Social Media Means
Photo by Mikhail Nilov Pexels Logo Photo: Mikhail Nilov

What is the best affiliate program for beginners?

The nine best beginner-friendly affiliate marketing programs Amazon Associates. Amazon Associates is the absolute best affiliate marketing program for beginners. ... All the big box stores. ... AvantLink. ... ShareASale. ... Commission Junction. ... TUNE. ... Impact Radius. ... Refersion Marketplace. More items... •

ahrefs.com - 9 Best Affiliate Programs for Beginners (Any Niche) - Ahrefs
What does 😎 ❤ mean on Snapchat?
What does 😎 ❤ mean on Snapchat?

What does 😎 💕 mean on Snapchat? The 💕 Pink Hearts emoji is a Snapchat emoji used for your best friends. The 😎 Face With Sunglasses emoji is an...

Read More »
Last updated Oct 28, 2022
Which job is best from home?
Which job is best from home?

15 Best Work From Home Jobs in 2022: Web Developer. Graphic Designer. Customer Service Representative. Virtual Assistant. Social Media Manager....

Read More »
Last updated Oct 21, 2019

Shows estimated monthly search traffic to this article according to Ahrefs data. The actual search traffic (as reported in Google Analytics) is usually 3-5 times bigger. Shows how many different websites are linking to this piece of content. As a general rule, the more websites link to you, the higher you rank in Google. There are thousands of affiliate marketing programs out there. However, not all of them are beginner-friendly. Some are more complex than others. That’s why we created this guide to the best affiliate marketing programs for beginners. Here, you’ll find all the information you need to get started in affiliate marketing.

Contents

The nine best beginner-friendly affiliate marketing programs

Throughout this article, you’ll see examples of many affiliate programs. But what’s most important here are actually affiliate networks. Many people use these terms interchangeably, but a network is a place where you go to find the individual programs. The way I wrote this article is to share the best networks for beginners—then within each network, I share some programs (and their niches) that you can sign up for. This is the best way of sharing affiliate programs—because regardless of your niche, these networks will be great for you.

1. Amazon Associates

Amazon Associates is the absolute best affiliate marketing program for beginners.

You can sign up for its affiliate account in just a few minutes, and it sells virtually everything. So you’ll be able to promote Amazon products, regardless of your niche. That said, its commission rates are very low. You can see up-to-date rates on this page. But as of this writing, most of the rates range from just 1–3%. Still, it’s super easy to use. Check out our guide to creating an Amazon affiliate site to learn more.

2. All the big box stores

These include:

Also like Amazon, their commission rates are pretty poor. But they are an easy way to get started while you grow to eventually move to better-paying partners.

3. AvantLink

AvantLink is the first affiliate network I ever signed up for. I’m not a huge fan of its reporting dashboard (it’s not the most intuitive), but it’s super easy to sign up and get started.

Some of the best and highest-paying affiliate programs available through AvantLink include:

FFL123.com | 50% commission | Firearms/Tactical

Super Speciosa | 40% commission | Health/Wellness

Reddiyo | 30% commission | Cycling

Wedding Hashers | 30% commission | Custom/Personalized Products

Sprinkle & Sweep | 25% commission | Pet Products

Of course, it has thousands of other programs, all categorized by niche. You can find the above programs and many more through AvantLink’s merchant list. ShareASale is another popular network for affiliate partners. It also lacks in the reporting department but is good enough for beginners.

Northwest Registered Agent LLC | $100 commission | Business Registrant

Print Games Now | 35–45% commission | Printing/Games

FreshBooks | $55 commission | Small Business/Finance

Aviron Interactive | $110 commission | Fitness

5. Commission Junction

Commission Junction (CJ) is one of the oldest affiliate networks out there, founded all the way back in 1998. Because of that, it has one of the widest selections of affiliate programs.

Some cool programs on CJ include:

Slova Cosmetics | 20% commission | Bath & Body

Separatec Underwear | 20% commission | Clothing

US Service Animals | 25% commission | Pets

Puraclenz | 25% commission | Equipment

eHarmony | 30% commission | Dating

The only downside to CJ is that its dashboard feels a little dated, and it is harder to sort through its affiliate merchants compared to the other platforms on this list.

6. TUNE

What is the 80/20 rule in recruitment?
What is the 80/20 rule in recruitment?

Making the 80/20 Talent Rule part of your hiring strategy. The simple premise embodied in the 80/20 Talent Rule is that in order to raise quality...

Read More »
Last updated Oct 5, 2021
How do you get paid doing social media?
How do you get paid doing social media?

5 best ways to make money on social media as a creator Partner with brands. ... Become an affiliate. ... Sell your own merch. ... Offer premium...

Read More »
Last updated Jan 15, 2018

TUNE is my personal favorite affiliate software due to its excellent reporting dashboard and ease of use. However, it’s a bit different than the others on this list. Instead of being able to browse its affiliate partners, you have to find someone using its platform to use TUNE. Rather than recommending specific partners for this one, I’ll refer you to apply to become a TUNE media partner. Once you sign up, it will automatically connect you with the best affiliate partners for your specific niche. Note that you do need to already have an affiliate business in place to apply.

7. Impact Radius

One of the nice things about Impact is that it will continually recommend you brand partners based on your niche and current partners. This makes it easy to find new affiliate programs with minimal effort.

Some great affiliate options on Impact include:

Canva | 16–80% commission | Graphic Design

Pure Hemp Botanicals | 50% commission | CBD

Thumbtack | 30% commission | Services

Hyphen Sleep | 18% commission | Mattresses

Skillshare | 40% commission | Education

8. Refersion Marketplace

Refersion is one of the most successful affiliate software out there, with big brand name partners including Amazon, Shopify, and BigCommerce. Its dashboard is super simplistic and easy to use, which is great for beginners. To find affiliates to partner with, you can sign up on the Refersion Marketplace. It has a great user interface to filter and find brands to partner with.

Some excellent brand partner options on Refersion include:

ZUGU iPad Cases | 15% commission | Phones

Peejamas | 10–20% commission | Kid’s Clothing

Bodhi Dog | 20% commission | Pet Care

LUNA Sandals | 10–30% commission | Footwear

Bare & Bones | 20% commission | Food

9. Rakuten

Last but not least, Rakuten Advertising is another of the oldest affiliate networks out there that started in 1997. Like CJ, it suffers from dated-feeling interfaces but has a wide selection of brands.

Some options for beginners include:

Valise Homewares | 14% commission | House Goods

Ryderwear | 4–10% commission | Athletic Clothing

Trafalgar | 10% commission | Leather Goods

Big Little Feelings | 10% commission | Parenting

La Mariposa | 15% commission | Luxury Women’s Clothing

Overall, Rakuten is my least favorite network because its interface is so poor, but it does have some interesting affiliate programs.

How to get started in affiliate marketing

Found an affiliate program that works for you? Awesome—this section will give you an overview of how to get started earning your first affiliate dollars.

Getting started with affiliate marketing can be done in three steps:

Choosing an affiliate niche Creating your website and content Getting traffic to your content

1. Making sure you choose the right niche

Your niche is the thing you talk about on your blog or in your videos. It can be anything from a hobby, to a lifestyle, or to just about any other topic you can think of. As long as there are people interested in the stuff you want to talk about, you can choose it as an affiliate niche.

Examples of niches include things like:

Gaming

Travel

Knitting

Woodworking

Etc

If you’re not sure what to talk about, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

What am I good at?

What am I curious about?

What do I know a lot about?

What do other people tell me I’m good at or compliment me on?

The overlap in your answers is often a good starting point. For example, I’m good at and curious about entrepreneurship, and people often compliment me on how creative I am at finding ways to make money. So on my own website, I blog about finance and entrepreneurship. You can also use Ahrefs’ SEO Toolbar to find an affiliate niche while doing your everyday Google searches.

What are the 2 main networks?
What are the 2 main networks?

Networks are divided into two types, a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network), which are generic terms referring to two important...

Read More »
Last updated Sep 19, 2021
How many Instagram followers do I need to earn money?
How many Instagram followers do I need to earn money?

around 1,000 followers That being said, you do still need to have a fairly decent amount of followers. No one's going to pay you anything just to...

Read More »
Last updated Jun 30, 2022

As you’re searching whatever questions you have, the toolbar will give you keyword data like how many people search that keyword per month and how difficult it may be to rank for: If you find a keyword that gets a lot of monthly searches and seems easy to rank for, it may indicate a potentially good niche. Got some niche ideas that you’re excited and know a lot about? The last main thing to check is their competitiveness. You can check competitiveness easily using Ahrefs’ free keyword difficulty checker. Just enter your keyword idea in the tool, and it will give you a Keyword Difficulty (KD) score on a scale of 0–100. As you can see, the keyword “tennis shoes” has a KD of 45, which may be hard for a newer website to rank for. In general, as a new site, you want to look for KD scores under 30. Anything under 30 could be relatively easy to rank for.

2. Creating your website and content

Once you have an idea of a niche, it’s time to create a niche site. This can quickly be done by buying a domain name and website hosting, then linking your website to WordPress to edit the backend. It may sound a bit complicated, but it’s actually pretty easy. Here’s a comprehensive video on how to get started by WPBeginner: Once your website is set up, you’ll need to do some basic affiliate keyword research to map out the content you want to create. When you’re ready to begin writing, I recommend checking out our guide to content creation to learn how to make content that people will want to consume. Finally, once your content is created, it’s time to promote that content to start driving traffic (and sales) to your new affiliate site. There are lots of ways to promote your content—like sharing it on social media, doing email outreach to other bloggers who may find it interesting, or even paid advertising. However, the best return on your investment (in my opinion) is going to be search engine optimization (SEO). Ranking on the first page of search engines like Google will ensure you get recurring traffic without constantly reaching out to promote your content or spending money on advertising. Better yet, SEO pairs perfectly with affiliate marketing because people who are searching for an answer are closer to being ready to buy than people mindlessly browsing social media. The former is actively looking for a solution to a problem. SEO does take time and effort to learn, but it’s a skill you won’t regret investing in.

Final thoughts

With so many affiliate marketing programs out there, it can be overwhelming to get started. However, there are plenty of super simple and easy-to-use affiliate programs and networks that you can get up and running in just minutes. I hope this guide helps you to start your affiliate marketing journey. If you’re ready to learn more, check out some of these other helpful guides:

ahrefs.com - 9 Best Affiliate Programs for Beginners (Any Niche) - Ahrefs
How many likes makes a TikTok go viral?
How many likes makes a TikTok go viral?

While there is no precise number when it comes to viral content, as a general rule, around 250,000 views will take your content into the realms of...

Read More »
Last updated Mar 3, 2022
How do you get verified on Instagram without being famous?
How do you get verified on Instagram without being famous?

How do I get verified on Instagram? Log in to the Instagram account you want to verify. Tap the hamburger icon. Tap Settings > Account > Request...

Read More »
Last updated Aug 15, 2020
How much does an account with 10k followers cost?
How much does an account with 10k followers cost?

1,000 followers will cost you $90. 2,000 followers will cost you $179. 5,000 followers will cost you $445. 10,000 followers will cost you $899. Apr...

Read More »
Last updated Feb 29, 2020
What are the 5 hardest interview questions and answers?
What are the 5 hardest interview questions and answers?

The 5 Hardest Interview Questions (And How To Answer Them) Tell Me About Yourself. ... Tell me about a time you made a mistake or experienced a...

Read More »
Last updated Jan 20, 2019