How To Create A Successful Affiliate Program!
Affiliate marketing has been taking storm in the marketing world because it's a proven way to create influence on the market. Affiliate marketing is a program created to partner influencers on different social media platforms. For each sale an affiliate partner creates, they will be paid a commission.
Affiliate marketing has been known as one of the best online marketing platforms because THERE IS NO RISK. Your affiliate partners do not get paid unless they are creating business for your company.
You pay for results.
Statistics show that online influence has been taking over the marketing business and now you can use it to your advantage for 2019.
80% of brands are using affiliate marketing which means there are a lot of different programs out there. Make sure you do your homework and create a rewarding program that may be a little different. You want to catch the attention of professional affiliate marketers.
Here are some tips to help you make sure your affiliate marketing program is a great success!
1.) Find quality affiliates partners that have control of your target market!
If your target market revolves in the keto market, how much sense would it be to work with a bodybuilder? First things first. WHAT IS YOUR NICHE?! Once you have an idea, start searching.
SOCIAL MEDIA TIP!
A great tip is to search Instagram. Once you find a key potential affiliate partner, hit the down arrow on the top right of their profile. This will give you suggestions on profiles in the same market!
You can do the same thing on YouTube. On profiles, you can find related channels.
2.) Create a structured program that creates a WIN-WIN for both you and your affiliates
A typical affiliate marketing program looks like this.
Each affiliate gets their own personal discount code on products
Each affiliate gets a discount code to share with their audience
Track each affiliate by their discount code and dollar in sales created each month
Pay each affiliate a 5-10% commission monthly for total sales
Keep Affiliates engaged and happy
3.) Create compelling content to help your affiliates succeed!
The goal is to make marketing your products easy! Other companies will be marketing their programs to your market and an affiliate can back out at any minute. You need to keep your affiliates happy by guiding them with content ideas, content materials, and products gifts. The less work that they have to do to see the highest conversions, the more likely they will promote your brand/products more often.
4.) Communication is the key to happiness
Stay engaged with your affiliate partners and create a relationship. It is important to keep your affiliates up-to-date on new products and best sellers. Also, keep them aware of any changes that have been made so that their audience is getting accurate information.
You want to make communication a clear avenue so if there are any issues, they will be willing to communicate and resolve these issues instead of dropping your affiliate program. Aiding your affiliates with great tips and ideas will
5.) The hunt for new affiliates never end...
As soon as you think your team is secure and creating revenue, is usually when it starts falling apart. An affiliate can drop your program at any moment. Keep a pipeline of affiliates coming into your business to make sure you never have any issues.
You can do this by marketing to new affiliates on social media ads to "Join the Team." Another way is to constantly be on the search! Continue looking out for big names on social media that could represent your brand correctly. When you run an affiliate program, it is a full-time job to keep them happy and expand the team.
And why would you stop?
The more successful affiliate partners you have, the more revenue your business will have! WIN-WIN
6.)Use a program that hooks up with your website platform
There are programs out there that will give you and your affiliate partner full analytics on their performance and sales. These programs will also help pay out their commissions FOR YOU. They hook right up to your website platform and give you all the data you need to run a successful program
These programs do take care of a good amount of the work but of course, come at a price. Once program I highly recommend to start with is Refersion. Refersion is an affiliate program dedicated to helping launch, grow, and manage a profitable affiliate marketing strategy. This program also comes with a 14-day free trial to get your program off to a great start!
7.) Invest your time into this... It's worth it!
Anything that is going to make your business money RISK-FREE is worth your time.
"30% of consumers are more likely to buy a product recommended by a non-celebrity blogger. Consumers can relate more to these influencers and value their opinions more than that of celebrity influencers."
"YouTube seems to be the second most influential social media platform for purchases. 18% of consumers are influenced by YouTube regarding their purchases."
"While shopping, 60% of consumers have been influenced by a social media post or a blog review. This is according to the Collective Bias study."
"80% of brands are using affiliate programs to grow their business."
Use these statistics in your favor. There are hundreds more that prove the power of affiliate marketing.
8.) Set expectations and manage them!
There are two different routes you can take when it comes to setting expectations.
Route One:
Set a mandatory amount of posts per week
Set a mandatory amount of stories per week
Post all drops/ new gear/ changes when notified.
Rewards great performance
Route Two:
Here are the resources you need to succeed, now do your best.
Stay engaged and comment positive feedback on performance.
Reward great performance
In my full opinion, I believe that "Route Two" creates the most success because the influencers post on their own time and work as hard as they want to create the most success for themselves. Some people do not like mandatory tasks. They like the freedom of making money when they can.
The truth is, both methods have worked for different companies. It all depends on your company and the culture you want to create.
9.) Create a fun environment!
Remember that when you have these affiliate partners start marketing your business, THEY ARE YOUR PARTNERS! Get them involved! Fly them out for photo shoots! Pay them to work events! The point is to create a community around your affiliate program.
You want your program to be the best of the best. Making a community between your affiliates will increase retention and build trust for the brand. The more your affiliates love your brand, the more their market will love your brand. Another key factor is the more involved your affiliates are in the community, the harder it will be for them to leave. Create a fun environment where your affiliate partners can enjoy themselves.
10.) Use them for promotions!
Send your partners Free Giveaway items for contests! This will build your own following and also give value to their following!
Also when you get your affiliate partners involved in photo shoots and start marketing with that material, it gains trust to your own audience to see big names in your advertisements. This will help increase your conversions!
