Credit Card Affiliate Programs

Affiliate Niche: After Bankruptcy Market

If you are an affiliate looking for a niche market, here’s an important piece of information to make note of:

In 2005 there were over 2 million personal bankruptcy filings in the United States.

Many of these individuals will be looking to rebuild their credit and financial future. This spells opportunity for you as an affiliate. You see, here are just a few products and services that an individual with past bankruptcy will need in order to rebuild their credit and financial future:

1) Credit repair

2) Loans

3) Credit cards

Let’s take a look at each one in more detail, and how you can help as an affiliate:

1) Credit repair

One of the first things someone with a discharged bankruptcy on their credit report will want to do is clean up their credit report and increase their credit score. The problem is that many people simply don’t know how.

As an affiliate, you can help by connecting them with various “credit repair” related resources. By the way, when referring to “credit repair” I mean the removal of any inaccurate or obsolete negative information from an individual’s credit report – not accurate, non-obsolete negative information.

So what type of credit repair resources can you refer them to? Credit repair books, services, and software programs are an example – but as an affiliate you only want to represent solid, reputable companies.

You don’t have to limit yourself to just one avenue when it comes to credit repair resources – for example, some of your visitors may want to take the “do it yourself” route and prefer a credit repair book. Others may want to do less work and opt for credit repair software. Finally, others may want to hire a
service to help them. Why not include affiliate links to all of these options?

If you can find services, with an affiliate program, that specialize in credit repair advice for those with a bankruptcy that’s even better. The same with books, for those visitors that want to take the “do it yourself” route to rebuild their credit. For example, my ebook “After Bankruptcy Credit Solutions” has such an affiliate program.

2) Loans

For a number of people, being able to qualify for a loan after bankruptcy is critical. Fortunately, there are a lot of lenders out there who work with individuals that have had a bankruptcy. Even better, many of these lenders have an affiliate program.

Here is a just a sample of the types loans that individuals with a past bankruptcy may be looking for: Personal loans, home loans, auto loans, refinancing, etc. When researching a lenders affiliate program, see what type of loans they offer.

Just like credit repair, when it comes to loans, you can offer visitors a number of options: Links (with your affiliate ID#) to lenders, books on how to qualify for loans, and membership sites that provide a listing of “bad credit” lenders. Again, as an affiliate you have a lot of choices.

3) Credit Cards

There are a number of credit card affiliate programs out there – and many of the credit card programs target people with bad credit.

Your affiliate website could list a number of credit card programs for people with a past bankruptcy. Best of all, secured credit cards (those that require the customer to open a special savings account that acts as collateral for the line of credit) tend to have a high approval rate – which is good news for your visitors that have a bankruptcy on their credit report.

You’ll notice that I have been talking about giving your visitors options when it comes to each item we’ve covered – credit cards are no different. In addition to links to credit card issuers (with your affiliate ID#), you can also include affiliate links to related books and membership sites. As
mentioned before, research company and offer carefully before joining their affiliate program.

Okay, we’ve looked at the various products and services you can offer your visitors as an affiliate, but aren’t there a already lot of websites out there marketing to individuals with “bad credit”. Yes there are, but a lot fewer that specialize in marketing to those with a past bankruptcy – which means less
competition for you as an affiliate.

In this article we looked at the growing “after bankruptcy” niche market. Hopefully it has given you some ideas that you, as an affiliate, can use to build a new income stream – while helping those with a past bankruptcy in the process.

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Copyright © 2006 Innovative Solutions Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.

DISCLAIMER:

This information is designed to provide only a general overview of the subject matter herein.

This information is provided with the understanding that neither the publisher nor author is engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional advice. If legal or other expert assistance is required, the services of a professional should be sought.

Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss or damages, including but not limited to special, consequential, incidental or other damages, caused by the information contained herein.

5 Ways to Promote Affiliate Programs

After having chosen several programs to join, you probably realize that customers won’t knock on your door – you have to come to them. By promoting your affiliate programs successfully, you build your own success!

So what should you do to promote your affiliate programs? Here are five methods which have succeeded for millions and can succeed for you, if you choose to follow the same steps as those millions before you!

#1 Create your own marketing affiliate program materials.

Many people use the marketing materials provided by the program they signed up for. Guess what? Thousands of people are using those same materials, those same ready-made websites and those same advertisements. People are easily bored and those ads get old really, really fast. Create something brand new and all your own!

* Create your own promotional website instead of using a stale, pre- packaged website. This is not very expensive and the returns can be huge!

* Create your own brochures and pamphlets. Whether using email or mailing materials to prospects in the old-fashioned way, be sure your material is fresh and new.

* Create compelling business cards. The business cards you hand out to contacts that you network with should also be fresh, new, and cause the person reading the card to feel compelled to contact you. A simple byline such as “Information on Becoming an Overnight Success” can be all it takes to make that person call you for more information.

* Write original articles and submit for publication to ezines for exposure of your fresh material.

#2 Generate Leads from an Opt-In Email List

Sure, you can buy names from email lists, but are those people even interested in the type of product you have to offer? Probably not! Create an opt-in mailing list by allowing prospects who come to your website to choose to receive a free newsletter. This gives you the opportunity to include information in the newsletter about your products. Why is this the best way?

* Allows contact with people who have at least some interest in the product you are promoting on your website

* Generates mailing list for future products you may promote

* Saves tons of money compared to buying mailing lists!

After all, think of all those flyers that come in the newspaper. What do you do with them? If you are like most people, you throw them away because they don’t pertain to you. If all the flyers in your newspaper were placed there because you, personally, had expressed interest in them, you probably would read them all! This is the difference between random mailing and mailing to prospects that share an interest in your product type!

#3 Network, Network, Network

Never miss an opportunity to network with others who may have an interest in your products, or even be interested in joining the affiliate program under you.

* Share your own success story with others you encounter. Many will be interested in joining you in your endeavor.

* Offer to mentor new prospects to ensure their success.

* Exchange business cards and make follow-up calls to encourage them to talk with you further about your programs.

#4 Use Blogs to Promote Your Programs.

In the past year, blogs have become extremely popular. You can use this forum to your advantage in promoting your affiliate marketing programs.

* Generate top-quality content to place on the blogs.

* Be sure that the blogs you choose are not over saturated by affiliate marketers already. Locate fresh blogs to use in your promotions.

* Content should compel the reader to action. Make them HAVE to check out your program.

#5 Use banner exchanges to your advantage.

Most marketers know that banner exchanges can help them promote their products, but there are a few tricks to success.

* Make sure your banner is placed on sites that will attract the same client base that will desire you product.

* Create attractive and compelling banner content. Plain-Jane banner ads won’t attract, those that send acompelling message to act will!

* Always look for new places for your banner to appear. Don’t become complacent because you have three or four sites showing your banner. There are new websites every single day!

These five tips will help you successfully promote your affiliate programs. There are many other ways to promote products, but these are proven to work for people who dedicate themselves to ensuring their programs get the necessary exposure to succeed.