by Betty Wilkins

What exactly is an Affiliate Program, you may ask.

Associate and affiliate programs are turning out to be the fastest growing area of E-commerce. They allow website owners to partner with retailers and offer products and services to their visitors. It's a mutually beneficial relationship that can generate a wide-range audience for the seller and a hassle free income for the associate. The seller processes all orders, handles shipment and provides a commission to the referring website owner. The affiliate or associate promotes the sellers business through banners and text links at their website and through advertising in Ezines, Free Classifieds, etc.

Before joining any Program there are a few things that you need to consider.

• Does the program compliment your Website? Be sure to select a program that would be of interest to your visitors. If your website is about golf you would select a program that would be of interest to golfers. There are a few programs that appeal to a very large audience that would compliment any site, such as Internet Personals and Internet Auctions.
• Is the Program Completely Explained? Be sure you know all the terms and conditions before joining.
• What is the Commission Plan? Is the commission percentage offered and the minimum payout going to be easily achieved? Will you have to wait months before you reach the minimum payout amount to receive a check? Make sure you understand the compensation plan.
• Do they provide sales material and support? Most programs offer banners and will provide example html and text links. Examples of E-zine ads and Free Classified Ads are becoming more common and are very helpful. Try to make sure the sales material gets updated regularly.

Tips to Promoting Your Affiliate Program

Do more than just placing a few banners on your website. This will only generate a very small income. You must promote your website and affiliate programs on a daily basis.

Personal Endorsements with a text link produce much better results than banners alone. Be sure to use personal endorsements.

Adversite your website and affiliate programs in e-zines and newsletters. They produce the best results.

Advertise at Yahoo at least twice a week. Placing ads with Yahoo will generate lots of traffice to your own website and your affiliate sites.

Always apply what you have learned about advertising and promotion from online sources such as websites, e-zines and newsletters.