The Very Basics of Profiting from Affiliate Programs on the Internet

Affiliate marketing has been and continues to be one of the most profitable Internet-based industries ever. Affiliate are making billions every year on the Internet, quietly promoting other people's products and/or services for profit. What's amazing about affiliate marketing is that it takes little to no startup capital to start a real Internet business, in which any business-driven individual can thrive.

The purpose of this informative guide is to introduce the reader into the world of affiliate marketing from the very basics. As with anything, the best way to learn and flourish in any endeavor is to know the fundamentals first then build upon that with each and every activity you perform.

Affiliate Marketing Defined

Affiliate marketing is the act of promoting another individual's or company's product or service in return for a predetermined percentage of the sale price. There are two main roles in affiliate marketing that make the whole thing go around.

The first role is the merchant. This is the individual or company that has created a unique product or service in which consumers will likely take part. This could be anything from an information product such as an e-book, to a physical product such as an Ipod. On the other hand, the merchant could provide a paid service for the customer in which no physical or digital goods are actually exchanged.

The second role in affiliate marketing is the affiliate. This is an individual who specializes in promoting the merchant's good or service in return for a cut of the profit. Usually with Internet-based affiliate marketing, the affiliate owns a website and/or places ads on venues like popular search engines in order to generate traffic to the merchant's sales/product page.

How It All Works