Imagine the confusion if all McDonalds told their new franchise
owners was here's your restaurant, now go to it. Not one in 20
McDonalds locations would run smoothly. Owners wouldn't know how
to cook the food, promote the restaurant, or what to tell
employees. The mighty McDonalds chain would fall apart in no
time.
I agree, this example is ludicrous. But it is exactly what most
affiliate programs lay on their members. Affiliates get a link,
maybe a banner, maybe even a canned web page, but that's it.
It's here's your link, now go make a million.
Naturally that is not nearly enough training. Unless each and
every one of your affiliate members is already a business
genius, you shouldn't expect more than a trickle of sales.
That's why better affiliate programs insist on having their own
affiliate training site. It provides answers to question,
tutorials on how to market, and more.
This can be a section on your existing site or, even better, a
completely separate site. YourAffiliates.com.
* Start your training site with a nice long FAQ page. Write down
all the questions you have ever been asked about your program,
then answer them.
* Step members through every aspect of placing ads, getting a
domain name, building their own site, and advertising their
business. You can write these tutorials yourself or have a
professional writer create them for you. One cheap way is to go
to an article bank like IdeaMarketers.com and get articles by
other writers. You can put your mark on them by introducing each
one with a paragraph or two of your own.
* Provide a series of sales letters members can customize with
their own name and URL. Create a series of ready-to-use ads of
various lengths. You might even provide a recorded example of
how to sell your product over the phone.
* Keep an updated library of success stories. When you see an
affiliate making lots of sales, ask them how they do it. Either
write up their experience yourself or have the affiliate write
it. Most will be flattered you want to share their story with
other affiliates.
The affiliate member site can also work well for network
marketing opportunities (which for my money are just affiliate
programs with more tiers.)
Well-known marketing expert Kevin Nunley has a simple but
effective training site for members of his NunleyNetwork.com
home business program. One page gives new members a quick
introduction. The next page provides a quick and simple system
for marketing the opportunity. The third page provides a vast
number of additional marketing methods for those who want to
work the business full time.
Even more basic to a good training site, drop by just about
every day and add new information. Make sure it appears that the
store is open. Include updates, experiences, and offers to help
members.
Make your email address and your phone number available to
members. Don't worry about being overwhelmed with calls and
messages. Most members will never try to contact you. But it is
vital to be available for those who are motivated. They are the
members who can double and triple your profits.
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