My First ShareASale Merchant Approval!
I joined ShareASale a week before Christmas and got approved for their Program within two days. My main reason for joining was to promote a debt renegotiation company called National Debt Relief that has helped me immensely. I discovered they had an affiliate program as a merchant in ShareASale.
As soon as I got approved for ShareASale I applied to be an affiliate for NDR. I used my affiliate website email address as that is preferred by merchants. I received an Email the next day saying they received my application and it was pending approval. I also got a notification on my ShareASale Dashboard with the same message below.
They stated I would hear back from them in about three business days. Those three business days turned out to be almost THREE WEEKS! I was overjoyed when I got their approval today. Perhaps the delay was due to people being off work during the Holiday Season. Keep that in mind when you apply to be an affiliate.
In their corresponding Email I received valuable information on approaches to use to promote the NDR services as well as links to banners, text ads as well as videos. I particularly liked the videos, as Jay Neill taught in a recent webinar how videos in posts can help with SEO.
NDR does allow affiliates (publishers in official parlance) to make their own creatives (ad materials) with their approval. MMO
MMO Niche
My niche is Make Money Online (MMO). Its primary focus is to introduce people to affiliate marketing and in so doing to the Wealthy Affiliate training program.
Most of my 48 posts have focused on Wealthy Affiliate.
Other methods to make money online are in stock investments and trading, Foreign Exchange Trading (Forex) and also getting trained in these activities. We are in Tax return time. Hence, I will,be looking for affiliate opportunities in this area too. I feel it is connected with MMO.
Some may think I am getting away from a narrow niche. Perhaps. But if I am going to promote how Wealthy Affiliate can help you earn money in Affiliate Marketing, doesn't it make sense to do that mysel other than earning WA commissions exclusively? It will boost my credibility.
You may have heard the phrase, "A Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned!" Right? Hence, if one can save money through debt relief that is one method of making money online. It fits in beautifully with MMO.
These avenues open the door to write posts on several MMO related areas, so I do not have to stuff my blog solely with all the variations and permutations of Wealthy Affiliate, as awesome as this program is. I also feel that the Search Engines will be kinder to me in ranking and traffic.
Since joining Clickbank, ShareASale and CJ Affiliate, new opportunities are opening up. This is going to be very exciting in 2020.
Affiliate Suggestions
Are there any product categories or services you use that are related to your chosen niche, no matter how tangential? I ask this question because having personal satisfaction for these items gives you the opportunity of writing reviews using your own experience added to those of others you find in your research.
Look around. Do some research on Google. And see what you can find.
Future Opportunities
Fortunately I have only written 48 posts. In my next 52 towards my first 100 posts, I can provide value in other MMO related areas.
As long as my life is not derailed for one reason or another, I look forward to these future opportunities.
All the best to you.
Edwin
Recent Comments
112
Edwin,
I have no doubt that you are going to do well in 2020.This is the year that you will see your business grow. You have good ideas and keep moving ahead with a steady hand.
I joined Share a Sale, but haven't found a merchant yet that matches my niche.
My biggest thrust right now is to create traffic. Traffic brings the possibilities for affiliates and sales. I think 2020 will be my breakthrough year.
Thanks for your encouragement Barbara. You're absolutely right. I'm also focusing on traffic by taking the SEO steps I've been learning from Jay. I feel if I keep writing regularly traffic will build. I wish you much success too.
Edwin
On behalf of ShareASale, welcome to our network!
Yes, between all the activity of Q4 and the holidays, some of the merchants are slower than normal approving new merchants into their programs, but the most important thing is that you have been approved. Congratulations!
If I can assist, please let me know.
Thank you so much Jeannine! I received a great Email message from NDR. I have a general question. When I use creatives from the merchants website do I still need to get their approval? And do they need to approve my post I write about their product or service?
Since all commissions are channeled via ShareASale, do I have the option of receiving them through PayPal and Direct deposit into my bank account?
Thanks.
Edwin
All the approved creative - banners, text links, etc. - is available through the ShareASale interface. Were you talking about creating your own? If so, then you'd need to get it approved by the merchant before using it.
They do not need to approve your post prior to posting unless they specifically told you so in their profile. However, do know that you must be extremely careful in writing about anything financial. It is more closely scrutinized by the FTC, so never make any claims or promises; just state the facts. You can share your personal experience, but make sure that it is very obvious that it is your experience and everyone may not have the same experience. That's a rule from the FTC, not from ShareASale or the merchant.
Yes, you can determine which method used for payment when you complete your payment details.
I sure appreciate your counsel. The ads I was referring to was the material available on the Merchants site as well as on ShareASale. In the beginning I do not plan on creating my own. NDR made it clear if I did I would need their approval before I can use it. Perhaps down the road.
Their T's & C's didn't require to see my posts prior to posting.
Thanks for driving home that I need to be careful what I write about financial areas. When I write about my personal experience I will make sure I emphasize they are my own and it could be different for others.
Saying that creates the importance of the visitor making contact with NDR to discuss their situation. And that is exactly what they want me to do. If the referral meets their criteria I will get paid $27.50 just for the phone call between the referral and NDR even if they do not proceed further.
And that is very cool.
Glad to know you represent ShareASale at WA. At the moment I do not plan on adding more merchants as I want to focus on NDR. When I start earning a stream of commissions I may consider looking at others then.
All the best to you Jeannine.
Edwin
I published my first ShareASale post on National Debt Relief. I hope I can reach a lot of people as this can be of great benefit to those who are struggling with debt.
Cheers.
Edwin
See more comments
Congrats Edwin on the approval and I learned yet another thing today from you. I had just signed up with CJ a couple of days ago although I haven't applied for with any merchants in their platform yet because I have quite a way to go as far as traffic and content, but it was easy and was approved right away. It's good to know what your experience has been with Share-a-sale. I guess I should wait a while before I think to even apply to them or any others even if I won't apply to any individual merchant as of yet.
Glad my experience was of help. The older your website is with more articles helps. In both my profiles I made a great deal about being a newbie but learning from the best, Wealthy Affiliate. My marketing plan on how I was going to get traffic and sales for the merchants was detailed and very clear. I think that helps. We've all got to start somewhere.
Once you are approved by these networks you got to keep publishing articles regularly to show you're serious. Also, it helps to notify your social media accounts about your articles via links
These are some of the steps that will help traffic grow and generate sales.
I found three products on CJ Affiliate yesterday and applied for approval. I hope I'll get at least one of them to be my first there. Hammersher Schlemmer did not approve my application. That was the reason I joined CJ. But that's ok. Plenty of fish there.
I wish you all the best.
Cheers.
Edwin