One of the major improvements boasted by both the new Internet Explorer 8 and Google’s Chrome browser is the new privacy protections put in place. Both browsers have increased cookie blocking abilities and even include a mode that allows you to surf the web in a near anonymous manner.

The problem this presents to affiliate marketers is clear, most of these programs track referrals through the use of cookies. If browsers start to block these cookies on a regular basis, it could really shake things up for marketers. Linkshare has some technologies that do not require cookies, but the vast majority of programs still track referrals in this manner.

Given the incredible amount of identity theft and fraud going on today, increased privacy is generally thought to be a good thing. We should only expect this to become a bigger and bigger issue with more safeguards put in place in the future. Anyone running an affiliate program should be looking for the next technology now so that they are not stranded in the future as more and more users block the tracking cookies.

The recently released Affiliate Marketing Survey Report 2008 indicates that companies are shrinking their affiliate marketing budgets this year. The survey found that affiliate marketing made up only 14% of total marketing budgets in 2008, down from 17% in 2007. Despite this drop, companies in the survey indicated that affiliate marketing has been a very cost effective form of advertising for them. Additionally, More than one-third of companies surveyed reported that five or fewer affiliates are responsible for 80% or more of their affiliate sales. This statistic further shows how successful the larger affiliates have been.

While this trend is somewhat concerning for affiliate marketers, the news is certainly not all bad. Many of the companies surveyed still consider affiliate marketing as an important and very cost effective form of advertising. This will be an interesting trend to watch in the coming year.

Let’s face it – one of the greatest advantages to affiliate marketing is that you get to break away from the daily grind of the typical 9-5 job and work from home.  No more cubicles, no more insane traffic jams and best of all, no more unfulfilling jobs that suck away at your valuable time!  Instead, the only major choice you’ll have to face is whether you want to work for only a couple of hours or a normal workday – what pressure!  Yes, being an affiliate marketer definitely has its rewarding perks.

Yet to become a really successful affiliate marketer – and we’re talking the kind who sees a six figure income year after year – there are some important rules to take away from your previous office job.  Sure, you may have pursued affiliate marketing in order to have some freedom in your workday, but it’s absolutely vital to note that there is one particular lesson that you should take away from the 9-5 world: the importance of networking.

You may be surprised at how essential networking is to the success of an affiliate marketer, as it can be all too easy to remain anonymous thanks to the internet.  That’s exactly why you need to reach out to your fellow marketers – some key contacts that you make today could really escalate your business in the future.  Think of each fellow affiliate marketer as a means of reaching out to more clients, or learning of different tools and methods that can help you market your affiliate products or services more effectively. 

Read on for more tips and tricks on how to network like the business pros in the 9-5 world!

Be aggressive. Don’t wait for other affiliate marketers to find you; rather, get out there in the online world and join some groups or forums with like-minded people.  There are a ton of blogs out there for affiliate marketers, and each member is like an untapped source full of affiliate marketing secrets that you might not have even heard of or thought of before.  If you really want to network like the pros, consider attending a national conference for affiliate marketers, where you can easily meet the best in the business.  There was a recent summit in Boston for affiliate marketers with some big name speakers, so it’s definitely worth the time and extra money to get yourself to a local convention; after all, just think of all the great connections you’ll make just by speaking to some of the bigwigs of the affiliate marketing world!

To be continued…

So you ready to become an affiliate marketer – but you have absolutely no idea where to start.  You’ve tried doing your own research, but you’ve only stumbled across entrepreneurs who try to push their products onto you with promises of untold riches.  You’ve even bought a few e-books on affiliate marketing, but they seem to be more about promoting a certain internet marketer’s products rather than real valuable tips on affiliate marketing.  If you’re just about ready to throw up your hands in frustration, there’s still hope!  Affiliate marketing is definitely a field where there’s tons of money to be made – but only if you take the time to choose the right products and company to promote.  After all, the success of your own business depends upon the reputation and integrity of the products you’re promoting; so don’t sacrifice quality in search of unrealistic profits!

Want some more expert tips that will help you in your search for the right profitable marketing niche that will fit all of your needs?  Read on!

Examine your own interests and expectations.  If you want to find the right market, be sure to know what subjects or products peak your interest.  For example, what kind of hobbies do you have? Are you interested in specific electronic products?  Do you like anything that has to do with business?  By taking the time to spell out your own interests, you’ll be able to avoid promoting a company whose service or products bore you; after all, as an affiliate marketer, if you’re not passionate about what you’re promoting, your business will likely suffer!

Additionally, be sure to take the time to set realistic expectations for your business.  Are you looking to become an affiliate marketer full-time, or do you just want another kind of revenue that can supplement your main income?  Do you want to promote several products at once, or would you rather work with just one company or marketer?  If you know what you want for your business, you’ll be able to determine which companies can work best with your schedule and financial needs – and which marketers will just be a waste of your valuable time!

Infiltrate blogs and forums.  Still not sure which market you’d like to become a part of?  Try checking out popular blogs and forums that are based around your interests.  If you’re considering become an affiliate marketer for the personal development field, go to blogs and forums that are centered on the subject.  Take the time to pay attention to what people say – is there a certain life coach or personal development product that’s created a hot buzz?  Are there lots of links to a particular website more than another other?  Chances are if there are a ton of people talking about a person or product, then there’s a good chance that you could make a ton of money by becoming an affiliate of that company.  Check out these blogs and forums for a few weeks before you decide on which marketer you’d like to align yourself with – remember, research is absolutely vital to an affiliate marketer’s success. 

Use the internet the right way. If search engines were a source of frustration for you in your quest to find a profitable market, take a deep breath and head back to your computer.  Search engines are a great way to determine the potential profit that you can make in a particular market –if you know how to use it correctly! 

Let’s continue with our personal development theme.  As a future successful affiliate marketer, you know that in order to make any kind of money, you need to see what’s being sold – and how much it’s being for.  Are there a bunch of entrepreneurs that are offering dirt-cheap e-books…or worse, free personal development products?  If that’s the case, it’s probably in your best interest to ditch that niche in favor of one that can make you more money!

Longevity counts.  The most common mistake that newbie affiliate marketers make is ignoring the longevity of their potential niche.  If you want to become a successful affiliate marketer, then you need to find a market with a long life-span – and plenty of money to be made!

Are you unsure as to how to find these markets?  Go back to the search engines again and type in your desired market.  Ignore any results that pop up and instead focus on the ads off to the side.  Write down the ads that appear and monitor them for the next couple of weeks, making sure to mark how many times they appear, or any changes that are made.  Do the ads keep appearing without changing?  Or did the ads disappear after only a few days?  If your market has ads that are posted for a significant length of time, congratulations!  You’ve stumbled onto a hungry market where internet marketers are still making tons of profit – so jump on the bandwagon!

As you can see, it’s not that difficult to find a marketing niche that not only fits your interests and expectations – it also pumps out significant profit!  All it really takes is some luck, a whole lot of patience and persistence, and the desire to succeed as an affiliate marketer.  Once you’ve found the niche that’s right for you, be sure to sit back and relax as the profits come rolling in!

I talk to people all the time who say that they are interested in trying to earn extra income online, but don’t think that it is really possible to do so. Well, that is absolutely false! There are hundreds of companies including your typical “brick and mortar” retailers (think Wal-Mart, Barnes & Noble, Target) that are willing to pay great commissions if you send customers their way. I will be the among the first to admit that there is no way to make money online WITHOUT EFFORT, but there are thousands of people who earn their living serving as marketers for other people’s products.

One of the reason’s that I love affiliate marketing is that it is truly an opportunity to provide real value to your customers (visitors) and earn money, all without having to create your own product. The goal for any quality affiliate marketer (most of the good one’s are.) is to provide valuable information that helps the customer find the right product or even find out if any of the products are right for him or her. This honest approach to marketing is nothing close to a get-rich-quick scheme, but will absolutely pay off in the long run. That is, assuming you stick with it and put in the work.

Although there is a lot of work involved in being successful in this business, I find that it is truly enjoyable work. I get to test products (increasing my knowledge) and share the true benefits (or lack thereof) with my web visitors. It is much easier to work hard and stick with a business that you enjoy. Thankfully, there are such a wide variety of companies and products with affiliate programs, you will absolutely find something that you enjoy that can be marketed.

The other obvious benefit to most people is that affiliate marketing allows you to work from just about anywhere that you have an internet connection. By no means am I saying that the only way you can advertise and earn is on the internet, but this will typically be where most of your work is done. I have to admit that working from the comfort of my own home is VERY nice. I only do affiliate marketing part-time, but I enjoy having the ability to go to the beach and still keep track of what is going on with my business.

If you think that affiliate marketing might be something that you are interested in, I highly recommend purchasing Rosalind Gardner’s book, The Super Affiliate Handbook. It costs less than $50 and I have found it to be the most informative and easy to understand guide out there. You can read my review of the product at http://tinyurl.com/5cv8d5. If you are seriously considering starting out in the affiliate marketing business, this guide will give you a great feel for the type of work that will be involved in order to be successful. After reading it, you will certainly know whether affiliate marketing is right for you. If you decide that it is, you will already have the best handbook available to get you going in the right direction.

Good luck!
-Justin