A Compelete Guide To Affiliate Marketing & It's Future!

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Let’s be honest; we all have googled – ‘Easy ways to make money.’

Making extra money with a full-time job sounds like a lucrative dream. After all, who doesn’t want to make money with a minimal amount of effort? The best part? It is very much possible. 

However, with a plethora of sources available for getting your hands on some passive income, it can be hard to filter the right one. Today, we are here to give you a cheat sheet for earning those extra bucks, that too quite effortlessly. 

Here it is- 

‘Affiliate marketing.’

Bo Bennett summarises it best – 

“Affiliate marketing has made businesses millions and ordinary people millionaires.” 

Let’s begin to explore this disruptive marketing phenomenon, step by step.

What is affiliate marketing?

Suppose there’s a business that asks you to promote its product or services, and in turn, rewards you with the commission. Here, the more significant number of conversions you drive, the more commission you get. 

Sounds like a great deal? Well, this is what affiliate marketing looks like precisely. 

You do not have through the hassle of the back – end process and still get a chance to earn through it. All you have to do is – market the product or services using the resources you already have.

What are the integral elements of affiliate marketing?

There are four – 

• Merchant – Also known as the seller or the retailer. The person or business whose products you’ll be marketing. 
• Affiliate – Affiliate is an individual who promotes the merchant’s products, and thereby earns a commission on each conversion.
• Consumer– Consumer, can be anyone who uses the products or services. 
• Network – The network is an intermediary between the merchant and the affiliate. Sometimes, the merchant uses a specific network for the affiliate program where the affiliate can choose to promote any one or more products/services from the available range. 

What’s so special about it?

Affiliate marketing offers a whole range of benefits, here are some of them- 

• Convenience– Always dreamt of earning money while lazing around your favorite beach? Affiliate marketing makes it possible. The most exciting part about it is – it comes wrapped with the utmost convenience. You do not have to be present at an office to do it; you can do it from anywhere in the world. 
• Passive income – Are you Googling ‘how to make money online?’ Well, here’s the answer. Affiliate marketing lets you earn a reasonable sum of money just by promoting someone else’s products or services. As an affiliate, you can choose to promote even more than one product/service. 
• No risk – No risk, no gain? Not really! As an affiliate, you do not have to bear any financial risk related to the product/service. 
• The easiest way out – Affiliate marketing, by all means, is one the easiest ways to earn. Why? Because you do not even have to design the marketing content; the merchant does it. You have to promote the links or the banners given by the merchant.
• No expertise required – You do not have to be an expert to leverage affiliate marketing. Anyone can do it. You have to sign up for a suitable affiliate program and start the process. So, affiliate marketing is the easy and fast method you’ve always been searching for. Here, to profit from a product/service – you do not have to own it, you have to promote it.

Now that you know – what to do – let’s know how to do it. 

Basically, the task is simple – as an affiliate, you have to promote the products/services using digital platforms.

 Here’s how you go about it. 

• Social media marketing– This one goes without saying. You need to be where your audience is. Promoting on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn ensures maximum reach in real-time. The affiliate needs to- 

1. Build a loyal audience (followers)
2. Promote the products/services in a manner that hooks the audience.

• Blogging – If you’re a blogger or have a website, it’s even easier for you as you already have a growing follower base. You can use your own blog to promote the products/services.
•  E-mail marketing – Want to offer something valuable to your subscribers? Do it with email- marketing. If used correctly, e-mail marketing is a powerful tool that can lead to massive conversions in less time. 

To make use of affiliate marketing to its full potential, you need to know how to be successful at it.

Tips that will make a difference– 

• Choose wisely – Make sure you gather enough information about the product or service before you plan to promote it. Only after understanding it completely can you promote it well. 
• Be honest – Remember that your followers trust you for a reason. Promote the products/services that you think will add value to their lives. If you offer them genuine advice and honest reviews. Conversions won’t be hard.
• Engage your followers– A bland content appeals no one. For maximum conversions – be attractive in your methods and create engaging content. If your followers get hooked by your content, they will automatically take an interest in your promotions.
• No wrong means– Never resort to wrong methods to drive conversions. Don’t risk your or the brand’s reputation for money. 

THE FUTURE OF AFFILIATE MARKETING

Now that we have explored the dynamics of Affiliate Marketing, let us see what the future holds for it.

Affiliate marketing is evolving like never before; here are the statistics to prove that – 

• Recent research suggests that by 2025, the affiliate marketing industry will soar to nearly $7 billion.
• 80% of companies at any given time utilize affiliate marketing strategies in their digital marketing plans.
• 90% of marketers indicate that affiliate programs were either essential or very important to their advertising strategies.

What more can we expect?

• Visual Marketing will take charge – Are you Looking forward to being an affiliate marketer? Rely on visuals. Visual marketing will shape affiliate marketing shortly. Creative images on Pinterest and Instagram will take the front seat. Also, clickable links on youtube videos will drive conversions like never before. 
• Data-Based Targeting – Hear out, affiliates! Marketing data analytics will become your greatest asset. Affiliate pitches will become even more targeted. And data-driven analysis of marketing efforts and effectiveness will rule the field.
• Unlimited growth – The affiliate marketing industry will experience exponential growth. Research shows that total affiliate market spending is bound to increase by more than a billion dollars to around $4.5 billion in the next two years. 

Hear its future from the experts – 

• David Tile, Founder & Director of Nimble Media & Article- Writing. Co, says – “Affiliate links will become inherent to social media, giving everyone the chance to become an affiliate. Coupled with the advancement in mobile tech, people will be working affiliate angles from every moment they share online. It will become hyper-localized with people integrating geo-localization. Purchases don’t need to be made online. If someone checks-in at a local shop, promotes it online, and others come in-store after interacting with that share, this will be the future of affiliate marketing.“
• Cole Hernandez, Founder of Pink Graffiti, says – Affiliate marketing is a booming opportunity, especially considering the rise of freelancers and solopreneurs with online businesses. As we look ahead, the millennials and post-millennials, who are actively benefiting from the sharing economy, understand the power of passive income, and as businesses are formed, they are actively integrating affiliate marketing into their business models. Why? Simply because the numbers make sense. Ten voices vs. one voice actively sharing and promoting a product leads to accelerate awareness and profit.“

The affiliate marketing industry is booming, and the best time to leverage is- now! 

We understand that it can be challenging to choose the right business partner for this. However, we, at CallHippo, ensure to make your ride smooth; here’s how – 

• Promote our referral link on as many online platforms as you can.
• Earn 20% of recurring commission every time an order is completed from your referral. Go on; make the most of it!