COST FOR JOINING: Any affiliate program that you are interested in joining should have no start up fee. There are literally thousands of affiliate programs out there to choose from that are free. Why should you pay for one?

CUSTOMER SUPPORT: A high-quality program should value the importance of its affiliates and provide top-level support for them. Any queries should receive a response within 24 to 48 hours. Timely support is critical to your success.

TRACKING SYSTEM: Make sure that the program has a detailed, well-organized statistics page for affiliates that lists the number of sales, the number of click-throughs, and the amount you have earned. These statistics should be *real time* meaning they are updated automatically.

PROGRESS: Does the program notify you by email when you make a sale? Being reminded of your progress by an email message can be a great motivator.

BELIEVE IN THE PRODUCT: One of the fundamental rules of selling is that you must have confidence in the product you are selling. Do not waste your time trying to promote something that you are not interested in or have no knowledge of.

IDENTIFY PRODUCT: Before you join an affiliate program, identify who your customers are and what products they might buy. Once you identify your niche market, it will be much easier to find products and services to match it. For instance, if your site is about sports, you should promote products and services related to sports.

NEWSLETTERS: It is very beneficial if the affiliate program offers a weekly or monthly newsletter for its affiliates. Newsletters provide you with extra tips and information on methods and systems that work well.

MARKETING TOOLS: Make certain that the affiliate program supplies you with a broad selection of text links, banners and graphics to put on your web site. Text links, as a rule, work very well. However, there are some good graphics and banners that can be very successful.

PAYMENT: Know up front how often you are going to be paid. If you are trying to select between several programs and one pays monthly and the other pays bi-weekly, choose the one that pays the most often. You don't want to wait months before you get paid.

COMMISSIONS: A good way to recognize a good, reputable affiliate program is by the commission rates they pay their affiliates. If an affiliate program pays out high commissions, it signifies that they sell in very high volume and are confident about the worth of their product.

Focus your efforts on the programs that pay 40% or more in commissions. Once you start marketing those programs, you will create an impressive automatic income that pays you month after month.

Once you find some affiliate programs that meet the above guidelines, sign up for them right away. The sooner you join them, the sooner you will start making money!