I’ve spent a good portion of my life making sense of affiliate marketing. To say I know a thing or two about a thing or two about affiliate marketing, is an understatement.
Did you know that almost 10% of all affiliate marketers make over $100K per year? Needless to say, earning a substantial income as an affiliate marketer is very, very real……and I’m going to show you how!
This is the most jam-packed, in-depth, ultimate guide to affiliate marketing that you will find online. Nowhere else, will you learn step-by-step instructions like this on how to make money with affiliate marketing – for FREE!
That’s because the goldmine of information on this page was initially created (by me!) to be an affiliate marketing course. I’m not going to tell you what the price tag was on this course because the information is truly priceless.
So, if you’re serious about becoming the Beyoncé of affiliate marketing – a successful, inspiring mentor with a hefty net worth – let’s go learn how to make money with affiliate marketing!
What is Affiliate Marketing?
O.k. really quick, incase any of you skipped Affiliate Marketing 101.
Affiliate marketing is when you promote someone else’s product or service with a special link you’re given – also known as an “affiliate link”. When someone makes a purchase through your affiliate link, you earn money (commission or fixed amount).
Grab a drink, get comfortable and have a pen and paper handy. Also, don’t forget to bookmark this page! I don’t call this a complete guide for nothing – it’s loaded with information you won’t wanna miss.
Lastly, please like or share this page – pretty please!
By doing so, it lets me know that you’re reading this and encourages me to share more (and I have sooo much to share with you guys!) Show me the love and I will show you the love back. That’s a promise.
Alright, if you’re ready to move forward, let us not waste another minute……
Why Should I do Affiliate Marketing in 2024?
With so many ways to make money0 online these days, you’re probably asking yourself “why should I pick affiliate marketing?”
Totally valid question.

Affiliate marketing has been one of the most popular ways to make money online (if not the most popular!) for the last 2 decades.
You don’t need a huge investment to get started. But, you should know what affiliate marketing really is – because believe it or not, most people don’t. Unless you understand what affiliate marketing really is, you won’t succeed.
So this is important…..
An affiliate marketer is becoming a mediator between a search and a desired outcome.
Affiliate marketing revenue is based on transactional search intent.

You must find purchase intent keywords that aren’t too competitive and can still make you money.
Approximately 20% of all Google searches each year are BRAND NEW – they’ve never been searched before! So before you think “all the good keywords are taken!”, remember that!

The fact is, affiliate marketing gets bigger every year. Since the market is always changing with new products, services, trends and technology, affiliate marketing will never become saturated.
So jump aboard the affiliate revenue train – it will take you places, I promise you!
Before we start, there’s a few things you’ll need to get started, so that you can make your mark in this industry.
Here is the top 9 must-haves to kickstart your success in affiliate marketing, to becoming a super affiliate with your own blog!
How to Start Affiliate Marketing
Go Big or Go Home!
1. A Hobby or Something You Enjoy
I hate it when bloggers say “blog about a hobby or something you enjoy”. No , no, no……
The fact is, hobbies don’t make money.
You need to look at your blog as a business, and not as a hobby. Gone are the days where blogs were around for people to write about their life. Blogs exist for one reason now.
They exist for informational purposes to influence buyers – and is a data driven way for YOU to make money.

2. Something Profitable
A blog is not about the writing. It’s about assembling content based on monetizable keywords.
It goes without saying that keyword research tools are absolutely crucial to your success, if you are going to find money-making keywords in your niche. You must find new and emerging products in your niche that you can rank for.
With the help of a KW research tool, you can achieve this by finding keywords that are not too competitive and will still make good money.
Timing is a big component in finding something profitable. There’s a lot of new products being created every year that need reviews and comparisons.
- Join a lot of affiliate programs to build a stable passive income.
- Have a “keyword first” approach to affiliate marketing
- Join affiliate programs that are high-ticket and recurring.
Affiliate marketing is profitable because anyone can click on your affiliate link, not have to purchase right away, and still get credit for that sale. Thats the power and profitability of affiliate marketing.
3. A Website
A website is one of the essentials of affiliate marketing.
It’s through your site that people will hear of you, come to trust you, and eventually buy from you.
To build your own site, you’ll need the following 6 things (No. 4 thru 9, below)
4. Web Hosting Service
You can’t have a website without a hosting service.
Web hosting is like your site’s home – without it, your site won’t be found online.
Don’t worry too much about the expense, because I know where you’ll get premium web hosting for just $2.74/month!
Look no further than Chemicloud!
They’re getting top ratings everywhere! But don’t just take *my* word for it…..
I’m telling you, my site runs sooooo much faster with Chemicloud, compared to people who are paying 10-30X **more elsewhere. In fact, I have not found a better quality host that’s this affordable!
5. A Domain Name
Your domain signifies the location of your website online. It also consists of your site’s name, which makes you stand out from others.
Tip: I do recommend you purchase your domain with your hosting (especially if you’re a newbie!) as the hosting provider can do a lot more for you when your domain is registered with them as well.
6. A Website Builder
Website builders make it possible for non-coders, like you and I, to have attractive and professional looking websites.
WordPress is hands-down the best one out there. In fact, at least 70% of all websites online use WordPress. Hey, if that ain’t sayin’ something, I don’t know what is!

7. A Premium WordPress Theme
Want a beautifully designed website without the hassle of mapping it out yourself? Get a Premium WordPress theme!
Blossom themes rank better and load faster. Fully SEO optimized, mobile friendly and easy-to-use themes that require no coding, no experience and *drumroll please* – no more pain in the ass!
Best of all their support is absolutely incredible. It literally felt like I had my own virtual assistant.
8. A Keyword Research Tool
That’s why you need an EXCELLENT keyword research tool, that will help you get seen on Google.
There’s no way you’ll be successful without a Keyword research tool. It’s not up for debate.
KWFinder is an all-in-one, comprehensive keyword research tool with affordable plans as low as $29/month. I really like the ease of use of this tool, which makes it perfect for beginners!
It doesn’t have to complicated, so don’t let it be.
You can even get a 10-day FREE trial of KWFinder by clicking here. No CC needed, no strings attached.
On the other hand…….
If you’re looking for the BIG KAHUNA of keyword research – look no further than Ahref’s.
Ahref’s is the tool that all the 7-figure affiliate marketers use. There’s so many awesome features that you just don’t get with free or cheap tools like KWFinder. Obviously it’s going to be pricier though.
But is it worth it, you ask?
Hell to the Yeah Baby!
It absolutely does not get any better than Ahref’s!
Considering how important keyword research tools are to affiliate marketing, I always recommend you invest in the best.
If you can’t invest in Ahref’s just yet, don’t panic….. get KWFinder for $29/month.

9. The Right Attitude
To become a successful affiliate marketer, you need to approach your journey as you’d approach any other kind of business. Success comes from implementing the right strategy, consistently.
Be positive, patient, and persistent, and you’ll get to your dreamed destination in no time at all!
Choosing a Kick Butt Niche
Choosing a niche is one of the most foundational things you’ll do in your affiliate marketing journey.
But first, what is a niche anyways??
It’s simple actually.
A niche is a topic that a group of people are searching information on.
For example:
- photography
- video games
- gardening
Those are just a few of the millions and millions of niches available for you to choose from.
For your affiliate marketing business to work, you need to pick a niche and stick to it.
I’m telling you right now, “stick to it” is key! It’s mind-blowing how many people don’t do this – which is why they’re stuck running around in circles, never actually making a dime. Don’t fall into this trap.
No matter how often you’re tempted, stick with what you started. Follow through. You won’t regret it – although you will regret it if you don’t.
The Biggest Niche MYTH
Choose your Passion Don’t Choose your Passion!
Don’t Choose Your Passion!
This goes against everything you have ever heard about affiliate marketing, doesn’t it?
Building a website around a niche based on a passion is the old, outdated “traditional way” of choosing a niche.
I just love this quote by 7-figure blogger, Adam Enfroy:
Money drives Passion More than Passion drives Money
Money drives Passion More than Passion drives Money
This time quote speaks volumes.
Yes you should have some knowledge in your niche – but remember, knowing just one thing about your niche makes you an expert to beginners who don’t know anything.
Your passion for your chosen niche will grow when you begin to see results. That is what “money drives passion” means.
Choosing a niche should be a science. Not a hobby. There are different variables that go into choosing your niche; competition, scalability, timing and monetizability.
Choosing a passion doesn’t work when the variables don’t work. Understanding how the variables work, and allowing yourself the freedom to do so will contribute to your success. Don’t pigeon hole yourself into a corner, by choosing a niche that limits yourself and your income potential.
How to Choose a Profitable Niche
1. Pick a Niche with Competition
I know, right!
It sounds counterintuitive.
Shouldn’t you pick a niche that has no competition, so you can shine like a solo star in it?
Uh, no.
The truth is, in today’s modern world, almost every niche has competition.
That’s a good thing though! Listen, if no one is doing it, it’s not profitable. So don’t be turned off by a little competition. The trick is to find a niche with just the right amount.
2. Pick a Niche with Digital Products (or Physical Products Worth $100 or more)
In my experience as an affiliate marketer, digital products give the highest profits.
That’s why I promote products like SEO tools and digital courses. Not only are the digital products with high profit margins, but they provide amazing value to the customer.
But if you love to promote physical products, go for items over $100.
That’s because physical products generally offer smaller commissions (think 5-6%).
If you promote $20 items and get 5% commissions on each item, you won’t be earning boatloads of money (like you want to!)
4 Ways to Fail-Proof Your Niche
Picking a niche is an important part of the affiliate marketing journey.
To land the perfect niche, you must:
- Know SOMETHING about the Niche (not a Passion)
- Want to know more about the Niche
- Choose a Niche Based on competition
- Choose Broadly, niche down later (with each article your write)
Stick to these rules, and it won’t be hard to find a niche you stick with!
The Hidden Magic of Competitor Research
In this next step, I’m going to discuss just how to do competitor research.
You’re doing it to:
- Find Out What You’re Up Against
Getting an idea of what your competitors are doing will help you make your site better.
Trust me! It’s like having a measuring stick by which you can gauge your blog’s quality.
- Get New Ideas
You’ll be surprised to find how much inspiration you can get from browsing through your competitors’ sites.
- Steal Keywords
Out of keyword ideas? Spy on your competitors!
Of course, you’ll need to run the new keyword ideas you find through a keyword research tool (to find out if they’re profitable).
Still, reading your competitors’ blog will land you with a long list of brilliant keyword ideas you might never think of on your own.
Now you’re convinced on how important it is to spy on your competitors, let’s get into…
How to Outperform Your Competitors
Think competition is bad? It’s not!
Here are 2 simple ways you can try (you can use the one that fits your style best or mix them together for even more ideas).
Ask: What Kind of Products Do I Want to Promote?
Let’s say you want to start a turtle blog and promote products like turtle food.
To get started on your competitor research, go to Google and type “Best____(name of product).”
For example, “Best parrot food”
Type that into the search bar on Google, and you’ll get this.

The blogs that show up on this list are your potential competitors!
But wait…….
Before you add them to your list, spy on them even further.
Click each blog to find out if they’re doing the same thing you plan on doing.
(For example, if you’re doing a blog purely on parrots, your competitor isn’t a blog that’s on animals in general.)
Ask: What Kind of Guides Do I Want to Write?
If you know a little about your niche, you probably already have ideas on what kinds of guides you want to write.
For example, if you’re doing a parrot blog, maybe you have ideas like:
- How to breed parrots
- How to raise a parrot
Type these keywords into Google and see what blogs come out.
Like this:

See?
New competitors to spy on!
Go on until you have at least 5 competitors listed down.
And that’s it to begin with!
The Secret to Staying Ahead
Spying on your competitors is a great way to know what you’re up against, get sparkling new ideas, and get rid of keyword writer’s block.
So go ahead.
Jump on Google and get some spying done! Don’t worry its not as creepy as it sounds! Lol.
Excited to start publishing articles on your blog?
Not so fast.
Because no matter how well-written your articles are, you won’t get any readers if no one is searching for those topics.
Enter, keyword research.
With keyword research, you can qualify your topics and find out if the articles you write on them will actually be successful.
But how do you do keyword research?
Let’s find out.
Unveil a Keyword Goldmine
+ the Best Keyword Research Tool to Use
A keyword research tool will help you find keywords to write on without the guesswork.
KWFinder is one of the most accurate keyword difficulty tool on the market – and for just $29/month (!!!) it’s completely affordable.
….and if that’s not a win-win, I don’t know what is!
I absolutely recommend you try KWfinder, even if you just take advantage of the free trial – do that for sure!
This is what I like to call “nothing to lose and everything to gain”.

Identify Awesome Keywords
Ok, but what is a “good keyword” anyways?
Two things make it one:
- High search volume
- Low KD score
Let’s get into each one of them.
1. High Search Volume
This means the number of people searching for a specific keyword per month.
The higher this number, the better for you.
Ok, so here’s an example for ya – “best parrot food”.

On KWFinder, you can type in your chosen keyword and see how many people search for it per month.
As you can see, 880 people search for “best parrot food” every month. Not too bad, hey!
Tip: as long as the search volume is above zero, go ahead and write on that keyword. However, the **higher ****the search volume, the better it is for you and your ability to make money from it.
2. KD Score
KD score is simply an estimate of how hard it will be for you to rank for a certain keyword.
So, in this case, the lower the KD score, the better it is for you.
Let’s quickly take a look at that keyword again, best parrot food.

As you can see, the KD score is 25.
Awesome!
IMPORTANT:
- As a rule of thumb,
- if your site is new,
- choose keywords with a KD score of below 40.
Of course, you can write on high KD keywords from time to time, but just don’t prioritize them.
You should definitely stick with low KD keywords until your site is older and has a higher DR score (domain rating).
So, how did the keyword “best parrot food” do anyways? Well, with a high search volume and low KD score……great!
How to Find Affiliate Keywords
There are a number of ways for finding awesome keywords to write on.
Here are my personal favorite that I have had the best success with!
1. Scrolling Through the Suggestions on KWFinder
Look to the left side of KWFinder’s dashboard, and you will find a long list of “suggestions.”
Some of these can actually be quite good.
Take a look below.

2. Spying on Your Competitors
Knowing which keywords your competitors are ranking for is also a great way to snag keyword ideas!
To do this, all you need to do is click the “Search by Domain” option on your KWFinderdashboard.
Then, type in the domain of your competitor.
Like this:

3. Use Keyword Variations
This method is less technical.
It involves looking over your list of keywords and using variations of each one.
For example, variations of “parrot food Canada” could be “parrot food Australia,” “parrot food USA” and so on.
Of course, you’ll need to check if each individual keyword has high search volume and a low KD score.
To do this, simply upload your list of keyword variations into KWFinder’s “import” section.

When you do, you’ll be able to see a list of your keywords, along with search volumes and KD scores right beside them.
That’s a Wrap!
With a kick-butt keyword research tool like KWFinder , you’ll be able to compile a huge list keywords.
Now we’re on a roll! Let’s set this aside for now and get this show on the road!
Build an Unbeatable Site Structure
Without good site structure, both Google and your readers will be confused about how to navigate your website.
Site structure is like the foundation of your website.
It refers to how well your site is, well, structured!
It’s like categorizing all your pages and posts so that your site is organized and easy to navigate.
Having a simple, clean design is best.
The Blueprint for a Fantastic Website!
Basically you’re going to want to have your home page (a top level page), which links to different pillar pages – also known as “silo pages”.
Under these silo pages are blog posts that fall under the same category.
In short it should look something like this:

Silo Pages:
I like to put my silo pages in the menu bar itself. They should be recognized as your main pages. I also refer to these silo pages as your “money pages”.
Blog Posts:
Each silo page connects to its own set of —> Blog posts
The blog posts under a silo page should connect with other blog posts under that same silo page. ** So for example, blog posts under Silo Page #2 should link to other blog posts under Silo page #2.
All blog posts link back to its silo page, in one way or another – directly or indirectly. Some blog posts can link back to the silo page directly, or the blog post can link back to a different blog post (under the same Silo page) – which then links back to the money page!
Similar to a spider web – every page is interconnected.
Your Money Pages:
As mentioned, silo pages are often referred to as your “money pages”, as they’re pages built around your affiliate products, etc. They are usually lengthy posts and should provide a lot of value to the reader.
The affiliate product should be HELPING the reader solve their problem. If it’s not, time to find a different product!
You must only choose affiliate products that will ultimately assist your readers in reaching their goal – whether that’s to make money online, lose weight, jump higher, run faster or train a dog how to fetch a cold beer out of the fridge!
Hmmmmm……..I think I just found a winner 😉
O.k….I’m getting ahead of myself here! Lol.
So, although you’re promoting something in your money pages it’s important that your content doesn’t come off as spammy or salesy.
The content should not be about the product itself (unless you’re doing a product review of course) but rather you should focus on the problem it solves.
Understanding your target audience is key to making a great website that gets a lot of traffic that makes lots of money.
Your readers should think of you as their trusted advisor, someone they can rely on for valuable information to help them make the right choice based on what they need.
When you focus on providing value, it builds trust, creates long-lasting relationships, and improves your reputation.
Your readers can always tell if you care about giving them value in every blog post you write.
When you act as their trusted advisor, using your expertise to understand their needs, they will want you to be rewarded for guiding them towards the best solutions.

Constant Quality
Once you’ve built your money pages – you want to start writing blog posts on a regular basis , that will support these money pages. If it’s daily, great…if it’s once a week, that’s ok!
Aside from the quality of your content, it’s not about how often you post, but more about the consistency of your posting.
Whatever the case, be consistent.
If you’re going to post once a week, then do once a week! Don’t do it today, a few days from now and then a few weeks from now, etc.
Try to keep the time in between posting fairly consistent.
It’s been proven again and again that quality trumps quantity.
So don’t feel compelled to write half ass posts, just to pump them out as much as possible. Some of the most popular blogs only post weekly or even monthly!
Often, the trick is to write long, unique and high-quality blog posts.
Google can tell the difference!
Think about it – if basic AI can pass a bar exam, I think Google can tell the difference between a good quality post and a poor-quality post.
Just sayin’ ……
How to Plan Your Own Structure
Planning site structure isn’t something you can research.
Instead, you do it by going over your list of keywords and seeing what naturally emerges.
For instance, in my list of parrot keywords, I saw a lot of keywords that would easily fit under “parrot care.”
I also saw a lot of other keywords that would easily fit under “parrot food reviews.”
And so on.
Carefully go over your list of (I hope 50-100) keywords and see how you can naturally categorize them.
Then you’ll have your site structure!
Trust me, it might sound complicated but it’s not, and you will feel refreshingly organized once you’ve completed the task.
An Unforgettable Domain Name
Your domain name is like your personal online calling card.
Basically, it’s your website’s name (the .com your visitors type into their browsers when they want to visit your site).
Here’s what mine looks like:

Now, what should yours be?
Answer: anything you want!
Gone are the days where you could keyword-stuff your way in to better domain name rankings! Now you’ll just be penalized for that if anything!
Goodbye 2000, hello 2025!
However, here are a few suggestions to keep in mind:
- Your domain name won’t help or hurt you SEO-wise, but it’ll help or hurt you reader-wise.
- That means, pick a domain name that catches attention + tells your reader what your site is all about.
- It’s a great idea to put your niche’s name into your domain name. For example, photographytips.com will tell visitors what your site is about in one glance. It used to help with rankings but that isn’t the case any more so don’t let anyone tell you differently.
- Keep it as short as you can, as brandable as you can.
- Stick with .com (instead of .net, .us, etc), as it’s more recognizable and associable with authority websites.
- Perform the radio commercial test on your chosen domain name. This means, pretend you’re airing your domain name on the radio, and take note if it’s easy to remember, easy to understand, and easy to spell.
Keep these tips in mind and you’ll end up with the perfect domain name for your site.
The Right Web Hosting Provider
Web hosting is your website’s “home” online.
It consists of a server that gives your site space in the online world.
Think of it like this……..
You can’t buy a house without having somewhere to put it – you need the property as well. The same concept applies to your website.
To put your website online, you’ll need a piece of virtual property to put it on.
Your website is the house. The property would be considered your web hosting.
Needless to say, there’s no website if you don’t have web hosting. Just as you would not have a house without property.
Now I’m going to tell you how to get the best web hosting for your blog, for under $3!
Best Web Hosting for Affiliate Marketers
The web hosting you choose will have an impact on your success as an affiliate marketer.
Speed, reliability, security, and overall performance are all factors that can determine how much money your website will make.
Speed: Visitors will not stay on your site if they have to wait for pages to load.
A slow site will increase bounce rates, resulting in lost traffic and less revenue. Needless to say how crucial it is to find a web hosting provider with a reputation for fast server speeds.
Doing so will improve your website’s overall performance and user experience. Which ultimately ranks you higher in Google!
Now you have an idea of how much web hosting can impact your earnings as an affiliate marketer.
The Fastest & Most Affordable Web Host
I highly recommend Chemicloud, especially for anyone doing affiliate marketing.
That’s because they give you exactly what you need and more, which allows your blog to grow without having to worry about things like speed and downtime – for just $2.19 a month!
What’s really cool? They don’t force you to buy 1 or 2 yrs. upfront! Which is what all other web hosting companies make you do, to get the best prices!
So not only is Chemicloud’s hosting insanely superior but they’re also known for their most competitive prices in the industry.
I’m so proud to recommend these guys. They deserve it.
They’ve done everything I’ve ever asked them to do for me (in lightning speed). As someone who isn’t very techy, it’s been a godsent to say the least.
THE MOST impressive customer support I have ever seen, in 15 years. NO word of a lie!

It’s practically unheard of to get premium web hosting at this price. However, I’ve developed a good relationship with the folks at Chemicloud and they know I want the best from the best for my readers.
Which is why they’ve given me this special link below, for you to get 80% off their incredible web hosting.
Click here to check out Chemicloud and get 80% off!
A (Very) Special Discount for You!
There’s no way around it folks, you need a self-hosted blog if you plan to monetize!
Advertisers won’t work with you unless you have a self-hosted website, and most affiliate networks will not either.
So, let’s do it right, starting from the beginning!
Click on the special link below to get 80% off the fastest, most affordable web hosting with no strings attached!
Click here to check out Chemicloud and get 80% off!
Typically, web hosting of this quality would cost you at least $20 month, but don’t waste your money spending that much. It’s not necessary! Not when you can get the most reliable and fastest web hosting online with Chemiclud, for just a couple buckaroos!
I could show you glowing reviews all day long, but you get the point 😉
Moving on shall we!
A domain name and website are the two primary ingredients you need to get your site started.
In the next lessons, we’ll dive into exactly how to go about getting them.
Let’s get into the step-by-step of buying a domain and hosting!
Get Started Here
OMG.
You did it!
You’ve come soooo much further than you realize…. you have already overcome the biggest obstacle!
S-T-A-R-T-I-N-G
Yup! Just getting started is by far the most challenging aspect of this business.
That’s not cliché either, it’s 100% FACT.
So, let’s build you a blog already!
The first thing you’ll need to do is choose a web hosting provider. Again, I highly recommend Chemicloud.
Choose the plan that fits your needs.
The FastCloud Basic plan will take care of your needs! Although I chose FastCloud Extra, simply because it was 80% off!
I have been sooo happy with it, no regrets.

For your blog, the basic plan will work just gravy for what you need. As your site gains momentum and builds traffic, then you can consider upgrading.
Click “get started”, and then you’ll be ready to check if the domain name you want is available.

Remember, go for .com over .net, .org, .info, and so on. It’s just easier for people to remember, as we tend to always think “.com”.
If your domain name is available, then great!
If not, keep looking for variations of the name you chose.
Once you’ve chosen your domain name, go ahead and create your account by filling in this form:

Then, pick your package plan.
Here’s a tip!
You can buy 1 month if you want to, but I do recommend buying a longer duration so that you can take advantage of the 80% off – which will save you a lot money.
Check out the savings below on 1 month, 1 yr, 2 yrs or 3 yrs.
So I initially purchased 24 months – but in hindsight I wish I’d just gotten the 36 .
Simply because I know that I’ll be staying with them for good now, and I could’ve saved more money that way.
But thats ok! Not complaining…… 80% off anything is still amazing, but especially web hosting of this caliber.
Next, you’ll choose the package extras you want.
UPDATE: Masking your identity may have negative affects on your Google ranking!
That said, as temping as it is to keep your ID private, think about the consequences before doing so.
Is it worth that risk? For some, maybe. But for others, it may have been trivial to begin with.
On a positive note, let’s work towards making life a little easier for you!
You can achieve this by purchasing your domain name and web hosting, together.
Your multi-tasking skills will be tested throughout this journey, so you really want to try and stay as organized as you can. Also, your web hosting provider will be able to do most of the set-up for you, if your domain name is hosted with the as well.

Continue to the payment section and…… VOILA!
You’re all done!
Congratulations my dear, YOU are officially the proud new owner of a piece of internet real estate.
How to Do Affiliate Marketing
Ok, ok….nothing in life is “guaranteed” and all that jazz. That goes without saying.
But what can you do to give yourself the absolute BEST chance for success?
And by success I mean money!
Search intent.
In a nutshell, search intent is what people are really looking for when they type in a keyword. So while we call it “keyword research” , what we’re actually doing is analyzing search intent. Keyword research just sounds simpler and it’s probably a little easier to remember too!
You see, when it comes to affiliated marketing, you are banking on your audience to purchase the product or service you’re promoting. So, as an affiliate marketer, that would be your intent.
Without this intent, you’re not going to make any money. Unless your visitors are spending money, you aren’t making any.
So how can you be sure that your visitors want to spend money? In other words, how can you be sure that YOU will make money?
Simple. Know your audience.
By doing this, you will turn window shoppers into buyers.
For example, let’s take the keyword ‘Parrot food’.
With a search volume of 610 and a KD score of 21, it’s a pretty good keyword.
So do you just go ahead and write any kind of article around it?
Come on now…..it’s not 2010, we know that doesn’t work!
Instead, you need to decode their search intent.
This means you need to dig into your readers’ minds, and find out exactly WHY they want to know about “parrot food” and WHAT they want to know about parrot food.
This will help you decide which type of article you should be writing.
So using this example, you’d ask yourself things like:
- Do they want a listicle of the best parrot foods to get?
- Do they want to know what parrots eat?
- How do you find out what your readers wish to read?
Easy-peazey lemon squeezy!
When you begin to break it down like this, it becomes a lot easier.
If Google Can’t find the answer, it’s not a question.”
Question: What’s better – Google or Yahoo?
If your initial response was “I’ll Google it!”, you’re not alone! lol.
As a new kid on the affiliate marketing chopping block, Google just became your newest BFF!
So let’s cozy with that new BFF of yours, shall we? 😉
Open-up your browser and type in whatever your keyword is.
Now, click on the top-ranking blogs and check out what they’re about.

Basically, you want to make sure the content you write on your blog is similar to those!
For example, if most of the top-ranking blogs are listicles of Amazon products, you’ll do well to write a listicle on the same topic.
If most of the top-ranking blogs are educational, listing what turtles eat, then go ahead and follow suit.
That’s because there’s a reason all these blogs are ranking…
Why you ask?
Because people liked them, which sent a signal to Google to rank them higher.
This comes down to what I always say and have been saying for many years.

Don’t try to re-invent the wheel!
Instead, find what is already successful and make it your own – make it even better!
The secret to being successful is building on others’ success.
That’s it……in a nutshell of course!
Why is Search Intent Important?
(2 Awesome Examples)
If you don’t decode search intent correctly, you could be wasting a ton of time writing on keywords that seem good, but will not get you closer to your goal.
Let’s look at 2 examples of this.
Example #1: Parrot Cages
On the outset, turtle cages seems like an exciting keyword.

With a search volume of 24,600 and a KD score of 32, it seems like the keyword that could get you closer to your goals.
But as an affiliate marketer, should you write a blog around it?
To answer that question, check out that keyword’s search intent.
Type “parrot cages” into your browser, and check out the results.

As you can see, the search intent seems to be targeting people who want to buy their own parrot cage.
Not people looking for a listicle of the best parrot cages.
See how crucial search intent was here?
If you wrote a listicle on the best parrot cages simply because parrot cages is a good keyword, your blog probably wouldn’t rank.
You’ll have wasted your precious time targeting a keyword that won’t do you any good.
Example #2: Parrots in Canada
Here’s another keyword that looks exciting.
Parrots in Canada.
A search volume of 240 but a KD score of 21……. easy work, why not!

But before writing a blog post around it, check out its search intent.
If you click on these blogs and read them, you’ll find that most of them are about wild parrots.
They’re perfect for people who want to learn more about parrots in general, as an educational resource. However, they’re not exactly for parrot pet owners, your site’s audience.
Which means, you’ll be wasting time writing around this particular keyword.
See now how understanding search intent is crucial to affiliate marketing success?
Affiliate Marketing Mind Control
Haha, if only it were that easy!
BUT, this is where it does get interesting….
You will need to learn how to read your readers’ mind. It’s easier than it sounds too.
But first, let’s start by getting into the writing part of your blog.
You can use search intent to your advantage when writing your introduction.
How?
By immediately telling your readers, from the first sentence, that you know why they came to your blog.
Let’s take the keyword “How to Become a Virtual Assistant”.
Now, you can start a blog on that keyword any way you want.
You can start by listing the benefits of becoming a virtual assistant.
You can start by telling the story of how you became a virtual assistant.
But is that the search intent of the keyword?
No.
So instead of starting your introduction in a way that will frustrate your reader, start by hitting the nail on the head of search intent.
Tell them that they came to the right place.
When you tell your readers (right from your first sentence) that you’ve nailed their search intent, chances are they’ll stay and read your whole blog.
Search intent is about finding out why people type keywords on Google.
When you do it well, you can give readers exactly what they’re looking for.
You can make them experience the rosy glow of satisfaction.
And guess what?
The more they love and trust you, the higher the chances they’ll buy from you in the future.

Crucial Parts of a Blog Post
Every blog you write should have four parts.
All these parts are equally important, so don’t miss out on any of them!
Here they are:
Headings and Subheadings
Headings and SubheadingsYour headings and subheadings have a job.
That job is to divide your blog up into reasonable sections.
This will help Google better understand what your content is about (especially if you use your keywords wisely in all your headings).
Also, headings and subheadings help your readers through your blog.
Because honestly, no one wants to read content that goes on and on, seemingly forever.
If you’ve ever landed on a 2,000-word blog without any subheadings, chances are you clicked the “back” button as if it would save your life.
On the other hand, mouthwatering subheadings spark up your readers’ interest, pulling them deeper and deeper into your blog.
The Introduction
The first thing readers see when they click on your blog is your introduction.
Meaning, if they like it, they’ll stay.
If they hate it, they’ll leave.
It’s really that simple.
To make them stay, then, your introduction needs to make them feel a rush of excitement.
You need to hook them and to promise them that if they read your blog, they’ll feel deeply satisfied.
They’ll have found what they’re looking for.
The Body
Quick tip: use bullet points often, for a better user experience.
Make it interesting, magnetizing, and promising.
If you can hook your readers in your introduction, chances are they’ll read your whole blog (and hopefully buy using your affiliate links).
The Body
The body of your blog can take many different forms, depending on the type of blog you’re writing.
For example, the body of a review will look way different from the body of a listicle.
Still, there are basic principles to remember whenever you dive into the body of your blog.
- Your blog’s body should fulfill the promise you made in your introduction
- Your blog’s body must be comprehensive – do not leave anything out.
- When your readers finish with your blog’s body, they must be able to accomplish what they came to your blog for.
For example: If your blog is about “how to teach your cat to use a toilet”, make sure that by the end of your blog the reader has enough info to accomplish just that!

Conclusion
It’s a super important part of your blog (even the most important!).
After reading your conclusion, your audience will decide whether to take action…
…or leave, to forget you forever.
Listen: a good conclusion might even be the reason your readers buy your recommendations.
So go all out and make it the best part of your blog.
In the next lessons, we’ll show you exactly how to write the different parts of your blog, with tips and tricks to make your content spectacular and mouthwatering.
Let’s go!
Affiliate Marketing Blog Ideas
Which one should you build?
1. Comparison Blogs
In a product comparison, your job is to put two products or services side by side so your readers can decide which one fits them best.
This is important because products and services aren’t one-size-fits-all.
Also, when you write awesome comparison posts, you’ll set yourself up as an expert in the industry.
So, what are the steps for creating a create comparison post?
The 2 Best Formulas for Crafting an Awesome Comparison Post
You can get creative and write comparison posts however you want to write them.
However, you might want to use these two tested-and-proven formulas that work every time.
Formula No. 1
In this formula, you start with a mouthwatering heading and introduction, then use 2 main H2s to describe each product or service one by one.
For example, in the first H2, you go deeply into KWFinder, describing it and giving your readers the complete details they need to know about it.
Then, in the second H2, you go deeply into SEMRush, doing the same for it that you did with KWFinder.
In the end, create a chart to showcase the similarities and differences between the two.
Use this Product Comparison Template below to write this type of comparison post.
Product Comparison Template #1
How to use this product comparison post template:
- The words in parenthesis are your main headings. Change them to match the topic of your review.
- The italicized words are guidelines on what to write in each section. Delete these and fill the space in with your own words.
- Be inspired, and enjoy!
(H1: Clear, Compelling Headline)
Your headline should contain your primary keyword as close to the beginning as possible.
For instance, if you’re comparing two brands, your headline can be: “Mac vs. PC.”
Of course, you’ll want to spice things up and pique your readers’ curiosity. To do this, you can add interesting phrases after your keyword.
Like this:
Mac vs. PC: Experts Give Their Take on Today’s Two Top Computer Brands
(H2: Pit Your Brands Against Each Other)
This section will serve as a short introduction in which you’ll describe your two brands and explain that you’re going to compare them.
If you like, this can be a summary section where you give readers a “sneak peek” at the winner of your showdown.
(H2: Dive Into Product #1)
In this section, you’ll fully describe product #1, including all the pros and cons of using this product.
(H3: Product #1 Feature)
(H3: Product #1 Feature)
(H3: Product #1 Feature)
(H2: Dive Into Product #2)
In this section, it’s product #2’s time to shine. Do the same as you did for product #1.
(H3: Product #1 Feature)
(H3: Product #1 Feature)
(H3: Product #1 Feature)
(H2: Conclusion)
O.k., so if there’s a clear winner between the two, here is the perfect place to tell your audience about it.
Remember, however, that there won’t always be a crystal clear winner.
At times, one product will be better for one type of person……and the other one might be better for another.
Make sure your conclusion explains this, but still leave the reader with a firm decision on which product is right for him .
Formula No. 2
This formula is more focused on showing your products or services side-by-side.
(Which is why, personally, I feel is the better formula)
To use it, build your H2s around key features of the products and services, and compare them each side-by-side.
For example: Product A vs. Product B: Ingredients
And then: Product A vs. Product B: Pricing
For me, this formula is better because it gives your readers a more detailed comparison of the two items you’re talking about.
However, if you think your audience will like the first formula better, go ahead and use that one.
Product Comparison Template #2
How to use this comparison post template:
- The words in parenthesis are your main headings. Change them to match the topic of your review.
- The italicized words are guidelines on what to write in each section. Delete these and fill the space in with your own words.
(H1: Clear, Compelling Headline)
Your headline should contain your primary keyword as close to the beginning as possible.
For instance, if you’re comparing two brands, your headline can be: “Mac vs. PC.”
Of course, you’ll want to spice things up and pique your readers’ curiosity. To do this, you can add interesting phrases after your keyword.
Like this:
Mac vs. PC: Experts Give Their Take on Today’s Two Top Computer Brands
(H2: Pit Your Brands Against Each Other)
This section will serve as a short introduction in which you’ll describe your two brands and explain that you’re going to compare them.
If you like, this can be a summary section where you give readers a “sneak peek” at the winner of your showdown.
(H2: Pit Products Against Each Other Side by Side)
In this section, you’ll describe the biggest features of each product, and compare how well each brand does with each.
For instance, if you’re writing about dog food brands, one section can be called “Ingredients,” and in it, you’ll compare both brands’ ingredients against each other.
Include as many sections as needed.
(H3: Feature #1; Example: Ingredients)
(H3: Feature #2; Example: Recipe Variations)
(H3: Feature #3; Example: Popular Flavors)
(H2: Conclusion)
Describe to readers the main takeaways of your blog, and tell them that products aren’t always one-size-fits all.
If you can, help them decide which product is best for them.
For instance, if you’re talking about keyword research tools, tell them that if they’re beginners, KWFinder is the perfect choice.
However, if they’re in the more advanced level, they might want to give Ahrefs a try.
Tips for Great Product Comparisons
O.k., so maybe not all product comparisons are created equal. But here are some helpful tips that’ll make yours stand out.
After years of split testing, I highly recommend the following 4 tips.
- Add screenshots or images under every heading. Make your readers feel what it’s like to use your product or service.
- Put charts in. Give readers a visual way to compare your products or services. This helps them organize and quickly reach a buying decision.
- Don’t forget your CTAs. Be liberal with your CTAs. Put them in as early as possible.
- Never leave out details. Be as brief as possible, but leave no details (positive or negative) out.
Comparison posts are for readers who want to narrow their buying decision down to two products or services.
To help them reach the best buying decision, write a detailed comparison that makes it quick, easy, and enjoyable for them to decide.
2. Review Blogs
Review articles are perfect for affiliate marketing websites. They go together like peanut butter and jelly!
They’re helpful to readers because they showcase the features and flaws of products or services they’re interested in – and they’re helpful to you, because reviews almost always equal sales.
So, how do you go about writing the perfect review article?
The Perfect Formula for Writing a Review
This formula works for any kind of review you’re planning to write, whether that’s for a product, a service, or something totally unique. So let’s go!
This should give you a better idea of what you should be doing.
Check this out:
H1: Mouthwatering Headline
Introduction
-Hook
-Introduce your product or service
-Tell your readers what they will get
H2: Talk About the Product
H2: TLDR
H2: Pros and Cons
H3: Pros
H3: Cons
H2: Conclusion
Dos and Don’ts of Writing Reviews
Here are some important Do’s of writing a review.
- Be Honest
You want your readers to buy from you, but don’t lie to them.
If there’s something that’s not too great about the product or service you’re promoting, tell your readers about it.
They’ll appreciate your honesty and trust you more, increasing the chances that they’ll buy from you in the future.
- Give Your Opinion
Don’t be too generic.
Tell your readers what you think and feel about the product or service you’re talking about.
If you’ve used it, tell them what that was like.
Share your stories and give your audience a taste of what their experience with the product or service will be like.
- Be Detailed
Do you have access to the product or service you’re reviewing?
Show your readers that!
Give them screenshots.
Add in videos.
Make them truly feel what it will be like using the product or service.
Now, let’s get into the Don’ts of writing a review.….
- Don’t Be too Negative
Yes, you should tell your readers about the flaws of the product or service you’re talking about.
However, you want to lean more heavily on the positive side.
Don’t worry: if you trust the products and services you promote, chances are there will be more positive than negative to talk about.
- Don’t Be too Opinionated
Tell stories about yourself and your experience of using the product or service, but don’t make everything about you.
Keep the you in your blog short and sweet.
- Don’t Be too Boring
Yes, you want to give your readers all the details they need to make a smart buying decision.
However, don’t write huge paragraphs going on and on around the same topic.
Be detailed but brief.
3. Listicle Blogs
A listicle isn’t different from a grocery list.
In short, it’s an article written in list format.
For instance, the ‘top 10 parrot foods’.
Or the ‘top 10 ways to make money online’.
But as an affiliate marketer, you’ll be writing listicles with a twist.
That is, the goal of your listicles will be to help people with their buying decisions (while suggesting they pick the products or services you recommend).
So, how do you write a good listicle? Well, let’s dive into the topic!
3 Steps to Writing an Amazing Listicle
Writing a listicle isn’t hard.
Here are three easy steps to follow.
1. Make a Grocery-Like List
First, create a list of all the products or services you want to include in your listicle.
Remember, make sure the list makes sense.
It’s a good idea for all items on your list to be as similar to each other as possible.
Examples:
- Best Keyword Research Tools for 2025
- 50 Ways to Save Money this Summer
- 20 Best Parrot Foods for Pet Parrots
2. Go to Google and Spy on Your Competitors
What kinds of listicles are your competitors writing around your keyword?
Jump on Google to find out.
Remember, your listicle should be both similar to the top results and unique.
It’s OK to add products and services you aren’t promoting.
Your readers will appreciate it that you’re helping them make better buying decisions.
However, add your recommendations (with links) at the beginning of your listicle, to increase chances your audience will purchase them.
3. Create Your Outline
Building an outline for your listicle is easy!
Follow this template to get it right every time.
H1: An interesting but simple heading. Don’t be too inventive. Tell your audience right away what your article will be about. For instance, if you’re writing about the top 10 movies to watch this year, say that in your heading.
Introduction: Make your audience excited for what’s coming in 150-200 words.
H2: Introduce your listicle and tell your readers your numbered list follows.
H3: Item #1 in your listicle.
H3: Item #2 in your listicle.
H3: Item #3 in your listicle.
(And so on)
For each item on the listicle, be as detailed as you can without being boring. Big difference!
H2: Close with a conclusion that doesn’t introduce anything new, but which sparks readers to go on and take the next step.
Do’s and Don’ts of Writing a Listicle
Follow these tips to keep your audience reading your listicle, despite all the distractions available online.
Do:
- Add screenshots and images. You want your readers to know as much as they can about the product or service you’re recommending, so it’ll be easier for them to reach a buying decision.
- Include mouthwatering CTAs throughout the blog. Make it super easy for readers to buy your product or service (at any time they’re ready).
- Add variety. Highlight the difference between all the products and services you’re talking about.
- Create charts. Make it easy for your readers to compare products and services at one glance. For instance, a chart of prices will help them quickly compare between pricing options and decide which one fits their budget.
Don’t:
- Say the same thing about everything in your listicle. This ties in with #3 in the Do’s list. Don’t say exactly the same thing about each item in your listicle. Each one is different, so showcase that!
Writing listicles for your blog helps you help your readers make awesome buying decisions.
Also, it increases your chances of making sales through your affiliate links.
So, make your listicles irresistible with the tips in this blog!
4. How-to Blogs
How to articles are some of the most important articles you’ll ever write for your blog.
Why?
3 reasons!
- There are 7 billion searches on Google every day. If your article makes it into Google’s top spots, more people will click it and go to your site. And more traffic, more sales, right? (Hint: lots of readers want to learn how to do stuff. Your how-to articles will pull them in like magnets.)
- You’ll change people’s lives. This is magical and worth it.
- You’ll build trust. Show that you know how to do things and help your audience do them as well as you do, and you’ll be the one they’ll look to when it comes time to buy.
But how do you write killer how-to articles?
It’s easy.
Easy 2-Step Process for Awesome How-To Articles
Writing a how-to article is super simple, but many bloggers digress and miss the point.
They end up with a bunch of fluff that doesn’t help their readers get from Point A to Point B of their journey.
Don’t follow their lead.
Instead, take these two steps every time you write your how-to article, and you’ll never get lost (and never make your readers feel lost).
Step #1:
List down the steps. Let’s say your audience wants to build a backyard chicken coop, and you know just the way how. Divide what you know into several simple, actionable steps. List these steps down and turn them into subheadings.
Step #2:
Elaborate on the steps. Under each subheading you’ve written, clearly explain how to accomplish each step. Be direct and to the point.
Surprised?
Writing a how-to article is actually super simple.
In fact, the simpler it is, the better.
Make it complex, and you might end up with readers who have no idea what to do.
The goal is to help your readers accomplish what they want to do (whether that’s buying the right freediving fins or building a travel site).
If you can do that, you’ve won.
Do’s and Don’ts of Writing a How-to Article
Do:
- Be personal. Don’t make your readers feel that your content was written by a robot.
- Elaborate. Make sure that people understand your steps and know how to follow them.
Don’t:
- Digress. Stick to your points as closely as you can.
- Overwhelm. Be detailed, but as short as possible. Cut out the fluff, and be brutal. (A graph and bullet points really work.)
- Think of your how-to article as teaching a friend how to do something.
Stay brief and simple.
Be interesting and entertaining.
Stick to your point and don’t digress.
Follow these steps, and you’ll be publishing the best how-to articles on your topic.
5. Definitive Guide Blogs
A definitive guide is the best and most complete guide on a certain topic.
Basically, it’s a compilation of all the information that can be found online on a certain topic.
Why is writing an ultimate guide important?
Because if yours is truly complete, your readers will no longer need to search for information anywhere else (a.k.a. your competitors).
So, how do you write an awesome ultimate guide?
Let’s get into it.
Affiliate Marketing Blogs for Beginners
Step #1: Determine What Your Readers Will Achieve
Your blog should be like a roadmap helping your readers achieve their dreams.
So before you start writing, you need to know what you want them to achieve.
Write it down.
It can be anything from baking a chocolate cake at home to building their own complex software.
Your goal: to ensure your reader can do what you instruct by the time they’ve finished reading your blog.
Step #2: Spy on Your Competitors
This doesn’t mean plagiarizing them.
It only means finding out what your audience wants to see online.
How do you do this?
Type your primary keyword on Google.
Then, read the top blogs that rank for this topic.
Have fun and absorb what they’re saying.
Step #3: Copy and Paste Your Competitors’ Subheadings
This is hard work!
But it’s worth it.
To do it: open all your competitors’ blogs (5 to 10 is good).
Then, copy and paste ALL their subheadings.
This will give you an idea of what to say in your own blog.
Step #4: Create Your Own Outline
Sift through the subheadings you collected from your competitors.
Then, use them to craft your own outline.
Of course, don’t copy any of them word-for-word.
Simply use them as a guide to make your own powerful outline.
Step #5: Refine, Refine, Refine
Spend time on your outline.
Make sure it flows smoothly.
Step #6: Write Your Guide
Fill in the subheadings with writing.
This is actually the easy part!
Since you already know how your blog will flow, filling in the missing parts will be a piece of cake.
Step #7: Edit and Publish Your Guide
When you edit, you aren’t only looking for spelling and grammar mistakes.
You’re looking at the overall picture.
Ask yourself: will readers learn what they’re looking for when they read my blog?
Will they be able to accomplish what they came here for?
If the answer is yes, your ultimate guide is on a good path!
The Key to the Kingdom
Ultimate guides on your blog will greatly help your audience achieve their dreams (whether these dreams are big or small).
They’ll also set you up as an authority figure in your niche. Personally, this is my favorite type of blog. Although, that’s not **to say those other blog types can’t be equally successful!
They can…and they are.
However, since definitive guides leave no stone unturned, you may find yourself writing for hours and hours on end.
That being said, my advice to you is only choose this type of blog if you’re prepared to do a lot of writing……or spend a lot of money outsourcing it!
No matter what type of blog you choose, as long as you remain consistent I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that you’ll reap the benefits.
Consistency is key to making money with affiliate marketing.
I know, I know, you’ve heard it before a million times before…..but I’ll continue to say it a million times more.
Only because it truly is the key to the affiliate marketing kingdom.
How to Start an Affiliate Marketing Blog
The truth is, there are a ton of blog types out there.
But not all types of blogs make money.
To succeed in the world of blogging, you need to pick wisely.
You also need to plan your monetization strategy before you start, so you’re not wasting your time with a blog that has limited earning potential.
Don’t worry, though.
If you’ve read this blog from start to finish, you already have a clear idea of the types of blogs that make money…
…and a handful of great monetization strategies.
So go ahead.
Pick the blogging niche that most appeals to you.
Create stellar content your audience can’t ignore.
Choose a monetization strategy and work your a$$ off.
You’ll be surprised to see how soon you can get a trickle, and then a flood, of income from your site.
How do you stand out above your competitor websites?
The biggest question you should ask yourself is this:
Why would people read MY blog instead of the many others out there?
Don’t answer that.
Instead, make sure they DO.
One way to do that is through mastering competitor analysis.
The Basics of Competitor Analysis
Competitor analysis is simple.
All you need to do is to read the top 3-5 blogs on your primary keyword.
Take note of what they’re saying.
What subheadings are they using?
What have they missed?
What things can you change and improve in your blog?
Take out a notepad and jot down your notes.
These will help you when you write your own blog on that topic.
The point of all this?
To be creative, to find ways to make your blog the BEST on that topic.
How to Blog Better than Competitors
1. Take a Different Angle
Can’t beat your competitors at their game?
Try to be unique.
Slant your writing, take a different angle from your competitors.
2. Make Your Writing More Engaging
Your readers go online to be entertained.
With that in mind, can you make your writing more fun?
More engaging?
More personalized?
If yes, you got your edge over the competition.
3. Add Infographics or Charts
Go all out with your effort.
Summarize your blogs with attractive charts and images.
Do everything you can to entertain your readers.
Before you publish any blog, make sure it’s better than all its competitors.
If you do this regularly, you’ll be surprised to find yourself ranking on the top slots on Google.
I always say, don’t re-invent the wheel – do what is already working. Then make it better.
In other words, look at the other websites in your niche (that you know are successful).
Learn what it is that makes it so successful in the first place.
All you have to do is find some way to make it a bit better.
That will be your recipe for success.
Choose the right affiliate partner
There are LOTS of affiliate partners out there.
Just one quick Google search and you’ll be flooded with hundreds and thousands of choices.
Now, it can be tempting to join as many as you can.
But that isn’t the best way to go.
Instead, you need to know what makes a good affiliate partner.
And this is what we’ll be looking at in this lesson.
How Many Affiliate Partners Should You Have?
Ideally, you’ll want to have multiple affiliate partners.
Not too much.
Not too little.
You might not be valuable to the companies if you have too many affiliate partners.
Your promotions will be split and diluted.
And remember, you want to be valuable to your affiliate partners.
If so, you can even ask them to give you higher commissions, special perks and features, and all those goodies.
On the other hand, if you have too few partners, that can mean fewer affiliate sales.
This is especially true if you have a review website — you’ll want most of the products you review to be affiliates.
So it won’t matter if the reader chooses the first or second or third product — you’ll get a sale.
Also, if you have different affiliates to promote, you can be honest about your reviews.
You won’t be totally biased about one product and say all the negative things about the other products.
Yes.
It’s up to you to decide how many affiliate partners you want.
But it’s a good idea to keep the number balanced.
Again, not too much but not too little also.
As traffic starts to pour in, and sales start to come through, you can look for other programs to join.
QUICK TIP:
If you’re just starting out, it’s a good idea to focus on one affiliate partner for now.
What to Look for in an Affiliate Partner
Here are the 3 Things an Affiliate Partner should have if you want to be rich with affiliate marketing:
- At least 10% commission payout
- Longer cookie duration
- Comes with dedicated affiliate managers
Let’s look at each one.
- At Least 10% Commission Payout.
Yes, a 10% commission payout is ideal.
But there are some instances when a lower commission payout is okay — take the Amazon Associates program for example.
Their payout isn’t great — it’s only around 4-6%.
However, Amazon is a trusted online company — and people don’t have any problems buying from them.
In other words, Amazon is very good at converting sales.
What’s more, if your visitors click your affiliate link, you can get a commission even if they buy other products on Amazon — not necessarily the product you promoted.
So for that, it doesn’t matter if the commission payout is low. You can very likely get lots of sales and commission.
But generally, for other affiliate programs, I recommend at least 10% or close to it.
On top of that, try to promote products that are a bit more expensive — so you can earn more.
- A Longer Cookie Life!
No, I’m not talking about the sweet, yummy treat.
Instead, when you send someone over to an affiliate website or product, a window commission will open.
This is for when you’ll get a commission.
Let me explain this further.
Amazon Associates usually has a cookie life of 24 hours.
So your customer has to purchase something within that timeframe for you to earn a commission.
If the cookie expires, the sale won’t be credited to you.
Now, for smaller affiliate companies, you can enjoy a 30 or even 90-day cookie life.
But for companies with a bit more reputation, like Amazon Associates, the cookie life might be a lot shorter.
I recommend going for longer cookie life for a better chance at sales.
However, if you feel like a big company can convert instant sales, then maybe a short cookie life is good enough.
Just keep these things in mind as you look for a good affiliate partner.
- Dedicated Affiliate Managers
The last thing you should look for is dedicated affiliate managers.
And this is SO important.
A lot of the work can be lifted from your shoulders.
Dedicated affiliate managers can help with:
- Managing your affiliate program
- Testing and conversion rates
- Increasing your commission rates
- Getting a longer cookie life
- Special affiliate links that are shorter and look cleaner
- Answering questions about the program
- And much more!
It’s especially great if you build a strong relationship with your affiliate manager.
Trust me — this will make it so much easier for you.
Behind every great affiliate marketer, is a great affiliate manager.
When choosing an affiliate program, having a dedicated affiliate manager can be the link to your success! That said, always try to find an affiliate program that has an affiliate manager — yes, even if the commission is lower.
Best Affiliate Programs for Beginners
O.k. so just a quick RECAP. Because this type of stuff is important!
What makes a good affiliate program for beginners?
When choosing an affiliate program, you are setting yourself up for major success if the affiliate program offers the following:
- Make sure they have at least a 10% commission rate — or if not, have high conversation rates.
- It’s better if the cookie life is longer — but it won’t matter if you’re sure the company has a good reputation and can catch sales right away.
- Get a program with a dedicated affiliate manager — this will make your life so much easier as they will help you with a lot of things.
So now you know what makes a good affiliate partner.
How to Find a Profitable Affiliate Partner
We already talked about what makes a good affiliate partner…
Now, it’s time to look into HOW to find a good affiliate partner.
Before I begin, keep in mind that it’s better to build up your website first.
You’ll want a website that’s already getting traffic and sending referrals to products for free.
Trust me — this will make it a lot easier to partner with affiliate programs, especially the higher-end ones.
That said, let’s dive into this part!
3 Ways to Find A Good Affiliate Partner Fast
Here are some of the ways you can find a good affiliate partner:
- Do a good olé Google search
- Join trustworthy affiliate networks
- Search for specific brands to partner with
Let’s look at these 3 points in greater detail:
1. A Good Olé Google Search
My favorite way to find a good affiliate partner is to simply do a Google search.
So I’ll type in my niche — let’s say real estate — and add “affiliate program” at the end.
My search will look like this: “phone case affiliate program”.
And as always, the top websites that pop up are usually very good sources.
What’s more, these sources may have lists upon lists of affiliate programs to choose from — with a bit of the important details, too.
You can go through the top websites and their lists and find a program that catches your attention.
From there, you can do a deeper dive into the specific program you’re interested in — check how trustworthy the company is, what products they offer, the program details, and all that.
And if you’re happy with what you see, you can find an affiliate form to fill out.
2. Join Trustworthy Affiliate Networks
There are LOTS of affiliate networks that offer all sorts of affiliate programs for any and all niches.
The MOST POPULAR Affiliate Networks are:
- CJ (Commission Junction)
- Amazon Associates
- Impact
- ClickBank
- ShareASale
What’s an affiliate network you ask?
Basically, an affiliate network is a central hub where companies can add their own affiliate programs.
You (as the affiliate) can apply to join those programs. Some may have restrictions, but for the most part anyone can apply to join.
Naturally, one question always comes to (everyone’s) mind………
What is the best affiliate network to join?
To answer that, I’m going to give you some basic pros and cons of the 5 most popular networks (mentioned in the list above).
ClickBank
Pros:
- Offers a dedicated account manager
Cons:
- Programs usually have old-fashioned landing pages
- Many programs can look like scams (and actually are scams)
ShareASale
Pros:
- Has better UX than ClickBank programs
- Has some big companies there
Cons:
- Also has many scam programs – in other words, choose carefully!
Amazon Associates
Pros:
- The most popular network today
- You can get a commission for other products through your affiliate link (even if it isn’t the product you promoted)
- Has a very high conversion rate (buyers trust Amazon)
- Has other ways to earn money with them
Cons:
- Just deals with Amazon products
- Doesn’t have the highest commission payouts
- Tend to cancel affiliate partners very quickly (if you “go against their policies”)
CJ (Commission Junction)
Pros:
- Only offers high-quality affiliate programs
- You can find lots of big companies here
- Great UX
- Has high standards of who they allow to be part of their network
- Has a network earning gauge
Cons:
- Program selections might be limited (depending on your niche)
Impact
Pros:
- Has different programs for each niche
- Has legit companies that offer high-quality affiliate programs
- May have higher payouts for the same company in a different network
Cons:
- Also has limited programs to choose from
As you can see from these, CJ and Impact always offer top-quality affiliate partners — unlike other networks like ClickBank and ShareASale.
And yes, these are only the top 5 affiliate networks.
There are so many other networks that you can look into — just do a quick Google search.
But remember it’s ALWAYS better to join affiliate networks that have a great reputation.
3. Search for Specific Brands to Partner With
Okay, okay.
So far, we’ve been looking for affiliate partners in listicles and networks.
But it’s also a good idea to search for specific brands — especially brands that are already established.
Let’s say your website is aimed at Dog Collars.
You’ll want to find stores online that sell dog collars and check if they have an affiliate program.
To do that, I would simply do the following:
- Search for “buy dog collars” on Google.
- See which websites are on top to indicate which ones are doing good — some of the top selling dog collar stores are PetSmart and Amazon.
- List down the sites you want to check out.
- One by one, search the store name and add “affiliate program” — so if you’re looking into Pet Smart you search ‘“Pet Smart” “affiliate program”’.
- If there is an available affiliate program, you can click that and fill out the form.
- If there is no program available, you can check the next store on your list!
Of course, this is just an example.
For whichever niche you decide to work with, and whatever specific brand you want to promote, it’s very easy to find an affiliate program with a simple search like this.
Heck, you can even look for an affiliate program of a brand that you personally use and love!
Listen, the truth is you can find good affiliate partners EVERYWHERE, if you know where to look and how.
You won’t have a problem finding affiliate partners.
As long as you do your research, you’re in good hands.
So let’s say you already built up your website, and you already formed affiliate partnerships.
But you’re looking for more ways to monetize your website.
Well, you’re in luck because there are (always) other ways to make money!
And we’re going to look at them right now.
4 Extra Ways to Make Money from Your Website
Here are 4 more clever ways you can monetize your website which tend to be the most popular, which leads me to assume they’re the most popular for a reason.
Perhaps they’re the most profitable? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section, at the end of this guide!
- Display advertising
- Sell your own products
- Dropshipping
- Premium services
Let’s go over them, one at a time!
1. Display Advertising
Besides earning from affiliate marketing, lots of bloggers also take advantage of display advertising.
But there are some things you should know about this type of monetization.
Some facts about display advertising:
- You get paid per click
- Need at least 200-300 visitors per day to earn
- Once you have a steady stream of traffic, having display advertising is pretty passive.
- You can use a plug-in to help you display ads where you want
- It runs 24/7
- Can generate revenue without any extra effort
Cons of display advertising:
- Can take away from your affiliate sales
- Can make your site look scammy
- Most people don’t like clicking on ads
The top 3 display advertising networks:
- Google Adsense — This doesn’t have requirements in terms of how much traffic you’re getting.
- Mediavine — Comes with a few traffic requirements. This network is unique in that it will test tests different AD placements on your website to try to maximize revenue.
- Media.net — Comes with website and traffic requirements, but can earn significantly more than
Adsense.
2. Sell Your Own Products
Sure, you’re probably already selling products from your affiliate partners…
But that doesn’t mean you can’t sell your own.
This is especially true if you’re already earning good revenue and can afford something like this.
Here are some top products that you can consider selling:
- A course — You can give courses away for free that promote your affiliate products within the course. OR, you can charge for the course and give people more information on your expertise, especially if you have established yourself as an authority in your niche.
- Audiobook/ebook — Some well-established authority websites promote their ebooks to clients who want to get more insight into their products. If you’re creating something in the professional or coaching niche, this could work really well. However, this isn’t a very popular product at the moment.
- Physical products — Depending on your niche, you can create your own physical products that you can sell on your site. You can also cross-sell these products through Amazon, Etsy, etc.
Before that, it’s wise to consider if it’s worth selling your own physical products.
The advantage of affiliate marketing is you don’t have to deal with selling your own products or service. Affiliate marketing can be a lot less stressful.
3. Dropshipping
Okay, here’s one that’s a bit more complex.
I don’t usually recommend this strategy — but who knows, it just might suit YOU.
What is dropshipping?
It’s outside services, like a warehouse, that have a bunch of products for sale. Here, you can pick and choose which ones you want to sell.
When you choose a product to sell, dropshipping takes care of everything such as the payment, processing, shipping, returns, customer service, etc.
All you do is advertise.
This is similar to affiliate marketing except that you will manage an inventory on your website.
But there are some cons to this.
For one, profit margins can be pretty small.
Another thing is that you don’t have much say in the products and services that you can sell.
4. Premium Services
You can create a premium membership where members get exclusive things.
A good example of this is YouTube influencers.
You can find a lot of these Youtubers with a Patreon.
Here, they share exclusive content for members only — for a price.
So if their viewers enjoy the FREE content, then they might want to check out the exclusive ones, too.
This is a premium service.
Your premium service can be anything within your niche.
And if you have authority, you will also have dedicated followers who are willing to pay a monthly, yearly, or one-time fee to get access to premium content.
Another thing that is becoming popular is asking for donations.
If your followers are REALLY dedicated, you can have them donate to you so you can come out with even more and better content.
Conclusion
Yes, you should focus on affiliate marketing for at least 1 year before you start working on other earning projects.
This way, it will be easier for you.
But once you’re getting decent traffic and revenue, and maybe even have authority in your niche, then you can look into these 4 other ways to make money.
- Display advertising through Google Adsense, Mediavine, Media.net, and lots more.
- Sell your own products whether courses, audiobooks/ebooks/, or physical items.
- Take part in dropshipping.
- Create a premium service for your dedicated followers.
And that ends our chapter on monetization.
Affiliate Marketing and SEO Techniques
SEO is very important.
So in the following lessons, we’re going to deep dive into the world of SEO.
We’ll show you how to optimize your website to bring in that FREE search traffic.
But first…
Let’s introduce you to the basics.
What is SEO?
SEO stands for ‘Search Engine Optimization’.
Now, there are lots of ways to get people on your website.
Big businesses use paid advertising.
Influencers use social media. Others turn to Youtube.
But for affiliate marketers, we rely heavily on Google search traffic.
Why?
This is because search traffic allows you to get highly targeted visitors.
Let’s say someone is searching for ‘best online real estate schools in California’.
If your article on that topic is one of the first results that pop up, you’re getting a visitor that’s already ready to buy but is just waiting for someone to help them with their final decision.
This kind of traffic converts.
And the best part?
Google is running 24/7. So even when you’re asleep, the traffic can keep coming.
SEO will help put your website on top of the SERP.
Can You Rank Well with a New Site?
Okay, okay.
I’ll admit.
For the first 6 months or so of your new website, the chances of ranking in Google are quite low.
And I believe this is because of “Google sandbox”.
This term basically means that Google waits before sending you traffic.
It waits until you build your site up, build a reputation, have at least some authority in your niche, and all that.
Kind of like a probation period.
So even if you do all the right SEO techniques, don’t expect a rush of traffic right away.
It’s normal for Google to not rank you highly in the search results for the first 6 months to a year, depending on your niche.
What does Google want from YOU?
It’s simple actually.
Google wants people to find the information they’re searching for as quickly as possible.
Before, some 15-20 years ago, Google ranked sites highly based on link building and keywords on pages.
It wasn’t efficient enough to figure out what content was actually good.
Nowadays, Google looks at complicated metrics and algorithms.
Suppose someone visits your site and then immediately goes out and looks at another site.
This tells Google that your site didn’t give that person the answers they were looking for.
On the flip side, if that visitor stays on your site, goes around, and maybe ends up clicking an affiliate link and making a purchase — that is going to inform Google that the website is good and should be ranked highly.
What’s more, Google looks at certain signals.
And because of this, you will have to write content that’s not just for your visitors — but for Google, too.
I know, I know. It’s confusing. Don’t I know it. Just remember, I was where you are once! You do not have to be an experienced internet marketer to do this, not by any means!
But to help you, there are 4 branches of SEO that you should focus on.
4 branches of SEO
They are:
- On-page SEO
- Off-page SEO
- Technical SEO
- Content
1. Content
As I’ve already said, you need to write content for both your visitors AND Google.
I’ll give you an example of what I mean.
Take my real estate license training website.
We do a lot of real estate school reviews there.
Now, say I want to rank in Google for “best online real estate schools in California”.
If I don’t include that keyword in my content, then Google won’t know and so won’t rank me for that search phrase.
This is why always put the search phrases you want to rank for in the content.
Of course, that’s just one example — we go into further detail about this in future lessons.
But you get the idea of why you should optimize your content for search engine results.
2. On-Page SEO
Another way to rank highly in Google is through on-page SEO.
Besides content, there are things you can do on your website itself.
Let’s go back to our example.
I upload an image to my article and change the file name to “best online real estate schools in California”.
Google will see that and know what the specific page on your website is about.
Little things like this will help send the right signals to Google.
3. Off-Page SEO
Okay, I don’t do a whole lot of off-page SEO for my websites.
But it’s still a good strategy to send Google the right signals.
Simply put…
Off-page SEO is getting other websites to link to your website.
Say a big website, like CNN.com, links to my “best online real estate schools in California’ article.
Google is going to see that and get confidence that my article is something they should take a bigger look at.
Alright.
Maybe you won’t get a link from CNN.com.
But there are many other big websites that you can reach out to.
You can contact a website owner and offer to write content for them for FREE — the only condition is you will add a link to your article.
This is called guest blogging.
If you get a whole lot of links from blogs and websites that are authoritative and doing well, you’ll help your website go up the ranks.
Hold up…
You should know that there are some risks to link building.
I mean, there have been lots of people that abuse this.
Buying links…
Exchanging links with other website owners…
And all that.
Remember, Google doesn’t want artificial links — it wants natural links going to your site.
Links that you didn’t even ask for…
Links that are added because your content is just too good.
If done right, off-page SEO is going to help your site greatly.
4. Technical SEO
As the name suggests, this focuses on the more technical side of SEO.
Google doesn’t just look for AWESOME content — but also that your website provides a great user experience.
One big example that I can think of is how fast your website loads.
If your website takes 20 seconds to load and your competitors only take 3 seconds…
Well, I don’t need to tell you who Google will favor.
But don’t worry too much.
WordPress takes a lot of care of that. It optimizes your site to run fast and provides an excellent user experience.
So most of the technical stuff will be taken care of automatically.
That’s not to say there’s no way to help, though.
When it comes to speed, you can reduce the size of images so it loads faster and so on.
I don’t want to sound like a broken record — but it’s super important, seriously!
What is the Most Important Part of SEO?
Of the 4 branches of SEO to focus on, you might be wondering…
What’s the most important?
CONTENT.
Writing your articles for both the search engine and visitors.
This is, by far, the one thing that can boost your website to the top.
And this is why I write so much about content.
Although for now, we’ll get into specifics about on-page SEO, off-page SEO, and technical SEO first.
Don’t worry though, I will teach you ALL you need to know about these techniques!
On-Page SEO
On-Page SEO is one of the more important branches of SEO to focus on.
And we’re going to learn all about that here.
For this lesson, I’ll divide it into two sections.
In the first part, I’ll answer these questions:
- What is On-Page SEO
- Why is On-Page SEO important?
Second part, I’ll give you an On-Page SEO checklist. This will help you go over everything you need before publishing any article on your website.
This is going to be an in-depth lesson.
So let’s get started!
What is On-Page SEO?
Before anything else, it’s important to understand the WHAT.
What exactly is On-Page SEO?
Well, when you publish an article, two questions pop up…
- How does Google know which keyword you’re trying to rank for?
- How else can you reach your target audience even if they don’t type the exact keyword you were targeting?
The answer to both questions is — you got it — On-Page SEO.
Good On-Page SEO will send signals to Google, letting them know precisely what keyword you’re trying to rank for.
And this will increase your chances of ranking high in the SERP.
Aside from that, good On-Page SEO also reaches those people that you want to read your article but they don’t type the exact keyword.
Is On-Page SEO Important?
You can spend hours doing keyword research…
Writing AWESOME content…
Putting a lot of effort into your article…
But without good On-Page SEO optimization, it won’t reach the people you want it to reach once you click publish.
In other words, you can put so much effort but get very little results.
So that’s what On-Page SEO is and that’s why it’s important.
Now, let’s move on to our On-Page SEO checklist.
Your On-Page SEO Checklist
Welcome to your On-Page SEO checklist, which I like to call my SEO Bible.
If you do just one thing for SEO…….let it be this checklist!
I have divided this checklist into 6 different categories:
The categories are:
- Pre-check
- Title, introduction, and headings
- Images
- Links
- More optimization
- Yoast box
This checklist is in the order that you do things.
So after writing an article or blog post, you can go over it step-by-step.
Alright! Let’s take a peek into the different categories shall we?
Pre-Check
There are 2 points that you need to keep in mind for the pre-check.
These are:
- Check keyword cannibalization
- Make sure articles have 1,000+ words
The first point is rather simple.
Keyword cannibalization is if you have 2 articles that target the same keyword.
You don’t want this since both articles will be competing with each other.
I mean, you want to compete against your competitors — not yourself.
More than that, Google’s algorithm doesn’t allow you to have 2 different articles ranking for the same keyword.
So you’ll probably just be wasting your time.
Now, to avoid keyword cannibalization, it’s a good idea to create a keyword list sheet.
The second point is very simple, too.
Rule of Thumb: Make your articles have 1,000+ words – at least.
In fact, I’d go so far as to say make it at least 1,500 words.
Why?
Again, this is something that the Google algorithm favors nowadays.
You’ll have a hard time ranking with articles below the 1,000-point word count. It’s even harder if your competitors have articles with more words.
Recently, a BuzzSumo study was conducted which found that blog posts between 3,000-10,00 words are shared the most often.
Furthermore, Backlinko did their own analysis where they did a deep dive to learn what 1st page rankings on Google had articles with an average word count of 1,894.
Title, Introduction, and Headings
For this category, these are the points you need to look into:
- Keyword in title
- Keyword in introduction
- Keyword in H2s and H3s
- Secondary keyword in H2s and H3s
These points are SUPER important as they will help Google know which keyword you want to rank for.
So never forget to put your target keyword on the title, the introduction, and in your heading 2s and 3s.
Of course, you DON’T want to add the keyword in an unnatural way – also known as keyword stuffing.
For one, Google doesn’t reward you for that. In fact, keyword stuffing these days will bring you nothing but headaches (also known as penalization)!
The biggest reason Google hates keyword stuffing is simple. It ruins the reader’s experience.
What about point #6 – Secondary keywords in H2s and H3s?
Secondary keywords should be related to your target keyword — sort of like a different variation of it.
You want to use secondary keywords in your headings and subheadings as well.
This is all to make sure Google knows what keyword you want to rank for.
If you’re not sure what secondary keywords to use, you can check KWFinder.
Simply type in your target keyword and look at the suggested keywords given.
Images
It’s always better to use original images – photos you have taken yourself – than stock photos.
I heard of a study where they used stock photos VS random photos taken themselves.
Well, it was the site with unique photos which was awarded better SEO rankings, compared to the site that used only stock photos that many other websites online were of course using also.
Perhaps the duplicate content penalization also applies to pictures as well! It would seem so.
There are other ways to find unique images and still avoid stock photos.
Flickr.com is a nice image source for instance, as you can use Creative Commons images. Just remember to attribute the original photographer.
I also really like the images provided by sites like Unsplash.
Note: even though animated GIFs are fun to use, don’t go overboard. It will distract your readers’ attention and they can also slow down your page.
I typically pass on animation if not just for the fact that it slows down your site.
JPEG vs PNG
Good question! The average person probably has no idea which one to use, when or why!
- JPG
Should be used for large photos and pictures. Enhances colors and clarity!
- PNG
Should be used if you have a transparent background. Preserves background transparency!
- WEBP
Get the best of both worlds and use WEBP. Better resolution all around, particularly with smaller file sizes. Tools such as Squoosh can convert your images into WebP.
- SVG
Doing a Logo or Icon? Use SVG. The results will be higher quality with smaller images like this. Not just that but you can re-size them without losing quality.
There are two ways you can optimize your images for On-Page SEO.
- Keyword to image file names
- Image alt text
Say you write your article on Google Docs or Notion — content, headings, images, the whole shebang!
You then copy the whole thing and paste it into WordPress.
Well just hold your horses!
You see, almost everyone does this but many don’t realize it’s actually bad for your SEO because your images won’t be optimized!
Instead of pasting those images, you want to upload each image with your keyword as the file name.
That’s right, you must manually upload your images and make the name of the image your keyword.
This “SEO trick” will work wonders, but you have to take the time to actually do it. There are no short cuts.
But just think, you only have to do this once and you’ll never have to do it again.
The image file name should not only contain your target keyword but should also be exactly what the image is showing.
The reason for this is that when Google crawls your page, they will get a very strong idea of what keyword you want to rank for — there will be no doubt about it anymore.
But wait, there’s more!
A lot of people actually go to pages from image searches and this is just one of the ways you can get traffic to your pages.
Let’s move on to the second point — image alt text.
Once your image is uploaded, you can click it and add ‘alt text’
This helps your visitors know what the image is without seeing it. But it also makes you rank higher since this is one of the things that Google bots search for.
So as you can tell, adding alt text is nothing but a win-win for you. Don’t skip this step, no matter how trivial it may sound. Everything matters.
Make sure to include your keyword naturally in the alt text, as it helps with accessibility and search engine optimization (SEO).
Don’t just type in a bunch of keywords. Google recognizes it as keyword stuffing and that will do more hard than good.
I still see people make this mistake a lot.
Links
Internal linking is SO, so important!
Better yet, it’s important that you do it CORRECTLY.
This is where most people get it wrong – and then they start to wonder why their website isn’t ranking well, despite their efforts.
I knew a guy (named Guy!) who had been blogging for about 1 1/2 yrs. He had a great blog w/ interesting content that was posted often, along with many high quality backlinks. But despite his efforts, his rankings were poor! He begged me to check it out.
Well, the problem was that Guy was so focused on off-page SEO and getting backlinks , that he completely disregarded his internal links!
Which by the way…..are just as important!
As well as having a handful of broken links on his site (which can also lower rankings), the majority of his pages contained no links to other pages or blog posts on his site! So aside from his menu bar, Google was having a difficult time analyzing his site due to his poor page structure.
It’s like going through one of those big mazes (think hedge maze from “The Shining”) and although you’ll eventually get through it, you’re confronted with a bunch of dead ends. You feel like you’re going in circles just to find your way through; forwards and backwards, one dead end after another, until finally you make it through.
Except mazes are supposed to be frustrating, which is what makes them so fun!
But when your website feels like a maze, Google doesn’t find it fun or amusing.
The result? Penalization.
So, the lesson being……don’t poke the bear!

The Link Checklist
Here are the 3 points for your links checklist:
- Internal links
- High-quality external links
- No follow affiliate links
For internal links, you’ll want to add links to other pages on your website — especially the important or main pages.
It’s best to have a bunch of smaller articles linking to one bigger article.
This will help with site structure.
I have studied a lot of the most successful bloggers online, and this is one thing I have noticed with almost all of them.
On their website, they’ll have their main “money maker” pages, which are usually long, in-depth blog posts. On average there’s about a dozen different “money maker” pages – but this is up to you.
An example of a “money maker” post could be “The Complete Guide to ______”.
Now, pointing to your main pages, are many shorter blog posts which compliment your main posts – usually by writing about topics related to the “money maker” page keyword (as each post you write should be centered around one specific keyword you want to rank on).
So let’s say my niche is on “Parrots” again, and one of my main “money maker” pages is “Parrot Care Guide”.
Well, one way I like to find ideas for my topics is to type in the main page keyword/keyphrase into Google search.
So I type in: “Parrot care guide”
Now, scroll down to the very bottom of the search results.
This is what I get when I look up “parrot care guide”:

Every time you do a search, Google will show you a list of additional searched keyphrases that they feel are similar and relevant to what you are searching.
In other words Google is saying “hey, we think this is something you might like”.
And well, as we all know by now, what Google thinks is important is what we need to be focusing on. It’s not what we think is important, it’s what Google thinks is important.
It’s their search engine, so we gotta play by their rules!
You want to get on the first page of Google right?
Well, by displaying content on your website that GOOGLE thinks is important, that GOOGLE thinks their users will like, that GOOGLE feels is relevant, your chances of moving up in the Google world just got better!
So what better way of finding out what Google thinks your audience will enjoy, than asking them yourself!
That’s what makes this technique a powerful one, and great for SEO. The answers are all there, you just have to “search” for them.

As for high-quality external links, this means adding links to pages from other websites.
This is simply done to give Google a clear picture of what your website is about.
When you can, link to big websites in your niche.
But it’s important you ”no-follow” all of your affiliate links.
No-follow just means that you’re not going to be sending any “link juice”.
Let me explain.
One of Google’s ranking factors is how many people are linking to your page.
So the more links you get from other websites, the more chances of a better ranking.
This goes both ways.
If you use external links, you’re giving that other website a vote of confidence.
Now, if you select no-follow on your link, Google is not going to consider that a vote of confidence.
The reason why you want to no-follow affiliate links is that you’re going to be adding a lot of these links to your article.
If Google sees that, they might suspect you as a link hub or selling links for money — something that Google hates and penalizes.
I know, I know…..it can be a bit confusing!
But in a nutshell, make sure to no-follow your affiliate links to avoid the suspicion that you are selling links for money.
It’s easy you just have to remember – that’s why I am here to remind you 😉
More Optimizations
For even more On-Page SEO optimization, you should go over these miscellaneous items:
- Featured snippets
- Voice search
- Call-to-action
In this day and age, more and more people are using voice search.
Instead of typing their questions, they voice them out to Google.
So you’ll want to optimize for that, too.
One way to do this is to make your headings sound like a person is saying it.
In addition, you should also add voice search, especially in FAQ articles.

The next thing you want to optimize for is featured snippets.
A featured snippet gives you the answer to your question without having to click on any article.
Like this:

As you can see, you get your answer right away — followed by some details.
This is very powerful, particularly for smaller websites.
This is because you don’t actually need to win the “SEO” game to be featured.
All you need is a very good featured snippet.
With that, you can jump ahead of all those BIG websites.
Alright.
Don’t get your hopes too high.
Featured snippets are a bit difficult to aim for.
But there’s nothing wrong with optimizing for it — you just might get the feature!
To do this, simply create a question as a heading and answer it right away.
You want to be very direct with your answer.
When someone types the question in Google, there’s a big chance that your answer will be the featured snippet.
Another miscellaneous thing you want to optimize is a call for action.
One of the things you really want to do in your article is to try and get people to act.
Say you’re writing a product review.
You’ll want the conclusion to call the readers to buy the product.
For traditional affiliate websites, the call will always be to buy a product through your affiliate link, so you can earn a commission.
Yoast
Last but not least, we have the Yoast .
What’s great about Yoast SEO is that it allows you to make a lot of small optimizations.
These are the points to consider:
- Different H1 and meta title
- Keyword in meta description
- Keyword in URL
- Short URLs
Your H1 (or Heading 1) is the title of your article.
Your meta title (or SEO title), on the other hand, is the title that appears on Google’s SERP.
The reason why people do this is because they want the meta title to be optimized for the search engine.
So it should have the target keyword.
It should be short enough to fit all the words.
For the article title (H1), you can get super descriptive.
It will make your visitors want to read more.
But again, *don’t forget…….*it should also include your target keyword.
O.k. here is an example:
Let’s say the keyword for your blog post is “how to start a blog”
I might do my meta title as:
“How to Start a Blog for Money“
However, my H1 tag might be:
“Learn the Most Profitable Way to Start a Blog Quickly!”
As you can see, H1 is too long for the search engine so you wouldn’t use it for your meta title. However, it works perfectly as the title to get the readers excited!
What about the meta description?
The meta description is just a short description of the blog post found under the meta title.
By default, Google gets segments from your article and makes it the meta description.
But you want to make a better one — so that when people read it, they get a better idea of what your article is about and to make them more intrigued to click on it.
You can change the meta description on the Yoast box shown under the blog post editor, in WordPress.
“Maya Water’s no-BS approach on how to start a blog that makes money”
Remember, Google is far from stupid, and it knows when you are trying to keyword stuff.
Again, as you notice, I made sure to include the target keyword here, as well.
Don’t ever forget that.
he last thing is to optimize is your URL. Last sure, but certainly NOT least!
This is one of the easiest, yet one of the most important on-page SEO rules to follow.
It’s called WordPress Slugs.
WordPress slugs are crucial to your SEO, there’s no way around it!
Slugs pertain to the way you format your URL. Which can (and WILL!) make or break your site and its SERP results.
Besides the quality of your content, the quality of your slugs are as important. Because just as you would optimize your content with keywords, you absolutely must do the same with your URL (aka slug).

Remember Google is all about “user experience”. Which means they do everything they can to ensure their users find what they’re looking for! What better way to do this than to analyze your URL to ensure it’s relevant to them!
So by helping Google understand what your post or page is about simply by looking at the URL, you’re improving your chance to get first page search results.
So use the target keyword in your slug, on every single page of your site.
Just take your target keyword and make it as short as possible.
Refer to the slug checklist below to ensure you’re maximizing your SEO potential.
Under the “slug” field in WP, enter what you want to show up in the URL.

Note: If for some reason it still doesn’t show up as it should, head over to your WP dashboard and under “settings” click on “permalinks” and change “plain” to “post name”.
Your slugs should stick to the following guidelines……
SLUG CHECKLIST:
- Use dashes to separate words for ease of reading
- Remove special symbols
- Use all lower case letters
- Remove stop words such as “a”, “at”, “the” and “it”. While Google won’t penalize you for using them, a slug is just easy to read without them.
Important TIP!
One more important thing to point out – don’t change slug after you’ve already published content.
If you do that, your SEO will go down the toilet!
A change like that, after you’ve already published, will cause you to lose your sites’ positioning. Not just the pages’ positioning – the website itself. So again, a big NO NO.
But (I know I know, there’s always a “but” lol), in case you do need and want to do so, you can do it with this plugin without losing your current ranking.
It’s called “Redirection”; a free WP plugin used to redirect.
So once you have changed the slug, you simply create a redirect – which just links the old slug to the new slug.
You now have a complete checklist for all your On-Page SEO optimization.
Don’t forget to go over these points before publishing every blog post.
Remember, it will help Google know what target keyword you want to rank for — giving you a much higher chance to rank.
And with a high-ranking post, you’ll receive more traffic and (hopefully) many, may more affiliate commissions.
Now, for the next lesson, we’re going to focus on Off-Page SEO.
This has to do with external links.
If you were confused about the “link juice” I mentioned here, then the next lesson dives deep into that.
After Off-Page SEO, we then have the Technical SEO. This shows you how “healthy” your website is.
Excited stuff ahead!
What is Off-Page SEO?
When it comes to ranking on Google, Google doesn’t only look at the things on your website (or On-Page SEO).
There are also several signals outside your website that Google will look at to determine where your page should be on the search engine rankings!
Working to create these outside signals is what is known as off-page SEO, which is the topic of this lesson!
Don’t Put a Lot of Work into Off-Page SEO!
Here’s a secret!
I don’t put a lot of work into our off-page SEO anymore.
Since off-page SEO happens outside your website, you often don’t have full control over it.
That is why I have decided to take a more natural approach…..by building quality websites with amazing content.
Not gonna lie, it would be so much easier to throw up some AI generated content and call it a day! Instead I just focus on creating great content, and the off-page factors usually take care of themselves.
You see, Google has stated multiple times anyways that they want off-page SEO factors to come naturally.
However, many people try to manipulate off-page SEO.
This is a risky game since if you’re caught, Google can penalize your website.
And instead of your rankings going up, they’ll drop very far down instead.
So be careful!
But again, knowing how off-page SEO works is still very important – even if you aren’t going to try to manipulate it.
But Google gets smarter and more advanced each and every day, and pretty soon they’re going to know instantly if you are trying to “cheat the system” with fishy off-change
Notable Types of Off-Page SEO
Three main factors affect off-page SEO – one BIG one and two slightly smaller ones.
The smaller ones are social media and brand mentions…
Social Media
One small and simple way to boost your off-page SEO is to create social media accounts.
If you stay active on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, or other social media platforms, this signals to Google (and to your readers) that you are an active website.
How much having social media affects SERP rankings is up for debate.
But it certainly lets people know that you are a new and active website!
Brand Mentions
Another minor off-page SEO factor is brand mentions.
If you do something newsworthy, many people are going to mention your name.
And if many people are talking about you in either social media or in news articles, this can boost your website too!
It’s a minor factor since most successful affiliate marketers never really work on brand mentions.
But now for the BIGGEST off-page SEO factor…
Links
The most important thing in off-page SEO is links.

When another website adds a link to your website, that is a link.
Links help Google determine your website’s quality, trustworthiness, and authority. Because Google views links as a “vote of confidence.”
In a nutshell:
More links = more people trust your website.
More people trust your website = Google trusts your website more.
Google trusts your website = higher ranking in the SERP.
Therefore, more links = higher ranking in the SERP.
Of course, it’s a little bit more complicated than that.
Google also takes into account the quality of these links.
If you have a gadgets website, a link from an authority site like Apple.com, or Samsung.com will affect your off-page SEO a lot more than a random blog that nobody reads.
Furthermore, it also helps to get links from websites in your niche. A link from a website about clothing isn’t going to help you as much as a link from a website that has something to do with gadgets – such as a photography website, a cellphone website, etc.
However, nobody knows the exact algorithm that Google uses to determine your off-page SEO strength.
However, these principles – links from high-quality websites and links from websites in your niche – are the known factors to help you rank better!
The ONLY Google Approved Link Building Method
What is it?
Well… it’s basically doing nothing.
All it is, is to write the best content that you possibly can.
When you write something that everybody is looking for, you make it the best possible version of that information on the internet.
Do this, and you’re going to get links naturally!
Because when your articles are helpful and definitive, lots of people decide to link to it on their websites.
Don’t worry too much! Because in reality, Google knows when people like your content! You will not have to go out of your way to say “hey! look over here! I have good content!”
This is how links should be built – create great content that people absolutely WANT to link to, without even asking them to do it. Write it and they will come.
By writing amazing content that’s helpful and authoritative, we never have to worry about building links using other methods.

Smart Tip:
When you’re planning your keywords, you want to have a healthy mix of informative content.
You don’t just want to write reviews and listicles that can get you affiliate sales – you want to include articles that teach people, even if you can’t sell anything on them.
These informational articles are the ones that will bring in natural links for you.
When I compare my informational content to my reviews and listicles, I usually find that I get far more links on the informational ones! It’s not a coincidence.
Conclusion
So after all that, the bottom line is this:
Don’t worry about off-page SEO too much!
Focus more on creating a very good website that people will love.
Nothing fancy, no tricks, just good ‘ol fashioned elbow grease into making a good website.
Focus on writing great content that’s better than everything else out there.
And in the long term?
You’ll find more people link to you than you could ever ask for!
Again, it’s not that I am against link building.
But when it comes to effort vs reward, we find that it’s not worth it for us to get into thi
Next!
Technical SEO
Technical SEO has 2 sides.
On one hand, if you get technical SEO wrong, nothing else matters.
It doesn’t matter how well you write…
How well you do On-Page SEO…
How many links you get…
If Google can’t find your website due to technical SEO, nobody will read your articles — and you won’t get any affiliate sales.
On the other hand, if you build your website correctly (like how we showed you in this course), then you almost never have to think about technical SEO.
WordPress and Chemicloud will take care of that.
So in this lesson, we won’t dive into the backbone of technical SEO.
Instead, we’ll look at the more practical side — how to find potential technical SEO errors and how to fix them.
Let’s jump right in!
How to Find Technical Errors
One way to easily find technical errors in your website is by using an audit tool — such as Ahrefs Webmaster Tools.
The Ahrefs Tools will crawl your website and show you the stats.

From the image above, you can see that a health score of 76 is already good.
However, if you want to make it higher, you can scroll down and check the technical SEO issues on your website.

Of course, this isn’t the end of the world — but you should try to fix the red issues as much as possible.
Don’t worry.
If you don’t understand the problem, you can click the downward arrow and it will give you a detailed explanation.
You can even see which URLs have that problem.
This is why the Ahrefs Webmaster Tools makes it SUPER easy to find these issues.
Now, there are a lot of different potential technical SEO errors that might show up on your audit.
But it will take hours and hours to go through them all — you’ll probably not even need to bother with 95% of them.
So instead, I’ll go over the 5 most common issues and show you to fix those.
- Slow pages
- Broken links
- Orphan pages
- Mobile-friendliness
- Schema markups
Most Common Technical SEO Errors
Error #1: Slow Pages
Okay, so this isn’t a problem if you’re page is just 3 milliseconds slower than your competition.
It is a problem, however, if you have a very heavy page that’s really slow to load.
This is what might and will probably hurt your rankings .
This is why it’s sooooo important to get the fastest web hosting – and why I only use Chemicloud!

Now, you might be wondering, “How do you check your site speed?”
- Go over to Google’s own tool — pagespeed.web.dev.
- Enter your URL
- Wait for it to analyze your website speed – whether mobile or desktop
- Get your speed score
A score of 90+ means that your website is fast enough.
Your ranking won’t be hurt because of the page speed.
But what if your page speed score is below 90??
Or the Ahrefs Tools warn you that a certain page is too slow to load?
There are 2 ways you can fix this:
- Make sure that your website caching is turned on. You can usually find this in your WordPress settings.
- Make sure that your images are small. Remember, large files can really drag down your page speed.
Once you do both, try checking your page speed again and see if it improved.
Error #2: Broken Links
Broken links are a big NO-NO.

This will only ruin your website’s user experience.
I’m sure you’ve tried clicking a link before that led you nowhere — frustrating, right?
Now, broken links are most common with external links.
I mean, you never know when another site you linked to has taken the page down or moved it somewhere else.
This is why it’s important to audit your website once a month — to find those broken links and fix them.
QUICK TIP:
For internal links, you don’t want to just copy and paste a link. Instead, you want to use your WordPress internal linking feature, which allows you to just type the name of the page you want to link to and add the link automatically.
The reason for this is so that, if ever you change the URL of the linked page, it will automatically change in the pages that are linked to it.
This way, you won’t need to worry about broken links…
…as well as going through every single one of your pages and changing the links one by one!
Error #3: Orphan Pages
An orphan page is a page that has zero internal links pointing toward it.
In other words, there’s no way people can get to this page unless they type in the link directly in the search bar — which isn’t likely.
This is SO bad for your site structure.

So whenever you add a new page, ALWAYS make sure that other pages point to it.
For this, you can:
- Add the page to your website’s menu
- Add the link to the page on your website’s homepage
- Any other way to get to that page from another page
And no.
This isn’t so much a problem when it comes to posts.
This is because all of your posts will be available on a blog listing page.
Error #4: Mobile-Friendliness
If you set up your website well with WordPress and Chemicloud, they should already make your website mobile-friendly.
So this isn’t something you have to worry about too much.
BUT!
It never hurts to check your site’s mobile-friendliness once in a while.
Check your phone, tablet, and computer (on different browsers)

Every now and then, preview a newly published post in a mobile format to see what it looks like.
QUICK TIP:
When you have big tables in your post, always check what it looks like in mobile format. Sometimes tables and large images can get messed up.
Again, this isn’t something that you have to think too much about.
It’s still important to check once in a while, though — especially if your website gets a lot of visitors that use mobile phones.
Most Common Technical SEO Error #5: Schema Markups
This last potential technical SEO error is a bit different from everything else.
For the other issues, it’s more about preventing something from happening so it doesn’t hurt your site.
For schema markups, this helps increase your chances of getting more clicks and ranking higher in the Google SERP.
Here are the results of a schema markup:

As you can see, this shows more than just the title and meta description.
For this example, it shows star rating, votes, cook time, calories and of course a photo.
This is great for 2 reasons.
- It looks very attractive — and the more attractive a site looks, the more clicks it gets.
- It takes up more space in the SERP — so it’s easier for people to click.
So how do you add schema markup?
I’ll admit — it’s a bit difficult to do.
You either have to buy a premium WordPress plugin like Yoast (free version available!)
OR
You can go into coding and add that to your website.
Okay, okay.
You don’t have to add schema markup — I personally don’t use it.
However, it IS a great idea, especially for difficult keywords. This will give you that little edge to make you stand out.
Of course, you can still rank without schema markup — but it might be something you want to look into to give you an even more boost.
Remember, technical SEO is not something that you have to boggle your mind with.
However, it’s a good idea to look into some common potential technical SEO errors. There are some free tools that you can utilize to help with this!
I LOVE Ahref’s Webmaster Tools.
Ahrefs’ collection of free tools is comparable to many paid services.
Take advantage of them!
Because fixing the issues, like the ones we discussed, will ensure that you have a healthy website and will give you the best opportunity to rank high in Google.
Affiliate marketing isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a real business, and should be treated like one. Just like any business, you’ll need to put in the hard work if you want to succeed.
But if you stick to it, the results can be amazing.
You can cross that six or even seven figure mark quit your job, and live the lifestyle you dream of.
I’m no-one special. I just wanted to make money online and have the freedom to be “my own boss”. That’s why you’re here too, right?
This may sound a little cliché to say but……
If I can do it…..YOU can do it TOO!
Affiliate Marketing Tools
Web Hosting:
WordPress Theme:
Keyword Tools:
- KWFinder
- AHREFS
WordPress Plugins:
I blog quite often and I seriously appreciate your content.
This great article has truly peaked my interest. I’m
going to take a note of your site and keep checking for new information about once a week.
I subscribed to your Feed as well.
Leonard, I’m so glad you stopped by! Thanks for subscribing, I promise to make it worth your while 🙂