Trying to find the best affiliate program? These are the nine most important questions you need to ask when looking for a program to promote.

You want to find the best affiliate program to promote, and if you’re anything like me, you’re doing all the research you possibly can to make sure you find the right affiliate program for you.

As an affiliate marketer myself, I know how stressful this decision can be, but by carefully vetting affiliate programs with these essential questions when looking for the best affiliate program, you can start promoting the program you choose with confidence.

You are going to learn all about exactly what to look for in an affiliate program including the exact criteria I use when vetting affiliate programs.

After learning all about what criteria to use when judging affiliate programs, you are going to be a pro when it comes to picking high-quality affiliate programs.

This post is all about how to choose the best affiliate program that every online marketer should know about.

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How to Find the Best Affiliate Program With These 9 Simple But Super Important Questions

1. What is the Commission Rate?

One of the first things I always check when looking for a high quality affiliate program is the commission rate. Most of the affiliate programs I promote have at least a 30 percent commission rate.

That being said, there are exceptions to this rule and other factors that may come into play. For example, some people promote lots of smaller ticket items from stores like Amazon or Target which sell in a higher quantity.

In those cases, the commission rates tend to be smaller, but those items are typically easier to sell. The trade off is that you typically have to sell a lot more of them to make the money you would if you were promoting a recurring or high ticket program. This leads us to our next question.

2. Is it a Recurring or High-Ticket Affiliate Program?

When choosing the main product or program you want to promote, aim for for something that is high-ticket or recurring. What does that mean?

A recurring product is something like a subscription where someone pays a monthly fee to keep using the product. If the person bought that product through you, you get a cut of that fee every single month even if they keep paying for that subscription for years.

This creates passive income for you because you only have to sell the product one time, but you keep earning on the product month after month.

Good examples of companies that have products that have recurring commissions that I've promoted are ClickFunnels, GetResponse, and Elegant Themes.

For a high-ticket product, you want to look for something that costs at least $500 if not more. High-ticket products may require more coaching to buy, but there is more payoff. Instead of receiving a few dollars every time you sell something, you'll receive a few hundred and in some cases even more.

Some good examples of companies that sell high-ticket products with top paying affiliate programs include Legendary Marketer, Freedom Breakthrough, and Affiliate Secrets.

For example, Legendary Marketer sells a very popular program that costs $2,500 with a 40 percent commission rate. That means every time someone buys that product through you, you could make $1,000.

As you can see, it pays off to aim for promoting a program with recurring and/or a high-ticket products.

3. Does the Company Have a Good Reputation?

This one speaks for itself. You don't want to start promoting a program by a company that has a shady history. So do a little homework on the company's reputation.

Some factors to look for may include:

• How long has the company existed
• Customer reviews
• Does it continue to improve its programs and provide more products?
• What kind of support does it offer its customers
• What kind of support does it offer its affiliates

If it's a high-ticket item, you may want to purchase it yourself so you can promote the program with confidence. This will also allow you to be able to answer the questions above and be able to speak about the company with first-hand knowledge.

4. What is the Sales Process Like?

If you're going to make the effort to promote a high-ticket product, you want to know that the company you're sending your audience to has systems in place to close the deal.

This can happen in a variety of ways, but here are some basic elements to look for:

• Do they have an email sequence set up that gets sent to people if they don't buy on the first click?
• Do they retarget with ads? To test this, check out one of the landing pages and then see if the next time you're on Facebook, if you see ads for that company.
• For higher-ticket programs, the company may have closers on staff that meet with the leads you send over to help walk them through the product and help them decide if the purchase is right for them. For example, Legendary Marketer employs Business Plan Advisors that meet with those who sign up for the 15 Day Business Builder Challenge to coach them through the making the decision to purchase the various higher ticket items it offers.

5. What is the Quality of the Product?

By promoting a high-quality product, you will build trust with your audience. One bad product can ruin your reputation with your audience and may result in them never purchasing a product you promote again.

Carefully choose products that you genuinely believe will help your audience achieve their goals. One way to do this is by testing out the products for yourself. It's hard to sell something you've never used, and it makes it easier to sell a product if you can also be a raving fan.

6. Does the Company Sell Multiple Products?

Look for companies that sell multiple products so that you get a commission on every additional product that is purchased.

A good example of this is ClickFunnels. In addition to the monthly subscription, ClickFunnels also sells products such as books and the One Funnel Away Challenge, to name a few. When someone you referred purchases these additional products, you get a commission on all of the products not just the initial purchase.

This increases the amount of money you're able to make and provides more value to your audience.

7. Is the Program Right for Your Audience?

If you typically promote products about personal finance and all of a sudden start promoting products about dog training or keto, there might be a bit of a disconnect with your audience. Now those are extreme examples, but the point is that you always want to make sure that the product matches the interests of your audience.

For example, if you've been promoting courses and software that are designed around affiliate marketing and you start promoting courses on drop shipping, even though the course may be about another way to make money, it will likely fall flat.

If you've become the go-to person for one thing and you start switching things up, it may jeopardize your credibility with your audience.

8. How Long is the Cookie/Referral Period?

Another key detail you want to look at is how long is the “cookie” period. What does this mean? A cookie is a piece of data that tracks and records the browsing activity of the user. It helps users by helping them pick up where they left off and it also helps remember items such as usernames and passwords.

Essentially any information that is voluntarily entered is saved as cookie. The period of time that the information is stored on a website is the cookie duration or cookie period.

What does this have to do with affiliate marketing? Different programs come with different cookie periods. In other words, the amount of time you have to receive the commission if someone makes a purchase after clicking on one of your affiliate links.

Let's say the cookie period of one of the products you are promoting is 30 days. If someone clicks on your referral link, you will get a commission as long as the person makes a purchase within that 30 day period. Bottom line — the longer the cookie period the better.

For example, the cookie period for the GetResponse affiliate program is 120 days, ClickFunnels is 45 days, and Elegant Themes is unlimited.

9. Are You a Fan of the Program?

Being a fan of the programs you promote is important for multiple reasons.

First, it gives you more credibility with your audience. Second, it's going to make it easier for you to promote it because you will have firsthand knowledge of the product and the benefits it has to offer to your audience. Third, you are going to need to talk about the product A LOT, so it needs to be something you won't grow tired of talking about.

This post was all about the essential questions you need to ask when looking for the best affiliate program. It is my hope that these nine questions will help you feel a lot more confident about the next affiliate program you decide to promote.