Affiliate marketing has really taken off in the current world of E-commerce because it is such a straightforward business model. The retail company invites affiliates to sign-up with them, allowing them to plug their products through their own marketing channels, particularly social media platforms. The payback for this is the commission on sales.
These programs are generally free to join and provided they are designed well and planned appropriately they represent a potentially lucrative scheme. But what are the marketing tips that can make these affiliate marketing programs even more lucrative?
Review the products themselves
As an affiliate marketer, you are acting autonomously of the retailer whose products you are promoting. This means the organization won’t be devoting any time or effort into making the items seem more attractive. That will be entirely down to you. However, with a modicum of intelligence and imagination, you can really start to highlight these products.
Not many people going online to purchase anything do so blindly. Customers like to scan through reviews, and if they read a particularly glowing review they’ll be far more likely to go ahead and click-through to make a purchase. So review the products and share these via your own social media outlets. You might be plugging informational products. Here you have scope to go to town with screenshots or slideshows. Give your items 5-star ratings so your customers can build a strong picture of what the product will do for them.
Visual Merchandising
A successful ecommerce website is one that uses excellent online visual-merchandising tactics. Visual merchandising has been used for years in retail stores. By arranging items in visually pleasing or eye-catching ways, store owners hope to encourage sales. The same techniques are now being used by online retailers as well, with some necessary variations.
For example, online visual merchandising offers different ways in which to draw clients in visually. The use of photos and videos, as well as the visual layouts of websites have huge impacts on conversion rates. Using collections of captioned images can also help introduce clients to additional products beyond those they came to websites to purchase, creating more sales.
Promotional videos
By all means, buy a sample yourself. Once you have it in your hands you can create your promotional demo and really enthuse about it. Remember, the key to developing a successful affiliate program is not simply to list items for your customers to click-on. Create a buzz about the products, and ensure your wider network of contacts is sharing in that enthusiasm.
Comparison videos are a great idea. We are starting to see them more and more on conventional advertising, where products bought at one outlet are presented alongside the same item, priced more expensively in a rival store. Don’t simply diss the other product – customers are less likely to be impressed by what appears to be favoritism than honesty. But certainly, allow your customers to see why they should be invested in your units.
Develop your network
Although sole trading is the cog in the wheel of affiliate marketing, like any other eCommerce model no one is ever working in complete isolation. You can check out various opportunities to collaborate with another CPA affiliate marketing program.
Also, as mentioned, affiliate marketing is not solely about creating a digital shop. Anything but. You should be far more focused on building your customer base. You are reliant on click-throughs to generate sales. Traffic will be flowing through your pages, but the key to increasing your website sales is to retain this custom. Think of ways to entice these customers to keep coming back. You might put together a webinar, or invite them to join your list of subscribers. Keep in touch with your customers by blogging about your items. Ask them to provide reviews and to share these via their own social media platforms, ensuring your network keeps expanding.
Be imaginative as possible when it comes to providing something unique to your customer base. Rather than simply seeing them as numbers who click-through your site en route to the sales page, think of them as the lifeblood of your venture. Reach out to them with periodic offers. You could create a particularly inspired blog recording and offer it free to your subscribers.
