One thing you may not realize is that even if you create and sell your own products, you can still build your affiliate portion of your business by promoting affiliate offers that complement your paid products. Whether you create products now or plan to remember later, it’s okay to do both.
Being a product creator and an affiliate marketer can make your business even more lucrative because you’ll be able to fill in the gaps for your customers.
Let’s look at some ways you can combine your own products with affiliate promotions.
- Coach Program – If you have a coaching program, you can promote additional offers that relate to your program. For example, let’s say you have a weight loss program. You find software that allows people to enter their food and calories and get reminders to get up and move that you know your coaching clients will really love because it’s so useful. You can promote that to them, and they’ll be very happy you did.
- Cross-Sells – Let’s say you promote your products and services regarding a course and program you offer about setting up Facebook Ads. You teach people to do that, but you also offer services to do it for them. Then, you find a source for images, swipe files, and templates that can help build amazing Facebook Ads. You can promote that to your audience too, and they’ll be thankful.
- Upselling – You’ve created an information product that’s an intro to learning to self-publish and doing it yourself as an author. Someone you know in the same business offers amazing done-for-you services for self-publishers for a good price that follows the same type of advice you give for them to do it themselves. It’s a high-priced item, but some of your students probably don’t want to do it all themselves even if they want to self-publish.
- Resources You Use – One way to add affiliate income to your income streams if you’re a product creator is to create a resource page on your website. Add links and reviews and descriptions to all the products that you use to run your business. For example, if you use basecamp.com, Aweber.com, and buy content from a very well-trusted PLR creator, you can promote all of that on your resource page.
- Other Problems – When you get to know your audience, you’re going to discover that they have other problems besides the ones you solve for them. If it’s close to what you are offering and serves the same audience, any product you find that you can earn commission on that is well made and safe for them to buy should be promoted.
Affiliate marketers often make their own products even if they don’t all start out doing so. You can do both. Don’t be afraid of competition. If you show your audience solutions to solve their problems, they’re going to keep coming back to you because you’re the expert that they trust. But do remember, you can’t be everything to everyone, nor should you be. Do your customers a service by sharing related products that complement yours that have been vetted by you.
