Nowadays, digital marketing is constantly growing and undergoing innovative changes, and is now a mainstay of the digital world that influences today's society driven more and more toward innovation.
Today, one of the most promising areas within the digital world is definitely affiliate marketing. It consists of a set of activities related to acquiring or expanding new markets online through a vast network of well-targeted sites. This branch of marketing concerns product sales strategies and is also referred to as performance-driven.
The idea of associating a commission to incentivize third-party sales and promotion of products or services online appeared almost simultaneously with the emergence of the Web: as early as 1994, the first affiliate programs became established, and in 1996 Amazon developed a program under which affiliates were allowed to post text ads and banners to advertise book sales on their personal sites or even on the homepage of the future global e-commerce giant. Since then, online affiliate marketing has become one of the longest-running and most effective web sales strategies.
Affiliate Programs
To date, there are several affiliate programs available that generally offer a wide range of products and services to promote. To find them based on products or services you intend to promote, you need to do an online search or contact the company directly. Some of the most popular programs include:
- Amazon Associates, allows you to promote any product on Amazon and earn a commission on eligible sales.
- Commission Junction, a network of advertisers and affiliates that allows you to sign up as an affiliate and choose from a wide range of products and services to promote
- ClickBank, an online retailer specializing in digital products such as ebooks, software and online courses.
- eBay Partner Network, affiliate program that allows you to promote eBay products and earn a commission on sales.
It is important to keep in mind that affiliate marketing requires commitment and dedication. You will need to create valuable content and use effective marketing strategies to drive traffic to your affiliate links and generate sales.
Affiliate Marketing in Numbers
According to the most recent statistics, the global value of affiliate marketing reached $17 billion in 2022; this is a major increase from $13 billion in 2016. As a result, Google searches for the word "affiliate marketing" have also increased: Google Trends shows that monthly searches more than doubled between 2015 and 2021.
Affiliate marketing is the most important customer acquisition channel for 20 percent of brands, while 54 percent rank it among the top three channels and for 31 percent of affiliates it is a major source of revenue. In addition, another interesting fact is related to the fact that 56% of advertisers and affiliate agencies managed to increase revenue during the blockade due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a percentage that grew significantly in the following years as well.
In conclusion...
Affiliate marketing continues to be a beneficial form of marketing for both companies and affiliates. When integrated into a broader strategic plan that is consistent with a brand or company's communication goals and actual customer acquisition projections, affiliate marketing programs can prove to be an indispensable tool not only for increasing sales volumes, but also for exploring new promotional channels and capturing new market niches, as well as for increasing visibility and gaining new leads and business opportunities.
The key to successful affiliate marketing, in addition to choosing the most suitable affiliate program, is, therefore, to work on your own content and reliability: only in this way will users be encouraged to follow your advice and take the action that will earn you a commission.
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