What is Affiliate Marketing in Urdu

Affiliate marketing is becoming a popular way for many people to earn money online in Pakistan and other countries where Urdu is spoken. In this comprehensive guide, I will explain everything you need to know about affiliate marketing in Urdu in simple terms.

What is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing where you earn a commission by promoting someone else’s products or services on your website, blog, YouTube channel or social media. As an affiliate, you act as a marketing agent for the merchant and send them paying customers in exchange for a percentage of the sale.

For example, if you own a blog about smartphones and affiliate products, you can join an affiliate program for a mobile shop. You can then promote their smartphones on your blog by writing reviews or comparisons and adding links back to their website. If any of your readers click through and make a purchase, you will earn a commission, usually around 5-15% of the sale value.

So in summary, affiliate marketing works by you sending customers to a business and getting paid for those referrals. It allows you to leverage someone else’s products without needing to create your own.

How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?

The whole affiliate marketing model relies on a few different parties working together:

• The Merchant – This is the company or brand that wants to increase sales of their products. They operate the affiliate program and pay affiliates commissions for referring customers.
• The Affiliate/Publisher – This is you, the person who promotes the merchant’s products in order to earn commissions. Affiliates create websites, videos, social media posts and other content to attract customers.
• The Customer – The person who buys the product after clicking from your site to the merchant’s site. The customer completes the sale, triggering the commission payout.

Here is how the main steps work:

1. The merchant signs up to an affiliate network and lists their products in the marketplace. They specify commission rates for each product.
2. You find a suitable product on the network that matches your audience and niche. You apply to promote that product.

1. After getting approved for the program, you are given special affiliate links to promote that product.
2. You add the affiliate links to your website, YouTube, social media, etc.
3. Visitors click your links, taking them to the merchant’s website.
4. If they complete a purchase within the cookie period (usually 30-90 days), you earn a % commission of the sale.
5. The affiliate network tracks sales, provides reports and handles all the payments to you.

So in a nutshell, you earn commissions by promoting products to customers you refer. The merchant only pays when a sale happens, so there is little risk.

What Can You Promote as an Affiliate?

One of the great benefits of affiliate marketing is that you can promote almost any type of product or service. Here are some examples of things people commonly promote:

• Physical Products – Electronics, furniture, clothing, beauty items, tools, etc. Amazon Associates is a huge program.
• Digital Products – eBooks, online courses, software, stock images, web hosting, etc. ClickBank focuses on digital infos products.
• Services – Insurance, travel bookings, subscriptions, etc.
• SaaS Tools – Analytics, email marketing, CRMs, etc. Recurring commissions.

So you are not limited to just one vertical. You can even have multiple affiliate sites and promote various types of complementary products to each niche audience.

This variety makes affiliate marketing appealing for all types of blogs and content creators looking to monetize. You’re sure to find relevant products that provide value to your audience.

What are the Benefits of Affiliate Marketing?

There are several advantages that make affiliate marketing an attractive online business model, including:

Low Barrier to Start

You don’t need to create your own product or have huge amounts of capital to get started. The upfront investment is very low compared to other online businesses. You can start while keeping your full-time job.

Passive Income Potential

After the initial effort of promoting products and building an audience, commissions will keep coming in automatically as people click your links and buy. Affiliate income can grow year after year if you maintain your content.

Performance-Based

You only earn commissions when sales are made, so there is little risk involved. Merchants handle product fulfillment. You get rewarded for your marketing efforts.

Global Reach

You can promote products worldwide if they ship internationally. Location doesn’t limit your ability to find customers. Great for Urdu speakers across different countries.

Be Your Own Boss

You have control over your website and how you promote.

So if you want flexibility, global reach, and uncapped earning potential, affiliate marketing is very appealing.

How to Get Started with Affiliate Marketing

If you want to get started in affiliate marketing, follow these steps:

Pick a Niche

Don’t try promoting random products. Focus on a market you understand. Ideas include tech, beauty, health/fitness, books, parenting, food, pets, hobbies, etc. Make it more targeted over time.

Create a Website

Your website will become the hub for your affiliate content and promotions. You should have a professional looking site related to your niche that provides value. It can just be a simple blog in the beginning.

Join Affiliate Networks

Sign up for large affiliate networks like ClickBank, Commission Junction, FlexOffers, Impact, etc. Browse their marketplaces to find good products to promote. Applying is free and easy.

Research Products

 Make sure the merchant has a good reputation too. Promote things you would personally recommend.

Generate Content

Create detailed reviews, “how to” articles, comparison posts, lists etc. that mention the product and include your affiliate links. Focus on providing value.

Get Traffic

Use SEO, social media, email marketing, collaborations, paid ads and other tactics to drive targeted traffic to your affiliate content. More eyeballs means more potential customers.

Track and Optimize

Use affiliate links properly and track your campaigns through the networks. See which products convert best and double down on promoting those.

If you follow these steps, you will be on the path to earning your first commissions. Start small and reinvest to grow over time.

Common Affiliate Marketing Methods

There are a few primary strategies and content formats that work well for affiliate marketing:

• Review Sites – Create in-depth, honest reviews of products you have used. This builds trust and helps people make buying decisions.
• Comparison Reviews – Compare multiple products against each other in a table/chart format. Show pros and cons of each option. These perform very well.
• “Best Of” Lists – Rank products by category from best to worst. Give your #1 pick and runner-ups. Update these lists regularly.
• Tutorials/Guides – Show people how to use a product with text and video walkthroughs. Great for software or more complex items.
• Coupon/Deals Content – Curate and share the latest coupon codes and promotions for products. Everyone loves a deal.

• Email Newsletters – Send emails to subscribers highlighting great deals and new product releases. Time these around seasonal sales.
• Amazon Affiliate Sites – Create niche sites specifically promoting products from Amazon. Can be very lucrative.
• YouTube Reviews – Record video reviews and tutorials of products. Add your affiliate link in the description. Good for visual learners.

So as you can see, there are many options for creating affiliate promotions tailored to your audience. The key is providing sincere value that helps people.

What is a Good Commission Rate?

The amount of commission you earn will vary greatly depending on the merchant, niche and specific product. Here are some typical commission rates you can expect:

• Digital products like eBooks – 50 to 75% commissions.
• Physical products like electronics – 4 to 10% commissions.
• Amazon affiliate commissions – 4 to 8% usually. Can be up to 12%.
• SaaS and tools – 20 to 30% recurring commissions.
• Insurance and financial offers – $25 to $100+ per lead generated.
• Travel bookings – $20 to $100+ per booking.

The best programs pay over 50% for digital info products, because there’s high profit margins. But even commissions in the 3-8% range add up quickly with higher ticket items.

Also look for high repeating commissions, bonuses and incentives that boost earnings. Recurring products are ideal for passive income.

How Much Money Can You Make?

Income potential varies widely in affiliate marketing. It depends on your niche, promotions, and time invested. But the amounts can grow over time. Here are some earning examples at different levels:

• Beginner full-time – $500 to $2,000 per month. Still finding your footing.
• Intermediate part-time – $800 to $5,000 per month. 1-2 years experience.
• Advanced full-time – $5,000 to $25,000+ per month. 3+ years experience.
• Brand affiliate deals – $10,000 to $50,000+ per month. Big publishers with high traffic.

So you can start out earning a humble amount as you learn the ropes, but scale up to a very impressive income over a few years if you get good at it. Passive earnings build up from older content.

Having your own affiliate site also means you build an asset you can later sell for a big multiple of your annual income. Overall it is very lucrative.

How to Choose the Best Affiliate Programs

Here are some tips for finding the best affiliate programs to join and promote:

• Find merchants selling high ticket products or services to maximize commissions per sale.
• Look for digital info products with recurring payments – provides reliable passive income.
• Partner with companies offering at least 50% commission for digital products.
• Choose established brands you know people already use and trust.
• Check that merchants have clear and fair Terms of Service for affiliates.
• Only pick products you would personally recommend to avoid pushback.
• Evaluate cookie duration, payment threshold and speed of payments.
• Look for active affiliate managers you can contact if any issues arise.
• See if exclusive incentives, contests or bonuses are offered to top affiliates.

Taking the time to carefully vet potential affiliate partners will ensure maximum earnings and a great experience promoting them. Do your due diligence.

Common Affiliate Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Here are some common mistakes that hurt earnings and credibility as an affiliate marketer:

• Promoting too many random products that don’t match your brand.
• Writing fake or exaggerated reviews just to make sales.
• Overuse of affiliate links that looks spammy.
• Driving poor quality traffic that converts badly.
• Not providing enough value and useful content for visitors.
• Choosing dishonest merchants who don’t pay properly.
• Switching between too many new offers before giving them a chance.
• Neglecting email list building which amplifies income long-term.
• Getting banned by merchants for aggressive promotional methods.
• Failing to reinvest earnings into site growth and paid traffic.

As long as you focus on providing sincere value, work with legitimate brands, and think long term – you can avoid these mistakes and grow a thriving affiliate business. Don’t take shortcuts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is affiliate marketing dead?

No, affiliate marketing is still going strong and companies spend billions on it each year. However, expectations and tactics need to evolve as ad blockers become more prevalent. Value-focused content is always in demand.

Is affiliate marketing easy?

It’s relatively easy to get started and earn a little income, but becoming a high earner takes knowledge and work. You need some marketing skills and effort to see big success over the long term.

Is affiliate marketing passive?

Once your content is created and drawing traffic, affiliate income can be very passive. But you still need to spend time maintaining your site, publishing new posts, commenting on forums, emailing your list etc.

How many traffic you need for affiliate marketing?

There are no fixed traffic requirements. Even small sites can make sales and commissions. You can start earning with just a few hundred visitors a month in a tight niche. The more traffic, the higher your income potential.

Conclusion

I hope this complete overview gives you a good understanding of how affiliate marketing works and how you can leverage it to earn commissions by promoting useful products online.

The options are endless and anyone can get started by choosing a niche and creating value-driven content with affiliate links. Be patient at first while you build assets and trust. Reinvest to grow your audience over time and affiliate income can grow exponentially.

When done right, ethical affiliate marketing lets you bank passive commissions month after month. Now you know the blueprint to get started!