We all know that millions of people visit YouTube daily to watch the videos of their choice. But this presence of a huge audience also makes youtube one of the most effective marketing platforms in the world. Businesses around the world are strategically targeting youtube audiences to promote their products, be it directly by the way of ads or indirectly through influencer marketing or affiliate marketing.
And when businesses are promoting their product, you can always act as a middleman to help them promote their product and take your share of the commission. On youtube, it can be done through affiliate marketing, and to be true, it’s a really profitable revenue stream. And in this guide to affiliate marketing on YouTube, we are going to share every essential tip to help you start generating affiliate revenue. So let’s start…
What is Affiliate Marketing?
As mentioned above, affiliate marketing allows you to promote the products of other companies and earn a commission for your work. In the process, the one who promotes the product is called an affiliate.
There are many companies which offer their affiliates which you can join. You can then promote the products over the internet and ask your audience to purchase it from an affiliate link that you share with them. This affiliate contains a link to the product’s landing page where they can buy it. The link also includes your unique affiliate id so as to recognize that the product was sold as a result of your promotions. Once the product is sold, the company sends you a fixed share of commission for your efforts.
The Benefits of Affiliate Marketing on Youtube
As a YouTuber, you need a good audience on your channel to be able to earn any kind of money. However, once you have a good audience, you might argue that you are already earning through the Youtube partner program so why dabble with affiliate marketing? Well, here are some good reasons you should:
- Youtube takes a considerable chunk of ad revenue generated from your channel, but with affiliate marketing, you get 100% of what you make.
- It’s easier to make videos around a product and add affiliate links there. And if you do that you can double the income you earn. The videos will obviously earn the regular ad revenue, but this time you will earn commission from affiliate sales as well. Thus double the earnings for the same amount of work.
- A lot of consumers actually watch product review videos before making a purchase. People have less time to do their own research. So if you do that for them and even provide them with a link to buy, they can just buy from your link.
If you are not a YouTuber yet, but an affiliate marketer, then also youtube is a great place for you. Youtube videos get much more audience than blogs and social media posts these days, which simply doubles your chances of selling. Plus, it’s really easy to make videos these days with the advent of smartphones.
Guidelines to Start Affiliate Marketing on Youtube
Here are a few practical tips that will help you begin your journey as an affiliate marketer:
Legal guidelines:
Youtube has several guidelines and here are some that apply to affiliate marketing as well
- Make sure you don’t sell anything illegal
- Your link shouldn’t be spam and shouldn’t lead to any malicious website
- Disclose it if your link contains a paid promotion. In the case of affiliate links, you can just mention that you will earn a commission whenever somebody buys from your link
While picking the product categories to sell and sharing affiliate links, just make sure they are up to the guidelines.
Picking the right product to sell
People are going to buy from you only when they believe that you are an expert in that field and you are the one who can give them genuine product recommendations. Nobody is an expert in every field, so stick to one niche. So if you are a travel vlogger, you can make videos on the best travel accessories and sell them.
Sell what you believe
When it comes to affiliate marketing, It’s all about belief and trust. People buy from you because they trust you so they never break their trust. Only sell what you genuinely believe to be a good product, and always do your research to support your belief.
Don’t make advertisements, but valuable videos.
Never make videos that directly sell a product. It shouldn’t feel like an ad. People always need one product or another. So make videos with a view to help them find what they need.
Best Video Types For Affiliate Marketing
We just discussed above that it is not a good idea to directly see a product in your videos. Instead, you should make videos to help your viewers. And here are a few types of videos that are most popular among affiliate marketers and really effective as well. Let’s discuss them.
1. Product Unboxing and Review
Review videos, which can also include unboxing videos, are the sort of video that receives the most views on YouTube. In these videos, the YouTubers test an item and provide their own personal comments, appraisal, or criticism regarding it. They focus on a certain good or service and tell the audience what’s inside the box, what are the features of the product, its price as well as the reasons why one should like or dislike it. While making these videos, make sure to do enough research on the product to provide true information and be honest about the review you provide.
2. Comparison videos
This type of video explains the distinctions between the different available options of a product type and discusses the benefits and drawbacks of each product. It assists the viewers in selecting the most suitable product for themselves, considering their personal preferences and needs.
3. Best-Of videos
YouTubers who are experts in a specific area and have the trust of their viewers love to make these kinds of videos. These videos typically talk about the goods and services they themselves like using the most, For instance, a fashion vlogger could talk about her favourite dresses and outfits. These videos are really popular among people who lack ideas on what they need and are looking for guidance on what to purchase, what to wear, where to visit, etc.
4. How-To videos
How-to videos or tutorial videos are those that demonstrate how to perform a certain activity in a step-by-step manner. This may be a complicated activity related to a product that many people are finding difficult to do. YouTubers often demonstrate how to assemble and operate a product, or how to acquire a service and make use of it. This may also include videos that solve a problem using a product and then affiliate selling that product.
Where To Place Affiliate Links
Youtube platforms provide a lot of different spaces where you can share links with the audience. Let’s discuss those that are best for sharing affiliate links.
1. Video Description
Description is the best place to share affiliate links as it is easily visible to the audience. You should place your main call to action (or link) inside the first three lines of your YouTube description; but, depending on the type of video, you may also position it further down in the description. Also, remember to suggest your viewers to check out the description at some times in your video.
2. Youtube Cards
In addition to including a link to your affiliate links within the description, you can include them in YouTube cards. They are alerts that do not interfere with the viewing experience and appear in the upper right corner of the video. Additional information, such as a link or a poll, can be displayed to the viewer when they click on the button. However, remember to tell the viewers that you have placed that important link in the “i” button.
3. Pinned Comment
You can “Pin” one comment to the very top of the comment stream for every single video. This is a good option because it is the very first comment that anybody looks at, and it is always displayed just below the video. Therefore, leave a comment on the affiliate link on your video, including a brief call to action.
Final Words
This is pretty much everything that you need to get started with affiliate marketing on youtube. Just remember to ask your viewers to check out the affiliate links so that they can buy from the link. It’s really important to remind things to the viewers, otherwise, they may not pay attention and forget about them even if they wanted to buy them. With all these tips, you are all set to generate revenue via affiliate marketing.
It’s also true that you need a good viewership on your channel for any revenue stream to be successful. If you are short on views presently, don’t lose hope, just check out this article in which we mention all the essential tips to gather more views.
Good luck..!
