What is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a sales tactic that allows product owners to allow “affiliates” to earn a commission by recommending their product to others. It makes it possible for affiliates to earn commission on product sales without having their own product. The affiliate earns a commission each time someone makes a purchase through the unique link associated with their recommendation. 

How does affiliate marketing work?

To start affiliate marketing there are basically four simple steps:

1. Join an affiliate program and add your business information.
2. Obtain a unique affiliate link.
3. Share that link on your social media, website, or email list.
4. Collect commission anytime someone uses your link to make a purchase.

Commission rates vary a lot, depending on the company and the offer. On the low end, you can earn about 3% of the sale but, on other hand, you can also earn as much as 60% to 100%. There are also some affiliate marketing programs that provide a flat dollar rate per sale instead of a percentage. 

What is the cookie duration?

When a user clicks on an affiliate link, a cookie is saved on the client’s computer. It is used to track affiliate referrals. Each cookie has an expiry date. Usually, cookie duration is from 30-90 days. However, in certain cases, it can be as long as a lifetime.

In the below table you can find 50+ best SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) affiliate programs to start with. It shows how much commission it gives out along with the cookie duration.

Disclaimer: Our content is reader-supported, which means we may earn a small commission if you click on some of our links.

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