Fact is, it can cost you a lot time and money spent on the wrong affiliate program before you’ll realize that it was wrong in the first place. And I can tell you from my very own “how to affiliate program” experience: it’s not a positive feeling …

Knowing the program you are getting yourself into is literally vital for your success and there is only one really important rule: it’s all about conversion! In other words, some mind-blowing commission rates and jaw-dropping flat amount payouts do not mean anything unless the program converts.

But, here is the situation: conversion is always a mutual responsibility! You are responsible for sending waves of targeted traffic to the advertiser, and the advertiser is responsible for efficiently facilitating the conversion of that traffic into a qualified action.

What does it mean? It means that you’ll have to identify and carefully evaluate every single factor that can influence your conversion rates and obstruct your future affiliate earnings.

So, let’s take a closer look at each important factor:

1. The website itself

Try to evaluate the site from two different angles: as an affiliate and as a consumer. As an affiliate focus on ways for the end-consumer to take a route that doesn’t lead to your commissions. As a consumer pay attention especially to its ease of use, both overall and the checkout process in particular.