AdWords / Affiliate Programs

[iTISTIC]

Anyone have any luck w/ AdWords for affiliate programs they join through networks such as LinkShare and Commission Junction. Is it an accepted practice to link the AdWord campaign directly to the affiliate site, passing along my affiliate ID so to get credit for any sales, etc? Just thought it might work and was going to put some time into it, but would like to know if the market is already too saturated with people doing the same thing. Seems too easy.

Shawn

[alexwalker]

Can be done but hard to get good ROI.

Need to monitor campaigns v.closely.

[iTISTIC]

Yeah thats what I was thinking. The only reason I ask is because I have been getting spammed lately with scams on how to make $12k in four hours using Google AdWords, lol. Figured thats what would be in the document that they charge $97 for :).

[illudium]

It depends on the advertiser, some like Dell Small Biz specifically state that you cannot do adwords/overture/etc for them. Others are perfectly fine and work quite well.

[iTISTIC]

illudium,

Do you do this personally? I'd like to talk with you about it privately, not to find out exactly what you are doing and to do the same, just to really get an idea if this will be worth my time. I'd appreciate any responses.

[ThatAdamGuy]

I have done this.

The jury's still out on whether it's worth it, on an hourly wage-equivalent basis.

In some cases, I've lost a small amount of money.
In other cases, I've earned as much as $3 for every $1 spent in AdWords (though there is obviously a point of diminishing returns here!)
And in many cases, I've about broken even (which means I actually come out slightly ahead, since I charge my AdWords account to a frequent-flyer-miles-earning credit card)

Is this a good way to make a full-time living? Maybe. But frankly, I've increasingly found it to be tedious and not very fulfilling.

BTW, please don't sticky me to ask for details on what specific affiliate programs I've been most successful with. This is, frankly, a case in which my time and effort and funding has been involved in testing various programs.

[vibgyor79]

>>> Seems too easy

Remember that AdWords is just a source of traffic, just like email marketing, banner ads or generic search listings. And affiliate programs mixed with a good source of traffic (like AdWords) will obviously generate revenues.

So if you find good affiliate programs (that convert well), it is possible to make money out of AdWords/affiliate programs.

The trick is to find the right affiliate programs. And no ebook is going to tell you about the best converting affiliate programs. You need to do that on your own through trial and error. And if you are using AdWords to do that, it can hurt if you don't find the goose that lays golden eggs soon.

[alexwalker]

Exactly - the trick is to find the right programs and fast. Think about what the market wants...

[iTISTIC]

Yes, my thoughts exactly. Which is why I think I am going to be shying away from this idea. Sure, I could try it and lose out a few times and then get lucky on an affiliate that converts well and gives me good ROI using AdWords, but the chances are low, and it seems to me from what most people are saying is that there probably will be low ROI even when you are able to get a positive ROI.

[lorax]

Another downside is that you are creating a link to your affiliate rather than to your own website. Stickyness suffers.

If you're looking for quick capital to help the coffers then it could work but I wouldn't personally consider this a long term revenue stream.

[BriGuy]

iTist:

I actually do this, and have managed to turn a profit, but certainly not on the level mentioned in the ads. It requires quite a bit of tweaking and judicious management of keyword spending and ROI tracking.

But to let you know how its going -- I've done it since about May, and it still hasn't outpaced my day job, which is about 20 hrs a week with fairly low pay. It IS always nice to have a little money on the side, though. :)

[iTISTIC]

Thanks for the reply Bri. I work 40 hrs. a week plus do programming work on the side so unless it is going to do something worth while down the road I can't really afford to spend time on it. I understand things take time, but for the end result to just be "ok" it's really not worth it. I appreciate all your suggestions and help!

Shawn