Ask questions first before you join an affiliate program. Do a little research about the choices of program that you intend to join into. Get some answers because they will be the deciding point of what you will be achieving later on.

Will it cost you anything to join?

Most affiliate programs being offered today are absolutely free of charge. So why settle for those that charge you a fee before joining.

When do they issue the commission checks?

Every program is different. Some issue their checks once a month, every quarter, etc. Select the one that is suited to your payment time choice. Many affiliate programs are setting a minimum earned commission amount that an affiliate must meet or exceed in order for their checks to be issued.

What is the hit per sale ratio?

This is the average number of hits to a banner or text link it takes to generate a sale based on all affiliate statistics. This factor is extremely important because this will tell you how much traffic you must generate before you can earn a commission from the sale. Of course, this depends on how targeted the website traffic is.

How are referrals from an affiliate’s site tracked and for how long do they remain in the system?

You need to be confident about the program tracking those people you refer from your site. This is the only way you can credit for a sale. The period of time that those people stay in the system is also important. This is because some visitors do not buy initially but may want to return later to make the purchase. Know if you will still get credit for the sale if it is done several months from a certain day.

What are the kinds of affiliate stats available?

Your chosen affiliate program ideally should be capable of offering detailed stats. They should be available online anytime you decide to check them out. Constantly checking your individual stats is important to know how many impressions, hits and sales are already generated from your site. Impressions are the number of times the banner or text link was viewed by a visitor of your site. A hit is one clicking on the banner or text links.

Who is the online retailer?

Find out whom you are doing business with to know if it is really a solid company. Know the products they are selling and the average amount they are achieving. The more you know about the retailer offering you the affiliate program, the easier it will be for you to know if that program is really for you and your site.

Is the affiliate a one tier or two tier program?

A single tier program pays you only for the business you yourself have generated. A two tier program pays you for the business, plus it also pays you a commission on the sales generated by any affiliate you sponsor in your program. Some two-tier programs even pay small fees on each new affiliate you sponsor. More like a recruitment fee.

Lastly, what is the amount of commission paid?

Commission varies by industry. For example, you can get 40% – 100% in the Internet Marketing industry, while other industries associated with physical products will pay you much smaller commissions… 10% – 30%.

These are just some of the questions you might want to answer before you enter an affiliate program. You should be familiar with the many important aspects that your chosen program should have before incorporating them into your website or business in general. These can help you select the right program for you from the many available.

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