Publishers who specialize in creating editorial content often miss out on valuable revenue opportunities, because they think the only way to make money is by operating a full online storefront. Nothing could be further from the truth! Affiliate marketing offers incredible flexibility to monetize a variety of reader touchpoints without sacrificing the integrity of your high-quality editorial content.
Over time, successful editorial publishers develop deep relationships with their readers. By sharing their thoughts and opinions, they come to be seen as a trusted authority in their subject matter. Research (and common sense) tells us that people are more likely to buy something when they get a recommendation from someone they trust.
Creating a curated shopping experience gives you the opportunity to endorse products you love and offer your readers an easy way to buy those products — without the hassle and expense of running an online store.
A curated storefront can integrate seamlessly with your current reader experience. It’s an affiliate marketing strategy that’s quickly gaining popularity, and we expect this trend will continue in the years to come.
Here’s how it works
Like many other affiliate marketing tactics, adding a curated storefront to your editorial content is easy — especially with the help of a powerful tool like Sovrn Commerce.
- As you create editorial content, you simply include links to any products you highlight in the article.
- Readers follow those links to your curated storefront, which provides an aggregated collection of products from third-party vendors in an easy-to-consume format.
- You can even offer several buying options for each product, giving readers an opportunity to discover new retailers.
- When the reader makes a purchase, you earn a commission from the retailer.
Creating a curated shopping experience allows you to maintain a clear distinction between your editorial content and buying opportunities. Readers who simply want information can consume your content without the intrusion of a sales pitch, while those who want to make a purchase have an easy way to find the products they want.
See this strategy in action
The publishers of Dwell magazine are a great example of this affiliate marketing tactic. While their editorial content features ideas, inspiration, and advice for home design enthusiasts, they also give readers an opportunity to buy products that align with that design-focused content.
This curated shopping experience, billed as “Smart Shopping for the Design Obsessed,” is a natural extension of dwell’s editorial content — and a smart way to elevate the reader experience. It allows dwell to create a revenue-generating destination without selling any products directly, while enhancing reader loyalty and establishing them as a trusted shopping destination.
Every touchpoint is an opportunity
As you may have noticed in the image above, Dwell magazine also offers their readers a shopping-specific newsletter. This gives them another opportunity to deliver monetized content to their readers — this time, directly in their inboxes.
While it might seem old-school, every publisher should maintain an email list for this exact reason. Publishers of editorial content tend to cultivate a highly engaged audience who trust their judgement. Why not create an additional touchpoint with that audience and give them an easy way to buy the products they want?
You don’t need millions of subscribers to make a newsletter with affiliate links worthwhile. If you implement your affiliate marketing strategy from the start, you’ll see your earnings grow along with your subscriber base.
Ready to start earning with affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing is an incredibly flexible way for publishers to monetize every reader touchpoint. It’s an easy concept to understand but getting started can be daunting. And even if you’ve got an affiliate marketing strategy in place, there may be new ideas to explore and new opportunities to enhance your earnings.
In this blog series, we’re digging into a variety of ways you can turn your high-quality content into continuous revenue with affiliate marketing. These include:
- Creating commerce-driven content
- Sharing affiliate links through social media
- Monetizing search traffic
Get even more tips and in-depth information on affiliate marketing strategy with our Sovrn Guide to Affiliate Marketing. You can also visit our website to learn more about Sovrn Commerce, the fastest and easiest way to start earning through affiliate marketing.
