Profitable platforms often generate revenue from multiple sources. The combination of signature products and smaller revenue generators add up to a meaningful sum. But there’s something you likely already do that makes other people money that is a fresh opportunity for you, as well.
What if you could help others make money and earn a share in the process?
Someone Is Going to Profit
CarMax has built a reputation on being a different kind of car dealership. Central to their business model is a low-pressure approach to sales that is made possible because the salespeople work on salary, not commission. In short, the person helping you gets paid the same whether you buy a car or not. With $18.2 billion in sales in 2019, we’d say the approach is working.
Why is this a big deal? If you’ve ever set foot on a traditional used car lot, you’ll know. Desperate, pushy, and even condescending salespeople are the norm in sales environments that depend on commission. For the consumer, this leads to a constant question of motive: how do we know this person is being honest with us? This isn’t unique to cars, either. From fashion boutiques to guitar shops to online multi-level marketing organizations, consumers often feel manipulated as they make their purchasing decisions.
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Want to give Platform University (your one-stop shop for building an online audience) a spin? Get your first week of Platform University for just $1. Cancel anytime. Try Platform University for Just $1When a friend recommends something to you, however, you are far more likely to listen. Trust is a more powerful force of persuasion than manipulation. And as you’ve built your platform, you’ve likely recommended countless products, books, and resources to your audience.
Now, imagine combining the trust of a personal recommendation with the commission-based revenue opportunities of traditional sales. This is the beauty of affiliate income.
An Arrangement Where Everyone Wins
Affiliate income works on a simple premise. You recommend a third-party product, your audience buys it, and you get a commission off the sale. Accessible technology, like Amazon Associates, links that sale to your platform to ensure you get the commission.
Take Deidra Romero, for example, who is a Platform University instructor and a blogger herself.
Deidra is a self-identified “mommy blogger” who has an audience of busy moms like herself, many of whom are working moms looking for solutions to save time while helping their families eat well.
For Deidra, the solution is quick-and-simple meal prep using an all-in-one “Instant Pot” which her audience started asking about when they saw her share an Instagram story preparing dinner.
It was natural for her to respond to questions by sharing a link to the product on Amazon, and 7 people from her Instagram account purchased this fancy pot. By sharing about something she loved, Deidra made a commission off of those sales.
Affiliate income also scales with your platform. Pat Flynn generated nearly $2.5 million in affiliate income last year alone! (Inside Platform University, we have a full module of affiliate income training that features Pat.)
Let Jeff Bezos Write Your Checks
The best part? You can start generating affiliate income today.
Here are three steps you can take right now to increase your revenue stream with affiliate income:
- Create a free Amazon Associates account
- Find one product on Amazon you use and recommend
- Share your affiliate link in your next content or email
It’s that simple. That last book you loved? Review it on your blog and insert an affiliate link to buy a copy. Or if you’ve got a knack for selling Instant Pots, create a free PDF recipe guide to lure even more people to your affiliate link.
Affiliate income is easy, instant, and endlessly creative in its sources. Why wait another day?
