Affiliate: The basics of affiliate marketing and how it works

Affiliate marketing is a performance-based marketing strategy in which a business rewards affiliates for each customer brought to the business by the affiliate's own marketing efforts. In other words, affiliates earn a commission for promoting a company's products or services.

The process typically works like this: a business signs up with an affiliate network, which acts as a middleman between the business and the affiliates. The business then creates a unique affiliate link for each product or service they want to promote. The affiliates can then promote these products or services on their own websites, social media, or other channels.

When a customer clicks on one of the affiliate's links and makes a purchase, the affiliate network tracks the sale and sends the affiliate their commission. The commission is typically a percentage of the sale price, but can also be a fixed amount per sale.

One of the key benefits of affiliate marketing for businesses is that they only pay affiliates when they make a sale. This means that the business only incurs a cost when they make a profit, which can be a more cost-effective way to generate sales.

For affiliates, the main benefit is the potential to earn a commission for their marketing efforts. This can provide an additional source of income, and can be particularly lucrative for successful affiliates.

Overall, affiliate marketing is a win-win situation for both the business and the affiliate. The business gets more customers and sales, while the affiliate earns a commission for their marketing efforts.