Affiliate Marketing for Beginners: How to Create that Income Generating Post

Posted by Elna on

Are you new to affiliate marketing?

As a mom blogger, one of best ways to generate income for your blog is to do some affiliate marketing. For me, I have a diversified income stream that helps me make income every day from my blog.

But, when I started Twins Mommy and when I was ready to grow my income, I started with affiliate marketing.

If you’re new to making money blogging, I suggest you also start with affiliate marketing At first, you may not make much income, but with the right methods, you’ll be able to boost your income quickly.

I’ll be sharing with you six tips to help you create an income generating post AND how to promote it (so you can get more eyes to that post!).

But before we get into the nitty gritty of this post, make sure to pick up my guide on how to promote your affiliate products.

If you don’t have the time to read this post, check out my video (and I would love it if you subscribed to my channel!)

1. Believe In What You are Recommending

When you decide what your affiliate products will be, it’s best to promote ones that you know about or have used in the past. This may not be possible though.

For example, I was recently an affiliate for the Genius Blogger’s ToolKit (I also had my Ready Set Blog for Traffic course in the bundle). The bundle has over 90 products.

I didn’t sit down and view all of them; I just previewed most of them and took the courses or read the eBooks for the ones I really wanted to see.

So, while I didn’t get all the knowledge for this product, I was still able to effectively promote this product.

There are also affiliates that will give you a free trial or access to their course. Don’t be afraid to ask the blogger or business about getting a free trial to see what it’s all about.

I had to do this for my other blog, Elna Cain, in promoting a new freelance writing job board. I didn’t know much about it, but I became an affiliate and asked for access to their job board.

This helped me generate my post, get screenshots, and walk my readers down the road to understand how to use this job board.

2. Figure Out Your Audience’s Frustration

Do you know your audience?

Understanding and figuring out their pain points is essential to converting readers into buyers. How? The products you’re recommending will be the solution to your audience’s pain points or frustrations.

And when you can relate to your audience’s frustration with your own story or using yes-type questions, you suddenly are more trusting and your reader will more likely read your post and trust what you recommend.

One of my posts on Twins Mommy hits a nerve with my readers so much so that I’m a top referral for the product I promote in that post – Tailwind. Tailwind actually uses my post as a case study to help other affiliates.

How do you find out your readers’ problems?

  • Ask them in your email
  • Survey your subscribers
  • Search on Facebook groups
  • Ask your network of mom bloggers

3. Figure Out the Type of Post You Want to Write

There are certain styles of blog posts that will help you generate income sales. These are:

  • Tutorial based – the highest conversion
  • Review based – great for course affiliates
  • How to or Informational
  • Solution-based
  • List type post

Tutorial-Based Blog Posts

These types of posts show your audience how to use that affiliate product effectively. It’s step-by-step and it’s broken down into an easy to follow post.

These types of posts are great for tools, devices, appliances, and services. When I decided to make money with this blog, I did tutorial based posts for all my affiliate products.

I went from making $200 to $2000 by doing these types of posts. It was a no-brainer for sure!

Review-Based Blog Posts

These are great for promoting courses, eBooks or digital products you’re an affiliate for.

Usually, a very successful story helps with converting readers into choosing the course you’re promoting. For example, Amanda, of Amanda’s Great Idea, wrote a post on how she made $2000 on her first freelance writing gig ever.

In that post, she promotes my course, Write Your Way to Your First $1k. She shares her journey into freelance writing and about landing that first client.

If you take a course and it has an affiliate program with it, create a post with:

  • Your success story
  • What helped you achieve that success
  • What the course is (or eBook) about
  • What’s included
  • You’re recommendation

How To or Informational Blog Post

This type of post is good for Amazon types of products or similar to that offered by other affiliate programs. While you can create a post mentioning one product, most bloggers link to multiple products in their post.

I personally don’t have experience using this method, but I do create posts for my freelance writing clients using this method.

Typically, a client has me write a valuable post like how to optimize your landing page and then they have me add a paragraph at the end of relatable products like landing page builders.

I write a little blurb about each tool or WordPress plugin and the client puts their affiliate links in the post.

Now, if you’re a blogger or mom blogger, you can use this strategy for your blog. For example, you can write about tips to introduce swimming for young children (or going to the beach). At the end of your post, you can promote related affiliate products.

List Type Blog Post

List posts are popular for social shares, but they can be effective for your affiliate products. Round up favorite items like coffee mugs or fall boots or courses for entrepreneurs and create a post around that.

Then you can add your affiliate links to that post. I’m not sure how converting this type of post can be, but my clients have me write them so I’m sure they convert

4. Promote Your Affiliate Post

If you need help promoting your affiliate post, make sure to grab my ultimate guide on promoting your affiliates!

Here are my top three ways to get more eyes on your affiliate post.

1. On Your Blog

Aside from your blog post, there are ways you can promote your affiliate post on your blog. The first way is with an announcement bar.

You can use the Hello Bar to create a free announcement bar that’s placed on the top of your blog. I haven’t used this strategy for may affiliate posts, but have for my lead magnets and it’s effective.

2. On Social Media

The two best ways are on Pinterest and Facebook.

Create multiple pins using different headlines and graphics to attract different readers to your income generating post.

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Creating multiple pins also helps you pin more content with your social media automation tool like Tailwind. The more pins you have, the more you can pin in a day.

With Facebook, you can create posts with a story and then link to your affiliate post. For example, in my Mom to Mompreneur Facebook group, I write about when I started the whole blogging journey as a mom to twins. This hopefully, relates to some of the bloggers in my Facebook group.

If you don’t own a Facebook group, you can set up a Facebook page and use that to promote your affiliate based posts. I wouldn’t post every day these types of posts; just once a while. Your Facebook page should help you relate to your followers and help grow your brand and credibility.

3. In Your Emails

Have you started an email list yet?

As a new blogger, email is one of the first things you should set up. Why is that? Because it’s the best way to get to know your audience. Having that connection is important if you want to monetize your blog.

Readers and followers may not consistently come to your blog, but subscribers will come more often, follow you on social media and email you personally! It’s the best feeling!

So, how do you promote your affiliate posts without coming off too spammy or market-y?

  • Place a link in the P.S. section of every newsletter. It can be as simple as, “have you started a blog yet?”
  • Set up an email funnel system to warm your subscribers. Having a welcome series or some sort of welcome email to show them your resources can introduce them to your affiliate products.
  • Create a content upgrade in your blog post and promote your affiliate in your freebie. For example, if the post is about the top ways to rock blogging you can have a freebie related to that like top tools a blogger needs. And in that checklist of tools you can promote your affiliate products.

Start Making Money Moms!

As a mom blogger, it is possible to make more than a few bucks with affiliate marketing. The trick is your content. You have to be able to tell a story and hook your readers in.

Make them trust you and they will buy from you

Tell me in the comments how you create your income generating posts! I’d love to see them!