Affiliate marketing is a fast growing and lucrative type of business. This type of marketing benefits all parties alike; affiliate network, merchants and affiliates.

An affiliate network can be a company like Amazon that register both merchants and affiliates into their program. This network help merchants to form a relationship with affiliates who refer customers to buy their products.

Affiliate networks usually allow affiliates to join for free but charge merchants a small fee for being part of the network.

In some cases, affiliate network collect a certain percentage of the commission (over-ride) on top of the commission paid by merchants to affiliates. Even with all the fees merchants pay to participate, the rewards are plenty. First off, affiliates use their own skills to promote the products displayed by  these merchants for little or no upfront cost to the merchant.

It is a win win situation because the affiliates get paid when they refer someone who makes a purchase or takes an action. This is a great way for someone who has great skills at convincing people to take action, to make extra cash on a low budget. Traditional businesses are difficult to set up so many aspiring entrepreneurs now turn to affiliate marketing for a way out.

Affiliate networks use many payout methods but the two most popular ones are, cost per sale (CPS) and cost per action (CPA).

Cost per sale is low cost, low risk because in this model, merchant only pays if an affiliate makes a referral that leads to a purchase. Since there is no upfront cost to the merchant in the cost per sale model, the commission paid are usually higher.

In the cost per action model, the merchant pays the affiliate when an action is taken by the customer. Actions include clicks, registration, impression etc. The cost per action model is riskier and does not necessarily involves any direct sale. Commissions in this model are usually lower.

There are many great affiliate networks but I am only going to talk briefly about the top seven.

Rakuten Affiliate Network

Rakuten affiliate network, formally known as link share is one of the best affiliate networks there is. They have been voted the # 1 affiliate network five years in a row. They are known for facilitating long term relationships between advertisers and publishers.

One of the big problem people face with affiliate marketing  is link theft. Link theft is the situation where hackers take over an affiliate’s link and get paid instead of the affiliate. Rakuten Affiliate Network uses innovative technology to make sure tracking, payment and reporting is a breeze.

As an advertiser with Rakuten affiliate network, you will get advise that is personalized and leads to success. Publishers go through a rigorous qualification process, all in an effort to make sure your goals are met and publishers are monitored for compliance regularly. For more about Rakuten Affiliate Network, follow the link below.

http://marketing.rakuten.com/affiliate-marketing

eBay Partner Network

With the eBay partner network, it is easy; you simply find an eBay listing that you like to promote and link it to your blog, website, Facebook or twitter and get paid when someone follows your link and make a purchase.

eBay has global reach by operating in about 13 countries around the world.  They have about 5 million sellers offering about $ 70 billion is gross merchandise every year. They have a huge mobile market of 291 million users via their mobile app. This is great because these people are ready to jump in and buy something when they see a deal.

They have the tools to help you build and implement links and also track your sales and payments. You can get help from their tight-knit community of partners.

Learn more by following the link below.

https://partnernetwork.ebay.com/en/why-epn

ShareASale

Shareasale has been an affiliate network for 16 years and pride themselves in their technology which they say is fast, efficient and accurate. They have a reputation for carrying out fair and honest business. They have great customer service and their network platform is straight forward. Merchants can enroll through the merchant services and will get plenty of assistance setting up. Affiliates get plenty of support too especially with the preview merchants tool.

For ore information, follow the link below;

http://shareasale.com/out-programs.cfm

Avangate

Avangate is one of the most popular digital downloads network. It has been growing very fast with the last few years. Avangate is like a melting pot of all awesome digital projects. They have amazing tools to help merchants reach more clients fast and efficiently.  They will help you power your digital e-commerce.

For more information follow the link below;

http://www.avangate.com/

CJ Affiliate by Conversant

This is a top tier affiliate network. It has suffered some draw back this past years. There are some complaints about their tracking even though they are known for their excellence in technology.

CJ is a great publisher network. For more information about CJ affiliate by conversant, follow the link below,

http://www.cj.com/

Click bank

This is an enormous network that is very popular too. Click bank is the entry point for many merchants into the world of affiliate marketing.

Click bank is universal and have been offering lifestyle products to people around the world for 17 years now.

For more information about Click bank, follow the link below.

Home v3

Amazon affiliate

Amazon is the entry point for many publishers. It is incredibly easy to enroll, build links, track links and sales. They have a vast supply of merchandise affiliates can choose from.

Amazon is trusted and very popular. A great place to start as a publisher. For more information follow the link below,

https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/welcome

The seven affiliate networks listed above are in my opinion among the top tier networks. They provide a platform where merchants, publishers or affiliates can form a business relationship.

Please leave a comment!

Cheers Denise