So Many Affiliate Programs! Which One Do I Choose?

Ask questions first before you join an affiliate program. Do a little research about the choices of
program that you intend to join into. Get some answers because they will be the deciding point
of what you will be achieving later on.
Will it cost you anything to join?
- Most affiliate programs being offered today are absolutely free of charge. So why settle for
those that charge you some dollars before joining.
When do they issue the commission checks?
- Every program is different. Some issue their checks once a month, every quarter, etc.
Select the one that is suited to your payment time choice. Many affiliate programs are
setting a minimum earned commission amount that an affiliate must meet or exceed in
order for their checks to be issued.
What is the hit per sale ratio?
- This is the average number of hits to a banner or text link it takes to generate a sale based on
all affiliate statistics. This factor is extremely important because this will tell you how much
traffic you must generate before you can earn a commission from the sale.
How are referrals from an affiliate’s site tracked and for how long do they
remain in the system?
- You need to be confident on the program enough to track those people you refer from your
site. This is the only way that you can credit for a sale. The period of time that those people stay
in the system is also important.
This is because some visitors do not buy initially but may want to return later to
make the purchase. Know if you will still get credit for the sale if it is done some months from
a certain day.
What are the kinds of affiliate stats available?
- Your choice of affiliate program should be capable of offering detailed stats. They should be
available online anytime you decide to check them out. Constantly checking your individual
stats is important to know how many impressions, hits and sales are already generated from
your site. Impressions are the number of times the banner or text link was viewed by a visitor
of your site. A hit is the one clicking on the banner or text links.

Does the affiliate program also pay for the hits and impressions besides the
commissions on sales?
- It is important that impressions and hits are also paid, as this will add to the earnings you
get from the sales commission. This is especially important if the program you are in offers
low sales to be able to hit ratio.
Who is the online retailer?
- Find out whom you are doing business with to know if it is really a solid company. Know the
products they are selling and the average amount they are achieving. The more you know
about the retailer offering you the affiliate program, the easier it will be for you to know if that
program is really for you and your site.
Is the affiliate a one tier or two tier program?
- A single tier program pays you only for the business you yourself have generated, whilst a
two tier program pays you for the business, plus it also pays you a commission on the on the
sales generated by any affiliate you sponsor in your program. Some two-tier programs are
even paying small fees on each new affiliate you sponsor. More like a recruitment fee.
Most importantly, what is the amount of commission paid?
- The commission paid by most programs is 20% - 80%, and in some cases even 100%!
Affiliate programs paying per hit, usually pays 0.01% - 0.05%. If you find a program that also
pays for impressions, the amount paid is not much. As you can see from the figures, you will
now understand why the average sales amount and hit to sale ratio is important.
These are just some of the questions that needed answering first before you enter into an
affiliate program. You should be familiar with the many important
aspects that your chosen program should have before incorporating them into your website.
Try to ask your affiliate program choices these questions. These can help you select the right
program for you site from among the many available.