Affiliate Marketing is simply using some sort of advertising to attract potential customers to purchase someone else’s product(s). It is not that different, in many respects, from any kind of direct sales for which a salesperson is paid commissions based on products sold. However, when it comes to promoting information products using internet marketing as your primary marketing method, there is a right way and a wrong way to proceed.

In this article I’m going to present three key choices you have as an Affiliate Marketer, other than the choice of niche. This article addresses choices made after choosing your niche. The choices you make regarding these aspects of your business will likely determine your ultimate success or failure. The three building blocks (choices) are:

1. List Building Vs. Pure Sales?

2. Which Product Marketplace?

3. Whose Products?

List Building Vs. Pure Sales?

One of the biggest mistakes a new Affiliate Marketer can make is to begin selling products to make money as fast as possible. Don’t misunderstand me please – I like making money as much as the next guy. The question really has to do with your goals and aspirations. How do you see yourself in 3 to 5 years? Are you approaching your Affiliate Marketing as a hobby, in which you will be happy to make a little extra money from time to time on the side? Or do you wish to actually build a business, step by step?

If you decide to build a business, then you must take on the mindset of any business owner. Your business will not grow and thrive unless you develop a loyal customer base of people who trust you to provide useful and dependable information cialis cheap that will help them reach THEIR goals. This requires not only building a “list” – but also developing the same kind of relationship with your customer base that any successful brick and mortar business has with their customers.

Once you’ve made this foundational choice – to build a real BUSINESS – all the other choices you make should directly support your business-building plan.

Which Vendor and Product Marketplace?

There are several “marketplaces” available to you Brand Viagra as an affiliate marketer. Clickbank is probably the biggest, and probably has more vendors and products than any of the other affiliate marketplaces. Another affiliate marketplace is PayDotCom, which is probably Clickbank’s legal viagra biggest competitor. There is another, much smaller, affiliate marketplace at LifetimeCommissions. LifetimeCommissions only promotes vendor products that provide ongoing month-after-month commissions. A paid membership site would be an example of such a product.

I personally like to work with vendors/products which use Infusionsoft, which is a different model altogether. Many of the IM “gurus” use Infusionsoft because it offers many attractive features, including extensive data tracking.

Providing exhaustive reviews of affiliate marketplaces is well beyond the scope of this article. I do, however, want to encourage you to visit these sites (especially the first three) and do your own discovery of their strengths and possible weaknesses.

Whose Products Will You Sell?

Some of the things you should consider when determining which products you will promote are:

* The reputation of the author or creator of the product.

* The reputation of the product (google it and do some research).

* The price point of the product. Higher-priced products will probably have lower conversion rates, but that doesn’t necessarily mean less money in your bank account.

* One-time commission or ongoing commissions. Obviously all else being equal you will be better off with the residual income provided by ongoing commissions.

* Opportunity for sales of other products by the same vendor.

* If your vendor offers other products, for how long will s/he pay you commissions on other purchases by your customer? A month? A year?

This list is not exhaustive, but it includes many important considerations. Remember, all of the decisions you make should support your longer-range business plan. If you’re serious about developing an Internet Marketing business as an affiliate marketer, then your approach will be thoughtful and purposeful. And if you are diligent and courageous, and stick with your plan long enough, you will achieve success!

Author Bio: Would you like to learn more about Affiliate Marketing? If so, download my brand new free eBook, Internet Marketing Sprint!, at http://InternetMarketingSprint.com

Category: Internet Marketing/Affiliate Programs
Keywords: affiliate marketing, affiliate marketer, internet marketing, list building