Should you start your own online affiliate marketing business? You might have heard of folks making money from doing affiliate marketing.
You may come across Instagram or Tiktok reels of folks raving about their success with affiliate marketing. You saw tons of Youtube videos learning about this business model, but still, one question bothers remains, ‘is affiliate marketing safe?’
Is Affiliate Marketing Safe?
Affiliate marketing might be safe because you do not have to invest huge amounts of money to get started learning the business. So even if your business does not work out, you will not lose out big time!
It’s safe because it’s a newbie-friendly business model.
As you know that the main way that you will be earning is by promoting other people’s products or services. Whilst it sounds like it’s a safe way to do business, there is a way that you can get into very big trouble.
And I am going to show the ONE way that you can get harmed by doing online affiliate marketing.
How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?
Affiliate marketing is a business model where your earnings are dependent on how well you promote other people’s products or services.
The better you perform in bringing sales for merchants or sellers, the more you earn, and the more successful your business will become.
I mentioned earlier that it is a newbie-friendly business model.
In fact, I am willing to bet you, that you have done affiliate marketing at some point in your life, you just did not know that’s what’s it called.
Let me prove it to you.
Let’s say that you just watched a really good movie, or completed reading an interesting book. So, you recommend this book or movie to your friend or family member.
Then they go out and buy the book or watch the movie. You just made a SALE for that bookstore or cinema.
You did affiliate marketing!
You are an unofficial affiliate for that bookstore or that cinema. Wouldn’t it be cool if they PAID YOU for all your hard work?
Well, in the online world, you do get PAID.
You see, affiliate marketing is not really that complicated to understand.
It’s just a matter of getting the right training to start your online business.
And there are some really great beginner-friendly training platforms such as Invincible Marketer and Wealthy Affiliate.
But, Roopesh, didn’t you say that you can also get harmed doing affiliate marketing?
Yes, I sure did.
Let me show in the next section what I am talking about.
The Number One Reason Affiliate Marketing Is Not SAFE…
And that is…..it can harm your personal(online) reputation.
How is that even possible?
Let me explain.
When you start affiliate marketing, in the beginning, you are all excited. You cannot wait to make that first commission.
Trust me it’s a natural feeling.
One month goes by, then two months gone, and still, you have not made a sale.
Your YouTube channel is gaining followers. Your reels and blog posts are getting engagement. Your Pinterest pins are getting shared, but you just not getting a single sale!
Eventually, you get a sale, and you are all excited. But you realize that it’s taking too long to make big money.
So what do you do, you decide to promote more products.
You go for QUANTITY INSTEAD OF QUALITY.
Yeap, you start promoting mediocre products. Just so that you can make more money.
You do not even bother to see if the product is legit or worth the asking price, but you go ahead and put your stamp of approval on it.
And then what happens?
You start seeing the refund rates increase. Your customers are unhappy with the product and they come complaining to you.
You SOLD them a Crappy product.
They trusted you, and you let them down!
They will never buy from you anything again!
In the online world, once your online reputation is harmed or tarnished, it’s hard to rebuild.
That is why affiliate marketing is not safe.
Recommended Reading: What is The Difference A Pyramid Scheme and Affiliate Marketing?
Conclusion – You Are In Control of Your Business
The truth is affiliate marketing is a very safe business model. You get to decide how ‘unsafe’ or complicated you want it to be.
You can choose a training platform and follow it step-by-step until you get results. Or you can buy shiny object after shiny object looking for an “easy and quick” way to make money online(which does not exist).
You can take the time to research products, offer genuine help, and build a solid reputation. Or you can promote every product, where you think you can make quick commissions. In the end, you risk harming your online brand and business.
Is affiliate marketing safe? That is up to YOU!
I hope that this blog post has helped you out.
If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Regards and Take Care