Affiliate Marketing, What I Do, What It Isn’t, and Why I Believe in It

Hey Wa Fam ,

So I was talking with a guy the other day, just a casual chat. He noticed my yellow Bigfoot shirt, the one with BELIEVE across the belly.

He smirked and asked, “You really believe in that stuff?”

“Yup,” I said. “I believe in it so much I built a whole brand around it.”

That caught him off guard.
“Wait, what? You mean… you make money off Bigfoot?”

I told him the truth. “Yeah. From book sales, products, affiliate commissions, all of it.”
(For the record, I’ve written 9 Bigfoot books soon to be 10.)

That’s when his tone shifted. He leaned in.
“This sounds kinda like an MLM…”

Nope. Not Even Close.

I cut in, friendly but firm.
“Hold on. MLMs and affiliate marketing are two completely different things. They can both be lucrative, but the way you earn is totally different.”

I broke it down:

• MLM: You build a downline. You spend your day selling and recruiting. That’s not me.
• Affiliate marketing: I look for what people are already searching for online. I build content that answers their questions or helps them decide. If they click my link and buy, I earn a commission. That’s it.

No chasing my cousin. No bugging my neighbor’s dog. No pressure tactics. Just useful content where people are already looking.

“You’re Already an Affiliate Marketer…”

To help it click, I asked him, “What’s something you’re passionate about? Something you could talk about all day?”

He thought for a second. “Fishing. But you’ve gotta be a pro to make money doing that.”

I laughed. “Being a pro is one way, sure. But let me ask you this: have you ever told a buddy about a great rod or a solid reel you loved?”

“Of course,” he said. “All the time.”

“Then guess what?” I hit him with it. “You’re already an affiliate marketer. You’re just not getting paid yet.”

A lightbulb went off. I said, “Did you know Bass Pro has an affiliate program? You can link people to rods, reels, boats, gear and when they buy, you get paid.”

“What?! For real?”

“Yup. Now let me ask you this do you think Bass Pro is a pyramid scheme?”

He laughed. “No, of course not.”

“Exactly. So now you see it. I’m not running an MLM. I’m helping people find the gear, stories, and products they already want.”

“But I’m Not a Tech Guy…”

That was his next hesitation.
“I’m not good with websites. I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

I nodded. “Me either, man. I didn’t know a thing. But I found a platform that teaches you step by step. You don’t need to be a tech expert. You just need to start.”

That platform is Wealthy Affiliate. I talk about it because it gave me the training to write blogs that actually rank, a roadmap to turn ideas into income, and a community that’s real, not hype.

It’s not overnight money, and it’s not easy. But it’s real.

Full Honesty: How I Make Money

Yes, when someone signs up through my Wealthy Affiliate link, I earn a commission.
I might earn monthly or yearly depending on their plan.

But I don’t get paid from their “downline.”
I don’t make money when they bring in others.
WA simply credits me for the referral, and that’s it. No multi‑level tree. No recruiting treadmill.

I don’t chase. I build.

The End of the Talk (But the Start of the Journey)

That guy might not jump in.
And honestly? That’s okay.

He walked away knowing something most never do that affiliate marketing and MLMs aren’t the same game.
One is pressure. The other is permission.
Permission to build something honest. Something that lasts.

And I walked away reminded why I’m still here.

Because I believe in this.
I’ve seen what it can do not just in dollars or traffic charts, but in purpose.
I’ve built books, blogs, brands... from the cab of a truck, from a laptop in the woods, from a place in my soul that just wouldn’t quit.

So where do you start?

That’s the question I get the most.
And the answer? It’s simple:

👉 Start with the Core Training.

You don’t need to know code.
You don’t need a list of 10,000 followers.
You don’t need to have it all figured out.

You just need a reason.
A heartbeat.
And the willingness to take the first step.

Affiliate marketing isn’t a gimmick.
It’s not hype.
It’s not a trick to get rich overnight.

It’s helping people and getting paid for it.
That’s what changed everything for me.

And it can change everything for you too.

So if you’re sitting there wondering if you’re too late, too small, too uncertain…

Let me say this from the deepest part of me:
You’re not.

Start where you are.
Build what matters.
And don’t stop believing in what you can do even if no one else sees it yet.

That’s where the shift begins.

Shawn
🦶 Still building. Still believing.