MYTHS YOU SHOULD BE AWARE OF
There are a lot of myths out there about affiliate
marketing. Here are some of the top myths, debunked.
– AFFILIATE MARKETING IS EASY AND OFFERS QUICK RETURNS –
Affiliate marketing is a very simple concept, but is not easy
to execute. Most people seriously underestimate the amount of time it will take
for them to be successful and also the amount of work they will have to put
into having a successful affiliate marketing business.
In order to be successful, you will have to frequently and
consistently work on your affiliate marketing business. It may take 6-12 months
to build an audience large enough to make any money and then it may not be much
at first.
Affiliate marketing is a serious business and can earn you a
serious income but it’s not an easy way to make a quick buck.
– ONLY CERTAIN NICHES ARE PROFITABLE –
This is a really popular myth that just simply isn’t true.
There are thousands of niches and new ones emerge everyday as consumers' needs
and interests change and evolve.
But, you do have to take the time and do the research when
choosing your niche. Probably one of the top reasons affiliate marketers fail
is due to poor niche selection. If you choose a niche that customers don’t
spend any money on or only seek free information, the most quality content in
the world won’t compel them to buy.
Also, if your niche is too broad or too narrow, it will be
hard to develop a target audience to market to.
Pick a niche that interests you. You’re going to be putting
a lot of time and effort into building this business. Wouldn’t it be nice if it
didn’t bore you to tears?
Another common myth about niches is that people think that
the profitable niches are so saturated that they could never make any money in
them.
Consider these facts before deciding whether a niche is too
saturated:
● Internet
usage is exploding globally. More and more customers are getting on the
internet or using the internet for shopping and researching products. And, it’s
always growing.
● New niches
come up all of the time. The interests, needs, and hobbies of people on the
internet change, and with that change, new niches open up.
● Even if
you do choose a very saturated market, you may have a unique angle that will
draw customers away from the competition within that niche. And, if there’s a
lot of businesses competing within the same niche, you know there’s money to be
made there.
– AFFILIATE MARKETING IS NOT A SERIOUS BUSINESS –
This is a common myth that comes from people not really understanding
how affiliate marketing works. The concept of promoting someone else's business
or product for a commission has been around for a very long time. The internet
has made that concept explode.
A recent survey found that among bloggers making more than
$50,000 per year, affiliate marketing was their top method for monetization of
their blog. In fact, some of the top websites and publishers owe a significant
portion of their revenue to affiliate sales.
The affiliate marketing business model has been proven to
work over the last several decades and advertisers know that. This is why they
choose to spend a significant portion of their advertising budgets promoting
products through affiliates rather than traditional advertising.
Affiliate marketing is here to stay for the long haul.
– CUSTOMERS HATE AFFILIATE LINKS –
The truth is that customers hate being sold but they love
buying. If your approach is desperate, needy, and solely based on selling them
something, people will not buy from you.
A much more successful approach is to build a relationship
with your audience. Become someone they feel they can trust by posting valuable
content and conveying how the product can solve their problems.
Everyone has problems, and knowing your target audience will
make it much easier to figure out what those problems are and how you can
present a plan to solve them.
If you build a relationship with your audience based on
mutual benefit and trust, they will be happy to buy from you, even when they
know you’re making a commission.
– AFFILIATES DON’T NEED A CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY –
This one is really popular. Many people believe that they
can simply have a great blog with good content or product comparisons or some
other form of sales content and the sales will just pour in. If only.
A well-defined marketing strategy is the best way to figure
out how you want your customers to go through your sales process. A good
marketing strategy will bring traffic to your site by solving your target
market’s problems. It can also help you gain subscribers by presenting
actionable content. Finally, it converts your target audience into customers by
offering value.
Study up on sales funnels to learn which content fits into
which part of your marketing strategy.
● The top of
the funnel (the big part) is where you attract people with a problem but they
don’t have a solution to it yet. The content for this part of the funnel is
blog posts, social media posts, videos, podcasts, etc.
● The middle
of the funnel targets people who know of several solutions to their problem but
they are still researching their options. This is where you’ll offer
educational resources, downloads, webinars, etc.
● The bottom
of the funnel narrows the customers down to knowing they have a problem and
that you have the solution and they are ready to buy. At this stage, you can
offer a customer review, product demonstrations, or the like.
AFFILIATE MARKETING IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY
If you’re interested in building a business online, whether
it be a side hustle or a full time gig, affiliate marketing is a great option.
Just be aware that you’re not going to be able to replace
your 9 to 5 right away. It’s going to take a few months of consistent effort
before you start to see the fruits of your labor.
The time to start is now.
