Everything You Should Know About Affiliate Marketing in Nigeria
Affiliate marketing is hardly new, but the internet has given it a fresh twist. In addition, the success of indigenous affiliate marketing programs like Expertnaire has created a buzz around that term. This blog post explores everything you need to know about affiliate marketing in Nigeria.
What Is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a form of advertising. Of course, all advertising aims to create awareness or make sales. In the case of affiliate marketing, other people (affiliates) help promote or advertise goods or services they didn’t create. And the owner of the goods or services pays these affiliates a commission for every sale.
Usually, this commission is a percentage of the cost. For example, affiliates may agree to pocket within 10-50% of the sale amount. Digital products that don’t cost anything to reproduce, such as online courses and ebooks, often attract a higher commission than physical, tangible products. Also, expensive products like cars and real estate often have lower margins.
Going by this definition, affiliate marketing is referral marketing. You refer others to use a product or service and get paid for generating more sales. So, anyone who earns a commission for promoting a product they don’t own is an affiliate marketer. Also, companies that sell services or products they don’t own for a commission utilize this affiliate marketing model.
Therefore, companies like Uber, Booking.com, and AirBnB use this affiliate marketing model. For example, despite not owning the vehicles, Uber sells transportation services for a commission. Similarly, Booking.com and AirBnB sell lodging despite not owning hotels or properties.
So it’s likely you have done a bit of affiliate marketing without realizing it and without being paid. Like when you recommended a book, song, or movie to a friend. Of course, not all affiliate marketing attempts result in a payment. But with the help of the internet, you can register as an affiliate in programs that are open to the public and earn from making referrals.
Let’s now talk about what affiliate marketing is not.
What Affiliate Marketing Is Not
It’s not a business. Yes, affiliate marketing is not a business. Instead, it’s a model of business. A proper business revolves around a product or service that solves a need. Unfortunately, many people have inadvertently created Ponzi schemes by starting referral platforms that don’t offer a product or service.
It’s not a get-rich-quick scheme. True, many people have made it big on affiliate marketing platforms. But that didn’t happen overnight. So, affiliate marketing is unlikely to make you rich by next week or next month. Sadly, many marketers still promote this business model as a get-rich-quick scheme.
While you may promote other people’s products full-time as an affiliate marketer, another common approach is to treat this business model as a source of passive income. The latter approach will reduce your need to “make it” overnight.
Popular Affiliate Marketing Programs in Nigeria
Many Nigerian businesses with affiliate programs don’t open them to the public. But this will likely change with time. Also, you can always contact brands that interest you with an offer to help them make more sales via referral.
Nigerian businesses that use this model often refer to themselves as “marketplaces.” Like a literal marketplace, these platforms host vendors, affiliates, and customers. These marketplaces include:
- Expertnaire,
- Stakecut,
- Learnoflix, and
- Digistem
Expertnaire is arguably the most popular of these platforms, but it requires a sign-in fee for vendors and affiliates. In addition, Expertnaire only allows digital products like ebooks and courses. In contrast, Stakecut is free, and vendors sell physical and digital products there. Stakecut is relatively new, so they may later place a sign-up fee.
Other Nigerian brands like Jumia and Bet9ja may have their own affiliate programs. You can always confirm by looking at their websites.
The Benefits of Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing has these unique benefits:
Passive income: The business model allows you to earn passive income. You only need your affiliate links and promotional content (text, videos, or images). Then, you can advertise the product to earn sales commissions without involvement in the sales process.
Low startup costs: The major allure of this business model is its minimal upfront investment. Like Uber or Booking.com, you don’t need to own the product or service you sell. This benefit eliminates the need for inventory or production costs.
Flexibility and convenience: Affiliate marketing offers flexible working hours and locations. You can work from anywhere at any time. You only need an internet-enabled phone or PC.
Wide range of products and niches: This business model works for just about any product or service. So you can choose products that are easy to promote, according to your interests or expertise.
No customer support or product fulfilment: Affiliate marketers don’t bother with customer support, product fulfilment, or post-sales services. These are the responsibilities of the businesses’ vendors or merchants.
Scalability and growth potential: Some affiliate marketers make it big despite starting small. By improving your marketing skills and reach, your income follows suit.
The Disadvantages of Affiliate Marketing
Like everything else, affiliate marketing has some disadvantages. They include:
Unpredictable income: Your earnings depend on the number of sales you make. So, it will take some time to build a steady income stream.
Reliance on affiliate programs: Affiliate marketers are at the mercy of affiliate programs. Hence, you can lose your livelihood If a program discontinues or changes its terms. But you can minimize this risk by only joining reputable and reliable affiliate programs.
Limited control over products or services: As an affiliate, you don’t control the products or services you promote. So, you cannot improve the product quality or control the pricing, even if these changes benefit the business. Consequently, your reputation may be affected negatively if you promote dubious or substandard products.
Increased competition: Likely, many affiliates are promoting the same products or targeting the same audience as you. So, standing out can be challenging but necessary.
Commission structures and payment delays: Some programs offer low commission rates. Also, some platforms only pay weekly and may have a minimum payout threshold. So it’s possible not to have access to your money if it isn’t payday or if your balance is below the minimum withdrawal threshold.
Reliance on affiliate tracking and reporting: Sometimes, technical or tracking errors may result in a loss of sales or commission for sales that used your link. However, it may be possible to resolve this dispute with a reputable platform.
What Is the Best Affiliate Marketing Program in Nigeria?
What is the best affiliate program in Nigeria? The answer will depend on what you want. But it’s helpful to consider these factors when choosing a program or platform:
- The product’s relevance to your audience
- Commission structure
- The product quality
- Availability of resources and support for members
- Payment terms and schedule
- The program’s reputation and stability
What Are Some Helpful Affiliate Marketing Practices?
Are you yet to join an affiliate program? These are some practices for helping your audience and making sales:
Build a niche website or blog: A niche-specific blog or website demonstrates your expertise in the field. Also, sharing valuable content on your website will attract organic traffic and increase sales.
Content marketing: Develop a content marketing strategy. Create high-quality content that engages and educates your audience.
Social media marketing: Utilize social media platforms to build an audience and promote your affiliate products.
Email marketing: Other marketing platforms are borrowed except for email marketing. Also, emails are free from the influence of social media censorship or algorithms. So, it’s critical to build your email list if you are not just a hobbyist marketer.
Influencer marketing: Partnering with influencers and peers in your niche can help your promotions. But ensure to only work with the people and brands that you trust.
Paid advertising: Facebook Ads can be particularly effective for reaching a wider audience.
Focus on building relationships and trust: Only provide honest recommendations and disclose your affiliation with partner brands. You should genuinely care about helping your audience make informed decisions.
Unfortunately, a lot of unethical practices persist in the affiliate marketing space. Still, if you care about your reputation and want to be in business for long, you should avoid these unethical practices:
- Misleading or deceptive promotions
- Using fake reviews or testimonials
- Spamming others on social media
- Hiding your affiliation
- Promoting low-quality or scam products
Conclusion
Affiliate marketing programs have raised a lot of budding Nigerian marketers. They are helpful platforms for earning passively. But most importantly, they teach digital skills that are forever yours.
Check out my article on 20 affiliate marketing mistakes to avoid in 2023.
