Lately I have been posting articles on specific subjects of making extra money on the Internet. However I have received the same question from my readers by e-mail, G+ and Twitter:

“What Exactly Is Affiliate Marketing?”

I decided to write this detailed article where I touch all the basics (while going in-depth). I will explain every step of the process. Please remember this is not some theory, this is a practical guide. This is how I’ve been making money online for the past 6 years.

There are several ways to earn an income from home and I often talk about these possibilities however I concentrate on affiliate marketing. This has proved to be the most profitable money making strategy – at least for me.

Affiliate marketing (not to be confused with MLM or network marketing) means that you become a middleman between the seller and the buyer. You find online shoppers who are looking to purchase a product (or to solve a problem), then you find a supplier (seller) who can provide the buyer with a solution or a product. Your job is to connect the two and when the buyer purchases the product – the seller pays you a commission.

Live Example of How Affiliate Marketing Works:

John wants to buy a new laptop so he searches the internet for laptop reviews and of course the prices. He stumbles upon your review where you describe your experience with a specific product. Your review also tells John that Amazon offers the lowest price on this specific laptop. John reads your pros and cons, he understands that the price is indeed very good and decided to go with your suggestion and purchase the computer. He clicks on “Buy” button which takes him to Amazon check-out. John fills out the payment and shipping information and receives his brand new laptop in a couple of days.

When John clicked on that “Buy” button, Amazon tracked it down to your review. They know that the customer purchased the item after consulting YOUR website (or a blog, or a Facebook page) – they count it as an affiliate sale and pay you the commission, an average of 6% of the price, which means $60 on a $1,000 laptop. Now imagine if you get 2 “Johns” per day to buy from your review. That’s a $3,600 commission in a month! How is that for some extra cash? And what if you had a lot of these promotions going on? The possibilities are endless.

Most online retailers offer an affiliate program and it’s FREE to sign up. Amazon has an affiliate program, so does Walmart and Target and every main retailer. Often these retailers do not manage their own affiliate programs; they let a specialized network do it for them. Two biggest affiliate networks are Commission Junction and ShareaSale – check them out, get a free account.

I started learning affiliate marketing (and earning money with it) in late 2007. If you want to get into affiliate marketing I would highly checking out my Wealthy Affiliate Review (free training). This is the same training I used in 2007 and I am still learning new things there every single day.

Learn more about affiliate marketing and other legitimates ways to make money from home.

– Alex