So you’re logged into your affiliate network of choice and you’ve come across some offers…
You’re ready to promote and you’re about to click an Offer thumbnail … BUT WAIT!
There are some questions you really ought to ask yourself before getting started pushing a select product to ensure your time is not only well spent, but profitable.
Working smarter—not harder—is the secret to profits.
So before you’re so quick to jump on an offer... ask yourself these questions:
1- Is it the right vertical for you?
Do you prefer to have steady income throughout the year, or are you looking to make a quick buck right now? Are you ready to invest time and effort to see some returns?
Those are some of the questions you should begin asking yourself before choosing a vertical to promote. It’s always helpful to be aware of the current market trends and to follow them. We all know there’s more upside to getting into a vertical when it’s surging in popularity than when it’s on the decline.
As many of us know, numerous factors contribute to the rise (or decline) of certain trends. As marketers - it’s even better to know when that right time is to get in and get out.
Even a change in seasons, for example, can alter the course of sales. For instance, Nutra products perform better in the summer. Changes in technology, for example, might lead to an influx of Virtual Reality-based offers including Games and Cams - and ultimately - more sales in said verticals.
Of course, choosing the right vertical also means that you should probably already have a basic understanding in what your traffic is - or isn’t - interested in. This applies when you want to promote multiple verticals.
For example: Young single males might have an interest in Dating offers — but Gaming offers could work just as well with this demographic.
2- Is it the right offer in this vertical?
With hundreds of offers in a given vertical, how do you make sure that the one you choose is the right one for you?
First, it helps to examine a few things beforehand, such as:
Your niche
Just because you heard that an offer is a top-performing one through the grapevine—it doesn’t mean that it will deliver for you with your traffic. Make sure you have the right kind of qualified traffic. High-targeting is key.
Your method of promotion
Some offers tend to perform best with email marketing or social media, and others with banners and pop-unders. It’s not uncommon at CrakRevenue for us to announce a new offer and for us to tell our affiliates the best methods of promotion for that specific offer. Therefore, when it comes to select offerings, keep your head up and keep your eyes peeled.
Also be sure to stay in the loop regarding a network’s Terms of Service and any clearly listed and restricted promotional methods.
Your geo
Worldwide offers are fantastic, but local, geo-specific offers shouldn’t be overlooked or ignored.
If you’re a site owner, check Google Analytics often. Stay on top of your top-visiting countries and see if there are any corresponding offers at your network of choice that is worth targeting and sending some traffic to.
The popularity of the offer
Naturally, if the EPC of an offer you’ve chosen to promote is terrible, it makes little sense to continue onward with promotion when you’re seeing better results with another.
Don’t pity promote — winning offers are WINNERS for a reason!
Gauge a network’s most popular offers and see how other people are doing with them.
Know when to drop the ones that aren’t delivering!
3- Do you have a working knowledge of things?
Let’s say you’ve found yourself an offer and you heard it works great with Social traffic.
That’s great and all… but wait, hold on a minute!
Some methods and scenarios might sound simply too good to be true (example: you heard promoting offer X on social platform X will make $$$ easily), but if you don’t have any previous experience, knowledge or the necessary understanding of a select method of promotion (e.g., the social networks), you’re potentially at risk of wasting a lot of time and effort just to make something work.
And the cost could be huge. Your social account could be banned or your followers may decide to flag your emails. Make sure you take the time to learn and familiarize yourself with everything before you promote.
Play with your strengths, it’s always a winning strategy.
4- Can you avoid the risk?
Before putting all you’ve got into one offer, tread lightly.
And before putting all your eggs into the same basket, it never hurts to A/B test a variety of offers you’re not so sure about vs. ones that you already know deliver.
If you’re risk averse, consider letting our in-house team take care of the optimization with CrakRevenue’s Smartlinks or with one of Crak’s signature line of Surveys. These are great tools to take advantage of because they provide an array of different offers (and fallback ones so unqualified GEOs land on geo-eligible offers)!
5- Are you going rogue?
We know “going rogue” may sound rebellious and fun, but it’s a legitimate question to ask here.
With CrakRevenue’s team of Affiliate Managers, there’s no reason to go rogue! You should always consult with our team of experts. They know which offers are hot and which offers are best for your traffic.
So basically what we’re saying is … don’t jump without a parachute!
Because it doesn’t cost anything to ask for advice!
Take your time when it comes to figuring out the right promotional strategy
And last but not least — don’t promote blindly!
Remember, when picking an offer, knowledge is power.
So take advantage of all the experience and info you can get … and profit.
