When conducting an affiliation program, one does need to think what kind of channel to use. Many believe that a website works out the best. As good as it may be, the online platform is not the only way to make money while working out an affiliate marketing strategy.
This review aims to prove that there are many ways to earn good revenues without opening a website. Some might be well-known to many, but there are also other, less popular referral alternatives. Read on to gain insights on how to do affiliate marketing without a website.
Is it Possible to Earn with Affiliate Marketing without a Site?
If you think about it, most people work out referral programs depending on the industry(s) they operate in. Thus, for some sectors, a website would be a good idea while for others it may not matter that much. Therefore, individual marketers work out channels that are suitable for the audience they wish to accumulate over time.
Reaching your audience does not need to be one site to generate traffic. You can community your programs directly through channels that they use themselves. These include social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter), forums (Reddit), email marketing, YouTube videos, and events/fairs.
Social Media
One of the ways to earn considerably is through places where customer leads roam in large numbers – social media. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, and others host many people and groups that you can tap into. Being active in these platforms will get you high market reach. You can also develop direct communication with customers.
No matter what kind of businesses you are promoting, affiliate advertising on has several aspects that are similar across sectors. Statuses are, generally speaking, short and should call upon a desirable action. Keyword usage is low since the message is much more important, rather than SEO compliance.
Besides, groups, discussions, and separate pages for your affiliate gig are a must-have. In addition to Google Analytics, both Facebook and Twitter provide statistics on their own. Use them regularly, to deduce what works the best and when, as seen in a snapshot below.
eBooks
Whereas social media does not use a large number of keywords, eBook has a lot more SEO-related content. If you happen to have a knack of writing, you can write a short electronic book. Length can vary, though most people publish smaller works (up to 8.000 words) as to create series of them. What makes this channel quite wonderful one is the ability to earn from two channels – selling the eBook and affiliate program.
However, if you only want to self-publish free work, you stand to gain much nevertheless. Most affiliate marketers reach their audience through Amazon, as the platform is the largest one regarding Kindle editions.
Writing a free eBook can get you a broad base of audience, especially if they like it. However, even if free, eBooks should hold a certain degree of quality, with content being 100% original. Bad reviews can be quite harmful on your gig, after all.
YouTube Videos
Another interesting channel (but popular, nevertheless) is referral marketing through YouTube platform. You can create your own video to talk about different industries, business, or even provide entertainment channels to gain views.
If successful, not only do you get affiliate audience, you can actually make money by allowing ads to show during your video. Thus, much like with eBooks, you can open up two channels of warning just by posing and talking into the camera. Be sure to use YouTube’s own analytics tools, as it can pinpoint where your audience comes from.
Forums
Reddit and many other forums hold discussions, debates, and questions that your clients need answers for. The reason why many affiliates go here as well is that, often, customers look for information regarding companies you are representing. Answering questions and providing links can get you a quite right channel of income.
Forums are very similar to social media, as you use very little SEO here. However, your goal is to engage in discussions personally. Activity is significant here, which can take up a lot of your time. It can also be taxing if you bump into toxic leads since aliases provide freedom for users to bash and dash. Additionally, it is hard to segment your audience by regions, since forums do not provide statistical tools.
Emails
Although one of the oldest ways of affiliate advertising, emailing can be useful if you have a large number of contacts. It is also a sure way to give yourself a reality check on whether people are interested in your links or not. Simple mass-send the content (no need for SEO-heavy stuff) and track results.
If you get numerous and positive responses, great! If not, it is time for you to reflect on what you are promoting and how. However, there is an issue with this particular channel, and that may be “spam” grouping. People tend to notice statuses and messages on social media and forums, but emails are already crammed up with advertising. Thus, concerning effectiveness, emails are the lowest on our list.
On-site Marketing
You can actually visit fairs, events, and other social gatherings to reach for your audience. If you are promoting sports gear or medications, personal meetings might be a good idea to connect with your leads. You may not get a large audience as with other channels, but you can leave quite a good impression while promoting premium-quality products. Word-of-mouth is even more crucial here and a good name.
However, this channel relies on your knowledge of products, as well as the reputation you may have in the industry. Lastly, getting inside events can be costly, especially if they are geographically far away you’re you.
Mix it up!
As you can see, many of the affiliate advertising methods have their own pros and cons. Thus, we would advise our readers to create a comprehensive campaign, with several channels included. Nothing stops you from combining social media, forums, and, say, YouTube video advertising to generate leads and income.
Affiliate marketing does not need to cost a thing as well since most of these channels do not require payments. Analytics are available as well, even if you are not a premium member. You can publish eBooks for free, all the while being active on other platforms as well.
Should you decide to work out a comprehensive affiliate marketing plan, we would also recommend a platform that would take care of your organization. Affiliate marketing software providers, such as Unilink.io, offer a good range of statistical tools, as well as a place where you can calculate revenues and check out trends in the market. Although paid, services that these platforms provide can really help you in setting up a proper affiliate gig.
