In today’s blog post, we’re going to talk about affiliate marketing secrets, specifically how to leverage others. You heard it here first that this industry will go into the billions if it is not already there! So if you are thinking, “How can I make more money, or how can I leverage what is out there?” Then this blog post is for YOU!
Leveraging others’ content, programs, and courses allows you to focus your time and energy on the important things in your business. This will literally change your life! And probably the smartest move you can make.
Let me explain.
What is affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing is when you refer someone – their product or service – and you get paid for that referral. Here is an example: Let’s say I am selling a jewelry line, and I am an affiliate for them. I film a video, and I mention how much I love this jewelry, and you say to yourself, “I should totally buy it!” I give you my affiliate link, and you buy the jewelry – I would get paid for that.
Did I make this jewelry? No
Did I send you the jewelry? No
All I did was promote it on my social accounts or on my email list, which is why we’re always encouraging you to build! Affiliate marketing is so powerful because you can refer people to others’ great content.
Take a look at our stuff. *hint hint* We may or may not be rolling out an affiliate program sometime soon, so make sure you are on our email list. As an affiliate, you would share what we offer on social media to your amazing audience, and then they opt-in, such as watching a webinar and signing up to get into our course. You would get paid commission, and you didn’t have to do a thing!
You don’t have to create the course, pay a VA to set up backend stuff, or pay for Facebook ads. NONE OF THAT!
All you have to do is talk about it, how easy is that?!
So…are you ready to hear a secret of the best affiliate marketers?
Affiliate marketers are picky on what they refer others to, so they vet it out.
Just because someone has an affiliate program does not mean you should be an affiliate with them. We decline the majority of pitches we get because they are coming in from left and right, and we might not align with their brand. It could be a new program, and there would be no way to see if it is legit. You want to make sure that you learn from experience or another person that the brand is genuine. You have to remember as an affiliate, you are representing that brand. If you promote the jewelry that you “love” and it’s garbage, people will put that on you. You would then be associated with garbage jewelry. Eek.
BUT, if you are an affiliate of something that you vetted out yourself and believe is incredible, such as our Instagram Course, they go through it, the course blows up their Instagram, and now their business is growing. They will come back to you and say thank you for the referral!
When I first got started and began scaling my brand, I did an affiliate partnership with one of my now coaches, Ray Higdon. He let me come into his community before one of his events, and I did a free LinkedIn webinar. I had an offer at the end of the webinar to do my LinkedIn course. Since Ray, at that time, did not teach on that in his community, it offered value to his audience.
See how smart that is! It filled a gap in his community since he was not teaching on LinkedIn, but I was, so it allowed me to serve his audience with something they would love. I had so many people reach out to me saying how much they loved it, how awesome the webinar was, and how they wanted to know more about what I do. At the same time, they were also thinking, “I am so glad Ray brought Kimberly into his community.”
Become an affiliate.
Now, if you don’t have courses, coaching, or just don’t want to do that right now because of all the work, but you want the money that comes with it, become an affiliate! Almost every month, I have made six figures just by being an affiliate. That’s pretty powerful! It all boils down to me being very selective.
Every time you buy something, see if the brand has an affiliate marketing program.
I have been an affiliate with Amazon since 2011, and I have done a couple of review videos over products from there. Those videos got around 50,000 views, and every time someone clicked on my affiliate link, I got paid.
Once you become a good affiliate, you can start being handpicked. I had the opportunity to work with Marina Simone, John and Nadya Melton, and Tanya Eliza, just to name a few. At that level, they only seek certain people to be an affiliate for them. Being a good affiliate allowed me to be associated with some amazing people. I was able to promote awesome courses and programs, and get paid to do so. It also allows me to add value to my community.
Collaborations are the way of the future. The people who get that will crush it, but you have to remember to be selective.
Ask yourself, “Am I taking, or am I asking how I can serve?” When was the last time someone did something for you, such as give you a shoutout on their story or let you get training in their Facebook group? When was the last time you did that for someone else? Do you have a collaborative mindset and are looking to see how you can serve? You want to make sure you are contributing, then people will want to work with you.
Let’s do this, Goal Diggers!
If you want to check out this blog in video format, watch my latest #getLIT training!
Check out Goal Digger University for more training on social media and affiliate marketing!
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