OK Congratulations you’ve built your website.
You’ve organised it so it’s easily readable and simple to navigate for your target audience and you’ve already started to post really helpful content.
You have a promotion plan for each post using Tik Tok, Instagram, Facebook and You Tube.
Now we reach a really exciting part of the Affiliate Website Roadmap for Men Over 60.
Learning how to join affiliate programs is an exciting milestone when you’re building your first affiliate website after 60
It’s time to start thinking about how your website could actually make money and we’re not talking about making you a millionaire overnight or getting you that Lamborghini you’ve always wanted.
Welcome to Step 8 of the Affiliate Website Roadmap for Men Over 60
Join Affiliate Programs.
Now you’re at the point where the work you’ve already done begins connecting with the business side of affiliate marketing.
But there’s something very important I want you to remember before we start.
Don’t make the mistake of joining every affiliate program you can find.
Because your goal is not to collect hundreds of affiliate links. It is to find products and services that genuinely help the people who are reading your website.
Firstly, if you want to revisit how Affiliate Marketing works click here for our post How Affiliate Marketing Works For Beginners.
What Is an Affiliate Program?
An affiliate program is simply an arrangement between you and a company. You recommend one of the company’s products or services using a special link. If somebody follows your link and makes a qualifying purchase, you may receive a commission.
The customer generally isn’t paying you directly. The company rewards you for referring the customer.
For example, imagine you’ve created a website about learning guitar after 60, and you write an article about choosing your first acoustic guitar.
Within the article, you might recommend a Yamaha F400 Acoustic Guitar because you’ve actually used one and believe it’s a good beginner instrument.
If you’re a member of a retailer’s affiliate program who sell Yamaha F400 Acoustic Guitars, your recommendation can contain your unique affiliate link with that retailer.
If a reader clicks on your link and decides to purchase the guitar you may receive a commission.
Here’s my affiliate link for the Yamaha F400 Acoustic Guitar. If you click on it and purchase the guitar I will receive a commission
That is affiliate marketing at its simplest
Start With Products You Already Know
This is where beginners can sometimes get things backwards.
They join an affiliate program and then ask themselves:
“Now What can I sell?”
I’d ask a different question:
“What products would I recommend even if I wasn’t being paid?”
That’s a much better starting point.
On Change at Sixty, for example, I’ve written about learning guitar.
Products such as my Yamaha F400, Snark Clip-On Guitar Tuner, Hal Leonard Guitar Method Book 1 and Ernie Ball Guitar Strings can fit naturally into those articles because they’re relevant to what I’m talking about.
I’m not randomly inserting products just because they pay a commission. I’m mentioning products that make sense in the context of my experience, and more importantly I own and use the products. This is the difference between recommending and selling.
Change at Sixty’s goal is to provide good information through my posts and build my reputation around recommending not selling
How to Join Affiliate Programs Like Amazon Associates
When you’re learning how to join affiliate programs for the first time, Amazon Associates can be a useful program to investigate. One obvious advantage is the enormous range of products available.
If your niche involves gardening, photography, cooking, guitar, exercise, technology or countless other subjects, there’s a good chance Amazon sells products that are relevant to your niche.
But don’t assume that simply applying to become an Amazon Associate means permanent acceptance.
Amazon review applicants after they have generated at least three qualifying sales within the first 180 days. The rules also say websites should contain robust original content and already have around 10 posts as a useful rule of thumb.
That’s another reason I placed Affiliate Programs at Step 8 rather than Step 2 of this Roadmap as you are probably now in a position where you meet the website and post requirements.
Don't Choose a Program Based On The Commission
This is a very important consideration when choosing your affiliate programs because you’ll eventually discover affiliate programs offer very different commission rates.
Amazon current standard commission rates, for example, vary considerably by product category. Its published schedule currently lists rates including 10% for some categories, 8% for others and 5% for many categories such as electronics, musical instruments and sports and outdoors.
Rates and terms can change, so always check the program itself rather than relying on an old blog article. Click here for more information
I wouldn’t choose a product simply because it pays 10% rather than 5%. You need to ask yourself.
Would I buy this product or service?
Does it solve my reader’s problem?
Would I feel comfortable recommending it to a friend?
If the answer is no, then don’t recommend it. Building trust with your readers is worth far more than an extra few dollars in commission
How to Join Affiliate Programs Beyond Amazon
Learning how to join affiliate programs isn’t just about Amazon. Many companies within your particular niche may operate their own affiliate programs Suppose your niche is photography. The manufactures of the camera and equipment you use may have an affiliate program.
Or if your niche is gardening, specialist gardening companies may also offer programs.
If you’re niche is about software, many software companies also offer affiliate programs
Ask Google or your favourite AI agent…”.does (company name) offer an affiliate program? “ or you can usually find details of affiliate programs at the bottom or a company’s website
But make sure you do a thorough investigation of any company and its products before applying to join their affiliate program.
Look at its reputation, products, affiliate conditions, payment arrangements and whether you’d genuinely recommend it. Read reviews on the company and take note of what customers are saying. Will you be happy recommending it’s products. Remember you are trying to build trust so a company’s reputation should align with your values.
You won’t need twenty programs. I recommend you pick two or three good companies whose products you would be happy buying
Understand the Rules Before Adding Links
This isn’t a very exciting part, but it’s important. Read the terms of every affiliate program you join and don’t assume all programs have the same rules.
Amazon, for example, currently requires Associates to identify themselves appropriately and ensure affiliate links are clearly disclosed.
Amazon also requires the statement “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases” on your site.
You don’t need to hide the fact that you’re earning a commission. Tell people. Being honest and transparent with your reader doesn’t weaken trust it builds it.
Put Affiliate Links Where They Actually Help
Once you’ve been accepted into a program make sure you resist the temptation to fill your entire article with links
Remember what we learned in Step 7. Helpful content comes first.
Imagine I’m writing:
“5 Things I Wish I’d Known Before Learning Guitar After 60.”
If I mention that sore fingertips made practising difficult and explain that I found Ernie Ball Super Slinky strings more comfortable, an affiliate link there makes sense.
But dropping a guitar-string link into an article about setting up WordPress doesn’t.
The product should be part of the solution you’re discussing. That’s natural affiliate marketing.
Also remember, the people that are reading your content are looking for a solution to a problem. Yes, if you recommend a product that does that, you’ve achieved your goal of helping someone. However, your content is designed to build trust, and readers may wish to read through it several times before accepting your recommendation. A random splashing of affiliate links in no logical sequence will only detract from the reading experience.
Your First Commission Won't Change Your Lifee
I want to set realistic expectations here. Your first commission may be tiny. That’s OK.
Because I think the psychological value of that first commission is far greater than its monetary value.
Imagine opening your affiliate dashboard one morning and seeing that somebody you’ve never met read something you wrote, trusted your recommendation and bought a product through your link. You’ve proved to yourself that the system works.
Your website has generated its first income. From there, you can improve. You can write more useful articles, attract more visitors and make better recommendations
Step 8 Checklist
Before moving to Step 9:
Identify 5–10 products or services in your niche that you would genuinely recommend. You may already have purchased these in the past.
Find out whether the companies behind them offer affiliate programs. If you check at the bottom of their website that is where you will usually find affiliate details.
Choose one or two suitable programs to start with but make sure you read their terms carefully.
Make sure your website has enough useful, original content before applying as the company may ask to see your credentials as a potential affiliate.
Add the required affiliate disclosure to your website. Below is our disclosure that is found on every post we make
Affiliate Disclosure
At Change at Sixty, transparency is important to us. In compliance with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines and Amazon Associates Program requirements, we want you to know that some of the links on this website are affiliate links.
This means that if you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. These commissions help us maintain this site and continue creating valuable content for our readers
Only add affiliate links to your post if they genuinely help your reader.
Keep creating useful content. Try and post at least weekly
And remember make sure you Help First and Recommend Second…commission will follow
Final Thoughts
Congratulations because reaching Step 8 is a massive achievement. Think about where you started.
An idea. A niche. A domain name. A WordPress website. A structure. Helpful content.
And now you’ve reached the point where your content can potentially produce income. But don’t suddenly become a salesperson. Be the same person you were in Step 7. Be helpful and honest to your readers.
Only recommend products you believe in and make sure you tell readers when you’re using an affiliate link
If somebody visits Change at Sixty and buys something I’ve recommended, I don’t just want a commission. I want them to come back six months later and say:
“Stephen recommended that and it was a good choice.”
That’s the kind of affiliate business I want to build and it’s the kind I believe you should build too.
One recommendation at a time. One commission at a time. One step at a time.
Affiliate Disclosure
At Change at Sixty, transparency is important to us. In compliance with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines and Amazon Associates Program requirements, we want you to know that some of the links on this website are affiliate links.
This means that if you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. These commissions help us maintain this site and continue creating valuable content for our readers
