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Setting up affiliate program - looking for guidance

by mgkimsal
6 replies
Hello all:

Long time lurker, first time poster. Looking for some wisdom/guidance from you warriors.

I'm considering putting together an affiliate program for two monthly PDF publications I put out. My question is, beyond a link at the bottom of the site ("affiliates" or something like that) how else should I promote the program? I'd rather not email the readers directly - I'd like to try to keep the majority of the readers and promoters separate, though I think there'll be a bit of overlap.

Are there places you'd recommend promoting an affiliate program? What works and what doesn't? The publications are $5/month, and I was considering 10-20% commission to affiliates. On a single issue that might not a huge amount, but on a yearly subscription ($59) that'd be between $6 and $12. Is my price point too low for affiliates to bother with in the first place?

re: affiliate systems - I'm considering "post affiliate pro" based on a friend's recommendation, but the misspelled the word "professional" on one of their pages, which gave me pause. I tried jrox, which seemed decent, but it doesn't handle %-based payments. It *says* it does, but it doesn't, at least the free trial version doesn't. I'll probably stay with the basic PAP based on my friend's recommendation, but am willing to investigate others.

Are there other words of wisdom you have for someone starting off in this arena?

Thanks!
#affiliate #guidance #program #setting
  • Profile picture of the author Victor.L
    I sincerely doubt that affiliates woud look twice at the commission. It is just that low.

    Perhaps raise your publication fee so you can raise the profit sharing also.

    If you want some affiliates , either go on clickbank or click2sell.eu or go on webmaster forums such as WF or DP and look for affiliates there.
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    • Profile picture of the author mgkimsal
      I've been selling the pubs for several months - one almost a year - and am not in a position to mess with that price too much. I did think that the $ amount might not be enough to get people interested.

      Thank you for the feedback and pointers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jag82
    Originally Posted by mgkimsal View Post

    Hello all:

    I'm considering putting together an affiliate program for two monthly PDF publications I put out. My question is, beyond a link at the bottom of the site ("affiliates" or something like that) how else should I promote the program? I'd rather not email the readers directly - I'd like to try to keep the majority of the readers and promoters separate, though I think there'll be a bit of overlap.

    Are there places you'd recommend promoting an affiliate program? What works and what doesn't? The publications are $5/month, and I was considering 10-20% commission to affiliates. On a single issue that might not a huge amount, but on a yearly subscription ($59) that'd be between $6 and $12. Is my price point too low for affiliates to bother with in the first place?
    Hi,

    If you want to get your affiliate program up as quick as possible, you can do so Clickbank.
    The affiliate platform is already done up for you. And there is a ready pool of affiliates you can tap on.

    However if you are looking for more flexibility, I will highly recommend Sid Hale's Rapid Action Profits (RAP).

    It gives you the ability to offer 100% commission...backend selling...OTO...split testing...and a ton of other stuff.

    There are also many add-ons you can bring to your marketing arsenal such as "dime-sales" and "membership". Tools that great for inducing urgency...recurring income and the likes...

    With RAP, you can separate your customers from your affiliates/JV partners. And of course, you can also recruit your customers to be your affiliates. They make the best promoters!

    RAP works for me. But your needs may not be the same as mine.

    Work out the features/benefits you want, compare, and go with the one that best suit your requirements.

    Hope this helps.

    Jag
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  • Profile picture of the author SageSound
    With low-priced subscriptions, you're basically getting paid for collecting leads.

    Rather than bothering with affiliates right away, I'd probably try spending money on PPC, write some articles and post them around, get back-links, etc.

    Also, offer some free gifts to your existing subscribers for referring people. Set up a "Tell-A-Friend" form that lets you track who sent out referrals.

    As Jag said, RAP can handle all of that, and more.

    -David
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  • Profile picture of the author mgkimsal
    Thank you all for your input. I'm going to rethink my approach based on all of your notes here.
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