ASP 33: Affiliate Marketing for Authors (an Overview)

Quote of the Day:

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like hard work.”

– Thomas Edison

As an author, you can increase your income potential by diversifying your streams of income. A great place to start is with affiliate marketing.

What is affiliate marketing all about?

Affiliate marketing means you’re almost acting like a representative of a company. You promote a product to your followers, and, if people buy, you get a sales commission.

This practice made up Steve’s full-time income before he got into self-publishing. Through his experiences, Steve learned that you want to promote stuff that you use yourself and believe in—products that add value to the world. Don’t just promote something for the paycheck. Look for reputable and proven brands, and choose products that relate to your niche.

The ultimate litmus test is that if you would recommend a product for free or during a conversation with a friend, then it’s probably something you should be an affiliate for.

What are the best places to discover affiliate opportunities?

What do you look for when researching affiliate programs?

First of all, the product should be of high quality. Also. make sure it’s a product that will have good click-throughs and conversions.

If it’s something that has a 30-day money-back guarantee, make sure it’s quality to avoid high refund rates. And always check out the landing page of the product. It should be professional looking.

Finally, look at the earnings per click (EPC), and research if the brand has really good customer support.

What are the first steps for authors just beginning in affiliate marketing?

First of all, find something that’s directly related to your topic. For example, Steve wrote 10,000 Steps Blueprint, so he promotes pedometers, an particularly FitBit. He wrote a Fitbit review and put in affiliate links.

Secondly, once you find a product, buy it and use it. Show images of you using it, talk about how you use it, and share tips. You also need to share what things you don’t like about the product. You don’t want to come across as biased.

What about authors who do not have much of a following?

If you’re just getting started, it’s more important to focus on your book. Consider affiliate marketing after you publish a catalog of books and build an email list.

What do you look for as an affiliate for another person’s products?

It’s important to have some sort of relationship with the person. This actually makes promoting and selling the product easier and more fulfilling. You also have to make sure that you know your audience well. Don’t surprise them with something that is completely irrelevant or inappropriate.

What percentage of revenue can affiliates expect?

For most information products, the rule of thumb is 50%. For software, it could be anywhere from 20% to 30%. Some even give 100% to 200% (this is usually if they are trying to get people onto their email lists). Amazon starts at 4%, and the commission percentage increases when you sell more products.

How do you create and promote your own product with an affiliate program?

The best thing to do is to make sure you create a quality product in the first place.

Once you are ready to bring in affiliates, it’s good to be discerning about the people who you partner with. Only reach out to people who understand what affiliate marketing is, and who believe in your product and message.

Finally, when you reach out to others in your niche, remember that they may want a reciprocal type of relationship, so be up front about what you are willing to offer.

How do you promote your affiliate product?

There are a number of ways to promote. You can post a blog article or review. You can do an unboxing video, or make a Camtasia video recording demonstrating the ins and outs of an info product. Finally, great affiliate marketers will actually send you a complete “swipe file” for marketing the product.

Looking for a supportive community of writers and authors?

Be an Authority and join the Authority Self-Publishing Facebook group.

Thanks for Listening to ASP!

We appreciate you taking the time to listen to the Authority Self-Publishing show.

Did you enjoy this episode?

If so, please do one (or all) of the following:

  1. Leave a comment on this page or ask a question if you need us to elaborate on the topic.
  2. Use the social media buttons to share this episode with your friends, family, and contacts.
  3. Go over to iTunes or Stitcher to leave a rating/review and to subscribe to the podcast.

We appreciate you taking the time to check out ASP! And we look forward to providing you with more content in the next episode!

Subscribe to the Authority Self-Publishing Show:

[one_half_first] Authority Self-Publishing on iTunes [/one_half_first][one_half_last]Authority Self-Publishing on Stitcher[/one_half_last]

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.