I had a client recently ask me about how to do affiliates and/or marketing through other people’s lists…
Here are a couple of ways that you can promote your products or services through other people/lists.
1. Advertising
Depending on your market, there are usually a number of online publications that accept advertising. Do some research to find those that suit your market and offering. And be aware of spending too much on advertising, you don’t always get the most “bang for your buck” and it can be costly.
2. Affiliates
The *key* thing to a successful affiliate program is the relationship.
9 times out of 10 people will not bother to promote someone else’s “stuff” if they don’t have a relationship of some kind with that person… so it is key to focus your affliate efforts on people you already know – clients, vendors, friends, past clients, etc…
Best way to start here is to make a list of people that you know and approach them re: promoting your product in exchange for an affliate fee…. you can then also ask them if they know of 2 more people who may be interested in promoting this product too, as so on…
A happy customer can also be a great affiliate for you… so you will want to make sure to send the affiliate program information to anyone who purchases the time management assessment/classes.
When approaching anyone as a potential alliance it is important to offer them something of value. I think the biggest mistake people make is to approach someone “asking” for something vs. “offering” something.
For example, you could send an email saying “hey, will you sell my product to your list?”
Or you could email someone saying “hey, i love your product and would love to share it with my list. would you possibly be interested in sharing mine as well?”
There really is a change in perspective here… rather than looking at potential alliances and wondering how they can help you. Look at them and ask yourself “how can I help them?”. When you approach people this way many (not all) will naturally respond in kind and be open to sharing your information with your lists as well.
The question to start with is – What do I have of value to offer to potential partners?
The most obvious answer to this question is a list of your own that you could market their stuff to, however it could be other things. If you don’t have a list right now you may want to get a bit creative, ie: offer to do a free teleclass for their members.
Do you have a story of a successful affiliate partnership?