Affiliate marketing is becoming an increasingly popular
method of earning some extra money to supplement day jobs, or as a convenient
work-from-home alternative to the traditional 9-5. After hearing many success
stories, it might be tempting to go out and join the first company you can
find. But affiliate scams exist and it’s important to do some thorough research
and careful consideration before committing to a particular company or product.
The most important thing to remember with affiliate
marketing is that there are no start-up costs, so straight off this is
something to look out for. The way in which companies can scam you though, is
that after signing up and promoting their product, they will avoid giving you
your commission. This is done by providing you with code for your site which
opens a pop-up to the sales page of the product instead of a direct link from
your site. This means the sale won’t be linked to your account and the
commission won’t be rewarded.
If it seems too good
to be true, it probably is
There are so many affiliate programs that make outrageous
claims and promises that are just too good to be true. The truth is that to be
successful at affiliate marketing you have to work hard. You can’t just join a
program and then sit back and watch the money roll in. So when you see
companies promising to make you thousands in a short amount of time with very
little effort, alarm bells should be ringing. These types of companies might not
be scams in the sense that they won’t give you your commission, but they
definitely won’t be able to live up to the claims that they make and in truth,
a reputable company wouldn’t make such claims anyway.
How easy are they to
contact?
You should always check that there are contact details
available for the company you are looking into. If it seems to be impossible to
get hold of a phone number or legitimate email address, it means they don’t
want to be easily contacted and you have to ask why that is. Do some research
and find out how other users have experienced the company’s support services
after registering. Have they found it easy to contact the company? And have they
received adequate support to deal with their issues? Try to look out for
companies that offer live chat support and dedicated phone numbers for members
as these are more like to look after their affiliates.
What is the company’s
website like?
As a legitimate company with an internet based business,
it’s a given that they will have a website. And a high quality website at that.
Browse through and check that the website is professionally designed and the
content is of a high quality and free of errors. If something seems off about
the site, then move on and leave it alone. Don’t trust any sales emails
offering you registration to a scheme. Stay clear of these and find your own
affiliate companies.
Can the company
provide tracking reports?
Any reputable company should be able to provide you with
tracking reports for your sales performance or software so that you can track
your progress. Avoid companies that cannot do this as they might be trying to
cheat you out of your commission.
Research, research,
research!
Do your own research, visit forums and ask others that have
worked with the company. If you find a lot of negative feedback then it’s
obviously best to avoid that company. Equally, if you don’t find much at all
it’s probably a good idea to stay clear as well. Talk to other affiliate
marketers and find out about their experiences. Some bad feedback given for
most companies, don’t let these put you off straight away. Use your own
judgement and compare the good feedback with the not so good.
The most important point is not to make any hasty decisions.
Take your time to find a company you like and can trust and make sure you do a
good amount of research first. Get involved with affiliate forums and stay up
to date with the latest news so that you can look out for potential scams.
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