Promoting Hostgator India is a great opportunity to earn a sizable income on the side. Their affiliate program is one of the best in the business for any Indian based web host. Over the years, I’ve built up a successful affiliate program on my site WP-Tweaks.com by presenting various Hostgator coupon code offers to my visitors, and I can show you how to do the same. Here are some tips to increase your affiliate sales, and skyrocket your income!
1. Actually Giving an Opinion
All too often, I see generic “side by side” comparisons. Maybe some tabulated data with dry numbers. But none of this is emotionally appealing to a customer. Often, customers need to be told what to do. And they’re on your website to receive an opinion, not dry facts. Customers need to be swayed and to be persuaded. You do that by having a forceful opinion.
For this, you need to create titles that draw users in. For example, you do NOT want a title like “XYZ vs ABC, Which is Better?” Instead, you need a title like “ABC Blows XYZ out of the Water. Here’s Why”. Do you see the difference? In the first example, you’re not connecting with the user in any way. The second title reels them in and makes them want to read more.
So first rule – have an opinion, and don’t be afraid to show it. People like that.
2. Know your Product’s USP – Example: Hostgator India
This ties in to point 1. In order to have an opinion, you need to really know your product’s Unique Selling Point – or USP. Specifically, you need to know the feature that sets them apart and matters to customers. For example, there’s no point touting the e-mail features if your customers aren’t interested in e-mail. On my website WP-Tweaks.com, I present a Hostgator India review that draws upon Hostgator’s main selling point – its infrastructure. I highlight how they have better infrastructure support, and why that’s critical in a country like India.
Note the construction of the title: “Hostgator India Review: No Other Option in India” – how it presents a definitive opinion and immediately conveys why I think it’s a better option compared to the alternatives. All of this makes for compelling copy.
If you yourself are persuaded, then your reader is persuaded as well.
3. Have Solid Calls-to-Action
It’s amazing to see how many websites that promote products don’t have a single, unmistakable Call to Action (CTA) where they tell their users what to do. There are many statistics that show the power of CTA buttons and placements. This is an area that’s ripe with opportunities for exploration to see what works in your industry, because you don’t need to worry about making changes that impact your Google search click-through-rates. The user is already on your website, and you just need to make changes and experiment.
Here’s an example of a CTA on my website WP-Tweaks.com for a popular Hostgator coupon code:
For example, you might try the following:
- Changing the color of the text
- Changing the CTA style from a flat text to a button
- Experimenting with whitespace around the button
- Adding supplementary information close to the CTA
- Adjusting the position below or higher up in the review
This is an area where it’s hard to give general advice for your specific industry. You know your customers best, so never stop experimenting!
4. Use Hotjar (Free or Paid)
If there is one tool that has proved to be the most useful for me in increasing my affiliate sales, it’s Hotjar. This is a tool that allows you to literally see what your visitors are doing on your website. Where their mouse moves, what buttons they click, and how much they scroll. It’s helped me identify areas of my website that were misleading, causing false clicks, and so much more.
Here’s a screenshot:
Hotjar takes the form of a little JavaScript snippet, and you can generate videos of your visitors’ activity. The free version allows for 100 recordings that I found to be more than sufficient, especially if you selectively load the code on certain pages using something like the Google Tag Manager. If you really like the tool, you can upgrade to the paid version for more features.
5. Pitch for Backlinks from Trusted Brands
If SEO was easy, everyone would be doing it. Sometimes, it takes months or even years of negotiation with a brand to get them to place a valuable backlink of yours on their site. But the end result is worth it. You get a massive boost in traffic that’s not easy to replicate, and is the envy of your competitors. Good things take time, and if you manage to score a solid backlink with the most trusted brand in your business, then that is an asset that can’t be easily overcome.
Over time as your affiliate site grows, you’ll find more and more opportunities to get high-quality backlinks. When this happens, you need to put in the time to make it a reality. It can be a long, and tedious process with a lot of false starts, but you’ll eventually break through!
6. Track Conversions in Google Analytics
Using Google Analytics, you can set up “events” that can point to link clicks, and track them every day. I do this for my conversions on WP-Tweaks.com to check which Hostgator coupon code is popular. I then prioritize those coupons by placing them in more visible locations to maximize my results. For example, here’s a screenshot from my Google Analytics dashboard showing the number of affiliate clicks I’ve received in the past one week:
Using Analytics tracking, you can see which anchor texts are generating the maximum number of sales. There’s no limit to how much time you can spend optimizing this. I’ve been doing this for years and I’m not even close to being done!
Bottom Line
If you have a good industry like web hosting, and you have a good understanding of the brands’ USPs like those of Hostgator, you can generate amazing results and create a solid revenue stream that will stand you in good stead during times of crisis. Particularly in today’s world where so many people work from home, a good website on which you can rely for affiliate sales is a valuable asset. I hope you find these tips useful, and wish you luck on your affiliate journey!
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