, affiliate marketing isn’t as easy as it appears to be.  You can’t take it for granted that your readers will click through your ad links, nor can you guarantee that they’ll buy something from your affiliate partner.  If you want to make money blogging, you’re going to have to formulate a strategy that will maximize what your affiliate program has to offer.  Below are some tips that might make affiliate marketing a little easier for you so you can focus on how to make money online.

1. Stick to the simpler things:

The less invasive an advertisement link or banner ad is, the less likely that people will ignore it.  In fact, there’s mounting evidence that flashier and louder ads are ineffective in “convincing” people to click on them.  And in some cases, a blog’s advertisements end up loading too slowly, bogging down the site itself and forcing the blog visitor to wait until all the page elements load successfully.  If your affiliate program asks you to advertise, opt to do so with link ads.

2. Make sure that your blog theme and affiliate program are compatible:

If digital technology is such so popular, wouldn’t it make sense for you to put up ads for cell phones and digital cameras on your site?  Well, it would, if your blog were also about digital technology.  If, however, you’re managing a food blog, you might only confuse your readers with the product offers you’re waving.  Choose an affiliate program that’s in line with your blog’s current theme – doing so concentrates on your target market and eliminates unnecessary confusion.

3. Play the field:

Make the probability game work in your favour: sign up for multiple affiliate programs, and tweak them all so they work in harmony with each other. For example: you can use Google Adsense alongside other affiliate programs. Be sure to implement this in moderation, however. Most readers are turned off by excessive advertising, so don’t be too blatant about your intent to earn money. Instead, position your ads tastefully, in such a way that your readers don’t feel like their experience of your blog is akin to staring at a huge billboard.

4.  Come up with relevant product reviews:

Once again, the keyword here is relevance. Bloggers can write product reviews and get paid for them, thanks to services like ReviewMe.com. Be careful, however, and resist the urge to be review-happy. Choose products that you actually believe in and are related to the main focus of your site. If your site is all about planning weddings, then you can write a review on a line of bridal dresses by a particular designer. It’s all about tying your blog to the right reviews, which then tie well with your readers. By doing this, you boost the chances of making a sale happen and earning a commission from your affiliate.

Once you have these basics down pat, it’s easy to see why professional bloggers need affiliate marketing as part of their endeavor to make money blogging.  It’s not as difficult or complicated as some newbies might think; the trick is to keep your advertising to your readers’ best interests without cutting down your opportunity to make a profit.  With these basic rules, you can go on to become a successful affiliate with a loyal following and a solid, high-paying blog.

  • Share/Bookmark

Tagged with: • • • • • • •

Filed under: Blogging Tips

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!

Possibly related posts