Affiliate marketing course looks to capitalize on those looking to make money from home

Millions of people are looking to make some money in the affiliate marketing realm. But, how many of them actually know the best practices?

To help those looking to make a splash in the growing affiliate realm, a new online home study course, "Affiliate Millionaire" has been created by affiliate marketing expert Andrew Fox.

"I've been a part of the affiliate marketing word since the year 2000 and have been stunned by the growth of the making money online industry," said Fox. "For many years I've been requested to produce a course … Affiliate Millionaire is my answer to that."

Affiliate marketing is becoming an increasingly attractive career choice for those that are looking to earn money while either working from home or facing layoffs, according to an iMedia account of the 2009 Affiliate Benchmark Study.

The study was based on survey data from 3500 affiliates, according to Affiliate Benchmarks, affiliate research arm of NETexponent.

Forrester research recently predicted that affiliate marketing would grow from a $1.9 billion dollar industry in 2009 to $4 billion by 2014.

Bet-at-home adds transparency to affiliate network

Gaming sites continue to work hard to build and refine their affiliate marketing programs. Recently, Bet-at-home.com said it signed with the Montreal-based affiliate program, Income Access, to increase many of its back-end performance metrics. The new partnership will reportedly provide Bet-at-home with i-gaming software for its multi-lingual affiliate program. Additionally it will feature a variety of program management tools and tracking reports to help the company optimize and make it attractive to affiliate marketers, an Income Access spokesperson said. "Bet-at-home.com offers a versatile playing platform, with a wide range of entertainment that appeals to players and the affiliates that currently work with them," said Income Access CEO, Nicky Senyard. Affiliates who join the bet-at-home.com program will be able to take advantage of Income Access' program management tools and tracking reports, as well as a full variety of marketing tools that will help them maximize their advertising efforts, the company said. Bet-at-home.com is part of Mangas Gaming, a Paris-based online gaming and sports betting group that boasts 1.8 million registered users from European countries and is listed on the Frankfurt stock exchange.

Reviewer releases latest affiliate firm rankings

In its latest ranking of affiliate marketing firms, topseos.com, said that hundreds of vendors were "scrutinized in order to put together a list of the best affiliate marketing services." "It can be difficult to find a quality affiliate marketing program management company," the company said. "The industry is full of companies that promise results and conversions, but which ones deliver the quality results is a lot more difficult question to answer." topseos.com identifies companies as the best based on five keys areas: network, implementation, monitoring, reporting, and optimization, it said. Additionally, the company said it contacts clients of the firms to find out more about the inner workings of the companies, such as reporting frequency and transparency, use of analytics and need assessment and change implementation. Among the companies top 10 affiliate marketing firms for January 2010 were, Experience Advertising, Paulson Management Group, NETexponent and Affiliate Marketing. The company, which has been evaluating affiliate marketing firms for eight years said it has reviewed 3,000 firms in 130 countries in developing the criteria used for the listing.

Affiliate marketing riding the technology wave to success

In a recent article on ReveNews, Shawn Collins, co-founder of Affiliate Summit took a look back at affiliate marketing and calls for some changes in the industry for 2010. Collins said that although the industry is tough to get numbers on, anecdotally, he believes the industry is doing well. Part of that strength comes from the creativity of the affiliates. As recently as a few years ago much of the affiliate marketing done was mostly one-dimensional sites with 468 x 60 banners and some text links. Today, affiliates are at the cutting edge of technology available. "These days people are using every possible method of marketing in affiliate marketing," Collins said. "Whether it be pay-per-call, a video podcast, micro blogs, social network links or games, any kind of method available, affiliates are out there using it to reach the consumer." Collins also believes that the stigma associated with affiliate marketing has also begun to recede as more big companies and brands become increasingly involved in affiliate programs. Much of the negative perception began in 2003 when the CAN-SPAM Act was passed because there was a small minority of people that were sending out spam that reflected on the entire industry itself, Collins said. He added that despite a rebounding reputation, the industry needs to focus on ethics in 2010 to keep it growing.

Payday Loan company introduces new affiliate marketing program

Speedy Cash, which specializes in payday advance loans, has partnered with Commission Junction to launch a free online marketing affiliate program that would pay $50 for every new customer received from the affiliates' website. "The Speedy Cash affiliate program offers both traditional banner and text link creative versions for advertisers," said Bryan Herndon, director of internet marketing for Speedy Cash. "In addition, Speedy Cash has a dedicated affiliate director to assist with any specific requests regarding the program." Speedy Cash said that the affiliate program capitalizes on two major trends: online advertising and the economic downturn. The company said that as the nation's working class suffered financial loss in some way or another in the last year, such as higher mortgage rates and diminished savings, people have increasingly turned to companies that offer a short-term cash advance. This has lead to increased searches for payday loans and increased opportunities for affiliates to direct traffic to the company's website. In 2001, an analysis conducted by the Credit Research Center at Georgetown University revealed that a majority of payday advance customers earn between $25,000 and $50,000; 94 percent have a high school diploma or better; and 68 percent are under 45 years old, according to the Community Financial Services Association of America.