Sign Up for Some Good Affiliate Programs
Early in my freelance career, I was contacted by the owner of a list management company (a company that rents mailing lists for direct-mail campaigns). He said, “Steve, I noticed that you’ve been recommending us to your clients. We really appreciate that. Why don’t you sign up for our affiliate programs so the next time one of your clients needs a mailing list, we can pay you a commission?” I’m all for making extra money, so I said, “Sure.”
Frankly, I didn’t expect much. I thought perhaps I’d earn a few extra dollars to fund my Friday lunch excursions to Starbucks. Imagine my surprise when, a couple months later, I received a commission check for $1,600—for doing nothing more than what I was doing anyway, recommending a good company.
What’s an Affiliate Program?
An affiliate program is simply a program many companies offer that pays you a commission for referring your clients, prospects, and website visitors to their products and services.
Say you’re a freelance speechwriter. You probably get asked for advice and recommendations all the time on giving a speech, using presentation technology, easing the speaking jitters, and more. Sign up for Amazon’s affiliate program (which they call their “Associates Program”), and you can create a list of recommended books on your website. Then when you suggest one of these books to a prospect or client, or even when a casual website visitor comes across it, you’ll receive a commission from any purchases made as a result.
Affiliate programs are yet another way to generate more passive income from an activity you’re probably doing anyway. Here are the basics for taking advantage of this strategy:
• Review the products and services you’re currently recommending to prospects, clients, and other contacts.
• Visit the websites of these companies and find out about their affiliate programs. (Look for a link called “affiliate program,” “associate program,” “partner program,” “earn cash,” or something similar.)
• Carefully review how each company’s affiliate program works.
• If an affiliate program seems like a good fit, sign up.
• Once you’re accepted into the program, you receive access to “affiliate links” and banner ads that contain special tracking codes that keep track of your referrals and sales.
• Place these links or ads in appropriate places on your website, such as a “recommended resources” page.
• You can also actively recommend an affiliate product or service by sending the link by e-mail. “Hey John, here’s a great book on preparing for a speech I often recommend to clients ….”
• At the end of each payment period, which is usually monthly or quarterly, you’ll receive a commission payment for the sales your website and recommendations have generated.
The great thing about an affiliate program is that it is perhaps the most passive form of income available to you as a freelancer. It requires very little time and virtually no cost to get started. And once you’ve set up the banners or links on your website, there really isn’t much else to do but what you’re already doing anyway—recommending resources to your prospects, clients, and other contacts.
Don’t Go Affiliate Crazy
Affiliate programs can be lucrative, and it’s tempting to want to fill your website with links and banners. But ask yourself how would something look to potential clients who are visiting your website to learn more about your professional services? Adding a few good recommended products and services is fine. Just don’t overdo it.
Affiliate programs can give your income a significant boost. I know one technical communications consultant who claims that more than 15 percent of her income comes from affiliate commissions. She joined the affiliate programs of all her suppliers, including a printer, a technical drawing service, a proofreading company, and Amazon.
Take a look at the affiliate programs associated with the products and services you frequently recommend. You’re recommending these companies anyway, and they’re benefiting financially from your referrals. Why not get a small piece of that action?
Where to Find an Affiliate Program
The best place to start when looking for affiliate programs to join is with the companies you already know.
Another good source is affiliate program directories. These websites compile information on affiliate programs companies offer and organize that information into product and industry categories. If you’re a web designer, for example, you can go to AffiliateScout.com, click on the Web Services category, and find hundreds of affiliate programs.
Here are some other popular directories:
Be sure to also check out Google AdSense (Google.com/AdSense), Yahoo’s Apt! program (Publisher.Yahoo.com), and other similar programs many of the major search engines offer. They work a little differently from traditional affiliate programs, but the end result is the same. You earn income by recommending products and services associated with what you do.
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