Affiliate marketing programs that can add value without costs to Web sites.

Affiliate marketing programs that can add value without costs to Web
sites.

Author/: Eric T. Brassell Sr.
http://www.WhyClickHere.com
 
Many small businesses have found ways to earn money from visitors to
their Web site, even though their sites are not equipped to handle
Internet transactions. How? By joining an affiliate marketing program.

After taking the time to create and promote your Web site, you, too,
may find that joining an affiliate marketing program is a
cost-effective way to enhance the value of your own Internet
investment. That type of "virtual" alliance may help you increase
revenue without increasing costs. In addition, an alliance can
increase the value of your customers' visits by increasing the quality
of your Web site, thereby encouraging more visits and increasing your
opportunities to establish and maintain relationships with your
customers.

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing programs came into their own during the Internet
boom of the mid- to late-1990s. Organized to create virtual business
relationships, they are an agreement between two companies to steer
business in the form of Web traffic from one Web site to another in
return for compensation. If organized correctly, they are a win-win
situation for both partners. They help large companies with elaborate,
transaction-oriented Web sites increase their Web traffic while
providing increased cash flows to smaller businesses with
brochure-style Web sites.

How do affiliate programs work?

When you join an affiliate program, you will be able to download an
icon or button to add to your Web site. Visitors to your site who
click on that button will be sent to the transaction portion of your
partner's site. Your partner should have specialized internal computer
systems in place. Those systems track all sales generated during the
visit that originated from your Web site. In other words, you will own
a portion of all sales generated during that visit. If the visitor
places an order, you will receive a percentage of the proceeds of the
sale, based on the original agreement. A typical revenue-sharing
arrangement is for 5 percent of the total sale, regardless of the size
of the sale.

Choosing an affiliate partner:

Keep some important points in mind when choosing your affiliate
partner:

* Don't partner with a company that charges a fee or requires a
minimum level of sales to waive a fee. An affiliate program should not
cost you a dime. Programs with conditions are little more than pyramid
schemes and should be avoided.

* Do choose a company with which you already have a working
relationship. If you've worked with a large supplier or customer over
a period of time, you know whether they are trustworthy or not, and
have a good idea of the kind of reputation they have in the local or
national business community. That gives you the opportunity to avoid
partners who are not ethical.

* Choose a partner that will enhance the value of your site to your
customers. By making a link to a company on your Web site, you are
making a statement about the quality of that company to your customer
base, your most important corporate asset. You don't want to
jeopardize the goodwill you've built with your customers, so choose
your partners wisely.

Potential benefits:

A well-planned affiliate-marketing program can accomplish two
important goals for your business without increasing costs. The first
and most important is the real opportunity to grow revenue. Second, by
aligning with the right partner, visitors to your site may find it a
good jumping-off point to the rest of the Internet. That could turn
your site into a "portal," which could help get your customers into
the habit of visiting your Web site more frequently.

COPYRIGHT 2003 Brassell Enterprises & Asso. -
http://www.WhyClickHere.com