Affiliate marketing is an advertising model in which a business or a company pays outside publications to generate traffic or leads to its goods and services. Affiliates, the third-party publishers are encouraged to promote the business by the commission fee. In the simplest form, it is the process by which an affiliate earns a commission for marketing another person’s or company’s products.
According to Mhojhos Research, the current global market size of affiliate marketing amounted to over $17 billion, from $13 billion in 2016. The calculated total addressable market (TAM) for an affiliate marketing company targeting the United States alone is $5.74 billion.
Indeed, affiliate marketing has a high potential in the market. However, there are lots of misconceptions spreading that prevent people to dive into it. In this blog, we will discuss the 10 misconceptions of affiliate marketing and discuss each to and shed some light on the truth behind them.
10 Misconceptions about Affiliate Marketing
1. Affiliate marketing is a get-rich-quick scheme
So you’re considering entering the world of affiliate marketing. In that case, you may have seen several videos and posts on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram claiming to show you the “secrets” to making easy money as an affiliate.
While it’s true that affiliate marketing can be a lucrative and fulfilling career, it’s essential to understand that most of it. Contrary to what you might see on TikTok, affiliate marketing is not a “get rich quick” scheme. It requires consistent effort and strategy to see results. You’ll need to continuously educate yourself on new products, marketing techniques, and industry trends to stay competitive.
2. Affiliate marketing is easy
Anyone can be an affiliate marketer, but not everyone will succeed. Being an affiliate marketer requires skill, experience, and work.
Affiliate marketing is not an easy path to success. However, when done properly, it can generate impressive income.
Here are some of the qualities you will need to be a successful affiliate marketer:
- An interest or expertise in a certain niche
- Internet and consumer research skills
- Website building/graphics/ SEO/ PPC/ analytic skills
- Ability to write appealing content or outsource to someone who can
- Organized & methodical
- Patience and strategic skills
- Networking skills
As you can see, becoming an affiliate marketer isn’t always an easy trip. To succeed, you will want a huge ability set in some or maximum of the above.
3. Affiliate marketing is only for those who have websites
You can be an affiliate without a website – but you must have a presence online.
The main goal is to be seen and heard for your products or services. That’s where social media comes in handy. Channels like Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest are perfect for affiliate marketing. Create quality listings and product displays and encourage clicks on your posts and affiliate links with enticing content – generating commissions in return.
The main intention is to be seen and heard your products or services. That’s wherein social media comes in. Channels like Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest are perfect for affiliate marketing. Create high-quality listings and product presentations and inspire clicks for your posts and associate links with enticing content – generating commissions going back.
4. You can promote any product as an affiliate
When you are in the affiliate marketing industry, you have to understand what you are promoting. For beginner affiliate marketers, the easiest way will be to enter the more mainstream niches. We recommend starting with brands you know, potentially from the fashion, food, or beauty niche. These niches have a broad target audience, ranging in demographics and interests.
5. Affiliate marketing is illegal or unethical
When it comes down to it affiliate marketing is legal and is not a scam. Top companies from Amazon to small boutique shops have affiliate programs these days.
So, YES! Affiliate marketing is legal. However, you are required to disclose that you are an affiliate and must have a written policy located in a conspicuous place on your website to let visitors know that you are promoting products that may earn you an income.
When it comes down to it affiliate marketing is legal and is not a scam. Top companies from Amazon to small boutique shops have affiliate programs these days.
6. You want to have a massive following to be successful
You don’t want massive followers if you want to obtain fulfillment with affiliate marketing. There is no any need to have heaps of friends on Facebook or followers on different social media sites for this to work.
All it takes is one avid viewer to get started. The key is to recognize who your target market or audience is to broaden your engagements. In reality, it’s far safe to say that every successful entrepreneur started out with one follower however they may be able to make it possible.
7. Affiliate marketing is a scam
The affiliate earns a commission when a sale is made, and there is no cost to the company unless a sale is generated. While there are certainly some fraudulent affiliate programs out there, the vast majority of affiliate marketing is a legitimate and effective way for businesses to promote their products and for affiliates to earn a living. Here are some legit affiliate marketing programs:
- Amazon Associates – The commission rate varies depending on the product category, but it typically ranges from 1% to 10% of the purchase price. However, some categories such as luxury beauty, Amazon coins, and gift cards have a fixed commission rate.
- eBay Partner Network – The commission rate varies depending on the product category and the volume of sales generated by the affiliate. It ranges from 50% to 70% of eBay’s revenue on qualifying purchases made by users who clicked on the affiliate’s link.
- Rakuten Marketing – The commission rate varies depending on the advertiser and the specific program you are promoting. Typically, advertisers set their own commission rates for their programs, and these rates can range from a few percent to more than 50% of the sale.
8. Affiliate marketing is expensive to start
The main formula of affiliate marketing is to sign up, share a link with high-quality content, and cash in by making affiliate sales.
There is no fixed amount of money required to be a successful affiliate marketer. You should set out a monthly budget for paid traffic and additional tools to help you progress from a beginner to an intermediate affiliate.
You don’t need to make investments in a big amount of cash to begin your affiliate marketing journey. All it takes is a few insights into your options, a bit of research, and a dash of creativity to make your content particular, precious, and click-on-worthy.
9. Affiliate marketing only works with physical products
It is not true that affiliate marketing only works for physical products. In fact, digital products have high potential when it comes to affiliate marketing. There are lots of high-paying affiliate programs like software, e-books, online courses, etc.
Also, a lot of software offers recurring commissions which can be a great passive income. Although digital products are commonly associated with affiliate marketing, do not forget the potential of making money from digital products.
10. Affiliate marketing is a dying industry.
According to Statista, associate marketing spending within the U.S. has been progressively growing and is about to attain 6.82 billion this 12 months, and eight.2 billion dollars by way of 2022 (up from 5.4 billion in 2017).
These eye-opening data absolutely show that affiliate marketing is far from dead.
Affiliate marketing isn’t dead or dying — but it certainly has changed! What worked five years ago may not work today. That’s why many marketers who haven’t adapted to a better way of doing things find themselves faced with consistent failures.
Final Thoughts
Do you still think that affiliate marketing is a mystical way of earning money by doing absolutely nothing? We’re glad that you don’t anymore. Affiliate marketing is an absolutely legitimate way to earn a living but to succeed you’ll need to invest a lot of time and effort. Although there is a number of misconceptions about affiliate marketing, you can still become a successful affiliate marketer by focusing on your content and audience.
