Best Affiliate Program - Top 5 Questions to Ask Before Joining a Program

Best Affiliate Program - Top 5 Questions to Ask Before Joining a Program
You can definitely find the best affiliate programs but you first have to determine what niche you want to start marketing in and do some basic research to find out if that niche will be profitable. Many seasoned affiliate marketers will tell you it is best to start with something you know a little about and then expand your scope from there.

You will know how you can find the best affiliate program by asking these top 5 questions BEFORE joining any program, don't join simply because they have a great sales page. Do a little research and get started because it can be a very profitable partnership if you choose your program wisely.

1. What will it cost me to join and what percentage of the sale will I make? While most affiliate program are free to join, you may want to consider purchasing the product if the product is something that you could use in your home or business. Becoming a great affiliate requires you to have some actual knowledge of the product you are trying to market after all. Look for programs that pay at least 50% of the sale since you will be doing most of the work for that program. Clickbank is a great place to start looking for affiliate programs, it's easy to navigate your way through their site.

2. How and when will I get paid? Each program is different in the way that commissions are paid. Some will issue checks and some will pay through an electronic payment system like PayPal. Some will pay immediately upon a sale and some will issue your check either bi-weekly or monthly. Some will also require a minimum amount be earned before issuing any commission. You can find the best affiliate program but if they don't have a decent payment plan structure you will want to stay away from that program.

3. What is the conversion rate to a sale? This is extremely important because it tells you approximately how much traffic you will need to drive to your affiliate page before a sale is generated. Always pick programs that are high converters.

4. How are sales tracked and how long will tracking cookies remain when someone visits your affiliate site? The only way to get credit for a sale is to have a tracking code in your affiliate URL. You may want to consider cloaking that code to avoid commissions being hijacked. Also if a visitor comes back to purchase later, how long do the tracking cookies remain in the system so you will get credit for the sale after that initial visit.

5. What kind of statistics are available for the affiliate? This is extremely important as well because you will want to keep track of your marketing campaigns so you will know where to concentrate you efforts, you will want to constantly evaluate these statistics to avoid throwing money into advertising that isn't converting into sales.

So in closing, you can find the best affiliate program but make sure you take these top 5 questions into consideration before joining any program. These questions can help you pick the right program and avoid wasting time and money on programs that are not worth your efforts.