I started an article series about the various ways you can Make Money With Your Blog a few weeks ago. So far we have discussed Advertising as well as Private Ad Sales and most recently Selling Ad Space Using an Ad Server. All of these articles are targeted towards beginners and I will continually flesh out the topics with more detailed articles as we progress.

The simple facts are that most of these topics are far too complicated to discuss in just a single post, so bear with me and we’ll cover most of it in the future. I will really be getting into detail on each of these topics on my Project DIY Niche Site article series.

That series will get into the very nitty gritty of what I personally do to build niche websites. Many of the concepts will apply to your own niche sites and/or even your blogs in many cases.

Affiliate Marketing

Today we will touch on affiliate income and show you where you can find more information on affiliate sales. If you are unclear what affiliate marketing is, you function as a commission sales person for the owner of the product. There are a number of different ways you can do this but the most common is to set up a website with an ad or review that links to their sales page. They track any clicks that come in via your site. If they successfully sell a product to your customer, then they pay you a commission.

Another common form of affiliate marketing is Search Engine Marketing. This is where you generate ads that show up when a person searches for something on a product. If you Google anything…look to the right…that column of ads running up and down the screen are all most likely affiliate marketers looking to generate commissions. In my case I stick to content websites as opposed to SEM.

The commission varies dramatically depending on the program so you will have to do your own research on what works for you, what interests you and what fits your style of marketing. Literally tens of thousands of companies exist that are willing to pay you a commission to provide them leads and everyone of them probably has a different payout scale and terms and conditions. Study them carefully before investing a lot of your time in an advertiser.

Affiliate Networks

If you are interested in becoming an affiliate marketer then the first step is to seek out a program that you can join where you can find a number of advertisers looking to recruit you onto their sales force. Here are some of the ones that I use currently.

• Commission Junction: Probably the most widely know affiliate program out there. At least in my opinion. CJ offers a huge selection of advertisers who will eagerly put you to work for them.

• Amazon: You might not think of Amazon when thinking affiliate marketing but Amazon is one of the largest marketplaces in existence. You might consider checking them out if they fit the theme of your site.

• LinkShare: Another source of some great affiliate programs with over 500 premier merchants.

• ClickXChange: Provides custom exchange programs and 100’s of programs to choose from.

• Azoogle: One of the fastest growing ad networks out there today. Check them out to see if they fit your needs.

• NeverBlue: is another ad network that has hundreds of programs that you can affiliate for and can offer you an even wider selection of programs. They have a great interface and are super easy to use for beginners.

If you are a beginner to affiliate marketing then I am confident that you will find more than enough options in the networks above to get you started.

When you click through to some of these programs then you may find an option for a publisher and an advertiser. It would be a common mistake to think that you are an advertiser but this is incorrect. If the option exists then make sure you sign up as a publisher. The advertiser section is for companies who want to advertise their product on the site.

A common trap that many newbies fall into is they try to become an affiliate for everyone, thinking the more the merrier. It is my experience that you are far better off to specialize at first. Get really good with a few advertisers and then use the knowledge you have gained to expand your empire.

I am including a box of some of my favorite affiliate marketing books that you can buy from amazon. Affiliate Millions is one of my favorites. If I missed any of your favorite networks or if you have anything to share then please let us know in the comments.