Affiliate Marketing on the Web: How to Use and Profit from Affiliate Marketing Programs »

Affiliate marketing is a highly profitable online advertising method in which Web site merchants pay independent third parties to promote the products or services of an advertiser on their Web site. In other words, affiliate marketing involves posting a company's banner on your Web site or blog and attempting to send visitors to their Web site. If someone clicks on that banner or goes to that site and buys something, you will be paid a commission. While some affiliates pay only when a sale is made, some selling big ticket items like cars, credit cards, travel, and so forth have modified the model and pay for qualified leads. Affiliate marketing is now viewed as a key component of a company's online marketing strategy.

Affiliate marketing is an advertising technique that originally was developed by Amazon.com. In this new book you will learn how to master the art and science behind affiliate marketing in a matter of hours. By investing a few dollars you can easily increase the number of visitors to your Web site and significantly increase sales. If you want to drive high quality, targeted traffic to your site, there is no better way than affiliate marketing. Since you only pay when a sale is made, your marketing dollars are being used more effectively and efficiently compared to any other advertising method.

The keys to success in affiliate marketing are knowing what you are doing, devising a comprehensive and well-crafted advertising plan, and knowing the relationships between your Web site, search engines, PPC advertising, and campaign methodology. This groundbreaking and exhaustively researched new book will provide everything you need to know to get you started on generating high-volume, high quality leads. You will learn the six steps to a successful campaign: keyword research, software needed, copy editing, setup and implementation, performance analysis, return on investment, and reporting and avoiding PPC fraud.

In addition, we spent thousands of hours interviewing hundreds of today's most successful affiliate marketing masters. This book is a compilation of their secrets and proven successful ideas. Additionally, we give you hundreds of tips and tricks to ensure your Web site is optimized for maximum search engine effectiveness, which will drive business to your Web site and increase sales and profits. You will find actual case studies from companies who have used our techniques and achieved unprecedented success. If you are interested in learning hundreds of hints, tricks, and secrets on how to implement affiliate marketing, optimizing your Web site for maximum search engine effectiveness, developing a cost-effective marketing campaign, and ultimately earning enormous profits, this book is for you.

Chapter 1 Introduction 17

Affiliate Marketing Options 18

Who Is This Book For? 19

How This Book Is Organized 20

Affiliate 101: The Basics You Need to Know About Affiliate Marketing 20

Market Research 21

How Do I Get Started? 21

Becoming an Affiliate of Others 21

Hosting and Implementing an Affiliate Program 22

Optimizing Your Web Site and Affiliate Program 22

Affiliate Program Software & Networks 22

Marketing and Promoting Your Web Site, Blog, and Affiliate Program 23

Other Revenue-Generating Techniques to Use With Affiliate Programs 23

Chapter 2 Affiliate 101 - The Basics You Need to Know 27

Our Affiliate Marketing Case Study 28

History of Affiliate Marketing 32

Crash Course in Affiliate Marketing 32

Affiliate Marketing Networks 33

Affiliate Marketing Principles 34

Picking the Right Product 41

Effective Product Web Copy or Sales Material 41

The Sales Letter Style of Web Copy 41

Advantages of the Sales Letter Web Copy Approach: 42

Midwest Book Review 46

Affiliate Links and How to Deal With Them 46

Promoting Your Affiliate Program 48

Affiliate Program Payment Methods 49

The Challenges of Managing Affiliate Marketing 50

Tiered Affiliate Marketing 52

Cross-Selling and Up-Selling 52

How to Attract Affiliates 53

Hiring an Affiliate Manager 53

Promoting Your Affiliate Program on Your Own 54

How to Make Your Affiliates More Effective 56

Growing Your Affiliate Numbers 56

Cookies and Affiliates 57

Multi-Tier Marketing and Commissions 59

Chapter 3 Market Research 61

Performing a Market Analysis and Market Research 62

Establishing Marketing Strategies 66

Chapter 4 How Do I Get Started? 69

Affiliate Networks69

Affiliate Networks 72

Become an Affiliate of Others 73

Establishing Your Own Affiliate Program 74

Joined a Great Affiliate Program - But No Commissions? 79

Soggy Cookies 79

Multiple Payment Methods 81

Monitor Your Affiliate Arrangements 84

Chapter 5 Becoming an Affiliate of Others 87

Signing Up as an Affiliate 90

Logging Into Your Affiliate Account 96

Integrating Affiliate Links Into Your Web Site 103

Monitoring Affiliate Performance and Tracking Sales 106

Chapter 6 Hosting and Implementing an Affiliate Program 111

How to Get Started With an Affiliate Program 111

Affiliate Network Service Agreement 112

Managing Your Affiliate Program 119

Data Feeds 124

Customer Returns 125

Communicate With Your Merchants 128

Dealing With Merchants 129

Demonstrate Your Web Marketing Prowess 130

Be Professional in Your Communications 130

Chapter 7 Optimizing Your Web Site, Blog & Affiliate Program 133

Organic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) 134

Organically Optimizing Your Web Site and Blog 134

Google Webmaster Guidelines 135

Google Webmaster Central 135

Site Status Wizard 136

Google Webmaster Tools 137

Adding Your Web Site or Blog to Google 140

Other Google Search Engine Optimization Resources 140

Search Engine Optimization Techniques 141

Successful Search Engine Optimization 142

Meta Tag Definition and Implementation 143

The Title Tag 146

The Description Tag 146

The Keywords Tag 148

The Robots Tag 149

Other Meta Tags 149

ALT Tags 150

How to Use the Correct Keywords 152

Optimization of Web Page Content 153

Optimize Your Web Site 154

Web Site Optimization Tips, Hints, and Secrets 155

Web Design & Optimization Suggestions 159

How Do Search Engines Work? 163

Using a Search Engine Optimization Company 164

Search Engine Registration 167

Search Engine Optimization Checklist 170

Free Web Site Search Engine Submission Sites 171

Things NOT to Do on a Web Site or Blog 174

Chapter 8 Affiliate Program Software 175

Types of Affiliate Marketing Software 176

Key features include: 182

Chapter 9 Marketing Your Web Site and Affiliate Program 191

Affiliate Directories 191

Promoting Your Affiliate Program 192

Affiliate Content Pages 197

Marketing Your Program 198

Affiliate Program Directories and Forums 198

Affiliate Networks 199

Personal Approaches 200

Buying Lists 201

Screening Affiliates 201

Combating Affiliate Fraud 203

Communicating With Your Affiliates 204

Going the Extra Mile 204

About the Author 208

Chapter 10 Other Revenue-Generating Techniques to Use With Affiliate Marketing 209

Google AdSense 209

Google AdSense Program Policies 212

Setting Up Google AdSense on Your Web Site 212

How to Set Up Your Google Referrals 216

Hints and Tips for Maximizing Google AdSense on Your Web Site 217

Introduction to Pay-Per-Click Advertising 219

Pay-Per-Click Advertising Walkthrough 221

Google AdWords Pay-Per-Click Benefits 222

Cost of Google AdWords Pay-Per-Click Advertising 223

Tips, Tricks, and Secrets for Google AdWords Pay-Per-Click Advertising 224

Chapter 11 Affiliate Mistakes 235

Spam and Phishing 241

Chapter 12 Ideas to Grow & Stimulate Your Affiliate Program 250

Promoting Your Business in the Media 250

Gaining the Trust of Customers and Clients 252

Increasing Your Public Profile 252

Ideas to Improve Your Web Site and Affiliate Program 253

Chapter 13 Summary 255

Apopendix I Affiliate Marketing Case Studies 257

Appendix II Interviews with Affiliate Marketing Experts 271

Appendix III Expert Affiliate Advice, Tips and Hints 333

Appendix IV Glossary 349

Appendix V Recommended Reference Library 355

How to Use the Internet to Advertise, Promote and Market Your Business or Web site- With Little or No Money 339

The Complete Guide to Google Advertising- Including Tips, Tricks, & Strategies to Create a Winning Advertising Plan 340

Online Marketing Success Stories: Insider Secrets from the Experts Who Are Making Millions on the Internet Today 341

The Ultimate Guide to Search Engine Marketing: Pay-Per-Click Advertising Secrets Revealed 342

The Complete Guide to E-mail Marketing: How to Create Successful, Spam-Free Campaigns to Reach Your Target Audience and Increase Sales 344

How to Open and Operate a Financially Successful Web-Based Business (With Companion CD-ROM) 346

The Secret Power of Blogging: How to Promote and Market Your Business, Organization, or Cause with Free Blogs 349

Word Of Mouth Advertising Online & Off: How to Spark Buzz, Excitement, and Free Publicity for Your Business or Organization-With Little or No Money 351

How to Open & Operate a Financially Successful Web site Design Business: With Companion CD-ROM 353

The Complete Guide to Writing Web-Based Advertising Copy to Get the Sale: What You Need to Know Explained Simply 354

Internet Marketing Revealed: The Complete Guide to Becoming an Internet Marketing Expert 355

Author Biography 372

Index 375