How Do You Find Affiliate Programs?

There are three basic methods for locating good affiliate programs…

1. Conduct searches based on a particular niche market.

2. Sign up to use the services of an affiliate marketing network.

3. Search through the categories of affiliate program directories.

The first option will require a considerable amount of time, but it’s definitely worth the effort.

Assuming, of course, you’ve completed all the necessary preliminary work which would guarantee a positive outcome.

That would include things like determining your exact target audience, choosing specific and highly relevant keywords, and establishing what criteria would constitute a fair and equitable affiliate program.

The search itself would be conducted in two stages…

The first stage would involve the keywords. You would first need to select a list of search phrases that are highly relevant to the product.

Then you would conduct searches using each of those keywords. This will lead you to niche markets and their products.

The second stage would involve any given keyword plus the word affiliate. For example, ‘dog training affiliate’ or ‘affiliate dog training’. What this will generally turn up is either an affiliate program for products that are associated with that particular keyword or a content site that is already an affiliate.

Either way, it allows for further action with regard to becoming an affiliate for a specific keyword or product niche.

With the second option, you simply open a main account with the affiliate network which in turn entitles you to promote any of the products that are included within their listings.

Although these affiliate networks might not always be as capable of giving you exact matches to what you’re looking for, they can be incredible time savers.

Affiliate marketing websites like Commission Junction ( http://www.cj.com ) and Click Bank ( http://www.clickbank.com ) make it extremely easy to locate good affiliate programs. And generally, for products and services that are highly compatible with the niche or target audience you’ll be reaching.

Be aware, however, that only Commission Junction offers all ranges of products, services, and programs – both digital and tangible.

ClickBank, on the other hand, only handles digital products such as ebooks and software programs. If it can’t be downloaded or delivered electronically, you won’t find it in the ClickBank Marketplace ( http://marketplace.clickbank.net ).

The third option allows you to search for affiliate programs by category, just like you can with networks such as Commission Junction and ClickBank.

The only difference is, you’ll be signing up for any of the programs you choose independently (through the product owner‘s affiliate process).

All the directory does is provide a convenient method for locating affiliate programs. The rest is up to you.