Time is precious and you do not want to invest too much of it on programs that are never going to pay off.

As I am sure you are aware, there are many internet scams out there - so you need to be careful before investing your time and effort in any one direction.

In this article, we're going to learn how to distinguish an excellent affiliate program from a rather mediocre one. Yes, indeed. Not all affiliate programs are built alike. Some are simply better than others.

I personally spent at least two years flitting from one program to another and even got involved with the occasional scam. I lacked guidance and lost $1000s trying everything possible to become successful.

I made a few dollars here and there so I knew it was possible to make money online. I just needed a break or someone to put me on the right path.

Here are some points that you need to consider when choosing your affiliate program:

1. How much is the commission rate being offered by the affiliate program? Obviously, you want as high a commission rate as possible. Who wouldn't, right? True, but there is no point gaining 70%-90% of the sale if the product is crap:-) - which leads me on to my next consideration.

2. How sellable is the product? If you are going to spend time and/or advertising money promoting a product then you must check to see if there are other people finding success selling this product.

A good place to start is Google. If you find advertisers on Google selling this product through Google adwords, then you can be sure there is a profit to be made.

You can also do a quick search of topical online discussion forums where you will find the unbiased reviews and testimonials of other entrepreneurs and internet marketers.

3. How credible is the affiliate program? Is there a big, well known Internet Marketers' name on the product? Do they have a track record of great products and satisfied customers.

You do not want to be known for recommending second rate products online.

Building a trustful reputation online is a massive part of becoming successful so it is extremely important that you only recommend products that yourself and others have found to be useful.

4. How and when will you get paid? There are various ways you can get paid your affiliate commissions. I prefer a straight bank transfer to my account. The most commons methods are by company check or via Paypal.

Paypal is an online payment system that will transfer any money you accumulate directly to your bank account. It is free to join but they will take a small charge for each transaction.

Some affiliate companies pay weekly or fortnightly but the vast majority pay once per month. I would not join a program that paid me less frequently than monthly.

Choosing your affiliate program is only a beginning but if you choosing wisely could make the difference between the success of failure of your affiliate marketing business.