From bootstrap to baller. B2B. (Haha).
Setting up your affiliate programs, if you HAVE a platform, is rather easy because all you need to do is add an affiliate manually or sign up for a system. Below are links to whichever system you have.
Questions you should ask yourself is:
Does the platform support the payment gateway you are using? (Stripe, Braintree, Recurly, EasyPayDirect, and NMI?)
Is it cost efficient for you to sign up?
Your own on your website vs. a marketplace vs. a 3rd party affiliate tracking company.
How do I find my own affiliates?
Platforms with in house affiliate programs
Clickfunnels uses Backpack.
Things to consider: Must have Etison Suite ($297/month for entire suite). Only clickfunnel pages are supported. Only USD is supported. Custom domains for affiliate pages aren’t supported.
Cool beans: You can add second tier affiliate commission.
To do: 1) you create a commission plan / 2) Create new affiliate type / 3) Add affiliate area steps in your funnel / 4) Add swipe files to affiliate area / 5) provide sign up links for affiliates to sign up.
Thinktific has an Affiliates Dashboard.
Things to consider: Must have Essentials Edition ($49/month).
To do: 1) Create a user and check “affiliate” for the user / 2) Your affiliate dashboard has the reports and links you need.
Teachable – you can assign a user to become an Affiliate.
Things to consider: You can have each affiliate be course specific for an X amount of time. Payment schedule is monthly, after a user exists for over 30 days (due to return policies).
To do: 1) Add a user to your school as an affiliate / 2) View individual affiliate performance under each user as Purchases -> Transaction history-> affiliates.
Marketplaces:
Clickbank
Things to consider: Affiliates bear the burden of traffic cost. Not you. Has commission Tiers. All payments are handled by clickbank. They tell you to promote your own product yourself and see if it sells. The goal is to get a conversion rate of at least 1% – ideally closer to 3%.
To do: 1) Become a clickbank vendor / 2) Set up your affiliates tool page/ 3) Set up vendor spotlights (show off your stats, low return rates, etc.)
JVZoo
Things to consider: There is no charge for setting up unlimited products in JVZoo and there is no charge to Affiliates.
JVZoo charges a 5% commission on all completed sales.
To do: 1) Get on the marketplace.
Commission Junction
- Web-based email offers direct communication between advertisers and affiliates
- Notifies affiliates if a link or ad is no longer working
- Provides updated lists of advertisers’ incentives for affiliates
- Search by publisher tools for merchants
- Real-time reporting; performance and transaction reports
- Flexibility to choose your advertisers and specific products
- Reliable monthly payments through direct deposit or check
- Invalid click report – publishers can easily see what advertiser links are currently inactive
3rd Party Affiliate Tracking Companies:
Leaddyno
Things to consider: $49/month. If you have a platform like shopify, wordpress, woocommerce – many integrations.
To do: 1) Sign up for it.
Leadspedia
Things to consider: Price. $450/month. They offer custom domains, customer support. True Data Verification (Email/Phone/Street verification).
To do: 1) Sign up for it.
Ambassador
Things to consider: $800/month.
Payment processing company
Sendowl
Things to consider: $24/month.
To do: 1) How to configure an affiliate program.
How Do I Find My Own Affiliates?
- Join Affiliate Marketing facebook groups and reach out to influencers who are running the groups.
- Pinterest is a place people search for DIY / How to.