Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest ways of making money online in Canada and it can be very lucrative if you focus on the right programs. Merchants may have an in-house affiliate program or join networks like Share-A-Sale, where thousands of website owners may partner up with them for a percentage of sales they make. Affiliates add the merchants’ banners to their website, or write content around a text link. They can also promote merchants in their newsletters. Clicks on the links are tracked and commissions are paid through the network or directly if the program is independently operated.
There are thousands of affiliate (partner) programs available to Canadian website owners and bloggers, which makes it difficult to select a few to focus on. We all want to choose the most lucrative offers but it’s hard to say which ones will be successful. Some may pay less but convert more, or vice versa. The final outcome will depend on how well the program is matched to your website visitors and how good you are at affiliate marketing in general. You will also want to consider seasonal shopping, which starts earlier online to allow for shipping time. “Seasonal” can be anything from calendar holidays to actual seasons, such as promoting hotel affiliates during the Summer vacation months. “Back to school” had a heavy influence on August sales on the B2C front, with many businesses also taking advantage of sales on electronics and supplies.
A little inside info can go a long way in affiliate marketing. I manage several websites and blogs, a number of which participate in affiliate programs to generate revenue. There are a broad range of sectors covered between them, making this compilation beneficial for most affiliate marketers. I’ve ranked them according to the amount they brought in for each individual website, and combined totals when multiple sites earned from the same merchant. I’ll be doing this for you every month or so in the hopes of saving you some time and ultimately increasing your income.
Top 10 Earning Affiliate Programs for August, 2014
1. Pet Wellbeing Inc. – Earn 15% of sales of natural pet health and wellness products.
2. Native Remedies and Pet Alive – One of the top websites for natural health products for pets & humans. Earn 25%/sale (including phone sales).
3. Points.com
– Summer ramped up interest in travel points, keeping Points.com in the top three. Earn 2.50% – 10.00%/sale and $0.25/lead.
4. Hewlett-Packard (HP) Canada – HP had a back to school boost in ranking this month. They have regular discounts and free shipping deals on office products that most businesses and individuals need. At 2% of sales, you’ll want to focus on HP’s big ticket items like laptops.
5. WeeCanToo – Provides the perfect eco gift for babies & toddlers… edible art supplies! This company has really taken off due to top media coverage. You’ll earn 15%/sale.
6. India Herbs – Natural medicine is all the rage. The products here are based upon 5,000 year old Ayurveda medicine and formulated by a team of doctors. You’ll earn 40%/sale.
7. Blueprint Pro for Online Business – So many Canadians are looking for ways to make money online, from established “brick & mortar” companies to stay-at-home moms. The Blueprint Pro provides a jumpstart and guides people to success in eCommerce or any online selling. I started this one on a single site and it’s already ranking in my top 10 with a 50% commission.
8. Hire Writers – Content writing service with insanely low rates. Offers $20 per client you refer who makes a deposit and one cent/lead.
9. Share-A-Sale Referral Program – Share-A-Sale pays $150 for each merchant you refer to their performance based (affiliate) marketing network, and $1 for each publisher you refer.
10. 123 Print – Quality customization and selection for a reasonable price makes 123 Print popular with both individuals and businesses of all sizes. They offer business cards, postcards, door hangers, car magnets, address labels, stamps, post-it® notes, wedding invitations, RSVP cards, and more. Their commission rate is on the low side at 8-11%, but sales volume makes up for that quite often. Canada ranks number two in their list of top sales by country.
This search will provide a list of our top earning affiliate programs for other months.
INSIDER TIPS!
- Free, extensive affiliate training and affiliate marketing tools can be had through the masterminds at Affilorama.
- Free affiliate marketing courses, community and more from The Wealthy Affiliate.
- Free Top 50 Niches Report, free online income stream training, Market Feeder software and case studies from Niche Profit.
- To automatically embed an affiliate store in your WordPress blog, try Datafeedr.
- To easily manage affiliate links in WordPress blogs (auto-link, cloaking, etc.), check out the Affilink plugin that top bloggers are raving about.
- The link management choice of super-affiliates (like Armand Morin and John Chow) for websites or WordPress blogs is LinkTrackr.
- WordBay Plugin – Bring niche-targeted eBay products into your website or blog post with this easy plugin. Supports the eBay Partner Network, Skimlinks and Viglink.
- If you’re looking for a profitable niche that isn’t too saturated, start with keyword research and competitive intelligence using the acclaimed Long Tail Pro tool that “super affiliates” love.
What was your top earner in August? Please share your success in the comments below.
✔ You may also be interested in reading:
2014 Top CPS and CPA Affiliate Networks
Affiliate Marketers Reveal 2013 Top Networks, Income and More (Statistics)
Top Two-Tier Affiliate Programs for Canadians
10 Low-Cost Side Businesses you can Start Online from Home
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Melody McKinnon is an internet entrepreneur with 25 years of experience in a wide range of online business models, backed by a formal business/marketing education and enhanced by training and mentorship. She has owned or managed both educational and ecommerce websites. Her book, 7 Recession Proof Online Businesses to Start From Home, is available from all major ebook retailers.
Melody has worked with many businesses in a multitude of capacities. She can often be found on CanadianDigitalMedia.com, CanadiansInternet.com, CanadianFamily.net, and AllNaturalPetCare.com, as well as other quality digital publications. Her content has earned reference links from highly-respected websites, magazines and university textbooks.
that’s good thank you
I see some new ones that I’ll check out. Thanks 🙂
So helpful to know what’s working for a pro. I really appreciate the share.
I’ve been using CJ but I can see I’m missing a whole world of programs. I didn’t know some netwrks had a lower payment threshold…really excited about the possibilities.