Before I get into depth with this article I first want you to have a good understanding of what a '2 Tier' affiliate program is and there advantages. Then from there I'll go on to explain how you can start recruiting Sub-Affiliate's by simply locating the Super-Affiliate's within your Niche market.
First... lets define what a '2 Tier' affiliate program is.
A '2 Tier' affiliate program is simply a program that is designed to work on a 2 tier payment structure. And what I mean by that is that you'll get paid on both the 1st tier(you) and 2nd tier(your sub-affiliates) of the program you choose to promote.
Now, with that said, let's go a little deeper into what the advantages of a '2 Tier' affiliate program are so that you'll be able to visualize in your head why these programs are being considered the most Powerful programs on the Net and more importantly... how they can put Profits in your hand, on Auto-Pilot, 24/7/365 with little effort on your part.
Lets first talk about the advantages and for the purpose of this article I'm going to give you three of the main ones:
- you get paid 'Higher' commissions on your 1st tier (usually between 25% - 65% depending on the vendor)
- you have the ability to 'Recruit' sub-affiliates(your 2nd tier) to promote the program for you
- and you can form 'Joint Ventures' with other website and/or list owners within your specified Niche market
Is the 'Light-Bulb' starting to flicker inside your head?
Are you starting to see WHY these programs are so Powerful and Versatile?
I certainly hope so.
Now that you see the main advantages to these programs your probably asking yourself... "well, where can I find a complete listing of these programs so I don't have to spend alot of time looking for them on the web?"
Well... it just so happens that I know of a few top affiliate directories that have a complete searchable database full of '2 Tier' affiliate programs in whatever category you are looking for.
I will list two of the of Top affiliate directories for the purposes of this article that I use to locate these programs:
I think these two directories alone will keep you busy.
There are many affiliate directories out there on the WWW, but these two I find are the most popular and have the best selection.
Now that you have an idea of what '2 Tier' affiliate programs are, there advantages and where to locate these programs on the web lets talk about 'How' you can start recruiting some Sub-Affiliate's within the next 24 hours by simply locating the Super-Affiliate's within your Niche market via the search engines.
In order to do this exercise properly you're going to need two Very important webmaster tools. These tools are Free so you don't have to worry about paying anything up front or any monthly subscription fee's for there use.
The 1st tool you need to get is the 'Google Toolbar'. This toolbar is used to gauge a websites PR(Link Popularity) within the search engines. Generally, a website with a PR of 5 or higher are the types of websites you want to find and are where the Super-Affiliate's usually reside.
Click the link I've provided below and install the toolbar.
- http://toolbar.google.com/
And the 2nd tool you need to get is the 'Alexa Toolbar'. This toolbar is used to gauge a websites overall Traffic Ranking. You'll want to find websites with a traffic ranking of 50,000 or lower. This is where you'll find the Super-Affiliate's.
Click the link I've provided below and install the toolbar.
- http://download.alexa.com/
Now that you have those two tools installed on your computer you Now have the ability to find Super-Affiliate's through gauging their websites overall 'Traffic Ranking' and 'Link Popularity' which brings use to the next step... "Locating the Super-Affiliates".
A 'Super-Affiliate', just so you know, is simply a webmaster who has a high traffic website and/or a large targeted mailing list and has the ability to sell more in a day then you could in a month.
Generally, and this is just a guideline I use when contacting these webmasters, I look for websites with at least a PR of 5 and a Traffic Ranking of 50,000 or less. This way, if they don't have a large mailing list they at least have a high traffic website or Visa-Versa.
This next step is where the fun begins because we'll be using search engines to locate the Super-Affiliate's and for this exercise lets go to the all famous 'Google' search engine at -- http://www.google.com
Now... once the page loads simply type in the Keyword or Keywords or Keyword Phrase that targets your particular Niche market you are targeting within the search form Google provides.
For the purpose of this exercise lets use the keywords 'internet marketing'.
By now you should be looking at a page full of listings under the Keywords or Keyword Phrase you targeted, which in this case was 'internet marketing'.
Now, simply start clicking on the links that you think might make a good 'Sub-Affiliate' to the program you are recruiting for.
By using the two toolbars you installed earlier you'll now be able to identify if this website is a Super-Affiliate by the websites overall 'Link Popularity' and 'Traffic Ranking' by using the guidelines I stated earlier.
If you like the web stats you see and you think they would make a suitable sub-affiliate to your program all you have to do from this point is look for the webmasters contact details listed on their website and send them a proposition to join your program.
If you can't find there contact details on there website you can usually find them by using the 'Alexa' toolbar. Just click on the 'Alexa' button in the upper left corner of your browser. This will bring you to there main page. You'll usually find there contact details listed mid-way down.
And if you're worried about being accused of 'Spamming', well... you don't have too simply because your not sending them an Unsolicited Advertisement, your sending them a Business Proposition.
There's a BIG difference.
Now, with that said, lets move on to the Final segment of this article... 'Joint Ventures'.
'Joint Ventures' are simply an collaboration or partnership undertaken by two or more entities(webmasters) for a mutual gain, usually profit sharing.
Who make the best JV partners and Why?
Ezine/Newsletter owners make the best JV partners simply because they have already done all the work and have built highly targeted mailing lists. Some have Large lists and some have Small lists. Point being... they're highly targeted to whatever Niche market you're targeting.
How do '2 Tier' affiliate programs work in this kind of arrangement?
They work just the same as recruiting website owners, but instead you're strictly contacting list owners with highly targeted lists and propositioning them to join your program for a share of the profits.
Where can you find these Ezine/Newsletter owners?
You can find thousands of them on the WWW through Ezine/Newsletter directories, but I'll only list just a few top resources to save you the hassle.
These directories have large searchable databases full of thousands of Ezine/Newsletters that target any category you are looking for to promote your program(s). And these are only a few of whats available to you on the Net.
Well... there you have it in a nut shell.
I just revealed to you some of the most Powerful marketing technique's being used online today by many of the Top internet marketers and how they are able to build there Sub-Affiliate army's and generate loads of Free targeted traffic to there websites without spending a penny on advertising.
And... the best part about this is... you can start doing the same within the Next 24 hours.
Copyright 2004 Cory Threlfall
Cory Threlfall is the Editor and Publisher of a Free internet marketing newsletter called the 'Internet Wonders eZine'. Its main focus is to provide Webmasters with quality Articles, Product Reviews, Tips, and More on how to Promote, Build and Increase your Web Traffic! Visit: http://www.internetwondersezine.com or subscribe by email at: mailto:iwe_subscribe@sendfree.com.
