Affiliate marketing has become a widely accepted practice in commerce: asking for a specialized opinion/recommendation has become a right of passage when choosing products or services.
As a leading website building company, Ucraft offers an Affiliate Program to forge long-lasting relationships with satisfied users and give back to our community since any partnership requires mutual honesty and devotion. To illustrate the process, we have initiated some backstage discourse with our Affiliates on their experience - an affiliate marketing success story.
Steve Benjamins, the founder of SiteBuildReport, sat down with us to share his experience as a Ucraft Affiliate. Read on to learn more about challenges affiliates overcome, how trust is gained, and more.
1․ How did you start your Affiliate Marketing journey?
My path started from building my own website builder in 2012. I had difficulty marketing it and quickly realized I didn’t have the expertise or money to compete with massive website-building corporations.
Thus, I decided the industry didn’t need another website builder. Instead, it needed someone to educate consumers on how to choose a website builder. I launched my website - Site Builder Report, and found myself in affiliate marketing!
2․ What were some major challenges for you, and how did you overcome them?
The biggest challenge for me was learning to be patient. Building a content website takes time.
It takes time to learn how to create compelling content. It takes time for Google and Youtube to start ranking your content. It takes time to build up a brand.
3․ What’s your method for gaining peoples’ trust?
Just be honest! The internet is full of BS, and so people have gotten really good at sniffing out BS.
If your “reviews” are fluffy and full of hyperbole, people are just going to assume that you’re selling them something. If your “reviews” are honest about shortcomings, people will be more likely to trust you.
And always be upfront about making money through affiliate links. I’ve noticed no dip-in conversions by being upfront about this.
4․ How do you identify your tone of voice for your target audience?
I take my cues from other review websites that I find inspiring. For example, The Wirecutter is a review website with clear, descriptive language and very little filler content.
5․ How do you choose the best USPs for the product? How do you present them?
I try to avoid product marketing sites. Instead, I go straight to the support docs and try to get a sense of what the product really can do— not just what the company says it can do.
In software, it’s not unusual for a company to say they support a feature, but in actuality, they’ve just done the bare minimum!
How? - Show, don’t tell!
Writing about software is not always ideal. It’s almost always better to do it visually.
That’s why my reviews are full of videos. A user can understand the USP much better when they see it in action.
6․ How often do you make updates on your website/landing page to keep your audience engaged?
I update all my reviews, comparisons, and roundups once a year. Website builders are evolving products, and I’ve found annual checkups to be a good way of staying up to date.
This is only one successful affiliate marketing example, but there are many. The takeaway for us today: nothing is impossible when effort and a good strategy are combined!