So, you’ve finally made the exciting choice to create an affiliate program for your business. Awesome! But… now what?
Before you start requesting RSVPs, there are a few more steps you need to take to launch an affiliate program that works for you, your affiliates, and their followers. Read on for our six simple steps to do exactly that, plus how your Styled Stock Society membership can help along the way.
1. Find your target audience
First thing’s first, you want to figure out what type of affiliates you want to work with. After all, it’s your brand being promoted and you want to make sure your affiliates are trustworthy, reputable, and can successfully promote your offer to their following. Those affiliates could be current customers, by invitation only, or simply anyone who wants to make extra income by promoting your offers or products!
For example, here at Styled Stock Society, we always invite current members to become affiliates. They know our membership well, they’ve searched for other stock photos with no luck, and they love what they get when they join! Who better to promote the Styled Stock Society than them? Of course, this is just one example. Find affiliates that mesh with your goals!
2. Decide on program specifics
Once you know the types of affiliates you want, it’s time to hammer out the details of the program. Brainstorm and decide on things like:
- Commission rates (how much affiliates will make off each sale)
- Payout schedule (when you’ll pay your affiliates)
- Cookie duration (how long you track conversions from affiliate links)
Having these details hashed out upfront will help save tons of time and streamline your affiliate program launch.
Pro tip: Draw inspiration from our affiliate guide template to create a professional and branded version of your program!
3. Choose your affiliate software
One of the main perks of an affiliate program is that it does the work for you. However, a lot of that heavy lifting comes from software built specifically for affiliate programs. It can track your affiliates, help you create personalized links, gather data, and so much more. So, how do you choose the right one for you?
If you use Kajabi or Thrivecart, you may have affiliate software already built into your shopping cart. If you don’t, no worries! There are several affiliate plugins and or software to choose from, like AffiliateWP (for WordPress sites) or Tapfiliate. Whichever technology you go with, make sure it’s easy to work with and easily integrates with your site.
4. Create affiliate resources
Before your affiliates can start promoting your products, they need the assets to actually do it. By creating them ahead of time, you’ll be armed and ready as soon as your affiliate list starts to grow. On top of your program details, make sure you’re prepared with resources like:
- Promo graphics
- On-brand stock photos
- Email copy
- Social copy (posts + stories)
- Promotional ideas
- Other tools that help your affiliates share your brand!
Pro tip: Not sure where to start with your designs? We’ve got tons of templates to help with promotional materials!
5. Create your affiliate program signup page
To integrate affiliates into your tracking software, you’ll likely need a signup page. That way, you can get all the information necessary to keep tabs of your growing list. You'll want to make sure to share all the important details of your affiliate program here and don't forget to have all the legal terms for your affiliate agreement in place! Another perk? If you decide to open up your affiliate to anyone, you can embed the signup page on your website so anyone can access it.
6. Invite affiliates to join!
Now comes one of the most exciting aspects of a new celebration or milestone: invitations! Use your gorgeously designed assets and personalized links to invite other businesses and entrepreneurs to join your program. You’ve worked hard for it and there’s nothing wrong with a little (or a lot) of self-promotion.
(Bonus!) Join Styled Stock Society for affiliate assets, promo templates, branded stock photos, and so much more!
Whether you’re creating affiliate assets for the first time or gearing up for a new product launch, Styled Stock Society is the way to go. With more than 2,000 customizable templates and 8,000+ stock photos, you can create anything and everything you need for your affiliate program and so much more. All you need is your Styled Stock Society membership, and you’ll unlock instant access. Sign up today!
