Time and time again, I see affiliate marketing beginners making the same mistake over and over again. They are way too focused on selling the product, other than helping the potential customer.

Hold the phone! Help the potential customer? Not sell to the potential customer? What’s the point?

First off, when you go to a web page and it provide little to no content about what the potential customer is looking for, but just a link, they are going to trust the link very much. By providing quality content about the subject at hands, the potential customer will see you as someone who knows what they are talking about. I great example of this is to have your own blog, let’s say, about weight loss.

If you have your own blog about weight loss, where you blog about tips, nutrition, exercises,  and anything else about the subject, you’re going to look like an “expert”. By providing quality information, the potential customer will trust you much more, trusting your recommendations (the product).

Here is what I do…

I simply create a wordpress blog about the specific niche. I write posts about tips, techniques, uses of the product, an anything else that relates to the product and who would want/need the product.  Then, I recommend a product.

You can also provide content by writing honest reviews of the product and other competing products. DO NOT! and I repeat DO NOT create a review that talks about the product. Provide a real review, purchase the thing or depending on the product ask the owner for a review copy (many clickbank vendors do this). I’m quite tired of see these so called “reviews” that only talk about what the product is and does, not if it works or who it’s right for, etc.

I’ve noticed that having a legitimate blog and posting real facts and information really increases trust in your website and your links.

Now that you know you need to become an expert in your market, how the heck do you do that?

Well, it’s quite simple actually and I can some it up in one word. Research. One of the great things I enjoy most about affiliate marketing is that I am “forced” to research all sorts of things and increase my knowledge. I can’t tell you how much I’ve learned about all niches I’ve created blogs for. I find it quite fun learning new things.

The Internet is filled with everything you need. Heck, I’ve even gone to the library and read books about my niche to learn more about it. The information I learn, I document in blog posts.

A great way to research your specific market (those specific people who want to visit your site) is to visit forums and find out what people in the niche are asking and want to know. This is great material for blog posts, targeting specific customers, etc.

By becoming an expert in your market and posting about what you know, you will be much more trusted than some simple web page wih a little bit of information about the product and the link to it. Stop selling! That’s what the sales page is for. Provide quality and helpful information, then provide your affiliate link to the product.