Building An "Affiliate Army"?

[GetShitDone]

I'm about to launch my eCommerce business live very soon, and I wanted to test the waters with Affiliate Marketing (and also set up the Affiliate Marketing aspect of my business)

Influencer marketing is going to be big for me and I will do commission-only deals with influencers.

But I also want to do Affiliate Marketing with actual Affiliates.

My Fitness Product is priced at $20 (It's meant to be re-ordered every month as its a monthly used product).

My gross profit margin is 75% (After paying for shipping + packaging + unit cost).

I am considering giving a 50% affiliate commission ($10) to the affiliate. Based on my research, this seems very high compared to other affiliate offers I've seen (11%/$5, 15%/$7.50, etc)

And the fact that the industry average affiliate commission seems to be around 10%.

It makes me wonder if I'm paying too high and leaving money on the table..

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I've been wondering about High Affiliate Commissions and if they may draw in the "best affiliates" or not. How not all affiliates are born equal, so to speak.

What is your experience/knowledge on Affiliate Marketing and the payment aspect of it?

Any advice on how one can build an "Affiliate Army" that actually delivers massive sales?

 

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[Charnell]

Influencer marketing is going to be big for me and I will do commission-only deals with influencers.

Good luck doing that. Influencers worth their salt know that they hardly drive direct sales so they'll want a flat rate for a post. However, with enough mentions you'll convert.

 

[GetShitDone]

Good luck doing that. Influencers worth their salt know that they hardly drive direct sales so they'll want a flat rate for a post. However, those with enough mentions you'll convert.

Thanks Charnell.

I've heard a lot of micro-influencers don't know their salt due to them being new to becoming influencers, not being business savvy, etc.

I'm going to target people between 2,000-50,000 followers. Big range, I know. But I feel they may be more likely to convert for paid-per-sale deals, especially if they're new to the game of making money from influence and want to make money.

I'm targeting the Fitness space, so I think I can target lots of everyday fitness folks that have lots of followers.

I'm getting interested in managing/recruiting traditional Affiliates though now too, so interested to see if anyone has experience with that.

 

[Charnell]

Thanks Charnell.

I've heard a lot of micro-influencers don't know their salt due to them being new to becoming influencers, not being business savvy, etc.

I'm going to target people between 2,000-50,000 followers. Big range, I know. But I feel they may be more likely to convert for paid-per-sale deals, especially if they're new to the game of making money from influence and want to make money.

I'm targeting the Fitness space, so I think I can target lots of everyday fitness folks that have lots of followers.

I'm getting interested in managing/recruiting traditional Affiliates though now too, so interested to see if anyone has experience with that.

When you say influencers, especially fitness influencers, I immediately think Instagram. I assume that's what you're going for, means you're talking about followers.

Here's why trying to get regular affiliates on Instagram is a bad idea:

I'm scrolling through my feed and see a post.

1. It catches my attention so I stop to read the caption.
2. I click the link in the users bio, which takes me to your ecommerce website
3. I click a product that looks neat
4. I get sold on your copy, and want to make a purchase. I click add to cart
5. I go to the checkout and buy the product

It takes at least 5 clicks/steps to make a purchase from Instagram to buy your product. At any point a percentage of people drop off.

Additionally, these posts only last at most a week before they're buried.

That's why people don't do affiliate marketing on Instagram. If you promise them the guise of making money from their Instagram and they don't make money from it, they'll stop promoting your product.
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You say your product is a monthly used one. Supplements maybe?

Instead of going the affiliate route for IG, go the sponsored route. Give those people that have 2,000-50,000 followers and send them a free product every month. They post about it once a week in return. Sub $1 CPM is killer.

For traditional affiliates, look into bloggers and video creators. Their medium has more staying power.

Case in point: here's a screenshot of a YouTube channel created to supplement a website I created.

The last video was uploaded January 26th, 2017. Low numbers aside, it shows staying power.
***
The best way to get regular affiliates is to email/slide in those DMs, offer your product (free with those margins), and have them review it and recommend it. There are also websites like flexoffers that anyone can apply to be an affiliate for your product and you approve them.

 

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