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Have you ever bought a product online just because an influencer you follow recommended it on their Instagram? Chances are, they made money because of you. This is called affiliate marketing.
If you’ve been researching ways to make money online, you may have heard about affiliate marketing. A lot of people think you need to have millions of followers to try this way to make money online.
However, this is not the case. If you know how to play your cards right, you can make a sizable income through this.
If you want to try your luck in affiliate marketing, we’ve compiled this in-depth guide to help you.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Before trying out affiliate marketing, you first need to know what it is.
Affiliate marketing is a popular advertising model where companies pay third-party publishers to generate traffic to their services or products. This can be done through social media pages, websites, email marketing and other online channels. In return, third-party publishers called affiliates get commission fee incentives.
A lot of Internet personalities start their affiliate journey as a way to make money on the side. In time, this performance-based tactic can easily go from a side hustle to a career that can give you a steady stream of income.
Affiliate marketing is now considered a billion-dollar industry (spending expected to reach $8 billion by the end of 2022 in US alone)1. Businesses usually pay affiliates on a per-sale basis.
How Affiliate Marketing works
Now that you know what affiliate marketing is, you’re probably wondering how it works. There are three people involved in the process of affiliate marketing.
The first one is the seller or the product creator. This can be any retailer that sells a physical object or service.
The next one is the affiliate. This person is responsible for promoting the product of the seller in a very appealing way to attract potential customers. The rationality behind her job is simple. The more people they persuade to buy it, the more money they make.
The final player in affiliate marketing is the consumer. These people may or may not know that they have been targeted by affiliates. When these people buy any product or service from an affiliate link, the affiliate gets a percentage of their sales.
However, they don’t need to pay more for the purchase they made.
Everyone can become an affiliate, but you need to apply for an affiliate marketing program first. Once you get approved, you can finally start your affiliate journey.
From here you can post an ad or link for any type of store or services on your website, social media channels, email newsletters, video content, or blog.
Then, customers can click on the link you posted. Once they purchase from that store, the affiliate network will record their transaction and it will be credited to you. Finally, you get paid your commission for the sale.
Keep in mind that commission rates differ depending on the company you are promoting. Most people earn around 5% per sale.
However, some arrangements allow internet personalities to earn as much as 25 to 50% especially when they are promoting a niche product.
Pros & Cons of Affiliate Marketing
We’ve gathered the advantages and disadvantages of affiliate marketing below.
Advantages
Minimal start-up cost
If you want to try affiliate marketing, you can make money with no investment. All you need to do is just promote products or services in various ways.
For example, you can make a video and post it on Tiktok, or you can simply post products on your Instagram story with your affiliate link.
It gives you flexibility
Another major benefit of becoming an affiliate is it offers flexibility which is an important thing to have for many people today.
Affiliates have the freedom to work part-time, full-time, or even as a freelancer. You are not bound to a set schedule and you can work whenever you like.
After you have posted an affiliate link, you don’t have to do anything else. All you need to do is simply wait for the sales to come in.
It helps you build relationships
When you work as an affiliate, you will have an opportunity to foster relationships with some of the biggest and most reliable brands in your niche.
Affiliate marketing heavily relies on networking and leveraging connections. Considering this, it’s an awesome way for you to connect with new people and open doors for more opportunities.
For instance, a company can enlist you as an affiliate for multiple products. Every time they release something new, you will have the opportunity to broaden your earnings.
It helps you earn money
Income-wise, becoming an affiliate is one of the smartest things you can do. Affiliates earn thousands to millions of pesos per year thanks to affiliate marketing.
Whether you want to try being an affiliate as a side hustle or a full-time job, you can earn money through it. Earning money by doing what you love is a luxury that not many people can experience.
It helps your followers
You simply don’t become an affiliate just to earn money. Most people become an affiliate because they want to help out their readers and followers.
People follow you on social media or read your blog because they value your opinion. Every time you suggest a product or promote a service, you are helping your followers solve a certain problem they may have.
Disadvantages
It can negatively affect your reputation
One of the major disadvantages of becoming an affiliate is you will be held accountable by your followers and audience for promoting something that is subpar.
This could potentially damage your reputation and in turn, lose people’s interest in you.
This is why you should always be careful in choosing the products you promote as an affiliate. Before promoting anything, make sure to do your due diligence and research well.
As much as you can, never produce misleading content because this will only cause you to lose followers.
It may take time to see results
If you are still building your blog or social media pages, don’t expect to make thousands of money on your first week as an affiliate.
The truth is, becoming an affiliate is no walk in the park. Just like with other types of careers you need to work hard to earn money.
This shouldn’t be a problem for people who already have hundreds of thousands of followers.
There is no set income
When you become an affiliate, there really is no guarantee that you will be earning money. Making content is extremely hard and the truth is, you’re never sure if you will be rewarded for all your effort.
This can pose a problem for people who want to be an affiliate full-time.
The competition is fierce
One of the major disadvantages of being an affiliate marketer is the competition is tough depending on your industry.
While there are strong benefits of becoming an affiliate, you will compete with established affiliates in your niche and this can pose an obvious danger in your capacity to earn money.
What is an Affiliate Program?
An affiliate program is a binding agreement between a business and another business, or a business and an individual (ie: blogger, influencer). For this program, businesses pay a commission for affiliates who generate sales or send traffic (potential customers) in their way.
Affiliate programs are directly linked to a company’s website. This is referred to as an affiliate link. Generally, affiliates have to apply to become part of an affiliate program, although it usually costs nothing to join.
How do Affiliates make money?
By now, you may be wondering: how do affiliates make money by promoting a product? The answer is simple.
Businesses give affiliates a unique link called an affiliate link. When people click this link, it is tracked using cookies.
The cookie tracks whether the user makes a purchase or not. If the consumer makes a purchase using that link within a set amount of time, the affiliate will earn a commission.
It is important to note that every cookie has a specific length that defines how long it will track the customer’s activity online.
For instance, many cookies have a 30-day life. For this type of cookie, your audience must purchase before it expires for you to get paid. If not, the lead will not be trackable anymore.
Top Affiliate Programs & Networks in the Philippines
Wondering how you can make money through affiliate marketing in the Philippines? We’ve gathered the most popular affiliate networks and programs for you to check out below.
Lazada
Lazada’s popularity has skyrocketed since the pandemic. Now, it is one of the top shopping hubs in Southeast Asia.
If you become a Lazada affiliate, you can earn up to 6% to 10% commission for every order. Commissions for products purchased through the app are also higher than the ones purchased through a web browser.
How to apply as a Lazada affiliate:
Before you become an affiliate for this platform, you need to comply with the requirements.
Affiliates are required to have social media accounts such as Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. You can also have a blog, or YouTube channel, a Tiktok account, or a website.
The document you need to present include the following:
For individuals:
- Government-issued ID
- Bank certificate
- Blank copy of the official receipt
- BIR 2303
For companies:
- Certificate of Incorporation
- Bank certificate
- BIR 2303
Once you have all the requirements ready, the first step is to sign up as an affiliate here.
Then, you have to wait for the confirmation email which will give you the next steps to become an affiliate.
This includes setting up other information and confirming your email address. Finally, the affiliation program of this platform will send you another email that contains your commission links.
You don’t have to wait long for your affiliate application to be approved. Usually, affiliate applications are approved within 1 to 2 days.
If you don’t get a reply immediately, please be patient because the platform gets tons of applications every day.
Once you get commissions, the payments will be wired to banks only. Local banks will charge around 5% to 10% withholding tax.
If your account is with a foreign bank, expect to pay 10% to 15% withholding tax. Keep in mind that the minimum earning threshold before you can make a payout is Php1,200 per month.
Shopee
This platform is another online marketplace that offers an affiliate program for people who want to earn extra money on the side.
For Shopee, there is no set commission rate because it usually depends on the product you are promoting.
Usually, affiliates get up to 7% commission for every transaction made by a customer using their link.
How to become a Shopee affiliate:
To become an affiliate on this platform, you need to have an Involve Asia account. After getting this in order, log into your account and head over to your dashboard.
From here, you can select ‘partner’ and click ‘advertiser directory.’
Next, you can type Shopee Philippines as your country. Then, apply and send a request. Request approval message will appear and give you a questionnaire.
Don’t forget to hit save. After applying, you need to wait for the approval of your request.
Shopee recommends only signing up for their affiliate program if you already have a huge following.
However, this is usually not checked. Just like in Lazada, having multiple social media channels can help you earn more.
Optimise Media
Optimise Media is recognized around the globe as one of the most popular global affiliate networks. In the Philippines, their advertising reach covers big brands such as:
- Zalora
- Watsons
- Shopee
- Lazada
- GrabFood
- Adidas
- HSBC
How to apply as an Optimise Media affiliate:
Application for this platform is very easy. All you need to do is accomplish this form.
Involve Asia
Since 2014, Involve Asia has been one of the most trusted affiliate programs in the country. Here, you can earn up to a staggering 34% commission.
Similar to Optimise Media, it will enable you to become an affiliate of some of the most popular brands in the country such as:
- Lazada
- Zalora
- Shopee
- Klook
- Unilever
- Hotels.com
- Decathlon
Just like other affiliate programs, you need to have a website or social media to become an affiliate.
Then, your channels will be included in the categories on the platform such as beauty, finance, fashion, electronics, travel, shopping, and many more.
Keep in mind that your channels must have significant web traffic. If not, the platform could reject your application. This is common with new accounts, channels, and websites.
How to become an Involve Asia affiliate:
Sign up for an account here.
After filling out the form, you need to wait for the platform to send you a confirmation email. Upon receiving your confirmation email, you can log into your account.
However, this may not be immediately accessible until your registration approval has been processed. Give it at least a day or two. After your registration is complete, an email will be sent to you.
From here, you can set up your account.
However, it is not recommended to promote immediately. Key in information about your platform or website first. Involve Asia is known to check affiliate sites and channels provided by applicants.
Finally, Involve Asia will decide whether or not you will be approved as an affiliate. This process usually takes up to five working days.
From here, you can choose the brand you want to promote that will best fit your niche. Involve Asia generates links quickly.
The visits from the links you posted will be tracked and recorded from the dashboard. Information such as the value of each commission can also be accessed on your dashboard.
ClickBank
ClickBank is one of the most successful affiliate marketing platforms in the country in terms of digital products.
One of the best things about this platform is commissions can go as high as a whopping 75%. In many cases, businesses may even sell products with 95 to 100% commission.
This is because even if brands don’t make money from the sale, the customer will become part of their sales funnel and will have a higher likelihood of purchasing more products from them in the future.
In short, the goal of businesses here is not to get sales, but to build leads.
Affiliates in this platform get their payments through checks. For those eligible for direct deposit, commissions can be paid on a per week basis.
Keep in mind that marketing experts suggest not to choose commissions lower than 40% because the platform may still deduct fees from sales.
How to become a Clickbank Affiliate:
Signing up for an affiliate program here is quite straightforward. All you need to do is accomplish this form.
To create your account, you need to have a nickname which will also serve as your user ID. Once your account is active, you will be able to access the customer survey page.
From here, you can start selling with this platform.
7 Ways to Make Money through Affiliate Marketing in the Philippines
There are different types of affiliate programs you can try. When choosing one, make sure to keep in mind the platform you want to use.
For example, do your followers usually check YouTube, or are they more active on Instagram? Or perhaps they love using search engines when looking for new products.
Here’s a look at the general types of affiliate programs you can try.
Search Affiliates
For this type of affiliate program, sites are advertised with a partner site or a sponsored listing in search engines such as Google.
This type of affiliate program offers more focused and relevant content that will serve what the customer is looking for.
This type of affiliate marketing is also beneficial because it results in better conversion thanks to its simple call to action.
Keep in mind that this is quite a challenging type of affiliate but if you have a background in SEO, it will surely work for you.
Influencers
An influencer is someone who greatly impacts the purchasing decision of their followers.
If you are an influencer and have a huge following, you are in an awesome position to become an affiliate marketer.
By simply posting on your social media channels, you can persuade your readers to buy the product that you are promoting.
Content Publishing
If you have a blog, vlog, or podcast and you have established your name in the industry, you can be a successful affiliate.
Content creators have the advantage of ranking high in search engine results. This translates to better conversions.
Usually, bloggers/vloggers write a review or feature a product on their website with comprehensive information about it. This will persuade the audience to visit the seller’s site and see whether or not they want to buy the product.
Email List
Many Filipinos think that email marketing is not useful anymore. However, that is not the case.
Although it is quite older than its counterparts, email marketing is still one of the most successful sources of affiliate marketing income.
Affiliates usually build comprehensive email lists they can use to promote any type of product within their niche. For example, you may send out newsletters that have links to services or products.
Media Websites
Companies can also be all affiliates. If you have a company website that gets heavy traffic you can use banners and affiliate links to earn money.
This type of affiliate setup usually leads to high exposure and conversion rates.
Comparison Websites
Another way to easily persuade people to purchase through your affiliate link is through comparison websites.
For this type of affiliate setup, you will compare two or more products when it comes to price, quality, accessibility, and other important factors.
Generally, your goal is to educate readers about different products and make them click your affiliate links.
Mobile Apps
If you’ve ever played on a free mobile app, chances are, you have encountered Pop-ups and banners other products, other apps, or services.
This is a type of affiliate marketing that leads consumers to click the pages for direct downloads. From here, you can get a commission for every download made using your unique link.
Top 10 Affiliate Marketing Niches in the Philippines
If you want to be a successful affiliate, you can’t simply promote every product you think of.
To improve your chances of getting more commissions, can you stay focused on your niche. Take a look at some of the most profitable niches for affiliate marketing below.
1. Travel
As travel restrictions start to loosen up, more people are expressing interest in traveling. You can leverage this by riding the bandwagon.
For example, you can become an affiliate for hotel bookings, travel must-haves, flights, and many more.
2. Gaming
The popularity of gaming has increased in recent years. With this affiliate niche, you can not only focus on PC, or consoles, but mobile devices as well.
There are also sub-niches in this category that you can leverage.
3. Home décor
With more people staying at home due to the pandemic, home decor has become essential. In fact, you may have probably heard about the viral Facebook group Home Buddies.
For this evergreen niche, you will be targeting people who want to decorate their homes. This can include curtains, plates, lighting fixtures, and many more.
4. Fitness
Have you noticed that more people have become interested in fitness lately?
If you love staying fit, you can position yourself as a reliable influencer in this industry and you can recommend workout equipment, supplements, workout clothes, and other essential fitness items.
5. Technology
Technology is an evergreen affiliate niche that will give you a sizable income.
For this niche, your goal will be to share and help your followers with products related to mobile technologies, business software, digital streaming, and many more.
6. Yoga
These days, the demand for yoga is so high and this is apparent when you look at the number of yoga schools that have popped off everywhere in the Philippines.
If you choose this niche, your job is to connect yogis with services and products that will improve their practice.
7. Finance
This niche centers on delivering financial services that are up to par with traditional banking.
Chances are, your readers and followers want to learn how to grow their money.
This can include cryptocurrencies, banking platforms, data security, peer-to-peer payments, and many more.
8. Pet care
Filipinos are spending more money on their pets. This niche covers pet clothing, service dogs, foods, grooming products, and toys among many others.
9. Entertainment
Filipinos love entertainment whether it’s music or movies.
The country highly consumes media products so you can write reviews on movies, albums, and TV shows as a part of your strategy.
10. Fashion & beauty
YouTube and other social media channels are now filled with fashion and beauty haul videos where influencers showcase the products they bought online.
Whatever style you have, whether it leans towards budget finds or luxury, you can use this to your advantage. This affiliate marketing niche includes clothes, make-up, and skincare.
How to Get Started with Affiliate Marketing in the Philippines
Ready to become an affiliate? These are the steps that you should follow.
Step 1: Choose your platform
It’s possible to become an affiliate in all your online channels. However, it is easier to focus on several channels where your followers and readers are most active.
Take into consideration how hard it is to widen your reach in your chosen platform.
For example, building a blog will require you to invest in good web design, and learn more about SEO before you can increase your audience.
On the other hand, if you choose social media channels such as Instagram, Pinterest or Tiktok, all you need to focus on is making aesthetically pleasing photos and videos, as well as shareable content for your followers to see.
Step 2: Pick a niche
Did any of the niches mentioned above piqued your interest? The online sphere is immensely saturated but you can still have a chance to succeed in your chosen niche.
As much as you can, be specific. For example, if you want to promote products related to sports, covering 10 sports is not recommended.
Instead, focus on sub-niches such as basketball, golf, surfing, and many more. When you pick a specific topic, you can easily build a more focused follower group. You will also rank higher on search engines.
Step 3: Register as an affiliate
Now, you’re finally ready to register as an affiliate. Based on the platforms listed above, take your pick and try to see where your followers or audience are most active.
You can choose low-paying and high-volume affiliate products, high-paying and low-volume affiliate products, and lastly, high-paying and high-volume affiliate products.
Before you do this step, make sure that you already have a plan in place on how you can establish or position your brand as a trustworthy figure in your niche.
Step 4: Create & promote your content
You can’t possibly stand out as an affiliate if you are making subpar content. Whether you are putting out photos, videos, or articles, make sure that you post great content.
To be able to persuade people, you need to go the extra mile to make your followers realize that a product or service can solve their problems.
Making great content is not enough. You also need to make an effort to promote your platform so more people can see it.
You can do this by investing in paid traffic, SEO, and collaborating with other influencers in your niche.
Step 5: Turn audience into customers
When it comes to affiliate marketing, you need to capitalize two types of conversion so you can get a commission.
First, your readers must click the product page you posted.
Second, they must purchase the product.
When it comes to these types of conversions, you have full control of the first one. Just because you have amazing content does not automatically mean people will click on your affiliate link.
Make sure you place the link where people can see it. This can be in your introduction. You can even use visual elements such as buttons, or boxes to drive your reader’s eyes to your affiliate link.
However, your merchant has control over the second one. For example, if their checkout page isn’t functioning well, readers are less likely to checkout.
7 Effective Affiliate Marketing Tips
Here are some strategies to keep in mind to increase your chances of succeeding in affiliate marketing.
Always think about your audience
Your goal as an affiliate marketer is to drive your readers to get a product. However, this can’t be done if you are promoting products or services that are not wanted by your audience.
Choosing products to promote on your affiliate channels is not easy. It takes more than just picking products in your niche.
For instance, you may assume that your audience would love to buy a weight loss tea because you have a fitness blog. However, most of your audience may prioritize bulking up over losing weight.
Be transparent
While it’s tempting to not let your audience know that you get a commission on products you promote, this may backfire on you.
It is recommended to be transparent with your followers because this will improve their trust in you.
When you are completely transparent with your audience, they will not feel like you are using them. More than that, it also ensures that you comply with regulations and requirements.
Be realistic
When it comes to promoting products to your audience, be as realistic as possible.
Do not market a certain product in a way that will only set up your audience for disappointment. As much as you can, be honest.
That’s why it’s also crucial to only promote products/services that you genuinely believe in (or you would personally buy).
Leverage metrics
If you want to achieve success in affiliate marketing, you need to know how your audience engages with your content.
Try to see and assess analytics such as what types of content get the majority of your traffic, how much time people spend on your website, or where your traffic is usually coming from.
Use this information to tailor your affiliate links in your future content. Always remember that affiliate marketing is an ongoing effort and you need to learn as you go.
Choose a niche you are knowledgeable in
Readers will immediately know whether you are bluffing or not. As a responsible affiliate, you need to set yourself apart through knowledge. This way, you’ll be seen as an expert in your niche.
Many affiliates make the mistake of choosing products just because it is hyped.
Because they want to push out content immediately, they fail to research the product. If you do this, the readers will feel as if you’re content is dull.
Promote in communities
Online groups, especially on Facebook, can greatly help you earn money through affiliate marketing.
For example, if your niche is home decor and you are promoting new rugs, you can post it on Facebook groups with an amazing picture, and a descriptive caption.
Help, don’t sell
In their efforts to persuade people to buy products, many marketers come off as to salesly. However, if you really want to make a difference in the lives of your audience, your goal should not be to sell.
It should be to help them. When you impart valuable information to readers, we are more likely to believe what you’re saying.
5 Tips to Succeed as an Affiliate Marketer
By now, you are probably so excited to become an affiliate. However, we’re not done just yet.
We’ve gathered some tips you can exercise if you want to make affiliate marketing your main source of income.
Be patient
Unless you’re lucky, your first affiliate link won’t give you millions of pesos immediately. Affiliate marketing is a long game.
You have to be patient enough to make content even if you’re not seeing the results you want.
Keep in mind that once you share a link, it will continue to earn commissions even if you’ve already forgotten about it, particularly for links that don’t expire.
Experiment
If you have a blog, you may think that product reviews and pictures are the best ways to get people to click affiliate links.
But after researching, you may be surprised to find out that your audience prefers YouTube videos over blog posts.
Add a call to action
Using a clear call to action on your channels is crucial.
Make sure to let your readers or audience know how they can buy the products you mentioned, and reiterate your promotional code or affiliate link.
Dedicate time and effort
You can’t simply promote a product as an affiliate without trying it or proving to yourself that this is a quality item.
Dedicate time and effort not only in making your content but also in testing products. This way, you will stand out from your competition because your content is more well thought of.
Prioritize conversion over commission
Successful affiliate marketers understand that high commission rates will not do them any good if conversions are low.
To illustrate this point, you will be better off with an affiliate program that pays P100 per conversion but converts at 10% compared to a program that pays P1000 per sale, but the conversion rate is only at 0.01%.
Examples of Successful Online Businesses using Affiliate Marketing
Here’s a look at some of the most popular online businesses that make money through affiliate marketing.
You can check these examples and assess how they tailor their affiliate content.
Nerdwallet
This is one of the most popular affiliate websites in the world and it posts reviews for different financial products.
Cheapflights PH
This is a platform that allows customers to compare flights, hotels, car rentals, and flight plus hotel deals.
Buzzfeed
In the shopping section of BuzzFeed, they post products and market affiliate products in a unique and relatable way.
Wirecutter
This is the website that promotes gadgets and gears and it was acquired in 2016 by the New York Times.
Moneymax PH
This website allows their audience to easily compare the best deals on loans, insurance products, and credit cards in the Philippines.
Affiliate Marketing in the Philippines FAQs
Got questions about affiliate marketing? We’ll answer them below.
Absolutely. Affiliate marketing can be immensely lucrative, but you need to put time and effort into it before you see results.
The income of affiliate marketers greatly varies. Some make a couple thousand pesos per month, and there are also others that make as much as six figures per month.
The amount of money you will learn through affiliate marketing greatly depends on what products you post, your reach, and how much effort you put into your content. As you spend more time as an affiliate marketer, you will earn more money.
One of the upsides of affiliate marketing is you do not need capital. All you need is to find and sign up for any affiliate program, post great content, and nurture your relationship with your audience.
Yes. It is possible to become an affiliate simply through your social media channels such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Tiktok, and Instagram. The secret lies in finding out which platform your audience engages with the most.
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Can i be a member of affiliate evenn im here in japan? Thankyou
Yes, since payouts can be received online.