![How To Find Affiliate Offers To Promote And Ethically Monetize Your Content [LNIM204]](https://www.latenightim.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Depositphotos_336723934_xl-2015-1080x675.jpg)
Frustrated by the Amazon Associates commission cuts and wondering where else to find affiliate offers worth promoting? Mark breaks down exactly how to find affiliate programs, evaluate whether they are a good fit for your audience, and monetize your content without selling your soul in the process.
What You'll Learn in This Episode
- How to brainstorm affiliate products that genuinely help your audience
- The major affiliate networks where you can find offers to promote
- How to find direct affiliate programs by contacting companies directly
- Where to discover affiliate program directories and what to look for
- How to study successful affiliate sites to reverse-engineer their monetization strategies
- Why ethical affiliate marketing starts with trust and teaching
Episode Summary
No matter what kind of online presence you have, affiliate marketing is something you can do. At its core, it boils down to recommending products to people who know, like, and trust you. Mark emphasizes that trust is the most important piece of this equation. The best affiliate marketers never abuse the trust their audience gives them. They recommend products that genuinely help people and make lives better. They provide value by introducing the best solutions to real problems.
So how do you actually find affiliate offers to promote? Mark lays out a practical, step-by-step approach.
Start by brainstorming the kinds of things your audience could benefit from. Think about the problems they face, the questions they ask, and the tools or products that would make their lives easier. This audience-first approach ensures you are recommending things people actually need rather than chasing the highest commission rates.
Next, join affiliate networks. These are platforms that connect publishers like you with companies that want affiliates to promote their products. Major networks include ShareASale, CJ Affiliate, ClickBank, and Pepperjam. Each network hosts thousands of affiliate programs across every niche imaginable. Signing up is free and gives you access to a massive catalog of products and services to promote.
You should also contact companies directly. If you use and love a product, go to their website and look for an affiliate or partner program page. Many companies, including major brands like Williams-Sonoma, run their own affiliate programs. Sometimes the best commissions come from going direct rather than through a network.
Another approach is to check affiliate program directories. These sites aggregate affiliate programs and make them searchable by category. While some directories come and go, they can be useful for discovering programs you would not have found otherwise.
Mark also recommends studying well-known affiliate websites in your niche. Sites like Wirecutter, Tom's Hardware, and recommendation sites like RetailMeNot demonstrate how successful affiliate content works. Look at what products they promote, how they structure their reviews, and what makes their recommendations trustworthy. The affiliate marketing subreddit is another good place to learn from other affiliates.
The most important thing Mark wants you to understand is that affiliate marketing is fundamentally about teaching. Think about what people would ask for help with and what you can teach them to do. The product you promote should be the natural answer to the problem you are helping them solve.
Having a strategy for growing your affiliate business is fine, but do not think about it solely in terms of how you can make money. Lead with the goal of helping people by steering them to the very best products in your niche that will save them time, pain, or money. When you genuinely serve your audience, the commissions follow.
Key Takeaways
- Trust is the foundation of affiliate marketing. Never recommend something you would not use yourself
- Start by brainstorming what your audience actually needs, not what pays the highest commission
- Join multiple affiliate networks like ShareASale, CJ Affiliate, and ClickBank to access thousands of programs
- Contact companies directly for affiliate programs, especially brands you already use and love
- Study successful affiliate sites like Wirecutter to understand what makes affiliate content trustworthy
- Think of affiliate marketing as teaching. The product is the answer to the problem you help your audience solve
What's Changed Since This Episode
Mark recorded this episode in May 2020, and the affiliate marketing landscape has grown substantially since then. The global affiliate marketing industry was valued at $18.5 billion in 2024, with US brands projected to spend $13.2 billion on affiliate marketing in 2026. The average return is $15 for every $1 spent, making it one of the most cost-effective marketing channels available.
The major affiliate networks Mark discussed are still going strong. CJ Affiliate (formerly Commission Junction) remains one of the largest networks. ShareASale was acquired by Awin and continues to operate. ClickBank still specializes in digital products. Kajabi, which Mark also mentioned, has grown significantly and now offers a robust affiliate program for course creators.
Amazon Associates, which prompted this episode due to commission cuts in 2020, has maintained those lower rates. Commission rates for most product categories remain between 1-4%. This has made diversifying beyond Amazon even more important, exactly as Mark recommended.
One significant new development is the rise of SaaS affiliate programs, which often pay recurring commissions of 20-40% for every month the customer stays subscribed. Digital courses and software products consistently pay the highest commissions in affiliate marketing, often ranging from 30-75%.
Some resources mentioned in the original episode are no longer available. Affiliatesdirectory.com and affilitest.com (which redirected to CJ Affiliate) are no longer active. For finding affiliate programs in 2026, searching “[product name] affiliate program” directly in Google is often the most effective approach.
Resources Mentioned
- ShareASale — major affiliate network
- CJ Affiliate — large affiliate network (formerly Commission Junction)
- ClickBank — affiliate network focused on digital products
- Kajabi — course platform with affiliate program
- Williams-Sonoma — example of brands with direct affiliate programs
- RetailMeNot — example of a coupon and deal recommendation site
- Wirecutter — example of high-quality affiliate content
- Tom's Hardware — example of niche affiliate reviews
- r/AffiliateMarketing on Reddit
- Philip Taylor (PT Money) on LinkedIn
- LNIM Podcast
Related Episodes
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