This post may contain affiliate links which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through links. I only recommend products that I have personally used!
If you read our article on how to make extra money from home with an online side hustle, you know that affiliate marketing is one of the easiest and most lucrative side hustles to start in 2024. You don’t need any special tech skills or to be a big social media star to rake in a little extra cash. Affiliate marketing is decently easy, beginner-friendly, and literally anyone can do it from anywhere with access to the internet. The best part is, you never have to show your face on camera if you don’t want to.
Just like any business, there is a learning curve and some effort that needs to be put in. This is not a get rich quick scheme and it will take some time to build itself up. All legit businesses do, after all!
In fact, affiliate marketing is the primary source of income on this blog and has been from the time it was created. We joined the affiliate programs listed below with less then 100 followers on Instagram, 0 blog subscribers, and only a few TikTok followers. Even then, we were able to make our first profit within a couple of months!
If your new to the game, these affiliate marketing programs for beginners are the easiest to learn, get accepted to, and profit off of.
How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?
The reason affiliate marketing is one of the easiest side hustles is because you get paid to tell people about products you really love and use.
When you sign up for an affiliate program, you get to promote different brands and products that are featured through their program. First you are given a special tracking link that is unique to you. Then you can use that link to recommend items to viewers on your social media pages, websites, and blog post. When someone clicks on your link and uses it to buy a product, you get a percentage of the sale at no extra cost to the costumer. Pretty simple, right?
Best Affiliate Marketing Programs For Beginners 2024
1. Impact
Impact is a great affiliate marketing program for beginners to start out with because it has brands that fit a large variety of topics (or niches). It also has a lot more known and reputable brands which can be really helpful when you’re first starting out.
This is great because it’s a lot easier to make sells on brands that people already love and trust. Think about yourself. Aren’t you a lot more likely to feel comfortable buying jeans from Levi’s than a company you’ve never even heard of before? That’s how a lot of your customers feel, too.
For example I am a lifestyle blogger, meaning I blog about tips and tricks to help you live a better and more affordable lifestyle. My main sub-niches are how to save money on travel, beauty, and how to make money online. The affiliate brands I use are on theme with these topics and are seamlessly used on my blog and in social media post. You may have seen me promote Taylor Swift tickets and travel discounts through Marriott points or promote Skillshare to make money online. Those are all affiliate links I use through Impact to make money!
2. Amazon
Amazon is an easy affiliate program for beginners to use because pretty much everyone shops on Amazon! That means more opportunities for sales, growth, and moola. The best part is that it doesn’t take as much convincing to make a sale- most people are already looking for any excuse to place their next Amazon order.
There are 2 affiliate programs you can sign up with through Amazon. You will need to apply to both separately to be accepted to each.
Amazon Associates
Amazon Associates is known for being one of the easiest affiliate marketing programs for beginners to get accepted to. Once accepted, log into your amazon account. You will see a new toolbar at the top of the screen right below the search bar called “Site Stripe”. This is what you will use to link followers to your favorite products.
Now it’s time for the fun part- start shopping! Search Amazon for products you want to promote to your audience. When you find the perfect one, you can use the “text” option on Site Stripe to link the product on your website, blog, or on your social media accounts using a link in bio tool like Beacons. Then show it off to your followers to start making some coin.
It’s like getting paid to shop on Amazon. Talk about a dream job!
Tip: Keep in mind, you have to make a sale within 3 months to stay in the program!
Amazon Influencers
Amazon Influencers is a separate and slightly different program. It has the same perks as the associates program except you can make your own storefront. That’s right! It’s like having your own little Amazon store.
First, link all your favorite items in your store. You can organize them into sections like Favorite Fashion Finds, DIY Gel Nails, Skincare, etc.. Then let your followers know where to find your store and they can shop directly from there.
Need an example? Click here to see my Amazon storefront.
3. ClickBank
ClickBank is super simple to sign up for and free for everyone to use. As long as you live in an eligible country and have a social security or Tax number you will be approved!
Once accepted, there are thousands of products to choose from and promote. You can find something for pretty much every topic or niche.
A bonus feature that ClickBank has to offer is that they hold free virtual seminars to help you learn best practices and how to meet your sales goals. Perfect for a beginner to pick up some valuable tips and knowledge.
The only tricky part is that ClickBank can be a little more niche and sometimes it features brands you may not have heard of before, which is ok! There are plenty of costumers that are willing to try new things out and see if they work for them! This is just where those heavy marketing and persuasion skills are key.
