I read more than once that when polled, those interested in affiliate marketing, failed to start for one of two reasons (and in some cases both): time and/or money. My response is: they are either making it more complicated than it needs to be, or they are just making excuses. Perhaps fear of failure plays into it. Whatever the case, I want to eliminate some of the excuses for you in this hopefully quick article.
I have written tons about what affiliate marketing is but in a nutshell it is simply: promoting other people’s stuff and getting commissions for the referral, in most cases in an automated unattended way.
There are countless ways to get involved in affiliate marketing, but again it can be summarized in a sentence: find something to promote, and promote it in some way. A standard approach is to build a web site and discuss a product (preferably one that you use or have used), use your affiliate link to link to it, and then send traffic to that page. There are free ways and paid ways. There are expensive ways (in terms of time and money) and there are free/quick ways. In some ways it is like pushing a snowball down a mountain, you just need to get it started.
Amazon doesn’t pay high commissions but people trust the company because they know it and you as an affiliate get commissions on all purchases made by the customer that you refer, not just the product you refer them to. Amazon encourages the customer to add more to the cart, you are rewarded for all items even though you were likely just suggesting one of them.
Beyond that I like promoting high ticket items (usually digital products or services) that offer a residual (on-going) income. Those are the “top shelf” items to promote. If you are a healthy eater, look at it like you might consider “wild foods”… the cleanest, healthiest foods on the planet… the best for you. But chomping on a french fry you find on the ground may still keep you alive, for a little while.
Finding the time to get started in your affiliate marketing business
Sure, the more time you put into something, in general, the more rewards that are reaped. But not doing it all will get you nothing. And you truly can do well with just a couple hours each day of work. Even as things are fully “in place,” maintaining the well-oiled machine can be done with just a couple hours of work each day. So please don’t assume it takes a lot of work.
And I know this is going to sound harsh, but deviating from my normal demeanor… I’m going to say: You HAVE time, you are just making excuses. You just don’t want it bad enough or you would use that time.
I’m not saying to burn the candle at both ends, but do it if you are that hungry.
However, there are TONS of things you can forego for the sake of getting involved with passive wealth.
Watch less TV for one. People spend too much darn time in front of the TV set. I’m not saying to do like I did and get rid of the time waster completely, but do it if you’re an addict. And don’t say the kids need it. I got rid of mine and have two young ones who spend half their time with me. We occupy the time doing other things that I feel are more important in life.
Spend less time on social sites. Get rid of the FB app from your phone. Stop the gossip. Limit your time on useless activities.
I know a lot of this (socializing on the web, watching TV, etc.) fulfills some of your life’s basic needs (significance, certainy, variety, connection) but the means we are doing that regularly seem rather pathetic. What about nurturing the other needs for a spell: growth and contribution.
I’m just saying… prioritize your time a little better if you really want this. The time is there no matter what your excuse.
There are also ways to maximize use of your time by accomplishing more than one thing at a time and automating some tasks. That’s too much to get into here, it’s worth a book or blog on it’s own… the number of different ways to maximize production while saving time and still not feeling stressed. It’s doable.
Finding the money to get started in your affiliate marketing business
Just like time, in a lot of cases the more money you put into something, the bigger your returns. That’s not always the case, but in the case of affiliate marketing it could speed things up. But there are still times where you can take two people, one with a $1000 budget and one with $150, and it’s still anyone’s game if they were pitted head to head. I would root for the underdog. I started on a low budget myself.
You could realistically get started for free, but for the small costs involved to get started properly, I would recommend spending a few bucks. And with a few more, you could generate money faster (paid traffic vs. free for example).
Always build a site with free future traffic (SEO) in mind, but certainly, if you have the money buy some ads on Facebook, BuyAds, Bing, 7Search, or one of the many other ad networks or agencies.
Not having the money, in most cases, I feel is an excuse as well. If you really want this you have to prioritize and budget. This is assuming you have any sort of income at all.
I wouldn’t say to eliminate all “fun” from your life until you make it. I still traveled while having a bit of debt. But again, it depends how hungry you are.
But, perhaps… to free up some funds and as a bonus… to improve your health, perhaps eliminating some bad habits might be beneficial here. Quit some addictions whatever they be. Isolate yourself and cut off any possibility of obtaining the addictive substance until you get through the withdrawals. Maybe that’s too much for you, I don’t know. What about decreasing the habits a bit. Think of how much further ahead you might be if you left one case of beer each week on the shelf, or one carton of cigarettes, or one nickel bag 😉
Let’s revisit TV for a second. If you aren’t in a contract, cut the cable already! You can get Netflix for less than $10 per month. Oh wait, then you can’t watch the news anymore. Good!! Eliminating news for a month can free up tons of time and put you in a better, more positive mindset. Give it a whirl. Also, you can probably find cheaper Internet somewhere and even get better speeds and more bandwidth in some cases!
Other possible areas of savings… your phone bill. Switch to a cell only. Use Fongo for free phone over WiFi instead of having a monthly cell expense. Do you really need to be accessible ALL the time? Really?
Just prioritize your time and money a little better. I’m almost certain that your life could change in several different ways at once. It’s worth taking a shot towards financial freedom and perhaps even some health advantages to boot.
What steps are you going to take to start your affiliate marketing business? No excuses.