Did you know that you can make money on the internet without ever selling anything? There are very few home based business opportunities that are easier or cost less than affiliate marketing. There are businesses and people earning thousands of dollars each year doing affiliate marketing.

The business plan is simple. Your clients are already established online businesses selling a wide array of products and services. You get paid for bringing customers to your client which is the website you are an affiliate for. You then get paid either a set fee or a percentage of what the customer buys. Some affiliate programs also pay for every time someone clicks through.

The opportunities for affiliate marketing are numerous and growing every single day. Here is how it works. The affiliate places a banner or link advertisement on their website and every time a customer clicks through from the affiliate website to the merchant site and makes a purchase the affiliate earns a commission.

It is not that difficult to find affiliate programs because it has become so profitable and popular as an internet marketing tool that almost everyone seems to be doing it. This does not mean you should settle for just any affiliate program. It is important to choose a program that is at least somewhat relevant to your website or business. This way you have the best possible chance of your customers clicking through to the affiliate website. For example, if you sell cameras or photography equipment you might join an affiliate program with a company that sells photography books.

Be sure to read the affiliate contract carefully. While there are excellent legitimate affiliate programs out there it seems there is always somebody trying to rip you off while making a quick buck. You can avoid these scams if you review affiliate agreements carefully and go with your gut about whether a website or program is legitimate.

The great thing about an affiliate marketing home business is that you are not limited to doing only one affiliate program. You can sign on with as many programs as you want as long as you have room on your website to place their banner or link.

Here are some tips for finding a good affiliate program.

1. Will the product appeal to your customers?

2. How much does the merchant pay and for what do they pay? Click throughs? Purchases?

3. Do they pay only for the first purchase or do they give you a percentage of all future purchases by that customer?

4. How frequently are commissions paid? This information should be in the affiliate agreement.

5. Does the merchant provide access to view your account on a regular basis so you can see how the program is doing?

With some good research you can find the right affiliate programs for your home based business website and in no time you will be making money simply for referring customers from your website.

To your success!

Copyright ? Paul Jesse

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Paul jesse is a a retired government employee and the author of several articles on home based business. Visit his site to subscribe to the free Marketing Tips newsletter. http://www.sheamarketing.com