Affiliate Marketing is a popular method of online advertising where advertisers pay for performance based off clicks, leads or sales rather than paying a set rate with no assurance of results. Other website owners may sign up for affiliate schemes and earn money for customers they refer by placing links containing a unique tracking code.

The beauty of affiliate marketing is that you can earn money without the hassles of having your own product or service. You can be earning money without the usual hassles and costs of stock, staff and customer service. It's seen as a fair form of marketing as those websites that generate high numbers of sales or leads are rewarded with large payments while those that don't deliver any results don't get paid.

Since the advent of affiliate marketing many work at home opportunities have highlighted the earning potential on offer and suggested huge sums of money can be made. While this is theoretically true most people who have aimed to make a fortune with affiliate marketing will still be struggling to make a decent profit.

The main reason most sites relying on affiliate links for their revenue fail is due to an over reliance on the affiliate links rather than creating a unique website of their own. Consumers have become very media savvy and are often wary of blatant adverts. Click through rates from online banner ads can be extremely low and smarter methods of engaging a customer is required. This can be achieved by creating a website with lots of unique and useful content that gets updated on a regular basis. The content should be relevant to the affiliate links you use. For example, if you wanted to make money from a mortgage broker affiliate scheme you could include an article on the benefits of mortgage brokers and how to pick a good one. At the end of the article an affiliate text link could allow people to request an appointment with a local mortgage broker which would in turn earn you a commission. If you simply create a page with banners for mortgage brokers your site offers no value and is unlikely to attract visitors or create a loyal following. Having unique and relevant content for your affiliate links will not only increase the conversion rate on your page it will also attract more people to your website as the search engines love fresh and unique content.

Another common mistake is to try and cover too much. Many people believe they can earn the most money by signing up to hundreds of different affiliate schemes. The reality is you are much better off creating a site targeting a particular topic. For example, you could create a website hosting comparison website or a electronic product review website. Both of these examples add value and create a reason for a customer to visit your site first rather than go directly to the advertisers' website. Remember that content is king; keep it unique, fresh and relevant to your affiliate links. You will attract more visitors and will boost your conversions by leading them towards the action you need them to take such as making a purchase. If you get it right affiliate marketing does offer substantial income potential.