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AFFILIATE BUSINESSES - WHICH ONE IS RIGHT FOR YOU?

Find out what you can about the Affiliate business, research the business that you want to be associated with. Important to find out what you can as you are endorsing these products with the most important tool on the internet - your "Name". If you are unreliable, dishonest, do not know the "ins and outs" of the product. News travels fast on the internet and your business will suffer.

How much does enrolling into the business cost? Nowadays most Affiliate businesses don't cost anything to enrol. So unless there is a product that you feel is really worth it, go for the "no cost program".

When do you get paid? Every business pays out commissions differently; monthly, quarterly, etc. Find out and go for the one that suits you.

How long is a referral from an Affiliate's site tracked? How long are they in the system? This is very important, a customer may not buy straight away, may be a month or so later when a customer purchases and, of course, you still want the credit for the sale. So, you have to know that the customer is tracked for some months from a certain day.

What kind of Affiliate statistics are available? Your choice of affiliate program should be capable of offering detailed stats. They should be available online anytime you decide to check them out. Constantly checking your individual stats is important to know how many impressions, hits and sales are already generated from your site. Impressions are the number of times the banner or text link was viewed by a visitor of your site. A hit is the one clicking on the banner or text links.

Is the affiliate a one tier or two tier program? A single tier program pays you only for the business you yourself have generated. A two tier program pays you for the business, plus it also pays you a commission on the on the sales generated by any affiliate you sponsor in your program. Some two-tier programs are even paying small fees on each new affiliate you sponsor. More like a recruitment fee.

Does the affiliate program also pay for the hits and impressions besides the commissions on sales? It is important that impressions and hits are also paid, as this will add to the earnings you get from the sales commission.

Find out about the online Retailer, is it a reliable company? Find out the products they are selling, the Retailers' average sales. Well known company, and/or has a good name? Find out as much as you can about the Retailer offering you the Affiliate program. This will give you the confidence and faith to sell this product and also know that this is right for you and your site.

Lastly, what is the amount of commission paid? 5% - 20% is the commission paid by most programs. .01% - .05% is the amount paid for each hit. If you find a program that also pays for impressions, the amount paid is not much at all. As you can see from the figures, you will now understand why the average sales amount and hit to sale ratio is important.

Before enrolling into an Affiliate business these are some of the points you have to find out about. Before endorsing the product on your website you have to have confidence that you have the right deal and not have any unwelcome surprises in the future. Ask the right questions and get the answers that suit you. These can help you select the right program for you site from among the many available.

Copyright 2009 James Toal

About the Author

James Toal is the owner of http://www.trustyjim.com/