How to Create an Affiliate Program | Ready to create an affiliate program? Bluchic is sharing a step-by-step how-to for creating an affiliate program and making extra income!

Affiliate programs are one of the best and most effective secret weapons for entrepreneurs. They help you reach new audiences, build brand loyalty, streamline income, and even boost your SEO strategy.

Not sure what an affiliate program is exactly? Let’s break it down.

Say you have digital products or services to sell and you’re ready to boost those numbers. Instead of limiting your marketing tactics to your own channels, you tap into affiliates who promote your products on their channels.

Then, if people buy your products through your affiliates, they get a small cut of the profit while you continue to reach new audiences and watch your biz grow.

Ready to create your own irresistible affiliate program? Let’s get started!

How to Create an Irresistible Affiliate Program

1 | Create Your Offer

First thing’s first, you want to create your offer for your future affiliates. That way, your program launch will be streamlined, and your affiliates will have a clear idea of what’s in it for them. What should your offer entail? Think of details like:

  • What percentage of each sale affiliates will make
  • How often you’ll pay affiliates for their sales
  • How long they’ll promote your products or services (or how often)

Related post: 5 Ideas to Help You Diversify Your Business Income

2 | Choose an Affiliate Software Program

If you’ve been hesitant to create an affiliate program because of the extra work it’ll add to your plate, now’s your time to breathe a sigh of relief. That’s because there are lots of great software programs to do the work for you! Things like creating personalized links, tracking affiliates, gathering data, and more. 

Here at Bluchic, we use SendOwl for our affiliate program. But we encourage you to explore different software and plugins to find the right one for you and your biz! Just be sure to find one that easily integrates with your website.

Get access to Bluchic Freebie Library

Looking for resources to help you take your website and biz to the next level?

We have 20+ FREE guides, checklists, and workbooks inside our Freebie Library to make your website converts better and grow your business.

UNLOCK THE FREEBIE LIBRARY

3 | Make a List of Who to Invite

Your affiliate program will be much more successful if you find the perfect audience to tap into. Start with a list of 10-20 people you want to invite. Ideally, this list should include your best, most loyal customers and dedicated brand fans.

That’s because you want trustworthy affiliates who know your brand, products, and services well and are passionate about promoting them to their audiences. 

Related post: 5 Tips to Turn Social Media Followers into Customers

4 | Design Your Affiliate Landing Page

Once you hash out the details of your affiliate program, it’s time to bring them to life on your website! With our Add-on Templates Kits, you can quickly and easily design an affiliate landing page that has everything you need to promote your program. Details like:

  • Quick intro + call-to-action (CTA)
  • Benefits of your affiliate program
  • How it works + CTA
  • Frequently asked questions
  • Affiliate login
  • Freebie CTA

Pro tip: If you already use one of our Bluchic WordPress themes, you can find the Add-on Kit to match!

ChicServe Add-on Affiliate
ChicSavvy Elementor Affiliate Page Template
ChicBloom Elementor Affiliate Page Template

5 | Craft Your Promotion Emails 

Now, it’s time to create and launch your promotional emails to officially get the ball rolling! When crafting your invite, be sure to include details like:

  • The announcement of your affiliate program
  • What’s in it for them (extra income, working with you, expanding their content, etc.)
  • How often they’ll be asked to promote products or services
  • How it works
  • How to get signed up

Of course, you don’t have to limit these emails to your one-time program launch. As your business grows and changes, your affiliate program likely will, too! Remember that you can always invite new people on board at any time and change up the details of how it works.

Do you want to: Grow your audience base? Make passive income? Market the heck out of new products and services? We have two words for you: Affiliate Program. And we have your step-by-step tutorial for creating one right here!Click To Tweet

6 | Create Onboarding Sequences and Swipe Copy 

One of the most enticing things for affiliates is that it doesn’t create a lot of extra work for them. After all, an affiliate program is designed to help everyone (including you!) make passive income. That’s why it’s important to prepare your affiliates with ready-to-post graphics and swipe copy (AKA: promotional content), which is usually distributed in your onboarding sequence.

What’s an onboarding sequence? It’s the series of emails you’ll send to affiliates leading up to the product or service launch you want them to promote. Here’s an example:

  • 7-10 days before launch: Send your affiliates an email announcing the launch of your newest product or service. Remind them of the awesome benefits of your affiliate program (like commission rates) and that more specific details are coming in the next few days. 
  • 3 days before launch: Let your affiliates know that launch is just three days out! This is where you’ll include graphics, swipe copy, and ways to promote your new product or service.
  • Day of launch: Generate some excitement for your newest launch! Let them know it’s officially go time, and they can begin promoting the heck out of your latest offer. Again, include the pre-made graphics, swipe copy, and ways to promote.

As for resources and swipe copy to include for your affiliate, be sure to include:

  • Social copy (posts and stories)
  • Email copy
  • Promotional graphics or photos
  • Blog copy
  • Ideas for promoting your product in videos and stories
  • Anything else they’ll need to successfully promote your biz!

Final Thoughts 

Now that you’re armed with the right tips and tools to create an irresistible affiliate program, it’s time to get started! Once you have some official affiliates, you can determine whether to pay them through your platform (automatically) or send them payments on a regular schedule (manually).

Don’t forget, your affiliate program can be an incredibly effective, low-cost marketing tactic, so be sure you share it out frequently so you can always attract new affiliates and grow your passive income!