Posted by If you’re an affiliate marketer or an intending one, you’ve probably come across frauds who claim to be affiliate marketing gurus but are not. These guys make the bulk of their money selling courses about making money from affiliate marketing but have never made a dime themselves. You may be wondering if there are genuine people who have made their money from affiliate marketing. I’m here to show you that there are indeed! In this article, I’ll tell you the rag-to-riches tale of five successful top affiliate marketers who have earned up to six figures from the business (no jokes).
Before we dive into the rags-to-riches tales of top affiliate marketers, let’s quickly discuss what affiliate marketing is and how it works.
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based marketing arrangement in which a business rewards an individual or company (an affiliate) for promoting its products or services. In other words, affiliate marketers earn a commission for each visitor or customer they bring to a business’s website.
There are two main types of affiliate marketing:
- Direct affiliate marketing: In this type of affiliate marketing, the affiliate marketer promotes a company’s products or services directly on their website or blog.
- Indirect affiliate marketing: In this type of affiliate marketing, the affiliate marketer promotes a company’s products or services through third-party platforms, such as social media, forums, or online directories.
No matter what type of affiliate marketing you choose, it’s essential to understand the product or service you’re promoting and the target audience you’re trying to reach. By following these tips, you can increase your chances of success with affiliate marketing and earn a passive income from home.
Check out this link for expert tips to help you stand out and succeed online.
Pat Flynn
In 2008, Pat Flynn enjoyed the comfort of a paid job as an architect until he was laid off due to the recession that year. I know you’re probably thinking that’s when he had the “Eureka” moment that led him to earn $3 million in the last six years through affiliate marketing, but it’s not. According to Flynn, although he had an innate desire to become an entrepreneur, he was so into architecture that he thought he’d take action for another 30–40 years.
His first website wasn’t designed to create passive income; its purpose was to help him pass an exam in the architecture industry called LEED. This “little website,” however, started generating thousands of visits in a day. That same month, he made $7,008.55 selling a book he wrote on how to pass the LEED exam.
Unlike most affiliate marketers who just slap links in their visitors’ faces, Pat Flynn took a different approach. Rather than bombarding his audience with offers, he focused on building trust first. One of Pat’s first successful offers was with Bluehost, a web hosting service.
Since he had already used Bluehost in creating his websites and knew its value, he was confident in promoting it to his visitors, and they trusted his recommendations. Pat has followed this pattern to promote his other affiliate products and has recorded massive success as an affiliate marketer.
John Chow
John Chow was born in a small farming village in Mainland China before his family relocated to Canada; he was seven then. Chow worked for only eight months in his entire life before deciding that the 9–5 grind was not for him. He started his blog in 2005, and his goal was to prove that making $3,000 a month with 2 hours of work per day is possible.
He reached his goal by raising his audience to 250,000 active daily visitors. In 2007, he set a new challenge– he wanted to know how much you could make from blogging if you pulled out all the stops and still worked 2 hours. In 2008, his earnings skyrocketed to $360,000 and have continued to grow, reaching six figures.
The tagline of John’s blog is “I Make Money Showing You How I Make Money” — this couldn’t be more true. John makes money off his blog by promoting affiliate products that could also help his audience make money. John has been featured in several publications, from The Vancouver Sun to the New York Times. In 2012, he received the prestigious Affy Award at the Affiliate Summit in New York.
Jeremy Schoemaker
Although Jeremy says his story is not one of “rags to riches,” I beg to differ. Before becoming a multi-millionaire through affiliate marketing and other income streams, Jeremy had nothing to write home about. He was 50k in credit debt, smoked two packs of cigarettes a day, and weighed 420 lbs. The worst part is that he was on unemployment salary.
Jeremy’s breakthrough came when he earned $132,000 from Google AdSense. The exciting thing is that when Jeremy received the check, it was accompanied by a $350 unemployment check.
The site Jeremy made the money from was NextPimp.com. At its peak, it attracted around 20 million visitors a month. Fun fact: Jeremy only attempted to monetize after two years.
From Google AdSense, Jeremy moved to affiliate marketing. Then in one month, he gathered a revenue of $609,733 with 1,170 391 clicks. Jeremy later included other income streams into his website, including monthly subscriptions, product sales, and pay-per-click.
In 2007, however, NextPimp lost its ranking with Google due to some heavy keywords; revenue dropped significantly, and Jeremy had to sell in 2010. He has, however, continued to make money with his advertising network, AuctionAds.
Neil Patel
Another household name when it comes to successful affiliate marketers is Neil Patel. A New York Times Bestseller, founder of NP digital, and top web influencer, Neil’s story wasn’t all rosy. He created his first website at 16 and struggled to market it successfully until after some years.
He, therefore, sought expertise in the field as he went ahead and bag a degree in marketing from California State University. Neil’s blog, NeilPatel.com, ranks as one of the most popular worldwide, with around 3 million organic monthly visitors, according to Ahref.
The reason behind Neil Patel’s success is easy to see. Firstly, a large part of the site’s success can be attributed to its content strategy. Neil Patel.com provides practical and high-quality content on various topics in the digital marketing niche.
Neil has built and sold a handful of tools through his site. They include WordPress Login for Facebook, KISSmetrics, and the analytics tools Crazy Egg. Neil’s net worth is currently at $30 million and is set to keep rising.
Michelle Schroeder
After bagging two undergraduate degrees and a master’s in finance, Michelle accumulated a student debt of $38,000. Michelle could pay off her debt in only seven months, unlike other student loan debtors. How did she do it? She decided earning was better than saving.
At first, she started as most people do– working a day job as a financial analyst, earning $50,000 a year. But then, she created her blog, Making Sense of Cents, in 2011. According to Michelle, the blog was meant to be like a safe space where she journaled her financial progress. However, after six months, it brought in $100, and she realized, “Hey, I could make money with this.”
So, she pulled her weight and went all in on the blog. She spent her early mornings, late nights, and even vacations working on the blog and building her following. By 2013, Making Sense of Cents was bringing home an additional $10,000. With this extra income, which was already far more than that of her job, she could resign and pay off her student loan debt.
Presently, Michelle earns $100,000 a month from her blog. Most of her income comes from affiliate marketing, where she earns $50,000 from the site. Michelle also diversified her income; she makes $40,000- $50,000 per month selling courses and around $12,000- $ 23,000 monthly from sponsored advertisements.
Lessons from Top Affiliate Marketers
From Neil Patel to John Chow, there are a few traits that these moguls have in common that have helped them reach such impressive feats. Here are some key lessons from these experts you shouldn’t forget:
- Successful affiliate marketers prioritize quality leads over quantity. Focus on targeted audiences who are most likely to convert.
- Put your audience first always. Understand their needs and attend to them. Don’t put promotions before the needs of your audience.
- Great content drives sales. Providing your audience with high-quality content will help you succeed.
- Never underestimate the power of a brand name and loyal following. The best affiliates have a strong brand name with a loyal following that helps them drive sales.
- Affiliate marketing requires patience and consistency. To build a successful business, you must earn the trust of your audience.
- Successful affiliate marketers are enterprising. They diversify their income streams through other methods, such as pay-per-click, course sales, and sponsored ads.
FAQs
Who is the Richest in Affiliate Marketing?
Due to the nature of the industry and the privacy surrounding individual earnings, it’s challenging to determine the wealthiest individual in affiliate marketing. However, several prominent top affiliate marketers are wealthy, including Pat Flynn, Neil Patel, Zac Johnson, and Shawn Collins.
Can Affiliate Marketing Make You Rich?
Yes, affiliate marketing can make you rich. However, it requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and strategizing. Many top affiliate marketers earn six figures from the business, but growing to that income level takes time.
Can You Make $100 a Day with Affiliate Marketing?
Yes, you can make $100 a day with affiliate marketing. But you must remember that affiliate marketing is not a get-rich-quick scheme; it will take time to make that kind of income. However, when you learn from the best and are consistent, you can reach the goal faster.
Conclusion
In this article, we’ve looked at the stories of five affiliate marketers who grew businesses from scratch and made thousands to millions of dollars in the industry. We took a trip into the lives of these successful people, discovering their techniques, struggles, and growth processes.
We hope this article fuels your affiliate marketing journey and reminds you that anyone can make money from the venture with patience and commitment.
Check out this link for expert tips to help you stand out and succeed online.