Affiliate Programs
There are quite a few Affiliate Programs out there and a simple search for the term on a Search Engine will point you to hundreds if not thousands of similar offers.
However most, but not all, don't accept registrations from FREE hosted sites like Tripod, Geocities and such others. Some even don't accept registrations from sites located in certain countries! So, it's a good idea to check out their FAQ or Terms and Conditions before rushing to fill up their registration forms. Below, my list consists of programs that have no such conditions...
I actually have experience using 3 different Affiliate Programs even way back when. However, Revenue Avenue of BCentral.com is also pointing to Commission Junction these days, the last time I checked. So, now if you have a homepage that's hosted on a Free Web Host, it's a good idea to use the following programs:
COMMISSION JUNCTIONThis is the best affiliate program that I can recommend. Why? I make the most commissions from CJ and so far, their payments are on the dot... even to someone like me, living half way across the world! Also, they have new Merchants joining them nearly everyday and choice is not something you will be complaining about. They've improved on the site navigation but some 'extra-clicks' to get to where you want to go on the site still remain. What I also like about CJ is that most of the return days of offers are for 45 days. |
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SHAREASALEAlthough I had a hard time making any 'sales' through this Affiliate Program since joining them last December 2001, eventually after about 3 months, I made my first commissions. Like CJ, they seem to be actively recruiting Merchants and there's choice with so much more freebies to offer your readers. Their return days are mostly for up to a year! Plus, if you manage to make the minimum $20.00 in commissions, you qualify your site to feature their CPC programs. They do have a list of 'eligible' countries but they claim that you can write to them to add it on if your country is not in the list. |
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BeFREEAfter joining them late last year (2001), I actually 'forgot' about this 'well-known' affiliate program - believe it or not. I had joined them through Tripod I think and so far I have not used their ads extensively on this site to have a qualified opinion of their service. Anyway, they offer some 'popular' branded merchants the last time I checked so it will be interesting to see how well they perform... |
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LINKSHAREIronically, I have been using LinkShare off and on since 2000 BUT I am yet to make a single cent off them. I wonder why.. Anyway, it's been so long that I have lost my motivation to write anything good about them. Maybe their 'limited' Merchant list is the problem, maybe their tracking system is not All That, whatever, I am just tired of even going to their site these days. Their return days are also sometimes so ridiculous; I mean, offers like "1 day"! How silly is that? Would a web surfer come to my site to buy a Dell computer right away? Even I don't buy something like a computer in 1 day; and I would have already been to the store 3 times! So, whenever I go through the list of LinkShare offers, I always look for the return days of each merchant. The ones that offer anything less than 30 days can screw someone else for the free publicity, just not me. |
If you decide to use one of the Affiliate Programs above (or all of them), just don't give up and give yourself at least 6 months to a year before you decide to dump any non-performing affiliate program that you've joined.
That's my list so far, if you know of any other good (or not so good) ones and want to add to this list, please let me know on GIDForums™.
