A recently popular topic of discussion in internet forums is the value of affiliate programs with two-tiered commission structures. Are you better off participating in a program that pays you a large commission on all of your sales but nothing on the sales of people who sign up as affiliates through your site. Or … are you better off getting say 10% less on your personal sales, but getting 10% commission on the sales of all sub-affiliates that sign up through your site.
First of all, one point should be very obvious to you – the operators of the affiliate programs are interested in getting as many PRODUCTIVE affiliates as possible. The reason they set up affiliate programs in the first place is that they realize the market is too big for them to reach all segments by themselves That’s why they need you.
Using this same rationale it stands to reason that you can reach only a small segment of the target market. It is also apparent that the buyers of many internet-based products are also looking for products to sell. If they are going to turn around and sell the same product that you sold them, then it’s much better to have them as a part of YOUR TEAM. If they are a part of your team they are adding to your bottom line and are not really competitors.
If you sit down and do the math you will see that two-tiered programs generally pay better in the long run. This is because you eventually end up with a whole army of sub-affiliates working for you. Isn’t it better to have 100 sub-affiliates all adding to your bottom line (and reaching 100 times the market that you could reach alone)? Only you can decide which programs are best for you but if you give it careful consideration, you will likely conclude that two-tiered programs pay you the best.
Provided you reach that conclusion, your next step is finding programs that provide needed products and fit the mold. A few that I have tired and recommend are:
Virtual hosting through Virtualis. They pay 20% commissions on your direct sales (month-after-month) and 10% of the commissions earned by your sub-affiliates. They offer such top rate 24/7 customer service that customers stick with them a very long time. As long as the customer stays you get your percentage of their monthly hosting fee. This is a great program – make a sale once and collect commissions month-after-month-after-month. You can get more on them at: http://www.virtualis.com/vr/wcrawfor/vrp.html
Merchant accounts through National Card, Inc. They pay $50 on your direct sales, $20 on your sub-affiliate sales and even a bonus based upon the size of your team. You can find out more about this wonderful program at http://www.williecrawford.com/card.html
The Warrior Secret Site sells a membership to an incredible site that contains more insider information than any site I have visited. Members openly share tips with each other on a discussion board, and through special reports and freebies. You also get lifetime use of an automated autoresponder (an incredible value). You pay $50 ONCE for membership. You earn $30 for each membership you sell. You can get more on this program at: http://www.privatesites.com/warriors.cgi?WC3527 Membership to this site comes with a full 1 YEAR SATSIFACTION GUARANTEE. That how sure they are that once you are a member you wouldn’t trade your membership for anything.
These are just a few of the two-tiered affiliate programs that I have come across that proved themselves to me. There are many others. Find one or two that are right for you, promote them properly and watch the power of multiplying yourself through sub-affiliates dramatically increase your bottom line.
Willie Crawford http://www.williecrawford.com
Willie Crawford has been teaching Internet marketing for
over 9 years. Take advantage of his uncanny insights and
experiences by subscribing to his free, information packed
newsletter at http://WillieCrawford.com/ezine.html
