I noticed a while ago that some of our successful and unsuccessful affiliates have very similar sites. Similar domain authority, branding, and monthly traffic. So why are some of them sending tons of traffic, and some are sending none? To answer that question, I decided to analyze their affiliate marketing content to see what’s actually working.
I want to share what we found and show you how you can use this information to increase your site’s conversion rate. Whether you’re an affiliate marketing beginner or you’re a seasoned veteran, we’re sure there’s something here that will help you improve your site.
In a Hurry? Here Are My 9 Favorite Types of Affiliate Marketing Content:
- Branded Product Reviews
- Product Roundups
- Product Comparisons
- How-To Guides
- Resource Pages
- Email Marketing
- Social Media
- Ebooks
- Videos
Our Affiliate Marketing Content Analysis Process
Before I could analyze our affiliates’ content marketing strategies, I needed to develop a system.
First, I divided our affiliate program members into buckets based on performance. Then I looked at what kind of audience they had and eliminated the sites that aren’t in our niche (you can recommend Lasso on a gardening site, but it’s less relevant than a site for bloggers).
Lastly, I looked for commonalities within each group. I found similarities in what kind of affiliate marketing content our top affiliates publish. I also saw a few things they’re doing that other members of our affiliate program aren’t.
Here are the key affiliate marketing content takeaways.
Traffic matters
It may seem obvious, but you won’t make any affiliate sales if your site doesn’t get any traffic. Many affiliates sign up with ten monthly visitors and expect to make ten conversions per month. I wish that were true, but that’s completely unrealistic.
You need to build an audience before sending them to affiliate offers. So, if you have no traffic, try to concentrate on writing and optimizing content.
The good thing is that you don’t need a million visits per month to make conversions. Some of our most successful affiliates have relatively small sites. In fact, we saw little difference in traffic between our active and inactive affiliates.
So, while you need to have some traffic, it’s most important to have the right traffic.
Clicks don’t matter; conversions do
Lasso has affiliates who send hundreds of clicks per month but make no sales. They’re sending garbage traffic.
We also have affiliates who send ten clicks per month and have multiple conversions. They send very targeted traffic.
Remember, the amount of clicks you get to your affiliate offers is a vanity metric. You’re trying to make
Promote your offers
We have multiple partners with gigantic sites that aren’t making any conversions. What’s the common factor between them? They don’t promote their affiliate offers.
It’s not enough to put an Amazon Affiliate link in a 3,000-word blog post and cross your fingers. You need to write highly-optimized content and then promote that content. Make it difficult for your audience to avoid your recommended products.
What Kinds of Affiliate Marketing Content Convert Best?
So you have a site that gets good traffic, and you’re ready to promote your affiliate offers to a highly targeted audience. How do you make that happen?
Below are nine examples.👇
1. Branded Product Reviews
This classic type of affiliate marketing strategy still works.
Product reviews have massive buying intent. Anyone who searches for these keywords is looking to buy something today.
But there’s a problem with product reviews.
Nobody tells you that only a few sites can rank for product reviews. Big sites are ranking for most of these keywords, and it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to beat them.
That’s why I don’t recommend our affiliates focus on writing Lasso reviews. Only so many people can rank for “Lasso Plugin Review,” and I want all of our affiliates to be successful.
Of course, this type of content converts the best.
And, even if you won’t rank for a product review, you should still write one eventually.
It can be part of a larger content hub, and you can promote it to your email list and social media following.
A WordPress plugin that lets you add, manage, and display your affiliate links from any program, including Amazon. Increase conversions. Find new affiliate link opportunities. Earn more revenue! Less than 5 minutes to set up.
You can also write a product review as further reading for your other affiliate content. Maybe your reader is close to buying, but they’re not there yet.
Linking to your individual product review may keep them going. Just don’t expect individual product reviews to get a lot of organic traffic and rake in the dough.
Tip: A second CTA button can increase your conversion rate, and you can use it to link to an individual product review. That’s a win-win!
Further Reading:
2. Product Roundups
Another content type with massive buying intent: “best x for y” articles (aka “list” posts).
The Wirecutter is a classic example of this. Here’s a snapshot from one of their categories (audio equipment):
- Best tabletop radios
- Best wireless Bluetooth earbuds
- Best audiophile headphones for everyday use
These are tailored to a specific-needs audience where the purchasing intent is super high. Plus, the articles contain multiple product links, which increase the odds somebody clicks.
Sidenote: Unlike product reviews where the focus is on a single product, “best lists” have several. More product links, more odds of winning clicks.
The beauty about using this type is that any niche can use it as long as you focus the article around “money keywords” your readers are searching for.
Using The Wirecutter example from earlier, creating a blog post about the best tabletop radios makes sense if that’s your niche.
You don’t have to be in the tech niche to write a product roundup. Here’s a simple formula you can use to find your industry’s buyer intent keywords:
best + niche product category
For example:
- “best cbd oils” or “best hiking boots under $100”
What the affiliate marketing giant, The Wirecutter, taught us about writing high-converting content.
If you want to optimize your site to make more
money , read this.🧵👇
— Lasso (@LassoWP) July 8, 2022
3. Product Comparisons
A product comparison pits two products against each other.
It weighs the pros and cons of two (or more) things. For example, a person running a Google search for “Samsung S21 vs. iPhone 12” is much closer to making a purchase.
Compare that to “how to transfer data from iPhone to Samsung.”
The former has likely narrowed its investigation to those two brands. A thoughtful comparison article should nudge them in one direction.
One of the most important reasons for creating this content type is because they attract qualified readers to click your affiliate links.
But, where they really shine is in their brief, side-by-side spec comparisons. Tables give you the freedom for “at-a-glance” product differentiation.
For example, highlighting your top tools with a vertical model.👇
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Our Pick
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Description: A WordPress plugin that lets you add, manage, and display your affiliate links from any program, including Amazon. Increase conversions. Find new affiliate link opportunities. Earn more revenue! Less than 5 minutes to set up. |
Make your site load faster in a few clicks. WP Rocket is recognized as one of the most powerful caching plugins for WordPress. We use it specifically for image lazy loading.
Grammarly is an AI-powered writing tool that finds grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. It will also help you with the clarity, delivery, and tone of your writing. It's available as a desktop app, browser extension, and mobile keyboards.
A WordPress plugin that lets you add, manage, and display your affiliate links from any program, including Amazon. Increase conversions. Find new affiliate link opportunities. Earn more revenue! Less than 5 minutes to set up.
(***the above is one example of a comparison table you can build using Lasso***)
You don’t ONLY have to compare two products.
You can add several brands to give your reader more options and showcase your unbiased reporting.
Tip: Include items your readers find important. You can always review the brand’s website to see a list of its top features.
Alternatively, read consumer reviews — these highlight what matters most to your audience. You’ll often find people speaking candidly about the company they’re leaving a review for.
Highlight these in your comparisons.
Further Reading:
4. How-to Guides
How-to guides (aka tutorials) are the source of our highest-converting affiliate traffic.
These typically walk your reader step-by-step on how to do something. That may seem counterintuitive. After all, how-to guides are a classic example of info content.
They drive traffic, but you need to move that traffic to your
Our top affiliates write how-to content about something related to Lasso. Something like “how to manage affiliate links” or “how to insert Amazon links into WordPress posts.”
But here’s the kicker:
They make Lasso essential to the process.
You can use this strategy with any niche. You just need to be creative.
For example, let’s say you have a blog about organic gardening and want to write about “how to grow organic tomatoes.” You could make organic fertilizer an essential part of growing organic tomatoes and link to your favorite brand.
And the best part:
How-to guides and tutorials have many long-tail keywords with low competition. They’re ripe for the picking. This is an untapped strategy you can use to drive targeted traffic to your affiliate offers.
Further Reading:
5. Resource Pages
We’ve talked in the past about how valuable resource pages can be, and our affiliate analysis confirmed our thoughts.
As you establish yourself as an authority in your niche, your audience will want to know your recommendations for specific products. It’s a natural progression.
Our affiliates write about blogging, affiliate marketing, and side-hustles, and their audiences want to know what tools they recommend.
Resource pages are the best way to give their audience solutions and promote affiliate offers simultaneously.
For example, if you build a successful affiliate website about SCUBA diving, naturally, your audience will want to know what kind of respirators or fins you recommend.
Making a “recommended gear” page will make you a lot of
If you haven’t made one before, you can use a tool like Lasso to create a resource page in just a few minutes.
Tip: Because not everyone will be familiar with your recommendations, it’s best to use a secondary call-to-action button linking to your product review or tutorial.
This is a win for two reasons:
- You keep them on your website. There’s no need for your reader to open a new tab and “Google” your product recommendation. Your review does that for them.
- Moves your reader down your funnel as they become more “solution aware” and closer to making a purchase.
Further Reading:
6. Email Marketing
Your list is essential to your online
- Instant access: they’ve already given you permission to contact them because they trust you
- You own the audience: Unlike getting banned or locked out from social media, you can’t get barred from your email list (unless they unsubscribe).
As long as your emails provide value, it’s ok to add affiliate links. But be sure you read the program’s terms (e.g., Amazon doesn’t allow affiliate links in emails).
In that case, it’s better to link to your content and include it there.
You leave
There’s a stat that gets tossed around the internet: you make $40 for every $1 spent on email marketing. That’s an insane ROI — and a reason not to ignore your subscribers.
You can create entire campaigns around specific affiliate products and treat your emails like launches.
Or try:
- Creating a free email course (include your affiliate link)
- Adding affiliate links to email sequences that readers find useful
- Showcase your favorite product/service and why you think your readers should care
7. Social Media
Social media is great because you get to leverage another platform’s traffic.
So, find where your audience hangs out, become an active member of that community, and post content regularly. Doing this builds trust. People will start showing up in your feed to consume your material.
Another reason why you shouldn’t overlook this medium:
- Immediate feedback
You can test topics with your audience and get validation quicker (unlike your blog, which can take months to win traffic).
For example, if you post something that gets shared hundreds or thousands of times, it’s likely that subject resonated with your readers.
So, double down on that. Create more affiliate marketing content with similar subject matter.
Tip: Repurpose posts getting the most engagement as long-form articles, newsletters, YouTube videos, or lead magnets.
While this requires active engagement with your readers, when done correctly, it can yield massive results faster.
And, like getting any traffic, you can share relevant affiliate links in your posts. Engagement goes a long way on social (it’s like digital currency), so the more you consistently show up, the likelier your readers will click your links.
8. eBooks
When a long-form blog post isn’t enough, write an ebook.
This is an excellent way to go deep on a topic while adding related affiliate links in the process. Our site Listen
Tip: Repurpose your ebooks as online courses to boost engagement and revenue.
The truth is people are more likely to click your affiliate links in an ebook if it’s helping them solve a problem. Strong intent usually indicates an increased likelihood that they’ll convert because they’ve already shown interest.
9. Videos
Videos are a powerful medium for building your brand and connecting with your audience.
And, like blogs, make excellent platforms for showcasing your expertise and helping people solve problems. YouTube is probably the biggest, so you know people hang out there — and I’m sure you can find many in your niche.
But don’t overlook TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.
The key is knowing your audience and where you’ll find them online — and that depends on your niche.
The big turnoff for many people is creating videos requires more work than writing a blog post, but if you know what you’re doing and have some decent equipment, you can start getting eyeballs on your
For example, Pat Flynn’s YouTube video about podcasting for beginners…
It’s a tutorial, but when you scroll down past the timestamps, you see links to his affiliate product recommendations.
Plenty of creators make good
The key with any of these tactics is to be helpful, answer your audience’s questions, and provide value. People will happily click your affiliate link if you’re genuine about the results it’ll help them achieve.
For more details on monetizing your YouTube channel, you can read our guide on how to do YouTube affiliate marketing.
Our Team Of Affiliate Marketing Experts Will Teach You How To:
- Outrank Bigger Sites
- Monetize Your Content
- Engage Your Audience
How to Optimize Your Existing Affiliate Marketing Content
If you’ve built a site that gets a lot of traffic but isn’t converting very well, you may not need to focus on publishing new content. Perhaps you need to spend some time optimizing your existing content to make more sales.
Increase mentions per page
On average, the how-to guides and resource pages that send us the most traffic mention Lasso by name 4-7 times. That’s multiple mentions on pages that aren’t dedicated solely to Lasso.
Lasso review pages average around 35 times. They establish Lasso as a solution to their reader’s problem by repeatedly reminding them of its existence.
There’s an old rule in advertising that you need to mention a brand name seven times for it to stick in a consumer’s mind. It appears digital marketing campaigns follow a similar pattern.
If you have a resource page that recommends your favorite chef’s knife once, write a description and repeatedly mention the product by name. If you have a how-to guide that recommends wearing a helmet while biking, say the brand’s name over and over again.
I think you’ll be surprised by the results.
Use more eye-catching affiliate links
If the purpose of your website is to make
Product displays are a great way to do this; there’s a reason we’re obsessed with them at Lasso. It’s because they work. We’ve repeatedly shown that our product displays increase conversions up to 30%.
A WordPress plugin that lets you add, manage, and display your affiliate links from any program, including Amazon. Increase conversions. Find new affiliate link opportunities. Earn more revenue! Less than 5 minutes to set up.
A few golden rules to follow when promoting your affiliate offers:
- Your buy buttons should contrast your branding. You want your call to action button to stand out from the rest of your site. If your primary site color is blue, your buy button should be red or orange. (You’ll notice our CTA buttons are green, while the rest of our site is purple). Look up complementary colors if you aren’t sure what contrasts your branding.
- Use display images. Product images can triple your site’s affiliate revenue. They grab your reader’s attention and show them what to buy. If you aren’t using product images in your affiliate offers, you need to start.
- Give your reader options, like secondary CTA buttons, grids with multiple products, and alternative solutions. These things give your readers a feeling of choice and impartiality. When you give them options, your audience will trust that you want to help them find the right product, not just the one that makes you the most
money .
You can do this with or without Lasso, but our plugin makes this process so much easier.
Think about search intent and find an angle
Before you start writing, you should always ask yourself, “What does someone want when they search for this keyword?” In fact, you should ask yourself this during keyword research.
You can ask yourself the same question with your existing content. Ask yourself what someone wants when they land on your page. Then, think about how you can
Hint: Use Ahrefs to see what keywords your page is already ranking for. Those keywords are what people were searching for before they found your site.
If someone’s searching for “how to run faster,” that’s exactly what they want to know. And you can write an article about running form, breathing techniques, and practice that would answer their question very well.
But, couldn’t you also recommend they get a good pair of running shoes? Could you recommend they get a heart-rate monitor? Wouldn’t that also answer their question?
Most keywords are monetizable. Look through your existing content, and ask yourself what the search intent is. Then, ask what angle you can take to recommend an affiliate offer.
Last-Minute Content Marketing Tips for Affiliates
Here are a few quick tips you can use to get more conversions from your affiliate marketing content.
Harness your audience
For a moment, think about your audience the way a traditional business would. No restaurant or clothing store can survive without repeat customers.
How can you keep your readers coming back so you can promote offers to them over and over again? First, write great content and build trust. Then, get your audience into a mailing list.
Our most active affiliates have a mailing list to which they routinely make offers. There’s a reason so many sites ask you to join their newsletter these days. Email marketing works.
Once you build a mailing list, let people know when you publish valuable content. And again, find a way to use that content to promote your affiliate offers.
Write more content for each product
The biggest thing that our top affiliates have in common is multiple pages promoting Lasso. Most have an individual review, a resource page, some kind of how-to guide, and a “best affiliate marketing plugins” roundup page.
The result of all that work? Their audience knows they believe in our product.
If you only mention a product once on your affiliate site, do you really think it’s the best option for your readers? Or is it obvious you’re just chasing a commission?
If that’s the case, then pay attention to the next point.
Promote affiliate products you believe in
It may not always seem like it, but most people are pretty smart. They can tell when someone’s just trying to make a sale.
If you’re trying to promote offers to your audience that you don’t believe in, they’ll know and won’t trust you anymore.
Sometimes you don’t have a choice. For example, if you don’t have Bluehost on your list of The Best WordPress Hosting, search engines won’t rank you. You might love Bluehost, or you might not, but SEO dictates that you include it.
However, if you love SiteGround, and write about it with passion, your audience will pick up on that, they’ll trust you, and you’ll make way more conversions. And you’ll sleep better.
When something works, repeat it.
I’ve noticed some of our affiliates are sending traffic from pages that look very similar.
For example, they could have a post about “how to start a travel blog.” And another about “how to start a food blog.” And yet another about “how to start a beauty blog.”
All of those posts are ranking, getting traffic, and converting.
Sometimes, successful affiliate marketing can be like blindly shooting arrows in every direction and seeing which one hits something. But, when one does find its mark, why wouldn’t you keep shooting in that direction?
If one of these affiliate marketing content strategies works for your site, repeat it until it doesn’t.
Think of Your Audience and Put In the Work
When looking at our unsuccessful partners, a common issue is that they just haven’t put in the work.
If they’ve been a part of our affiliate program for over a year and have no mention of Lasso on their affiliate sites, they can’t ask why they aren’t making referrals.
Writing high-quality content is a lot of work. You can spend days writing a killer blog post, and nobody ever reads it. Your affiliate marketing efforts go nowhere. That’s a risk you take.
However, if you think about what your target audience wants and needs and keep your affiliate marketing content focused on answering those questions, something will eventually stick. In our experience, publishing one blog post per week puts you way ahead of most competition.
Keep writing, publishing, and go make
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