With so many affiliate marketing programs online it’s hard to make a choice as to which ones may be best suited for your brand or business. It’s important that you look into all your options because not all of them are beginner-friendly and may lead to more of a headache down the line if you don’t fully understand what you’re signing up for.

This is why we’re going to share with you how to find some of the top networks where you can pick up programs that best fit your niche and will help you grow your business and brand as a whole.

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1. Amazon Associates

Hands down one of the more prominent programs in the industry is Amazon Associates. With an easy interface and straightforward program, what’s not to love? 

The way it works is by creating content to promote products from Amazon online via social media videos or photos. 

They pay commissions to their affiliates via sales of the items you promote and even commission on other items in their cart from that same purchase, even if the products weren’t part of your recommendation. 

As anything, the commission is a variable rate that depends on the products that the customer buys.

Another way the % can vary is by the product category of the referral, with commissions as high as 20% for amazon games, 10% on items in luxury, 5% on all digital goods, and 1-4.5% on miscellaneous items. The sheer volume of products on Amazon’s store makes it a very lucrative market for new affiliates.

2. ClickBank

Boasting over six million users, the affiliate marketplace ClickBank has been around for over two decades.

Not only does it offer some of the best commission rates for affiliates marketers and influencers, but the network is also beginner-friendly to join. In addition, content creators and bloggers will find many exceptional promotion opportunities.

Because ClickBank is a leading retailer, it offers users access to a long list of products, including their affiliate marketplace, which helps to increase sales thanks to the platform’s advertising tools.

If you’re looking for a relatively easy way to try out affiliate marketing, a free account gives you access to quality products to promote to your audiences. 

3. CJ Affiliate

For more than 15 years, CJ Affiliate has been known as one of the world’s largest and most established affiliate marketing networks. CJ Affiliate provides affiliate marketers (or publishers as CJ Affiliate calls them) access to over 3,000 brands (or advertisers). 

The advertisers/brands sell products, services, and experiences in a range of businesses including the hospitality, restaurant, office, software, home improvement, electronics, food, apparel, and travel industries. 

Publishers will need to go through an approval process, where brand representatives will expect you to meet the requirements of having a professional-looking website or brand. 

Once accepted, CJ Affiliate will connect advertisers and publishers in their network. Advertisers and publishers collaborate, determining offer details and promotional methods. Publishers then market advertisers’ products and services to drive the desired outcome and are compensated by the advertisers.

4. eBay Partner Network

If the idea of a global commerce network piques your interest, the affiliate marketing program through the eBay Partner Network may be what you are looking for.  

While the network isn’t as popular as many of the other options mentioned throughout this list, you will still get access to more than 1.4 billion eBay listings which you can then promote using their links. There’s an opportunity to earn traffic driven to a specific item, as well as for traffic resulting in sales. 

eBay provides affiliate compensation in many ways from commissions on the sale of goods and flat fees paid for the completion of a form to bonuses paid on the types of visitors sent. Each partnership is different in terms of payout structure and rates. 

A global rate card provides a high-level summary that shows the percentage of sales for various product categories. 

5. Sovern Commerce

Sovern Commerce is interesting in the fact that it offers affiliate marketing tools to its content publishers to boost success rates, similar to Skimlinks.

What you will end up doing is copying the code provided and installing a script. Sovereign Commerce will in turn insert affiliate links across your WordPress site automatically. You can also look up trending products on the dashboard and figure out which one converts best for you and your brand.

It should come as no surprise that you will also be able to find many companies with affiliate programs on this Sovern Commerce, such as CJ, Impact, and Shareasale.

6. ShareASale

Another great affiliate network to consider when looking for a good fit is ShareASale. They’ve been in business for over 2 decades and have recently been acquired by Affiliate Window. With over 15,000 advertisers in ShareASale, it’s a great choice for people who are just getting their feet wet in the industry.

With a little over 1600 brands in 77 various sectors, there will be no shortage of products and services to promote in your text links and widgets, which are conveniently provided by the company. They also make it really easy to keep up to date with all the latest product launches along with creative ways to promote it with content.

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7. Rakuten Advertising

Since 1996 everyone has been using the popular platform Rakuten Advertising due to the fact that it grants people access to over 1000 merchants. A lot of them are popular brands, thus making them a great option when it comes to affiliate networks. The best part is that it is free to join and the company makes it easily accessible for beginners.

With an intuitive UI, that helps to create a smooth and friendly experience for new users, makes getting started on the platform easy and enjoyable. 

8. Flexoffers

FlexOffers, an affiliate network comparable to Impact, Awin, and CJ, has been voted one of the top 5 CPS affiliate networks 8 years in a row. It offers more than 10K advertiser partnerships from over 65 networks and provides access to over 650M+ products via the FlexOffers data feeds. Daily additions of advertisers across 25+ categories and 27 countries provide breadth and depth of opportunity for affiliates. 

Among the things FlexOffers will want to know is what your website traffic sources are, and how you will use affiliate banners and links. They will want to know if your site is a coupon or comparison site and if you use pop-ups in your marketing efforts. 

FlexOffers also has a FlexRev-Share program based on a rev-share model that allows content creators to generate new revenue streams by referring businesses and concepts to FlexOffers.

9. In-house Affiliate Programs

It’s not unusual for well-known brands to have an in-house affiliate program, so if you use a product or service you are pleased with, you may want to become an affiliate. 

All you need to do to find these affiliate programs is search for the brand name and “affiliate program”, “brand ambassador program”, or “partner program” on google to see if the company has its own program that you can register to. 

Usually, an in-house company affiliate program will offer a more lucrative commission structure versus a third-party network affiliate program, although expect competition if it’s well-known.

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Final thoughts

With the landscape of affiliate marketing expanding and more people getting into the world of content creation, it may be difficult and overwhelming to find the right affiliate programs for your brand. 

However, by joining affiliate networks and becoming a part of their team, you can ensure that you’re gaining access to a wide range of programs that you’ll be able to pick and choose from depending on your niche. 

The best part is that all of the networks we mentioned above offer a simple sign-up process that allows you to join programs in minutes and start immediately. 

Hopefully, you’ve found this information useful and can jump into the world of affiliate networks and programs with ease!