Help with Satellite affiliate programs for total newbie

[Lauren1026]

Hi all,
I'm a grad student looking to earn a little extra money while in school. I've heard that satellite affiliate programs can be very lucrative, so I've been doing a great deal of research on them. I've made myself read the terms and conditions of about a dozen companies, and now I am totally overwhelmed with all the information I gathered-- I just can't decide which company would be best to go with. Some offer bigger payouts but their cookies don't last as long, while some pay small but track for 999 days; some have a 6 month chargeback period while some are only 30 days, etc etc.
I'm hoping that someone can help me decide which company (if any) to go with. Which are the most important things to look at?
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. However, I consider myself creative and eager to learn. Do you have to have tons of experience to be successful at this?
Can anyone provide some insight?
Also, I notice that Revenue Allies allows you to market both Direct TV AND Dish Network-- I would love to understand how this works. Would you promote both companies one 1 website?? AH! I'm just so overwhelmed!

Thanks for reading. Any information is GREATLY appreciated. I don't expect you to answer all of my questions-- help with anything would be wonderful!
-- Lauren

[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.

[Lauren1026]

Thanks for all the great info. I really appreciate the advice! In reference to your concerns about my familiarity with web design and the competitive nature of satellite sales, I was (stupidly perhaps?) thinking that I would have better success with off-line marketing-- flyers and door hangers and newspaper ads whatnot. I'm not opposed to spending entire days hanging flyers on doors. Obviously I would still have a website to refer people to, but I was thinking these other marketing tactics would get the ball rolling. Are these types of campaigns not usually successful?
Thanks!!

[Linda Buquet]

They could be for certain products like SatTV and I know some affiliates that did OK with marketing DentalPlans offline. Marketing online is lots easier and more lucrative if you take the time to learn how.

[visit_faraz]

Hi Linda,
I wanted to be a dish network affiliate too and I am glad I read this post.
I had seen vmc satelite affiliate program and was confused because I had also seen bad reviews about it.

I went to sign up for the revenue alliance affiliate program but they want a federal tax id. I am not in the usa and so I dont have one.
They say they wont approve me without this information.(They have written it on the application form page)
What do I do?

bye,
faraz

[Linda Buquet]

Hi faraz,

Some programs are US only but still make exceptions for good affiliates that have a targeted site. PM Gregory and let him know you are interested and show him your site to see what he says.

Here's his profile with link to his PM.
http://affiliate-marketing-forums.5s...hantgroup.html

Good luck!

[cdorob]

Some generic notes about what to check when joining a new affiliate program have been discussed here

[visit_faraz]

Hi Linda,
Thanks for the quick reply. But actually I havent made a site about it yet. But I can build one quickly and use some ppc to drive the traffic.

So, I dont know if Gregory will accept me or not.

Do you know of any other affiliate program for satellite tv? Please let me know about it.
I also wanted to be an affiliate for cell phones. So it would really help me , if you could direct me to a good one.
EDIT: I just sent Gregory a pm and I just hope that it works out properly. Will let you know what happened.

bye,
faraz

[psp]

How about AllSat.com's Dish Network? Is it reliable to promote?

[visit_faraz]

I have never heard about allsat.com . But will check it out. Dont know if it is reliable though.

I have also heard about power satellite affiliate program but am not sure about it.