Affiliate Programs

OK, let’s stay with our target audience of dog owners. So you log onto one of the search engines and enter the keywords, “dog owner” and “affiliate program”. Make sure you include the quotes. Up will pop numerous sites that

a. cater to the interests of dog owners and
b. have affiliate programs you can become a member of.

I came up with 89 “hits” when I entered those words into the Google search engine. Affiliate programs are nothing more than referral-based marketing arrangements where you get paid to refer people to other sites. For example, if you referred your database of dog owners to a web site that specialized in dog supplies, you would share in the proceeds of any resulting sales.

Another affiliate example is provided by Amazon.com. If you see a button for them at a site that is not Amazon.com itself, chances are that that other web site owner participates in Amazon.com’s affiliate program. So if you were to click on that merchants Amazon.com button and bought a book or other merchandise, that referring
merchant would share in the proceeds of the sale.

You can also search for affiliate programs at sites that specialize in rating affiliate programs for profitability, as well as standings against other like web sites and affiliate program directories. Here are some sites you may want to check out:

www.associateprogram.com
www.affiliatematch.com
www.marketingtips.com
www.sitesell.com
www.cj.com (Commission Junction)

If there's one common thread that runs through most successful affiliate web sites, it's that each Webmaster has a passion for their subject matter. The right affiliate program can turn a hobby web site into something with a life (and a revenue stream) all on its own. What could be better than being paid to do something you love to do?

A prime example of this is the owner of The Flick Filosopher, which was launched in September 1997. The Flick Filosopher has original movie reviews and affiliate links. In order to derive income, each review contains direct links to the specific movie at Reel.com, so that readers can immediately purchase the film in DVD or video tape format (new or used), as well as movie soundtracks in CD format. Most reviews feature a host of relevant text links to other related
movie reviews on the site, as well as to actor-specific links. The Flick Filosopher's biggest successes stem from special review themes. Reviews of television movies from the A&E, HBO, Showtime, and TNT networks provide content that's hard to find elsewhere. Mining the niches pays off. Affiliate links to Reel.com's massive inventory allow readers to easily purchase made-for-TV movies, which might otherwise be hard to locate.