If you’re running an online store, affiliate marketing is a great way to boost your sales without spending money upfront. It can also give you more exposure to potential customers and increase your brand’s credibility. Getting started with ecommerce affiliate marketing can be tricky, but it’s worth it for the long-term benefits.
The first step is to find the right affiliates for your business. Whether you’re looking for bloggers, social media influencers or other small businesses, these people can help spread the word about your products and earn a commission when their audience buys.
A great place to start is with affiliate networks such as Rakuten Marketing or ShareASale. These platforms make it easy to find affiliates and manage your program. They offer recruiting, vetting, sales tracking, commission payouts and reporting tools. They also charge a joining fee and a percentage of your commissions, so be sure to do some research before signing up with an affiliate network.
Next, you need to find affiliates who match your business values and are a good fit for your audience. You can do this by putting an application form on your website and sharing it on social media. You can also contact bloggers or influencers you admire and ask if they’d be interested in working with you.
Once you’ve found the right affiliates, it’s time to set up a partnership agreement with them. This will give you clear guidelines and help you to avoid conflict and misunderstandings. It will also ensure that you receive the maximum possible benefit from your relationship.
You’ll also need to decide how much you want to pay your affiliates. This will depend on your ecommerce business model and budget. If you’re selling physical goods, you can choose to charge a higher rate than you would for digital items. You can also choose to use a flat rate per product.
In addition to these factors, you’ll need to think about your goals for the affiliate program. This includes conversion rates, average order value and sales volume. Then, put some hard numbers to each metric and compare them with your competitors.
When creating an affiliate offer, it’s important to focus on high-value products. This will not only increase your affiliate Earnings Per Click but also boost the sell-through rate of your inventory.
Another way to increase your ecommerce sales is to provide free shipping on orders over a certain threshold. Ninety percent of online shoppers say free shipping is a top incentive for making purchases.
You can also use retargeting ads on Facebook and Instagram to drive targeted traffic to your site. This can be especially helpful if you have a product that appeals to a specific age or gender group.
Lastly, you’ll need to monitor the performance of your ecommerce affiliate marketing campaigns and adjust your strategy accordingly. You’ll need to track which affiliates are bringing in more sales, what products are converting at the highest rates and how much the referred shoppers spend on each transaction.