Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest ways to make money online. Affiliate marketing early on was viewed as a way to make a few extra bucks.
People keep asking me “Is Affiliate Marketing Dead?” Affiliate Marketing is a great way to make money online. No! Affiliate Marketing is alive and kicking.
In the past few years, affiliate marketing has become a very competitive industry. More people are now working from home so affiliate marketing is on the rise especially in the last two years.
There has been a lot of debate on this topic and while affiliate marketing is not dead it has evolved and there have been some big changes.
Three Big Changes that have Shaped Affiliate Marketing are:
- More stringent rules and regulations – so many different laws have been put in place for ways to market, how to market, and who you can market too. Privacy issues by some countries have really impacted big tech which therefore impacts how marketers can promote online. Then because of all this, companies have to change their rules. So it is a definite top to bottom effect that has been happening.
- More Competition – This is huge. The digital marketing space is expanding and more people are coming online obviously there is going to be more people that are looking to get noticed. The digital space is more crowded then ever. Everyone is looking for attention and how to get noticed.
- Costs are going up – Whether you are using various services to for your marketing or you are a media buyer, everything is getting more expensive. So all of this takes away from your ROI.
But These Three Factors that I just Mentioned Doesn’t Suggest Affiliate Marketing is Going Away.
Many have associated the death of affiliate marketing with the rise of social media marketing, but is there any real evidence to support this? No, in fact look at this chart below from Google.
It clearly shows that since 2004 affiliate marketing is on the rise expect for that brief period from 2012-2013.
For digital marketers and sellers out there, having access and affiliation with physical and digital products and services can really put your business on the map even if it’s just starting off!
So many events have happened over the last couple of years that people are fleeing to the safety of their homes. Which brings more people online.
The wonderful aspect of affiliate marketing is that it can be global, national, or very local. So affiliate marketers can identify what people need or are looking for and provide it to them on these different levels.
Being new to affiliate marketing is still the best time to get started.
In this digital age, there are so many different directions you can take to be a successful affiliate marketer.
You can blog about different products or services.
You can also create a youtube channel and review products.
Build a brand site for yourself and get very active on a social media channel and become an influencer.
Sales from affiliate marketing have risen exponentially from 2010 to 2021 and expectations for 2022 are even higher.
Affiliate marketing has many benefits and with the right approach you can end up making money like never before.
Your affiliate strategy should be to focus on one to two products that you are comfortable with.
Choose a niche market and stick with it. This builds trust with your subscribers.
In my Opinion Affiliate Marketing is Here to Stay
There will always be some people that want to spread the hoax that affiliate marketing is dead. It makes for interesting reading. There is one fact that is very clear, affiliate marketing has evolved and will keep evolving in the years to come.
Affiliate marketing is definitely more work than it used to be. Gone are the days of slapping an affiliate link on email and clicking send. Affiliate marketing is much more research-based and skill-focused now.
If you have a passion for learning new things then you will prevail.
You will need much more patience to compete and prosper in the billion-dollar industry of affiliate marketing.
