by Jim Turner

I constantly get asked by struggling Internet marketers, plus I see the question asked on the many online marketing discussion boards: "Can you really make money online with affiliate or referral programs?"

And my answer is: "Yes you can, if you deploy the proper strategy and tactics. The old saying in marketing applies to affiliate programs also. There are two important keys to any business:

1) Making the right offer, so that it clearly outlines the benefits to the prospect, and

2) Making that offer to the right list, the people who are interested in the product or service

You would be surprised at how much more effective a good ezine/email list is than a Web Site. Web Sites are important but don't expect your visitors to be so energetic that they seek you out. If you have a Web site, be sure to capture email addresses, with permission, of your visitors and remind them to come back.

Most affiliate program providers seem to be in love only with banner advertising at your Web Site, which is not necessarily the best way to go. Banner ads get a small amount of traffic and sales generated from them. The most effective method is to give a personal testimony regarding benefits that you have received from the product/service. Consider this when you are choosing an affiliate program.

Here are the guidelines to follow when selecting an affiliate program:

1) Get paid well for whatever you do.

Make sure that you have a good selection of products to choose from. If you are selecting more than one affiliate program, make sure they fit together logically, i.e., don't sell flowers and hunting gear. Many programs being offered up today are two-tiered. This allows you to get paid off the efforts of others that you sell to. Include in your portfolio a few big ticket items. You don't need to sell a ton of those to make a couple hundred dollars.

2) Select your affiliate program based on your target audience and your ability to contact them.

Be wary of signing up for every program under the sun and hoping that a few will work out. Even though most of them are free, the cost in your time and lost customers is tremendous. Confusing people by posting as many affiliate programs as possible will not work. However, it does make sense to promote programs that compliment each other. For example, a lead generating program and a book marketing program. The person buying the book will need leads also.

3) Make sure that the sign up procedure is easy to fill out.

If you find it complicated to begin with, you may find it hard to work with the affiliate provider long term. Also be careful not to pick up an extra workload with an affiliate program.

4) Spend ample time finding the products that you want to promote, not just because they are popular.

Don't sell anything you don't really believe in, or from a company that is not reliable. One bad experience can ruin your customer's opinion of you, even if it is the affiliate company that is the source.

5) Check the way the affiliate program tracks and records your orders.

Do they offer you real-time statistics on sales and hits, email notification when someone makes a purchase, and are they good about paying on time? Read about the rules and the system they have set up to help you market the product. Do they offer a third party auditing service? Have people complained about this service?

6) Do they give you the marketing tools to help you sell more?

Look for banner ads, free reports, text ads that you can use in an ezine or classified advertisement. The more you have to create, the bigger the burden on you. But also keep in mind that if you are really selling well with a company, you should look for innovative ways to incorporate this into your business.

7) Finally, make sure that you have some way to generate long term revenue.

Few affiliate programs can afford to generate traffic back to your Web Site. Do your best to capture information about your visitors and your buyers. If you find that someone bought via your Web Site, send them a thank you note as well. If you let the affiliate provider do all the work, you will lose a long term customer. Make sure you build your customer list and contact them in the future.