An affiliate program is an excellent way to start making money on the Internet. You register as an affiliate with a company (called the merchant) that provides a product for sale. There is usually no charge to register. You do not need to purchase a product to keep in inventory. You don’t have to worry about developing your own product. It is not necessary to mail out a product as sales are made. You can even start your affiliate business without a website, although it is an advantage if you have one. Your only job is to refer people to the merchant’s website.

Each time one of your referred visitors buys a product from the merchant, you collect a commission. The merchant is responsible for developing the product, negotiating the actual sale (through their website), handling the payment collection, sending out the product, and handling any problems. Your commission can vary according to the merchant and product but generally ranges between 30% and 75% of the sale price. You do not need a merchant account, nor do you need to have any sort of checkout procedure or shopping cart. Your only responsibility is to send people to the merchant’s website, they take care of the rest.

Don’t get me wrong; marketing an affiliate program is not an easy business. You’ve got to work to get people interested enough to get them to visit the merchant’s website. You can generate interest in your affiliate products by using articles, websites, blogs, ads, email, forums, and banners. You are only limited by your imagination. Do not, however, use spam to generate visitors! That is a sure way to get banned from affiliate participation, and possibly be prosecuted under the law. The penalties for spamming are quite severe and can even result in jail time.

One of the most appealing features of an affiliate program is how quickly you can begin to make money. Once you sign up as an affiliate, you can start making money right away! It is one of the easiest, cheapest, and quickest methods to start up an Internet business.