How to Use Social Media for Affiliate Marketing – Pro Tips

As a brand new affiliate marketer, you’re ready to take the world by storm.

You already have everything you need for success:

A niche, a website, membership in your chosen affiliate programs. 

Does this mean you’ve exhausted all the paths towards affiliate marketer success? 

No.

You see, your competitors are tough and relentless, and to beat them, you need to use all the tools you can lay hands on to propel you forward.

Here’s one of these (super effective) tools:

Social media.

That’s right!

Social media isn’t only a place where you can spy on your friends and waste your time watching useless videos.

It’s a powerful platform where you can market your affiliate band as well. 

And if you think figuring out how to do it is complex and time-consuming…

…don’t worry.

I’ve got your back.

In this detailed guide, I’ll show you exactly how to use social media for affiliate marketing. 

Ready?

Let’s get started.

This post is part of our free series on Affiliate Marketing! If you want to learn everything from A – Z in one place, then check out our course below! 

What Is Affiliate Marketing on Social Media? 

Maybe you’ve heard that your competitors are taking their affiliate marketing game to social media. 

This means you’ve got to do it too, right? 

Before you start, however, you need to keep in mind that affiliate marketing on social media isn’t like marketing your own brand on social. 

That’s because there are terms and conditions in every affiliate program you join.

Some of these rules will state that you can’t openly promote affiliate products or use ads on social. 

So, how do you do affiliate marketing on social media? 

Several ways.

Check out these four ideas: 

• You can post on social media to drive traffic to your blog.
• You can get sign-ups for your email list. 
• You can use social media to show Google you’re a site worth ranking (more on this later).
• You can build trust and show your audience you’re an expert in your industry. 

Here’s an example of a Facebook post doing two of the above: building trust with an audience and driving traffic to a blog post.  

Source: facebook.com 

I know, it doesn’t sound like a big deal. 

It won’t make you a million dollars overnight. 

But trust me, it’s a slow, sure way to success. 

Here’s why…

Why Social Media for Affiliate Marketing?

I know, I know.

You’re already super busy.

You’re in it over your head typing out blog posts as fast as you can, communicating with your email list, and signing up for dozens of affiliate programs. 

Starting a social media campaign just feels like too much work. 

I mean, there are a ton of platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. 

(Not to mention LinkedIn, the fastest-growing professional network on the planet.)

You’ll need to select several (or all!) social platforms, build your campaign, post regularly, reply to comments and messages, and a hundred more things.

Will it be hard work?

No doubt.

Will it be worth it?

You bet.

Here are two reasons why.

1. Half the World Is on Social

Ever met a person who doesn’t have at least one social media account?

I didn’t think so.

In today’s jazzy digital world, everyone’s grandparents are on social.

These mindblowing stats prove it: 

Source: smartinsights.com

Yup! 

Half the population of the globe is on social media.

That means if you’re looking for an audience to buy your affiliate products…

…you can definitely find a ton of the milling boredly on social platforms, waiting for you to sweep them off their feet. 

2. Being on Social Can Help You Rank Better on Google

Let me be clear about this at the outset.

Having a social media account isn’t a ranking factor.

No matter how many accounts you create, they won’t help you rank higher on the SERPs. 

At least, not directly.

They can help you rank higher indirectly, though. 

For instance, let’s say you write an epic blog post, then share it on social media.

It blows up, with tens of thousands of people liking, commenting, and sharing.

News of your creation spreads far and wide, reaching hundreds of thousands of people.

These people visit your blog post, boosting its traffic.

Of all these visitors, many love what you wrote and decide to link to it.

As a result, you get:

• Traffic
• Clicks on your blog post
• Backlinks

Now, these are ranking factors Google loves. 

Check out this quote by Matthew Woodworth:

Source: semrush.com 

Pro Tips: How to Use Social Media for Affiliate Marketing

Ok!

Now you’re ready to take affiliate marketing to the next level through social media. 

But how do you start?

Are there any tips that’ll lead you towards sure success? 

Well, yes and no. 

The truth is, your social media campaign will depend on your brand and your audience. 

The rules for success on social aren’t written in stone.

That said, here are six tips that apply to almost all social campaigns for affiliate marketers. 

1. Be Selective About Your Social Channel 

In a perfect world, you’d be rocking on ALL social channels. 

You’d be a Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest star.

Sadly, the world isn’t perfect.

This means you won’t have enough time to run effective campaigns on all social media platforms. 

Don’t worry, though.

You can pick one or two and still see blazing success. 

But which ones should you pick?

My answer: unfortunately, it depends.

I can’t tell you about any hard rules for which platforms are best for affiliate marketers.

However, if you know your audience, this one should be easier. 

For instance, if your audience is composed of entrepreneurs and professionals, I’d go with LinkedIn.

If you’re targetting millennials and millennial topics, your best bet would be Facebook. 

Going for the playful, fun Gen Z bunch?

I’d suggest Instagram.

Check out these stats to guide you as you choose your main platform:

Source: weforum.org

Of course, this shouldn’t be your only guide when it comes to which social media platform you select to focus on.

You’ll have to dig deeper into your specific audience’s habits to understand how to reach them. 

However, this simple guide shows you that not all social platforms are created equal, and choosing the right one is essential to your success.  

Note: If you have a larger budget and can afford to hire a social media manager, you can take things to the next level and dominate all the social platforms. (Because why not?) 

2. Don’t Disappoint Your Audience’s Expectations

Ever follow someone on social media just to find out they don’t live up to your expectations?

You expected great, unique, fun, intelligent content you could relate to.

Not the spam you keep seeing in your news feed.

If this has ever happened to you, I can already guess what you did next.

You clicked unfollow. 

Newsflash: your audience is the same.

Disappoint them once, and they’ll leave you forever.

Which means, you need to be careful about which products you promote. 

I don’t just mean you should only sign up for high-quality affiliate programs.

I mean you should know your audience, and only promote products or services they will care about. 

In the end, your success on social will depend on that. 

3. Knock Your Audience’s Socks Off with Magnetizing Content

Quick question.

Why do people sign up for social media? 

If you answered this…

Source: socialmediatoday.com

…you’re 100% correct.

People don’t jump on social platforms to buy stuff.

They do it to connect. 

Which means, if you bombard them with salesy messages and make them feel like you’re ramming them down a funnel…

…they’ll hate you.

What you should do instead: connect with your audience. 

The best way to do it is to craft creative, relatable, heartwarming content. 

Content that catches their attention and makes them feel it’s impossible to resist sharing.

Like this:

Source: devrix.com

Here are three tips to keep in mind when crafting your social media content:

• Use catchy images
• Use video (but keep it under three minutes)
• Choose topics your audience is interested in

4. Be the One Your Audience Looks Up To

Like I said earlier, being on social media won’t directly affect your Google rankings.

However, you can use it as an awesome, effective tool to indirectly affect your overall success. 

For instance, let’s say you build a Facebook page for dog owners. 

On your page, you give training tips, dog food advice, fun facts and stats, and other things you know your audience cares about. 

Now, let’s say your audience loves the stuff you share.

What do they do?

Follow you, of course. 

In time, they’ll see you as an influencer in your industry.

You’ll be the one they look up to when they need advice, tips, tricks, and techniques to improve their fur-parent lives.

If you have a blog?

They’ll follow it. 

They’ll buy with your affiliate links.

The rest, as they say, is history. 

To show you what works, here’s a Facebook post from successful affiliate marketer Dog Food Advisor.

Source: facebook.com

Notice how un-salesy this post is?

Their goal here isn’t to sell.

It’s to help their audience, building trust and authority in their niche in the process. 

5. Use Groups (But Wisely)

Know a super cool asset a ton of marketers skip over or ignore entirely?

Groups.

They’re popular especially on Facebook, and provide an easy way for people of the same interests to band together. 

Good news: finding great groups in your niche isn’t that complex.

All you have to do is jump on Facebook and type your niche in the search box.

For instance, let’s say your niche is dogs.

Type that in the search field at the top left corner of your browser, then click the Groups option. 

Source: facebook.com

When you do, you’ll see a ton of groups you can join.

Like these:

Source: facebook.com

Now, all you have to do next is join a couple of these groups. 

You’ll be asked to fill in a form with some of your information, and it may take some time before the admin approves you.

But when you get in, you’ll have access to thousands of dog lovers who can benefit from your tips and advice (plus affiliate products).

Remember, though, to use groups with caution.

Read the terms in each group before crafting posts. 

Most of the time, you won’t be allowed to advertise anything directly.

Don’t worry, though.

Aim on giving people in the group the best tips and advice you have.

Comment on their posts, answer their questions, and create some interesting posts of your own.

In time, they’ll notice you and follow you.

You’ll become a favorite of theirs.

They’ll follow your blog and buy through your affiliate links. 

Trust me, that’ll be a huge turning point for your affiliate brand. 

Social Media for Affiliate Marketing: Takeaways  

Notice that a ton of your competitors are using social media for their affiliate marketing campaigns?

You should do the same. 

However, it’s easier said than done.

You might find yourself lost and confused, with no idea which platform to pick, what kinds of posts to publish, and how to generate interest for your brand.

Don’t worry too much, though.

By reading this blog, you’ve already taken a huge step forward.

You know how to select your platform, what you should avoid doing on social if you don’t want your audience to hate you, and handy tips and tricks that’ll help you dominate on social platforms.

The next step?

Go try them out. 

You’ll be amazed to see what they’ll do for your affiliate marketing campaign. 

This post is part of our free series on Affiliate Marketing! If you want to learn everything from A – Z in one place, then check out our course below!