Simply put, an affiliate program is an agreement in which the company running the program is incentivizing another business or influencer (the “affiliate”) to send them referral traffic in exchange for commission payouts.
It is one of the most common ways for brands to extend their reach and attract new customers because of the full alignment of incentives between merchants and affiliates.
Most of the companies allow you to sign up for the affiliate program straight from their website.
Usually, when a company has an affiliate program you can find a link to it within its website footer. This link could send you directly to the signup page for the program on the specific affiliate network they run on or an initial landing page diving into more detail about becoming an affiliate for that merchant.
Once you’ve created the affiliate account, the process usually works by placing a unique, trackable link (an “affiliate link”) on your blog or social media channel, which takes the visitor who clicks on it straight to the merchant’s website.
While the process of promoting affiliate products is more or less the same across various merchants, the ways commissions are awarded vary significantly.
Some affiliate programs offer a commission to the affiliate only after a customer completes a purchase, while other merchants already reward for getting the visitor to sign up for a free trial or email list.
So if you are into affiliate marketing already, you want to make sure that you are in the right program that will be profitable for you. This article will discuss some of them.
- What Make a Good Affiliate Marketing Program?
- What is The Most Profitable Affiliate Program?
- Which Affiliate Program is Best in 2023?
- Is There a Future for Affiliate Marketing?
- Is Affiliate Marketing Profitable in 2023?
- Can Affiliate Marketing be a Career?
- Can Affiliate Marketing Make you Rich?
- Is it Hard to be Successful in Affiliate Marketing?
What Makes a Good Affiliate Marketing Program?
Before any affiliate program/network should be recommended as one of the top best affiliate marketing programs, such a program should be able to pass some criteria. Such criteria include;
- High commissions: A top best Affiliate Marketing Program/Network should be able to pay an eye-catching commission to its marketers.
- Payment proofs, evidence and testimonials: A top best Affiliate Marketing Program/Network must be able to have earners with payment proof. This will be evidence of trust for other marketers to register.
- Fair policies: They are sometimes complaints of earning money without being able to withdraw. Well, as an affiliate program/network, your number priority should be on having policies that can carry everybody along.
- Easy to meet threshold: The highest threshold an affiliate marketing program should have should be around $100 threshold.
It is even better to go for affiliate programs that have lower thresholds like $25, $50 and so on so that their marketers can easily meet the target. Withdrawing earnings always trigger, motivates and make marketers more happy and serious so as to earn more.
- Fair payment policies: One of the most annoying things about many online money-making platforms is their payment policies. So for an affiliate program to be accredited as one of the top best Affiliate Marketing Programs/Networks, such must Make its Payment on time, have Easy payment methods and also have short payment arrival range.
- Accurate analytics and stats: Every affiliate marketer needs to keep track of all activities that are carried out through their affiliate links so as to know how well their link is and how fair their program is going.
Giving the analytics and stat doesn’t make an affiliate program the best, but giving a very accurate analytics/stats do, because many affiliate programs may end up giving wrong analytics and stats if their program is not very accurate.
- Users dashboard: Top Best Affiliate Marketing Programs/Networks do have a dashboard for their marketers. It is from this dashboard that their marketers can easily monitor their marketing performances and also request a withdrawal.
- User friendly interface: The most annoying thing about some sites is their UI (User interface). Some sites are so boring that you as a user will not even be able to know which page you are to carry out a particle activity. A top best Affiliate Marketing Program/Network should be able to provide a simple User interface for convenience.
What is The Most Profitable Affiliate Program 2023?
Think about the products and when to best promote them for maximum revenue. Those of you promoting farming products as affiliates should remember that blogging and YouTube videos about the results of your products will increase your audience engagement and personal revenue. Here are some niches you should pay attention to.
Travel
Despite the pandemic, numerous influencers have been traveling regularly. Hotels initiate travel affiliate programs by offering vacation packages as a result of fewer lines and cheaper flights, encouraging more people to travel now than ever earning the travel industry more than $7 trillion USD in annual revenue.
Read Also: How You Can Get Best Flight Deals
Influencers and affiliates diving into the travel niche should post affiliate links and codes on social media platforms such as Instagram and blogs, this will increase affiliate sales and earn commissions – proving that this affiliate program is mutually beneficial.
Since restrictions are easing around the world, both traveling and the need for affiliates will increase this year, therefore a rise in affiliate sales will soon follow. You should dive into the travel niche for affiliate marketing.
Technology
What can you do without technology these days? Technology is a lucrative affiliate marketing niche because all parts of our lives have gone digital. In the US, technology has led 81% of advertisers and 84% of publishers to turn to affiliate marketing. Many of your ideal customers may watch YouTube reviews about digital products or physical products like musical instruments or gadgets.
In the affiliate marketing space, YouTube reviewers provide their subscribers with a special affiliate link to a company’s product, offering the audience a discount they will not get from other YouTubers.
In similar fashion, technology blogs can also be an effective affiliate marketing strategy just as they are with any other lucrative niche. It is easy to visualize the possible commission rate you as the affiliate can receive when bloggers, YouTubers, or any other affiliates establish an affiliate code for their subscribers to use.
Health
The next most profitable affiliate marketing niche is the health industry. In 2019, the global health and wellness market value was around $4.9 trillion USD and is estimated to reach nearly $7 trillion USD in 2025. Simply put, people want to live longer and healthier lives, and they are spending money to do just that.
In the past, nutraceuticals (like de-aging creams) and dietary supplements have been popular forms of alternative medicine for affiliate partners to capitalize on, creating banner ads and links on their websites.
Due to this, companies have taken a growing interest in contacting people in the health niche who produce podcasts, YouTube videos, or blogs as these are sure ways to grow and be successful. One reason is for the audience to watch you as you explain and see the results of different aspects of health.
Trust in these influencers have grown so much that now, in today’s world, there has been a rise in misinformation and distrust of doctors as a result of the pandemic, causing anti-vax consumers to seek out fad medicines like ivermectin due to these podcasters merely talking about the products. Consequently, promoting health products can provide you with revenue opportunities.
Fitness
Covid-19 has provided room for the fitness niche to adapt and grow in the digital realm. Work from home caused new fitness trends, which allowed this lucrative affiliate marketing niche to grow, providing people with a chance to utilize videos in this niche to their advantage.
By using YouTube and social media platforms like Instagram as a means to promote, fitness trainers were able to sell workout plans and produce mobile apps. Consequently, the affiliate marketing industry adapted quickly to provide digital workers with a home trainer
Affiliates may earn recurring commissions from promoting businesses’ monthly payments for fitness products as well as from a business’ monthly payment plan. This provides business owners with conversion rates required to reach their goals, and affiliates may earn recurring commissions. Providing more home videos will increase your commission rate in this lucrative affiliate marketing niche.
Gaming
The gaming market generated over $175 billion USD both in 2020 and 2021 and is on pace to reach over $200 billion USD in 2023, with over 3 billion global players.
Through AR, VR, mobile devices, and the Metaverse – which is a $1 trillion USD market opportunity – the gaming market is extending its reach to a new gaming audience beyond traditional consoles and game apps.
Olympic games are another area where this evergreen niche is expanding. As the IOC continues to encourage the same Olympic values they have always emphasized, esports is on the verge of being officially included in the Olympics.
The gaming market expanded well beyond consoles and the PC, opening itself up to generate more revenue and more companies to establish affiliate programs. This niche is recommended for any affiliate to work in, as the demographics stretch to a wide age and wide range of people.
Food
During the pandemic, the lifestyle niche underwent a big shift. Social media was rapidly gaining traction around recipes and cookbooks for different types of healthy food, making this an ideal affiliate marketing niche. The rise in meat prices helped lead roughly two-thirds of US consumers to cut down on their meat consumption during the pandemic, while the market for plant-based meat alternatives has grown by over 39%.
Remember how popular it was to bake sourdough at home? A plethora of food critics and food bloggers are now at the forefront of this profitable affiliate marketing niche, creating YouTube videos about everything from vegan dishes to hot sauce trials to cooking utensils – even food styling rose in popularity!
It is possible to find many companies that provide fresh ingredients to customers and even provide step-by-step instructions on how to cook meals like a chef, so why not contact these companies? To be an affiliate in this niche, implementing previously mentioned strategies – such as sharing affiliate links on YouTube videos and blog posts – can generate organic traffic to your website and increase revenue share.
Wealth Building
As you may have noticed, the pandemic brought in a new wave of business opportunities. Whether it is food, gaming, health, or personal finances – people are investing their money into creating merchandise or trading stocks and cryptocurrencies.
People began to turn to their artistic side in the financial niche for affiliate marketing and created their own merchandise. The growth of e-commerce has been facilitated by using third-party marketplaces to sell and services like print on demand. The affiliate market that promotes custom products such as clothes, jewelry, and some collectibles is one that affiliates should consider.
Along with e-commerce, people have also started to get into trading. It is great for those who work from home because they have access to information about NFTs and bitcoin which gives people the chance to make money online. Affiliates have developed a desire to work for and promote online businesses that can provide financial services such as binary option trading – a trading system simplified to a simple “yes” or “no” option that encourages people to join the trading system.
Fashion
More than 80% of the world’s brands have affiliate programs, and nearly 25% of all affiliate programs operate in the fashion industry, making fashion not only a lucrative affiliate marketing niche but also one of the top affiliate marketing niches in 2021. With the growth of e-commerce, affiliate marketing is in great demand, and you need fashion affiliate programs to tap into the market to attract traffic.
By using banner ads and blog posts, affiliate merchants can tap into social media platforms. It is a great opportunity for micro-influencers (those who have a small following of 10K-100K on their social media platform) to enter the affiliate business. In recent years, micro-influencers have transformed the fashion industry by showing the average person that fashion is not just a reflection of class and wealth, but can be achieved by anyone.
Being a micro-influencer may enable you to develop a more intimate relationship with your followers, therefore, you can promote brands previously associated with affluent consumers by offering your audience a more accessible image.
It is important to bear in mind that users must click on links or coupons posted around social media for affiliate commissions to start benefiting you and your affiliate merchant. Providing affiliate codes that offer discounts will greatly increase the number of sales generated by affiliates. The largest coupon affiliate websites generate over $1 billion USD in revenue annually. 12.35% of affiliates are making at least $20K USD per year, so imagine what their annual growth rate is.
Beauty and personal care
The usual social media platforms such as Instagram and Tik-Tok are full of female micro-influencers who create content for beauty and personal care. Through these platforms, influencers are encouraged to maintain high engagement.
Beauty, cosmetics, and personal care are one of the best affiliate marketing niches due to the number of videos and blogs that are posted and shared on social networks on a regular basis. It has grown from $438 billion USD in 2020 to $511 billion USD in 2021 and is expected to exceed $716 billion USD by 2025.
Pets
Pet care is a relatively straightforward and profitable affiliate marketing niche. Is it any wonder pet owners spent $103.6 billion USD on their little family members in 2020? In this evergreen niche, consumers are more likely to trust products (pet food, toys, etc.) promoted by affiliates who own pets themselves, as consumers trust affiliates who are also pet owners. You can now maintain an intimate relationship with pet owners, leaving you room capable to promote more pet products and increase affiliate commissions.
Adult Content
“Sex sells,” this old saying can be seen in the $100 billion USD industry it generated last year. One of the more lucrative affiliates marketing niches is the adult content area of the affiliate marketing business. There are numerous adult sites that sell toys, underwear, and porn, which can garner a high level of organic traffic.
With people working from home and browsing the internet, it makes sense that they use social media to share and discuss their new business ventures, regardless of what the topic may be. As an affiliate marketer, you will be able to direct traffic towards specific platforms, such as Patreon and OnlyFans, by using the Instagram story feature.
Since Adult content is behind a paywall, you can encourage your audience to subscribe, granting you a recurring commission. In addition, by posting regular content, you build trust with your audience, allowing you to collaborate with businesses and earn commissions as you begin to promote their products.
Which Affiliate Program is Best in 2023?
For affiliate marketers, there is nothing more important – and more challenging – than performance. But getting there means finding the best platforms and programs for your niche and goals. In a fast-changing industry, it can be difficult to know which way to go, whether beginner or advanced. So we’ve returned with our annual roundup of the best affiliate programs that we recommend you check out.
Take a look at the list of great affiliate programs where you can achieve your best conversions and maximize your income potential in 2023:
1. GiddyUp
If you want to get connected with truly worthwhile and profit-potential brands, then check out GiddyUp. GiddyUp is all about Partner Marketing, which is their approach to creating performance-based partnerships. Translation? Great results for brands and for you. They are totally focused on quality so you’ve got to be a super-serious affiliate to get accepted and start benefiting. If you fit the bill, we definitely recommend giving it a try.
2. DFO Global
If you’re looking for a high-quality affiliate network to work with, you won’t go wrong with DFO Global. You get access to a wide range of e-commerce products on a closed, safe, and brand-protected environment, with high covering offers and high payouts as a reward. For serious affiliate marketers who want a program that’s worth investing their time and effort, then DFO Global – with top-notch data analytics and responsive managers at your disposal – is the way to go.
3. Amazon Associates
For affiliate marketing beginners, Amazon is a great platform to kick off your new venture. The vast Amazon marketplace takes care of most of the sales process, warming up your leads for you. Your job is to bring new clients from external traffic sources to the Amazon site. There are millions of products you can pitch, with new ones being added every day. It’s a great way to make money without having yet built up a strong background in the art of affiliate marketing.
4. Widitrade
Widitrade is an affiliate e-commerce and lead generation platform with a wide range of owned and direct top converting offers with global coverage. What’s awesome about Widitrade is their unique highly converting and original pre-landers – they look fantastic and work even better, so you can look forward to great results with this affiliate program.
5. ClickBank
With 6 million digital products in over 20 categories, reaching 200 million people worldwide, ClickBank is a popular choice among affiliate marketers. What’s more, this program offers very high commissions, as high as 75%, and ClickBank is known for its regular reliable payouts, which is a huge drawcard.
There are plenty of products sold on a recurring basis, which means a great source of recurring income for you, as well as products with upsell options to help boost your income.
6. eBay Partner Network
Here’s a great way to tap into the enormous affiliate potential of the eBay market. Advertise eBay products on social media, your blog or website, and get a commission from every product sold via your link. Signing up to the eBay Partner Network is simple, and there is a never-ending supply of interesting products to promote, including popular trending products and daily deals.
7. M4trix Network
Looking for exclusive deals and offers in less-traveled geos, then look no further than M4trix Network. It’s a full-service affiliate network that’s global, but also takes profitability to places it has not been before, including non-saturated markets where you can outperform yourself. The network also boasts some impressive behind-the-scenes tech to help drive smarter strategies and optimize performance in real-time.
8. CJ Affiliate
CJ Affiliate is a great program for more experienced marketers, with 300 brands, including many of the world’s top brands. The program boasts 43% year-on-year growth in commissions, so it’s an attractive option. However you need a good amount of traffic to get accepted, and there are strict conditions for staying on as a publisher. The sophisticated toolbox may take some getting used to but has great features for more advanced affiliate marketers.
9. Affiliaxe
Affiliaxe is a top choice for marketers who want to access a whole lot of verticals. This translates to a wide variety of products and offers, so you get to choose and focus on where you can get the best results. Plus, if accepted to the program, you have access to your very own Affiliate Manager to help you optimize your traffic and create a unique bonus program to max your earning potential. Top it off with an easy-to-use platform, it’s a favorite for global affiliate marketers.
10. ShareASale
ShareASale is one of the largest affiliate networks out there, running for nearly two decades, so it’s built up a lot of trust in the affiliate industry. The network is well-loved by marketers and merchants because of its user-friendly interface, fast free sign up and support for affiliates running multiple websites. It has a huge variety of merchants to choose from in over 40 categories, including some big names.
11. Fiverr Affiliates Program
Fiverr bills itself as the world’s largest digital services marketplace, with over 11 million users in 190 countries. Fiverr has a generous commission plan, with CPA of up to $150. Plus, there’s no referral limit and you get lifetime attribution. Another nice benefit of the Fiverr affiliates program is their user-friendly dashboard, as well as the portfolio of creative resources that you can use to promote Fiverr, so some of the heavy lifting is done for you already.
No two affiliate marketers are the same – and neither are affiliate programs. Depending on your audience, niche and personality, there are different affiliate networks that may be better suited to you. The affiliate programs featured here cover a range of possibilities – from beginner affiliate marketers to advanced – but they are just the tip of the affiliate iceberg.
Is There a Future for Affiliate Marketing?
The rise of affiliate marketing has been impressive, and it is not expected to slow anytime soon. Some pre-Coronavirus estimates predicted that the affiliate marketing spends in the US would grow a further 10% year-on-year for at least the next two years.
With the recent events that have seen practically every industry in the world thrown into turmoil, it is impossible to know with any certainty whether that will hold in this new landscape.
With affiliate marketing being an online model that has grown up with and because of the internet, it’s likely that in these stay-at-home times that any impact will be much less severe than in other forms of more traditional advertising.
In the last decade, the trend has shifted dramatically to mobile devices, and with that transition, consumer behavior and desires have changed too.
Traditional affiliate marketing works best on a desktop, where people are less put out when being redirected to a new site. On a mobile device, this is a different story. For example – comparing products and prices is much trickier on the mobile device, and if the option for immediate conversion existed it would result in a major improvement in the purchase flow. The desire is for much more immediate action, and the enforced opening of another tab and the need for more time-consuming clicks can often result in the buying process being abandoned.
In a modern on-demand world attention spans are low, and the affiliate marketing model finds itself perhaps out of sync with the zeitgeist. But this doesn’t mean that affiliate links don’t work on mobile devices. Consumers are used to this approach, and for that reason, we’ll continue to see affiliate links also going forward even if the long-term trend is towards the higher convenience and a shorter conversion path offered by embedded e-commerce.
You might think that only brands like Nike or Amazon can succeed with affiliate marketing, but that’s not the case.
Small businesses can also leverage affiliate marketing programs to expand their buyer base, reward loyal partners, and build brand awareness. In most cases, small businesses have the upper hand because they can pay more commissions and pay out faster than the big box brands.
With massive layoffs and furloughs, as well as more than 70% of people working from home, the opportunity to dabble in affiliate marketing has never been greater. All you need is an internet connection to make a little extra income.
Additionally, online learning is at an all-time high, and research predicts the online education market would reach $350 billion by 2025. We’ll not only see more small businesses create affiliate programs but new affiliate marketers will emerge as they have the opportunity to learn the skills they need to succeed with free or cheap online courses.
Is Affiliate Marketing Profitable in 2023?
Yes. The number of online searches for affiliate marketing has grown exponentially since 2016 as more and more people want in on this business. Affiliate marketing is also a multi-billion dollar industry that is estimated to reach $12 billion in 2023. These numbers are only expected to grow as the world’s economy shifts toward more eCommerce and more people are interested in running their own businesses.
Both affiliate marketing and e-commerce, in general, are on the upswing, and that’s unlikely to stop anytime soon.
More people than ever are shopping online, and brands will increasingly turn to networks of affiliates to sell their products. Consequently, more affiliate marketing programs will be available each year.
Can Affiliate Marketing be a Career?
Anyone can throw together a website, post a few hastily written articles and drop in a bunch of affiliate links, but the really successful affiliates know there’s much more to it than that. Success comes down to hard work, building good relationships and choosing the right products and markets – a bit of luck along the way will help, too.
There are a variety of platforms that can be explored beyond blog content. Video, podcasts and social media are just a few other examples of tools that are at the disposal of affiliate marketers today.
The key thing is to plan BEFORE you get started. You need to choose a popular, lucrative niche, high-quality products to promote and create a plan for your initial and ongoing content. By getting this part right, it will be much easier to stay focused as you move forward.
Here’s some tips to follow to build your affiliate marketing career:
1. Choose your niche wisely
Before you get started, you need to decide on your focused niche and avoid trying to sell everything to everyone! Websites that focus on a single niche or, preferably, a smaller sub-niche, tend to be more successful, simply because targeted content attracts targeted visitors, who may buy the products you’re promoting. It makes all your marketing so much more effective.
Let’s take the health niche as an example. Don’t build your site around the whole niche. Choose a popular sub-niche such as weight loss and have sub-categories like women’s and men’s weight loss, after pregnancy weight loss, weight loss workout plans and supplements. Or drill down even further and base your site around a subject such as yoga, where you categories could be yoga types, yoga videos, yoga equipment, etc.
Keywords, post subjects and marketing opportunities all become much easier to define when you are very targeted with your subject.
2. Always search for new opportunities
Don’t think you can set up your website once and leave it at that. You need to keep informed and up to date with your niche and look for new content, news and fresh products to promote, to keep your website current and authoritative.
Sometimes, new sub-niches appear which are directly relevant to yours and, when you take the time to stay informed, you can jump on these quickly and add extra income to your business.
3. Create quality content to drive traffic
Content is the lifeblood of your website. Consistently posting unique, valuable, niche-related content on your site is the very best way to stay in Google’s good books and rank for your keywords. Strive to become an expert in your niche by using magazine subscriptions, subscribing to news feeds, visiting niche forums and looking for the latest product launches, etc.
On your site, you can then share news, solve problems, give tips and tactics, write about changes in the niche, and research and case studies – all examples of useful content. Obviously, product reviews make excellent content as they use very specific buyer keywords and are by far the easiest content to monetize.
Don’t scrimp on your posts if you want them ranked in Google. The average post length for niche articles holding the top spot on Google for their keyword is 2,000 words. Gone are the days when ‘thin’ content ranked. There’s nothing you can do about this, so don’t try and fight it.
As affiliate James Armstrong of DietsandSlimming.com told me: “It has taken some trial and error writing content, but by using marketing tips and working with my ClickSure account manager, my persistence has really started to pay off.”
4. The power of networking
Affiliate marketers usually work alone, but that doesn’t mean you can’t connect to others online. It’s good for affiliates to network together because they can learn from each other. But it’s even more important for affiliates to network with the advertisers (product owners) because they can give them in-depth product information and the resources they need to promote their products. It’s also important to remember that it’s the advertiser who is paying them, so they should strive to get a relationship with them.
Therefore, look for networks that encourage affiliates to have direct communication with advertisers and build profitable relationships.
Niche forums are also great as you can build contacts and keep up to date in your niche. Look for other affiliate marketers in the same or similar niches to you, as that may present cross-promoting opportunities.
5. Patience, persistence and positivity
Success won’t happen overnight but start with a good plan, stick with it, apply yourself and the rewards will come. Prioritize writing your content, as it’s the ticket to free targeted traffic, and stay informed about your niche. Set yourself daily tasks including writing content, obviously, for your blog and any social media channels you use, but also building backlinks, connecting with other affiliates and advertisers and looking at new traffic sources.
Can Affiliate Marketing Make you Rich?
A lot will depend on whether you do partner marketing as a full-time occupation or as a side gig. It will also depend on how many affiliate programs you sign up with, what reach you have, and what area you focus on.
It’s worth noting that affiliate marketing is a growing industry, with spending expected to reach $8.2 billion in 2022, up from the $5.4 billion spent in 2017. So the pie is getting bigger but so is the number of people wanting a slice of that very pie. It’s impossible to tell how many marketers there are in the US but there are at least 11,400 affiliate programs you should consider.
You do some research and realize that US affiliate marketing spend is set to reach over 8 billion dollars by 2022 – and this figure is continuing to grow. That’s one delicious-looking pie, and you know you want a slice of it.
Which Niche is Best for Affiliate Marketing?
With low entry costs and a potentially lucrative return on investment (ROI), affiliate marketing remains an attractive revenue stream for publishers looking to grow their audiences and monetize their content channels. Still, success hinges on finding profitable niches.
There are several established areas that remain profitable. Tuning into the consumer mindset is the key to identifying them. Where there are problems, worries, or desires, demand will follow. Brands meet those demands with valuable solutions, and content creators like yourself help bring these two parties together.
We’ll explore some of the most profitable niches for affiliate marketing in 2023
1. Lifestyle and Wellness
The global health and wellness market value was over $4 trillion in 2019 and is estimated to reach $6 trillion by 2025. People want to live longer, healthier, more fulfilling lives. They’re spending money to do so.
This category includes diet and nutrition, exercise products and services, skincare, supplements, personal trainers, and more.
Coming off a year consumed by global health concerns, the wellness niche is front of mind for many consumers. The impact of COVID-19 can’t be overstated.
It’s changed the way we live, work, play, and relate with one another. This impact plays out differently within demographic groups, so do your research when considering opportunities to connect with your audience.
Health and wellness concerns tend to be age-specific as well. Gender also may play a role, and many products target specific demographics. Focus your content on an audience with a specific health and wellness concern or set of desires, and help to educate them and provide solutions.
Finally, stay up-to-date with wellness industry news, as fresh information will continue to shape public opinion and behavior. Be ready to adapt to evolving concerns and lifestyle changes with relevant, timely content.
2. Technology
Technology simplifies life and work, delivers entertainment, and helps us share our lives and opinions more easily. The digital transformation is driving a $500 billion software industry.
Digital entertainment revenue worldwide dipped to $2 trillion due to the global recession. However, it looks to grow in the coming years, approaching $2.5 trillion by 2024.
Products related to this affiliate marketing niche include digital streaming, digital downloads, video games, business software, mobile technologies, and more.
COVID-19 has also impacted this sector. More people are staying home, consuming digital media, and using technology for remote work. Sickness and layoffs have led to a smaller workforce with diminished physical product outputs, so industries that can are leveraging digital alternatives to meet demands.
To get started in this niche, it’s helpful to understand how your audience interacts with technology. Are they early adopters of cutting edge tech, eager to try new things? Or are they late adopters who need step-by-step guides, explainers, and plenty of reassurance upfront?
Also, consider evolving remote work trends. Look for opportunities to help people stay connected, stay organized, and work efficiently from a home office. Educate your audience and match them with products and services they’ll find useful.
3. Personal Finance
This segment specializes in delivering financial services to consumers, especially in competition with traditional banking. It’s expected to grow at a 20% compound annual growth rate over the next five years, reaching over $300 billion by 2025. Globally, affiliate marketing in the financial technology sector had an estimated value of $12 billion in 2019.
People want more options on how to access, grow, and share their money. This niche includes e-invoicing services, investments, cryptocurrencies, banking innovations, peer-to-peer (P2P) payments, data security, and other such services.
Financial technology companies have seen the light when it comes to affiliate marketing. Nearly every segment is utilizing this approach to expand market reach, with some investing heavily in their partnerships.
Consumers enjoy the convenience, ease, and options afforded by advancing financial technologies, and that trend looks to continue. If you’re considering this niche, make sure to consider how age and income level may dictate which products and services are best suited to your audience.
Also, bear in mind that people want to be sure financial products and services are safe and simple to use. Plus, the personal desire for financial security and growth is innately strong.
A successful affiliate marketer will understand and address these desires and the fears that accompany them. Your content can educate consumers, giving them the tools they need to make smart financial decisions.
4. Pet Care
Annual spending on pets in the U.S. is approaching $100 billion, and consumer preference for shopping for pet products online is predicted to grow by 9%. This industry includes specialty pet foods, grooming products, pet clothing, therapy pets, service dogs, and more.
With more people working from home, the pet care sector has evolved. Almost 20 percent of Americans reported spending more than usual this year on their pets, and a greater percentage (about one-third of those surveyed) have considered adopting or fostering new pets.
A study on Common Thread Collective provides keen insight for marketers in this niche. Online shopping benefits pet owners in four key areas:
- Convenience. Ensure the buying experience is simple and convenient.
- Information and choice. Provide ample product information. Use explainer videos or infographics to demonstrate quality, benefits, or statistics. If possible, provide alternatives to give buyers choice.
- Comparison Tools. Present product information in a way that sets it apart. Arm your customers with key benefits so they can easily see your item’s value when they compare shop.
- Relationships. People love and care for their pets. Share pet videos, photos, and funny or heartwarming stories to build a community on social media.
Is it Hard to be Successful in Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It takes commitment and consistency to earn trust and build an affiliate business. The beauty of becoming an affiliate is that the rewards are incremental. Once shared, an affiliate link can continue to perform and earn commissions over time. As search engines index your content and your links are shared, their value will also grow, especially if the link doesn’t expire.
Read Also: Top 4 Remote Work Trends That Will Shape 2022 – 2025
The key is to start small. As you get to know your audience and bring value to the conversation, you’ll earn trust and add to your circle of followers — and your ability to generate revenue will grow.
The first and one very popular method is promoting products or services on your website, as we have already mentioned above. This option requires more work from you – creating useful content that will engage visitors and convert them into sales takes time, but it’s a great long-term strategy for generating stable income over a long period.
You can also use paid ads to generate leads or direct traffic, but these don’t last forever either and so constant promotion (i.e. paying for more ads) is required in order to maintain good results.
Another way is to become an affiliate for other people’s products – this is something you can do even if your website isn’t profitable or doesn’t drive much traffic itself. You will need to find some good offers on the market and apply to be their affiliates, but at least there won’t be any risk of losing money that you would otherwise need to invest upfront.