[Linda Buquet]

Hi Lauren,

Sorry I could not answer this in private and thanks for posting in public so your situation and our answers may be able to help others.

(Note to others, due to carpal tunnel I don't give one-on-one private advice.
If I'm going to take the time to type a long answer I want to be able to have others benefit form the advice and also allow people much smarter than I am to jump in with their suggestions too.)

One of the biggest things that can set affiliate programs apart is conversion.
You could get a high commission from one program but if their site has a low conversion due to site design, price point or cart difficulty, you can earn much less. Or if the site has leaks like 800 #s where consumers can order by phone and bypass affiliate tracking, then you won't make a dime.

So it's important to find programs that pay well AND have high conversions
AND are pro-affiliate and therefore careful that you get paid for all your efforts.

I represent Revenue Allies because they are honest and pro-affiliate, with great support. I also believe, to answer another of your questions that their conversions could be higher BECAUSE you can offer consumers a choice.
So YES I would promote both Direct TV AND Dish Network on the same site.

Why? Because some consumers may prefer one over the other for various reasons. If you got a satellite shopper to a site that only sold Direct TV but they were more interested in Dish Network then you could lose out.

If I were an affiliate for Revenue Allies, I would create a site with a generic satellite name - lets just say satellitebestbuys.com The home page would contain marketing copy about both and suggest consumers shop and compare. Maybe create a comparison chart and offer reviews.

But then additionally you would want at least a page totally focused on each product. These pages would be designed partly to try to get search engine traffic that is already interested in one or the other, therefore loaded with copy and keywords pertaining to each respective products.

OK so now that I've given you some ides of how to sell, I'm going to go backward. Should you???

This market, like most lucrative markets online, is VERY competitive. You'd be competing not only with all the pro affiliates, but all the distributors and even manufacturers directly? How will you get people to visit your site instead of one of the above? Do you know much about the products and markets
OR did you only pick satellites because you think it's lucrative? If you could make 100 per sale but no one can find your site and you never sell ONE then you make 0.

In general I recommend finding a niche that's less competitive for starters. Lots of articles about finding a niche here in the newbie forum.

"Also, in reality, is it a good decision for a grad student to take on an affiliate marketing project? I'm very motivated to make money, but I have very little marketing experience."

Do you know how to build web sites? DO you know where to start? Do you know how to get traffic from search engines. Those things are probably more important than direct marketing experience, but you can learn those skills.

If you know about and are passionate about satellite sales and really think thats the best place to start, then I recommend you contact Gregory, the Revenue Allies affiliate manager. He's supportive and a straight shooter. He'll give you ideas on the best ways to start. What I told you above was just off the top of my head and not from experience with these products. Greg can give you the best advice about getting started.