How To Start An Affiliate Marketing Website

Affiliate Marketing For Beginners

• Step 1: Market research and niche analysis
• Step 2: How to start an affiliate marketing website
• Step 3: Getting your affiliate website set up
• Step 4: Creating content for your website
• Step 5: How to build your email marketing list
• Step 6: Getting traffic to your website

On this page, I’ll walk you through the process of starting your own affiliate marketing website.

First, I’ll provide some tips to help you choose your first domain name.

This step is fun because this is when your online business starts to come to life.

Next I will show you step-by-step how to secure your domain name, hosting account, and help you get your website up and running.

With today’s tools, starting a website is easy.

Even if you have no technical skills or experience.

Secondly, the days of finding simple, short, and concise domain names are long gone but that doesn’t mean that you can’t find that perfect domain name that can help you make big bucks online as an internet marketer.

So don’t get discouraged initially when you find that all one-word domains and most two-word domains are already taken or for sale. You’ll find a good domain name that will work just fine.

This is where the fun starts and where you affiliate marketing business starts to take shape.

Domain names are important but like choosing your niche, if you make a mistake its not the end of the world.

Domain names are cheap so don’t get stuck on this step trying to come up with the perfect domain name.

Domain Name Tips:

1. Research keywords and search terms being used in your market

Use Google Keyword Planner (which has replaced the Google Keyword Tool) or another service to determine what phrases and keywords people are searching for now to locate your niche products and services.

Write down 5-7 keywords and phrases being used in your chosen niche that can help you pick your domain name. Take note which version of your words get more searches – singular or plural (i.e. boat vs. boats).

2. Try to include your niche keywords in your domain name

Search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo) like keywords in the domain name to let searchers know at a glance what the site’s content is about.

There is much debate about whether its better to have keywords at the beginning of the domain name instead of at the end (i.e dogtrainingexperts.com vs. bestdogtraining.com) but I have yet to see enough evidence to convince me either way. Just make sure they’re in there somewhere.

3. Choose a dot.com name if possible

Dot.com is still the place to be. People automatically type in “whatever keyword they’re looking for”.com out of habit and only look elsewhere if they cannot find it there.

It will take more work to find a good .com name but they’re still out there. More on this later.

4. Keep the domain name as short as possible

I know. That’s rich coming from a dude using the very, very short domain name highpayingaffiliateprograms.com right? There are exceptions.

In my case, my domain name tells visitors exactly what they’ll find here. But as a general rule a shorter domain name is better. Which leads me to this…

5. Narrow and specific words are better than broad and general words

Choose a name that narrows down your topic to your sub-niche if possible.

For example, if you plan to sell affiliate products such as furniture targeting women buyers don’t choose a broad domain name such as bestfurnituredeals.com. Instead select something like furnitureforwomen.com. Lame example I know but I think you get the point.

6. Avoid hyphens, numbers, or any other funky characters in your domain

Not necessarily because they don’t rank well but because people have trouble including them when they’re looking for your site.

Make it as easy as possible for people to find you and your site.

7. Choose a domain that is easy to spell

If your chosen niche is selling xylophones then I guess you’re shit out of luck. Other than that make sure people can spell it right the first time.

When you tell someone what your domain name is they should be able to type it in right the very first time.

8. Be careful not to violate copyrighted names or brands

Be very careful if you plan on using a brand name of an affiliate product or service. Most companies will not allow this and in fact can be illegal.

When in doubt contact the company first and ask them if you can use it. Or search the uspto.gov trademark name database yourself here. It’s free to use.

9. Don’t follow the latest domain name trends.

Trends come and go and your goal should be to make your website relevant and timeless. One trendy example I can remember is when everyone was buying domains such as best”insert-your-market-or-product-here”.com sites.

That trend worked well in the search engines for awhile until Google sniffed it out and put an end to it just like they will the next trend.

Follow the simple tips above and don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. In fact, one of the best strategies online is to do the exact opposite of what the herd is doing.

This makes you stand out and you may find other people copying your strategy after a while. But that’s another topic for another day.

Create An Affiliate Marketing Website In Three Steps:

1. Get Your Own Domain Name And Hosting
2. Install WordPress
3. Start Making It Your Own

Step 1: Get Your Own Domain Name And Hosting Account

Click here: Bluehost to get to the new customer discount page and then click on the big green button seen below.

This will open Bluehost in a new tab so you can click back on this tab to continue the step-by-step instructions:

After you click on the green button, you’ll land on a page with your plan selections. Since you’re just starting out I recommend the Basic plan since it the cheapest and you can always upgrade later if you need to. Your Basic plan will include everything you need to get started:

• Hosting
• Domain Name
• Email Account For Your New Site

 Please note the starter plan is usually billed annually but it will also save you some money instead of paying monthly.

Next, you’ll end up on the domain name page. 

If you’re not ready to choose your domain name you can skip this step for now by clicking that option at the bottom of the page.

Oh, and if you already have a domain registered elsewhere, you can have the domain transferred to Bluehost for free and receive an additional year of registration added on to the end of your current term. Cool.

The number one roadblock you’ll face is the seemingly daunting task of getting started. Oh, on that note… if you’re not sure whether or not affiliate marketing is for you or you’re not quite ready to jump in yet please start here.

But I’m about to show you how easy it is to start your own affiliate website or blog without having any technical skills or coding experience whatsoever. In fact, you can get started today. As in right NOW.

Below I have put together for you a step-by-step tutorial in ridiculous detail (including screenshots of each and every step) on how to get your new website online in minutes.

Follow this tutorial and you will start a new and fun journey that can pay you passive income by selling other people’s products 24/7/365. You don’t have to create any of your own products, store inventory, perform fulfillment, ship anything or do any customer service of any kind. Sound good?

Then please proceed..

After you select your domain name and hit the NEXT button you’ll go to the account info page here:

You’ll have some optional services to select from but you don’t have to choose these now. These options include:

• Domain Privacy Protection
• Site Backup Pro
• Search Engine Jumpstart
• SiteLock Security

Pay for your selected package and you’ll be directed to choose your password:

Step 2: Install WordPress

Next give your new website a title and description. For example, Title: Funniest Cat Videos. Description: A collection of the funniest cat videos in the world.

That’s it.  Now its time for the final step and where it gets really fun.  Creating your website and making it yours.

Step 3: Start Making It Your Own

I have loaded a video on how to install different WordPress themes and how to start building your website below.

There are 10 total videos that will load back to back without you having to do anything but watch.  So have at it.  Have fun.  And let’s make some money together.

Please make sure to bookmark this site so you can come back for more tutorials to learn how to generate traffic and start earning passive income.

How To Choose A Website Theme

I’m often asked “which WordPress theme should I be using?” It’s a great question since there are many many thousands to choose from. If you’re just getting started I highly recommend you start with one of many free themes you’ll find on wordpress.org. I don’t see any reason why you need to buy a theme right out of the gate.

What makes WordPress so awesome is that you can switch themes anytime you want and all of your content remains in place. With most themes, you will not need to rearrange any formatting when making a switch.

So What’s Important In The Theme You Choose?

1. Choose a WordPress theme that best fits your content and is most appealing to your target audience. Nearly all themes are customizable by color, number of columns, widgets, and other key features so you’ll have plenty of creative space to make it your own and make it stand out
2. It’s vital now (in 2015-2016 and beyond) to choose a theme that is responsive. Responsive themes automatically adjust the appearance of your content to fit smaller browsers to ensure your website looks right to each visitor
3. Make sure the theme you pick supports “featured images”. A featured image will give your post a nice little thumbnail of that picture (like you’ll see on the right hand side of my home page)
4. All WordPress sites on wordpress.org come with user reviews, number of downloads, and theme updates. This info will appear on the right hand side of your screen. Make sure to consider all of these factors when choosing your theme. Pick one that is popular, well liked, and updated frequently

Once you’re ready to buy a paid theme I highly recommend Elegant Themes. I used the Elegant Themes Divi Extra to create this site. Click here to learn more about Elegant Themes.

Affiliate Marketing Website FAQ:

What is an affiliate marketing website?
An affiliate website is a simple online platform for the publisher to earn income selling affiliate products and services to site visitors who are interested in the website’s topic or topics.

How much money can you make as an affiliate marketer?
The amount of money you can make in affiliate marketing is unlimited. Some marketers earn a small income working part-time as a ‘side gig’ and others make a high income working full-time. The choice is yours.

Are affiliate marketing websites profitable?
Some are some are not. It depends upon the topic selected and the amount of time and effort the publisher puts into the creation of the affiliate site.

Can I do affiliate marketing without a website?
Yes, you can do affiliate marketing without a website. It’s a completely different approach than traditional digital marketing that requires a sound foundation in numbers and analytics.