You see them everywhere... affiliate programs. They're a dime a dozen now days. 
With so many companies launching affiliate programs, how can you tell which ones 
might actually help you make money? 

This is part one of a two part series, in which we help you to determine which 
affiliate programs could be the most profitable for you. So, let's jump right in!


1. How long has the affiliate program been around? A new affiliate program is not
necessarily a bad thing, but unfortunately they may still be working out some 
kinks. And they might not have much in the way of promotional material for you 
to use. An established affiliate program on the other hand, will usually have 
payment schedules, tracking statistics, and ad creative down to a science. 

The longer a program has been around, the better the chances are that it is 
successful too. A program like ScamFreeZone's Internet Success Associate Program, 
for instance, which was launched in August 1999, must be doing something right...
otherwise they wouldn't still be around over three years later, right?

2. How much commission can you earn? Many affiliate programs pay very little --
some as low as 2%! Others offer outrageously high commissions... up to 75% in 
some cases. Why such a huge difference? Usually, it's related to the products or
services being offered. Unfortunately, the commission structure can cause 
unbelievable headaches for affiliates, and can even cause a program to fail too 
though. Let me explain...

A company who sells products or services with a 30% profit margin, might decide 
to only offer 10% affiliate commissions. This, in their mind, is safe, because it 
allows the company to generate enough profit to continue operating. Another 
company however, might decide that paying affiliates more money will make them 
grow faster, so they'll decide to offer a 25% commission... leaving themselves
with only 5% profit. With very little potential for profit, a company is much 
more likely to fold, or at the very least close their affiliate program.

Now, most companies won't share their profit margin details with you. There are
things you can do though, that will help you get a better gauge of how stable 
they might be. Using The ScamFreeZone's Internet Success Program example above,
you'll find that Neil Shearing, the owner of this program, actually shares 
with you his profit margin. 

But even if he didn't, you can get a feel for him and his company by browsing 
his website. In doing this, you can tell that he doesn't have one or more offices 
to maintain, no employees to pay, and no high-falutin' executives or board of
directors siphoning off profits. So, do a little research. Dig into the company's 
website and see what you can find. And if you're still not sure, try asking them!
Just send a brief, polite email... you never know what they might be willing to 
share.

On the affiliate side of things, the commission structure can be a headache. 
If for instance, you join a program which pays just 2%, you'll only make $2 for 
every $100 in sales. If you're paid 10% commission, then you'll get $20 for every
$100 sold, and 50% will get you $50 for every $100 sold. Now, at first glance, 
it looks like you'd choose the highest commission offer, right? But you have to 
look at the products too. If you're only able to sell $100 every six months, 
then you're not making much money are you? If on the other hand, the smaller 
commission offer is much easier to sell... say for example you can sell $1000 
worth of stuff every month... then you'll make more money in the long run with 
the lower commission structure.

So, try to weigh the long-term value of a given commission structure, with both
stability and profitability of the company, before choosing which program to join.

3. Would you use the products? This may seem like a strange question, but the 
answer can actually determine how successful you might be with any given affiliate 
program. You see, if you really like something, really believe in it, that is 
going to show every time you talk about it. You'll find yourself writing articles 
or testimonials to use on your website... if you really like a product. You'll
find yourself referring to something you personally use, or found useful, just 
in casual conversations. And those casual conversations, or brief mentions on 
your website... they can turn into sales. Sales that you'll make commissions from.


4. How many products do they offer? If a company offers just one or two products,
but you really like, use, or recommend them, and the commission is good, and/or
the sales volume is good, then great -- there are no problems. Generally though,
you'll want to partner with a company that offers at least three or more quality
products or services. Why? Because you can increase your income much easier if 
you have additional products to promote.

This concept is called "back-end sales". You've probably heard of it before, 
right? In general, you work your tail off to convert a prospect to a customer.
They become a customer as soon as they buy one item. After that, the hard part
is done! Once a prospect becomes a customer, it is much easier to sell 
them additional, related things. So, if you have partnered with a company that 
offers a few quality items, you can contact previous buyers and offer them those 
additional items.

Following our examples above, The ScamFreeZone's Internet Success Program 
offers several related, high-quality products. 
As an affiliate, once you have made a sale to one person, that person is much more
likely to come back and get another ScamFreeZone product later... which means
you earn commissions again -- every time they buy.

5. How many ways can you make money? This may seem like a strange question at
first, but the fact is: some affiliate programs offer just one way to 
make money, while others offer several. Direct sales is the primary way 
of course, with back-end products being an additional revenue stream. 
Additional sales of the same product, or recurring revenue on the product
 -- i.e. the customer pays a monthly subscription fee -- can make you 
additional money as well. In some cases, you'll get paid for every
month that the customer keeps their service active. 

Another common way to make money with an affiliate program, is through 
2nd-tier sales. 2nd-tier sales is simply another form of referral income.
In other words, if you send a prospect to your affiliate site, and they
sign up as an affiliate themselves instead of buying something, then you 
wouldn't make any money from them. If however, the affiliate program is set
up in a two-tier structure, that new affiliate would be listed as a 
sub-affiliate of you. And, any time that new affiliate made a sale, you 
would get a percentage. The 2nd-tier commission percentage is usually a small
portion of direct sale commissions, but it can still add up nicely. 

So, two-tier structured affiliate programs can be beneficial in a couple of
ways. First, you're not in a fierce competition with other affiliates.
If you had a retail store, and your customer wentto your direct competitor,
you would not get any money from the purchase they made at that other store,
right? As an affiliate though, in a two-tier program, if your customer signs 
themselves up, or buys from someone you signed up, then you still earn a
reward. So, in effect, you're working together instead of against each other.
Each time you or one of your sub-affiliates makes a sale, you both earn money.

In The ScamFreeZone's Internet Success Associate Program
for instance, you can make 10% of every sale made by a sub-affiliate.
Your sub-affiliates still earn a full 50% on their direct sales, so your 
commission does not come out of their pocket. Programs structured this way 
give you the potential to add several hundred dollars to your affiliate i
ncome each month, without essentially lifting a finger.

The second advantage to a two-tier system is that you can choose to be 
more managerial instead of direct sales. If you prefer not to sell 
products and services to customers directly, you can instead concentrate on 
recruiting sales people. Then you simply mentor, teach, and encourage 
them... they make the direct sales, and you both profit.

6. What kind of support, motivation, or training do they offer? 
Unfortunately, many modern-day affiliate programs are simply looking 
for people to put up their banners and links. They don't have a systematic
teaching or support system in place, and if you send email to them it can 
take days or weeks for a response... if you get a response at all. 

A sign of a good affiliate program is one that's devoted to helping the 
affiliates achieve. Usually this type of program will have a dedicated
affiliate manager, and will keep in constant contact with you through 
newsletters or other similar means.

Now, a newsletter in and of itself can be slightly misleading. Many 
companies today -- affiliate related or not -- tend to send email that 
they *call* a newsletter, but in reality that email is more promotional 
than anything else. Have you gotten "newsletters" from companies which 
essentially looks and feels like a sales flyer? If you're like me, you 
see that as borderline spam, and not overly useful... especially if 
you're trying to make commissions from the company's products or services.

A good affiliate program is going to have a useful and informative 
newsletter. It may only come out once a month, or it might arrive every
week. Either way, it is usually chock full of help, information, tips, 
and tricks... all designed to help you increase your income through 
their program. 

The ScamFreeZone's Internet Success Associate Program
is another good example in this case. They send a weekly newsletter to t
their affiliates, and in that newsletter you'll find helpful articles 
focused on marketing. You'll also find tips and short articles about 
how other affiliates have succeeded, and you'll find ideas about how 
to best utilize the ad creative they provide for you. Sometimes, they 
even send out special new creative in the newsletter, before it is 
available anywhere else.

7. How often do they pay? This isn't so much the mark of a good 
affiliate program as it is a convenience, but it is important to note.
Some affiliate programs only pay once every three to six months. Some 
require you to earn a minimum amount of commissions before they'll pay.
In some cases this minimum is not unreasonable -- $25 -- but in some cases
you have to earn $100 or more before you get paid.

There are also a few key affiliate programs which offer faster payment 
options such as direct to a PayPal account, or direct deposit to your
regular bank account. So, knowing how they pay, as well as how often they
pay, can be a deciding factor in whether you choose to partner with them.

And there you have it - A nice, not-so-quick, but informative, list of
things to look closely at when you're selecting affiliate, associate,
or partner programs. Now you can go out and make decisions about those 
companies with confidence, and start letting yourself really profit in 
the affiliate game! :)

For additional information on the examples given here, please visit 
The ScamFreeZone's Internet Success Associate Program

----------------------------------------------------
Article reprinted from the ScamFreeZone's Internet 
Success Newsletter by kind permission of its author, 
Kathy Burns, Electronic Perceptions.com
----------------------------------------------------

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