When it comes to blogging, the possibilities of earning revenue off your own blog are endless. There are dozens of affiliate programs to join. In most cases, you get a specialized link tracking link to put on your blog or a banner code to add a clickable image to your blog. If someone clicks on that link and buy’s that product/service you will get a commission off that sale. Each program will let you know what percentage you will make off each sale.
It’s free to join any affiliate program but always read the requirements/rules before applying. These will be posted on the affiliate’s information page. Sometimes company owners want your blog to meet certain requirements, plus they may ask you to mention the methods in which you will be promoting their product or service. This is to weed out potential spammers or people who may not represent their company in a positive way.
- Do create a private policy for your blog before you join any affiliate program, use this free generator to create one: https://www.freeprivacypolicy.com/
- An Earnings Disclaimer is extra protection that you will need for sure. Get a professional one from Attornist.
- WPOutcast recommends using this company for any type of disclaimer or privacy legal documents. (Example policy: Look at our disclaimer policy.) https://legalbench.com/
Once you get through the online paperwork and requirements, you are free to make unlimited money online. The amount that you will earn is based on the type of traffic you get, unique visitors, search engine ranking, the quality of the blog, and a few more things. Don’t worry, it’s not quite as scary as it sounds. Go ahead and sign up to the following top Affiliate programs that any WordPress blogger can promote on their own blog.
The Typical Money Method
Google AdSense is one option to use but it is recommended that you have more than three ways of earning revenue. For example, if you get banned by Google AdSense (which does happen) and they won’t reinstate your account, you have two other established method of revenue. From there, you can decide what new affiliate program to choose that will replace Google Adsense. Basically, don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
It’s recommended you actually use the product/service so you have more knowledge when promoting it. All products listed before I have used myself for years or at one point was a paying customer.
WordPress Web Hosting Affiliate Programs
This is the most lucrative affiliate programs to join simply because you can’t have a self-hosted WordPress blog without a web host and a domain. See if your web host has an affiliate program since it is a product you are already familiar with.
If you are in search of a Web Host, here are some options I recommend:
- HostGator – For higher commissions and access to coupons, visit cj.com and create a free account and then apply to join HostGators affiliate program. I’ve done this a long time ago and don’t trust HG’s affiliate program they have in their websites footer.
- Cloudways – WPOutcast’s current host. This is what I like besides the top-notch hosting I receive.. 10% Recurring Commission (How To Migrate To Cloudways)
- BlueHost – $65 per referral. That’s a nice earning if you get 1 referral a week for a long time.
- Theme Cloud – 50% commission and up to 430$ for every transaction made. Lucrative affiliate program to Join. (ThemeCloud Review)
Individual Product Promotion
Like I said, there are many ways to make money on your blog. If you don’t have a clue about the web hosting industry and prefer to find individual products you love to promote, the following companies have an endless database to choose from. Join these affiliate programs today and get started for free.
- ClickBank – This company’s products are digital and they are awesome. I have made good money promoting certain products before. Sign up for free today. I made my first commission on here to begin my love for making money. I even had a product on their but I took it down as I didn’t have money to invest in keeping it up-to-date. (My Review)
- ShareAsale – The majority of the products I have promoted over the years are from here. Direct deposit is the one payment option I love. Ton’s of products to promote. (My Review)
- Amazon – The affiliate program is in the footer. This company is perfect to use around the holidays. People love to shop online during the USA holidays so you can make a lot of money depending on how you reach your audience. My book is listed on there.
- CodeGrape – A growing marketplace selling all sorts of scripts and themes for WordPress. A decent affiliate program that you can recruit sub-affiliates to increase your commissions. You earn 30% which is great as products all sorts of prices.
WordPress Theme Affiliate Programs
Promoting WordPress themes is the second most popular to make money as everyone at some point in their blogging career will purchase a premium theme. Over the years, the following affiliate programs have constantly made me money. The following are well-established businesses and pay their affiliates on time.
- StudioPress Sites – Earn 35% commissions per sale and 5% commissions per sub-affiliates that make a sale. (My Review)
- MyThemeShop – An awesome affiliate program offering 70% commission plus 10% commission for sub-affiliates. Quality products they offer. (My Review)
- Elegant Themes – This is residual income for each referral who renews their membership each year. 50% commission makes this program a keeper for myself after several years. WPOutcast is using 2 of their Premium Plugins currently. (my review)
- CSSigniter – Depending on the referrals purchased, you could earn a yearly residual income per sale. You get 40% commission per paying client regardless, and I love certain times of the year. ($$$)
- Engine Themes – Beautiful app themes for WordPress. Affiliate program hands out 35% per sale with the ability to earn up to $175 per sale. Browse around and look at what they have to offer. Good money-maker.
- Tesla Themes – Top notch themes with excellent support. Affiliate program is a good one with residual income. (My Thoughts on Tesla)
Top Converting WordPress Plugins
There are thousands of plugins for WordPress blogs out there. There are even more not listed in the official plugin database as they are premium paid plugins. These are very popular and can give you a handsome income over time. Here are the few that I have made sales with and some are residual!
- OptinMonster – 20% per commission and depending on the plan, this is residual income.
- Beaver Builder – 20% per commission including annual renewals.
- Grammarly – A must have plugin for any blogger. This is a life saver for me and for everyone.
- Imagely – This company sells hosting, plugins and themes. Join the affiliate program to earn big commissions.
- Comet Cache – WPOutcast currently using paid version & it’s 50% per commission. This caching plugin is awesome, so I had to plug it. (My Review)
- Revive Social – WPOutcast is using 1 of these plugins. This is a 55% commission per sale if they renew every year. This is a must have plugin to revive old blog posts and pages to social media outlets without any extra work. (My Review)
- Short Pixel – Currently using this plugin. It’s a straight 50% commission per referral and we stand by this plugin 100%. (My Review)
Final Thoughts
This post is only a few of the affiliate programs you can join to start making money on your blog. I have listed the top places that I constantly get a commission several times a month without promoting any of them. My residual income is great from being online for so many years. My best advice for you is to join the companies listed in the “Individual Products” section. From there you can search and pick a product, one you have either used before or will purchase to get to know all about it before promoting it on your blog.
I invest money and purchase things before promoting them because if I find something negative about the product or a service provided, I will mention it. Giving readers the truth about certain products & services helps me promote the best products online. Being honest and straight forward allows myself to make more commissions. Takes years to build up trust with your audience you follows you on any blog you create online.
Making money from your blog can take time and hard work, but it’s important to stick with it. The day you delete your blog could have been the day you made your first big commission. It is recommended that you cloak the affiliate links which helps in tracking what is getting the most clicks.
If this blog post has helped you make at least $1 on your blog, please share this with your followers. Don’t forget to mention WPoutcast when you do!
informative and nicest article . I got some useful information here. thanks
Do you have any questions about anything I mentioned?
are these support 2 tier affiliate Program?
Most of them yes they do. Not all of them but that shouldn’t be a reason not to join one of them.
A very good article Derek! I’ve heard Cloudways affiliate program is also awesome, with which their affiliate’s can earn up to $4,140, Cloudways even give straight bonus of $25 when their referral first signup’s and becomes a paying customer, and on top of all, Cloudways also offer 10% recurring commission per year for each paying referred clients.
I love there web hosting. Been a client since Nov. 2015 and that’s the longest I ever been with 1 web host. I love to use different web hosts all the time. I have 2 other blogs hosted in 2 different web hosts right now. This the best affiliate programs out of the other 2 I have blogs on.
Great article on affiliate programs, there’s so many out there. Most companies do offer one. I personally have one for Lyft promo code, and Ubereats promo code. These are big companies that are well known so it works for our CouponCodesHero website. We’re always looking to join more affiliate programs so this article was very useful thanks and keep up the good work!