Remote work has become a standard in many industries, but it’s not yet fully embraced by all companies. So how exactly can affiliate links step up and make up for it?
This blog post will cover the main benefits of affiliate marketing and how you can efficiently run an affiliate business from home.
What is affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based business model where a company rewards its partners for customers or traffic brought to the websites, thanks to the affiliate’s own efforts.
In simpler terms, affiliate marketing is a way that benefits affiliates and business owners, as the first ones have unlimited potential revenue, while businesses don’t spend their marketing budget unless there’s a conversion.
Well, how about affiliate links?
An affiliate link is a URL that contains the data about the affiliate’s username or any unique identifier. The affiliate link is crucial as it is the only way to prove an affiliate is due a commission.
For example: John Smith is an affiliate partner of Miss Affiliate. However, John should receive a guarantee that he will be paid for his efforts. He is given an affiliate link that he should share with his content consumers.
Let’s say his affiliate link is www.missaffiliate.com/ref/JohnSmith (N.B. This is a dummy link). He should only use this one link, as it’s the only one to be associated with his profile.
In general, referral links (the other name of affiliate links) include random combinations of symbols (like S82bT1), so they avoid duplication of affiliate marketers. Other times, there are combinations between the first name, the first letter of the family name plus numbers (like johns2183), or something like that.
What makes affiliate links a good opportunity for remote work?
Affiliate marketing is not growing by the day because of some kind of coincidence. Affiliate marketing programs like MissAffiliate’s one give people a chance to earn an extra income and make a career as an affiliate marketer.
Flexible working hours
Remote work opportunities have drastically changed our daily lives. Many parents have finally had a chance to see their children for a more extended period of time and also do their chores in a timely manner within the workday.
Affiliate links allow professionals to create content in their most suitable timeframe. Are you productive in the morning? Great, then start there! Do you love working in the evenings? Fine, so be it! The whole nature of affiliate marketing is to make you feel comfortable with your work routine.
Less time commuting, more money to spend
Commuting is one of the biggest problems for the in-house workforce. There seems to be a vicious circle that most well-paid positions are located in large offices in the big cities. This requires people to live in metropolitan areas where housing is expensive and traveling to work takes 2-3 hours daily.
Affiliate marketing makes it possible for you to spend more time at home, which will save you valuable hours you can spend doing other activities. You can also live in cheaper areas, as you’ll be able to work as an affiliate marketer everywhere.
Real scaling opportunities
People sign up for affiliate marketing programs, as affiliate programs are thriving businesses. You should no longer try to please your manager to get a promotion or work long shifts in order to get a money raise.
Vice versa, affiliate marketing is all about your talent and skills to develop your contact network and create original content that will convert. If you manage to do so, you will most certainly have the negotiation power to demand more and to make money when you sleep!
Who can work remotely with affiliate links?
The good news is there is absolutely no limitation on the people who can work remotely with affiliate marketing links. Of course, you cannot promote alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and adult products if you’re underage, but other than that - the sky is the limit. Still, there are some groups of people who can get the best value.
Full-time parents
Full-time parents are one of the most sensitive groups when it comes to bringing money to the table. Why? Because there is 0% chance that they can work a normal job. Being a 24/7 parent means taking care of the kids, taking them to school, and bringing them home.
Childcare is extremely expensive in most parts of the world, so stepping into affiliate marketing will give you a good opportunity to earn a respectable amount of money without sacrificing your daily availability.
Content creators
Content creators make money in many ways - they receive a pie of paid ads on YouTube, and they get paid flat fees for presenting various products, but to this day, their main revenue stream are affiliate links.
Having exposure to thousands of people means there is a high chance of great conversion rates. On top of that, content creators can influence their audience with first-hand experience with different products or services which might end up crucial.
University students
Students are one of the most represented groups in the affiliate marketing world. Having been stripped of many opportunities to have a stable full-time job, many young graduates decide to sign up for different affiliate marketing programs to pay their tuition fees and running costs.
Working remotely as an affiliate marketer can give each student an opportunity to cover their expenses and enter post-graduate life debt-free, which isn’t a privilege for many university students.
What should I do to start working with affiliate links?
Affiliate marketing is desirable because it’s not demanding. It doesn’t require expensive hardware equipment or costly software solutions. All you need to have is a computer, an Internet connection, and a passion to succeed.
Still, you should follow a process to streamline your results. Otherwise, you will be part of a bumpy ride - and that’s not what you want.
How to work successfully with affiliate links?
There are many different concepts in any industry, and affiliate marketers have unique approaches. While we cannot tell you how to do things, our experience with partners shows us some key patterns and steps. Let’s see them below.
Step #1: Start with a niche
Picking a niche is a vital part of the whole process. Regardless if you inform your audience about technology or travel, you should be competent in that subject. Online customers have trust issues, as there are plenty of unreliable sources on the Internet.
To grab their attention, you really need to show up as an authority and a person who can provide valuable knowledge.
Step #2: Select your channel
No one is good everywhere. If you want to succeed in affiliate marketing, you should follow the Pareto principle - 80% of your traffic comes from 20% of your social media channels + website. Usually, each affiliate marketer has around 5-6 channels, so we can assume each successful affiliate marketer has one channel that outperforms the others.
We advise you to stick to your best-performing channel - be it YouTube, a website, Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook. Focusing your efforts in the right direction can bring you more revenue in the long term.
Step #3: Dedicate time to adding content
While affiliate links are a good way to earn a passive income, you cannot expect to work remotely for one hour a day and generate five-digit profits each month. Not in the affiliate marketing world.
It is a job that has to be done, and while you don’t have to work 9-to-5, you should at least spend 10-15 hours per week adding fresh content. Of course, the more effort you put in your work, the better outcome you should expect in general.
Step #4: A/B test concepts
A/B testing is one of the greatest business implementations of all time. Why? Because it improves real-time performance. Nobody can predict with 100% certainty what will happen next. Terrible ideas might have out-of-this-world sales, while brilliant concepts may fail miserably.
You should always try to position your affiliate links in different parts of your websites, articles, or YouTube/Instagram captions. Try and see what works best. Is it some heavy promotion required to grab the attention, or a subtle mentioning is enough? We’ve always encouraged testing the waters.
Step #5: Patience is a virtue
Working remotely as an affiliate is great, but you should be prepared with patience. Affiliate marketing is an industry worth more than $12bn as of today, and taking a slice of it might be a time-taking task.
While some people could enjoy a seamless transition from start to making their first couple of thousands, others would need more time to establish themselves. For example, web hosting brands are one of the most profitable long-term affiliate marketing programs but they do take a couple of weeks or months before the results could be seen.
Final words
Affiliate links can be a great way to work remotely without sacrificing your free time that you would otherwise spend on studying, parenting, or other activities. By finding affiliate links that match your interests, you can work from home and still have time to pursue the things you love outside of work.
About Miss Affiliate
Miss Affiliate is a web hosting affiliate marketing program that provides you with an opportunity to promote 14 different brands and earn generous commission fees. The great news is that you can promote global and local web hosting providers, which gives you an even better chances to convert leads. Contact us now if you want to learn more.
FAQ
Can affiliate links replace a full-time job?
Affiliate marketing has the potential the fully replace full-time jobs but it cannot happen overnight. You’d need to commit a couple of months before you can replace your main source of income.
How long does it take to start making money with affiliate marketing?
Nobody can provide you an accurate answer to that question since it depends on numerous factors - like time dedication, niche, industry knowledge, personal connections, follower count, and experience with affiliate marketing.
How much can you make with affiliate marketing programs?
There’s no ceiling on the amount of money you can make. The more business you bring, the more money you’ll make. In fact, companies could reward you even more as you drive them extra revenue.
