“can a teenager do affiliate marketing?” And how to start affiliate marketing as a teen? is a question that many people under 18 years old often ask. Well, I got you covered.
Affiliate marketing is one of the best and most popular earning platforms in today’s Internet world.
Even people with no technical skills can start their own affiliate business and earn a decent income online.
You don’t need to have a college degree or qualification to start this business model, you can watch a few YouTube videos or invest in a course to gather some proper knowledge about it and start your journey there.
On a more serious note.
“Affiliate marketing can be done at any age, whether young or adult. It’s all about you having a little bit of knowledge and experience about your chosen topic or niche, and how to deal with problems in marketing”.
I know teenagers who have started their own affiliate marketing businesses and have achieved significant success.
However, the only thing to keep in mind is that if you’re under 18, there may be some affiliate programs or networks that might not allow you to promote their product.
They may require you to be 18 years old or above before you can sign up and promote their product or service.
But guess what? There are millions of affiliate programs out there online.
Some may not require that from you, find those and sign up for them.
And simply start to promote their product and start making commissions for yourself.
- Recommended Reading: 12 Best Affiliate Programs For Teenagers
Table of Contents
Can A Teenager Make Money Online Through Affiliate Marketing?
To put it simply – yes, you can do affiliate marketing as a teenager, or if you’re under 18 years old. Making money online with affiliate marketing is not for adults only. There are a lot of teenagers who are making a decent income online using affiliate marketing.
However, the only thing that matters here is to know about the product you’re an affiliate for and how to promote it the right and to the right audience.
Apart from that, there is nothing that can stop you as a teenager from making money with affiliate marketing unless something different.
What Skills Should I Have Before Starting Affiliate Marketing As A Teenager?
You don’t need to have any specific skillset or qualification to become an affiliate marketer as a teenager.
However, to become a successful affiliate marketer as a teenager, there are certain skills you need to learn, master, or develop such as:
- Learning how to choose the right affiliate product or program
- Email marketing
- Building a product sale page
- Driving traffic or visitors to a product sale page
- Converting a visitor into a potential customer
- Creativity
Each of these steps is very crucial for your success.
You can learn some of these skills on YouTube for free or find a forum related to your niche and learn from some of the top leaders in your industry.
But if you want my advice, it will be better if you find a good trusted mentor or more importantly if you can invest in a quality training course.
So you can learn it step-by-step and effectively and also have an assistant when you face any roadblocks or challenges.
Now, let’s look at how you can start and make money with affiliate marketing. But before that let’s first look at…
What Is Affiliate Marketing For Teenagers And How Does It Work?
Upon running a few research here is a great definition I found online on Affiliate Marketing:
Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing in which a business rewards one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought by the affiliate’s own marketing efforts.
The industry has four core players;
- the merchant (also known as ‘advertiser’ ‘product creator’ ‘retailer’ or ‘brand’)
- the network (that contains offers for the affiliate to choose from and also takes care of the payments)
- the publisher (also known as ‘the affiliate’)
- the customer ( the buyer). Source
My definition:
Affiliate marketing, in a nutshell, is a process whereby you earn a commission for promoting or marketing a product created by an individual or a company.
You sign up for a product you believe in or have used before.
You’ll then be given a unique link. This link is what you’ll use to promote the company’s product
Now, you have to place or promote that link either on your blog, YouTube channel, or social media.
And if your visitors or audience click on that link and purchase the product.
You’ll get paid a percentage of the sale of the product which is termed a commission.
For example, if you promote a product that costs $100, suppose that product offers a 20% commission rate.
And if someone purchases the product through your affiliate link you’ll then get $20 on that product.
- Recommended Reading: Best Affiliate Programs For Teenagers
Pros And Cons Of Affiliate Marketing For Teenagers
Affiliate marketing can be a lucrative way for teenagers to earn extra income weekly.
However, just like any type of business out there, affiliate marketing has its pros and cons.
Below I share with you some “advantages and disadvantages of affiliate marketing for teenagers”:
Pros Of Affiliate For Teens
- Little Or No Investment: You don’t need money to get started with affiliate marketing as a teenager. If you have a computer and internet access, you’re off to go.
- No Age Barrier In Affiliate Marketing: Affiliate marketing is a field where anybody can participate and find success regardless of age. Unlike some professions or industries that may have age-related limitations.
- Passive Income Potential: With affiliate marketing, once you’ve built an audience and have properly set up your marketing tools, you can potentially earn money even when you’re not actively working or while you’re on vacation.
- Skills Development: Affiliate marketing provides opportunities for teenagers to learn and develop valuable skills such as digital marketing, content creation, data analysis, etc. These skills can be used for future career paths.
Cons Of Affiliate Marketing For Teens
- Time, Hard Work, And Consistency Require For Success: Affiliate marketing has the potential to generate good income. However, it’s not easy to make money from it – it requires dedicated time and hard work to be successful. Establishing an audience, promoting products, and creating content can be time-consuming and stressful.
- Possibility of Earning Money Is Not Guarantee: Making money off affiliate marketing can be unpredictable, especially if you’re just starting up. As a teenager, you may face tons of challenges to earn your first commission.
- Competitive Industry: Affiliate marketing is one of the popular industries in the make-money-online space, which means there’s high competition. As a teenager when entering this field, you need to have proper knowledge about your niche and develop effective marketing strategies to succeed.
OVERVIEW!
As a teenager, you must approach affiliate marketing with realistic expectations and understand that success in this field may take a good amount of time, effort, and perseverance.
Finding and learning from experienced affiliates who are already successful with what you’re doing.
Joining communities of like-minded people can be beneficial for developing your skills.
- P.S. I wrote another article where I go more into the advantages and disadvantages of affiliate marketing, check it up!
How To Make Money With Affiliate Marketing As A Teenager
There are many ways to make money online, but affiliate marketing is one of the best and most lucrative ways there is.
You don’t need to go through the headache of creating your own product to make money with affiliate marketing.
You can find other people’s products and just sign up and start promoting them as your own and earn as much as you want.
Here Are The Steps To Become An Affiliate Marketer As A Teenager:
- Step 1: Choose A Niche
- Step 2: Analyze The Competition Of Your Niche
- Step 3: Pick An Affiliate Products
- Step 4: Check The Demand Of Your Product
- Step 5: Pick A Promotion Method
- Step 6: Create Content People Need
- Step 7: Build An Email List
Step 1: Choose A Niche
Everything starts by picking a niche. A niche is simply a topic you’re interested in, passionate about, or want to learn about.
Choosing a niche is one of the most important aspects of your affiliate marketing journey. The niche you pick will determine your success.
Now, once you’ve decided on your niche.
Take time and find the pain points in that niche: These are common problems or needs you’re going to provide a solution to.
By the way…
What are some of the best niches out there in affiliate marketing?
- Health & Fitness – In life, people are always going to have problems with their health. And these people are constantly looking for a solution or product to improve or cure their illnesses.
- Wealth – Day in, and day out, people are constantly looking for ways to increase their finances or grow their businesses. The majority of them are looking for programs and mentors that can literally help them in those areas.
- Relationship – People are constantly having challenges in their relationships either in a marriage or at a workplace or in their family. And they are looking for ways to improve or solve the damages made in those relationships.
Now, if you have knowledge or know of any product that you think can help better the lives of people in these areas.
You can build a very profitable money-making business around one of these niches simply by providing a solution to people’s needs or connecting people to a product.
Step 2: Analyze The Competition Of Your Niche
As you’ve decided on your niche idea, don’t stop there. Take time to research the competition level.
Find out whether or not there’s high competition in your chosen niche or not.
How do I go about that? Great question!
Well, there are several ways to go about that. One of the best ways is to use keyword research tools like Ubersuggest.
In the Ubersuggest search bar, type in your niche name. Suppose you’re in the Health & Fitness niche.
You can type “Health and Fitness” into the Ubersuggest search bar.
And it will show you how competitive that niche is.
Step 3: Pick An Affiliate Products
Congratulations on deciding on your niche. The next thing you need to do now is to sign up with affiliate products you have used before or believe in and that have been proven to work.
That YOU think can help solve the problem or pain, or meet the need in that particular niche or marketplace.
The product can either be physical or digital, it all depends on your niche.
Where to find the best affiliate products? There are many online platforms from which you can find affiliate products. ClickBank is considered to be one of the best platforms among those.
Another best platform is ShareAsale.
With these two platforms, you just need to sign up and then search for products related to your niche…
And start promoting it on your blog, YouTube channel, or any social media networks out there.
By the way, if you want my #1 recommended program… Check out my Resource Page. This program offers a high ticket product, meaning no more small commission.
The program has a team that does all the selling for you. Also, it offers one-on-one coaches who work directly with you to make sure you succeed.
Step 4: Check The Demand Of Your Product
You must check the demand for your product before you start pushing it to your audience.
Doing this will help you know whether or not your ideal customers are interested in the product and whether they will be willing to buy it or not.
Having this knowledge at hand, you will feel more confident marketing the product.
Step 5: Pick A Promotion Method
There are two most popular methods that top affiliate marketers use to promote their offer.
Start A Blog
In my opinion, blogging is by far one of the best ways to promote affiliate offers. The reason is that you can easily place your affiliate link in your post without any restrictions.
Unlike other platforms out there.
To start a blog all you need is your domain name and a hosting account.
- P.S. I have another post where I share with you how to start a successful blog step-by-step… You can check it out here.
As your blog is ready, you can start adding helpful, relevant, and high-quality blog posts on your site daily or weekly.
Write a review about the product you’re an affiliate for. In your review don’t talk only about the good side of the product, talk also about the bad side as well.
When you approach your product review that way, people feel the honesty in your review knowing that you’re not just trying to convince them to buy the product.
But rather you’re just trying to help them. Due to that some of them will just feel like buying the product because of your honesty.
IMPORTANT: Don’t forget to add your affiliate link to the product in your review post.
Another thing. Don’t send people to a direct affiliate link.
Build your email list from that post. Create a capture form and embed it in your post and on your site sidebar.
Create a lead magnet (free training course, eBook, etc) and give it away for free so visitors can give you their email addresses without any hesitation.
Do this in all your other posts, even in your YouTube video.
And when you have a good number of subscribers on your list.
You can market different products to them.
- P.S. I have another post where I share with you how to generate leads for affiliate marketing. Check it out here.
Create A YouTube Channel
YouTube is also another thing altogether. Apart from blogging, if you’re not on YouTube, guess what? You’re far behind.
After reading this post, go create your YouTube channel today.
In your YouTube channel start creating educational, engaging, helpful videos and upload them on your channel.
Be consistent in your posting. YouTube likes creators who post consistently.
At the end of each of your videos, ask people to like and subscribe to your channel.
And as time goes by, people will start subscribing to your channel.
How do you make money with affiliate marketing on YouTube? You can create a product review or tutorial video about your affiliate product and then place the link in the description box below the video.
Step 6: Create Content People Need
It’s often said content is KING and that’s true. Online content is indeed king. If you want to make money from your affiliate business.
You need to create content that other people are searching for on the internet.
Why?
Everyday, tens and thousands of people are typing phrases, terms, and questions into Google or YouTube and are looking for blog posts or videos for answers or solutions to their problems.
If you’re able to create content that answers those questions you can get in front of those people.
And you’ll start getting views and clicks to your affiliate link which might eventually result in sales over time.
How do I know what phrases or questions people are typing into search engines?
This is simple – first, you start off by doing keyword research.
There are tons of tools out there that will give you how often people are typing a certain term into search engines.
You can start with free keyword research tools like:
- Ubersuggest
- Keywords Everywhere
If you want to upgrade and get more accurate search data of what people are searching for and what type of content to write to get in front of them.
You can use advanced tools like:
- SEMrush
- LongTail PRO
Step 7: Build An Email List
I’ve already talked a little bit about email marketing in this article but I would love to lay more emphasis on it.
If you truly want to make money from affiliate marketing then GET SERIOUS about building your email list.
Because the money you want to make it’s on the list you built.
Why?
Online 97% of people (customers) buy based on trust – most people who see your offer for the first time are not going to buy it right away until you’ve built TRUST with them.
And the best place for you to build that Know, Like, and Trust factor with them is when they’re on your email list.
That said…
Building an email list is one of the most important assets in your business because it gives you the advantage of doing future remarketing with the same person over and over again.
If you’re sending people directly your affiliate link.
Guess what?
You’re leaving You out Of the EQUATION.
To say that in a better way – you’re leaving huge money on the table.
OVERVIEW
Affiliate marketing is a legitimate online business that can make you rich when done right.
It’s one of the most effective ways of making money online even as an absolute teenager.
You don’t need a huge investment, previous experience, or expertise to start this journey.
All you need is a laptop and an internet connection and you’re off to go.
- PS: I have another post where I go into more detail on how to actually start and make money off affiliate marketing the right way. Check it out!
How To Succeed In Affiliate Marketing As A Teenager
So, you’ve started your affiliate marketing business but you’re not seeing any success with it. I perfectly understand how you feel because I’ve been there before.
In this section, I’m going to share with you some of the things that most successful affiliate marketers are doing to succeed in this industry.
Below are what you need to do if you want to succeed in this space:
1. Do Research And Come Up With Unique Thought
Affiliate marketing is a very saturated and competitive topic. If you’re doing the same thing that everyone is doing. You’re going to find it very difficult to stand out.
However, the only way to stand out among the crowd is to come out with your own unique thoughts.
An idea that nobody is yet talking about.
How do I do that?
First of all, do your research. Observe what other successful affiliates in your space are doing.
And then come out with your own idea.
By the way, coming out with your own idea or strategy will be much easier if you already have good knowledge about affiliate marketing.
2. Invest In Good Quality Training
When I first started my affiliate marketing business, I spent one and a half years trying to make money as an affiliate marketer. But guess what, I didn’t make anything.
Why?
All because I didn’t know what I was doing. I was all over the place, spamming my affiliate link across every Facebook group I could find.
I was so frustrated to the extent that I wanted to quit, but at some point, I said no, there has to be a better way.
So I began connecting with some of my affiliate friends on Facebook to find out what actually led them to success.
And the majority of them said it was a training course that led them to that success.
It wasn’t until I invested in an affiliate marketing training course that I learned what it actually takes to make money online as an affiliate marketer.
Since then, my affiliate business has changed dramatically.
Now, take note of this… Not all training courses out there are good. Before you enroll in any of them, take time to do your research.
If you want my recommended affiliate marketing training course – check out my resource page. This program offers in-depth training on how to actually succeed online.
Also, they offer a one-on-one coach who works directly with you.
- Recommended Reading: How To Learn Affiliate Marketing
3. Know Who Your Audience Are
Knowing who your target audiences are is extremely important for your success.
To make money online, probably with affiliate marketing, you need to know who your target audiences are.
And what exact problem they are facing and how you’re going to solve those problems for them.
The way you’re going to get in front of your audience and solve their problem is entirely up to you.
That said, you can get in front of your audience using the following platform:
- YouTube Channel
- Blog
- Email List
- Facebook Group
- TikTok
Whichever platform you pick, you have to make sure you build TRUST with them before you can think of promoting your offer to them and making money from them.
4. Build Trust With Your Audience
People do business with people they Know, Like, and Trust. Only a few people will do business with you if they don’t know or trust you.
So, if you want to make a very good substantial income in your business, you have to build TRUST with your audience.
How can I build trust with my audience? Good question, you do that by simply providing value. Give people what they want or are looking for.
There are three ways in which you can provide value to your audience:
- Educate
- Inspire
- Entertain
You can do both of these three in your business if you want.
5. Focus On Providing Value To Your Audience Rather Than Selling
With all the other tips I laid out above, content is 97% of the battle. All the tricks, tips, and growth strategies in the world won’t work if your content isn’t on point or relevant to your audience’s needs.
However, even if you don’t use any growth hacks. Good and relevant content will allow you to gain tens and thousands of targeted audiences or customers per month.
By the way, what makes good content?
- Firstly, your content has to look awesome. If not, then it won’t catch the attention of your target audience.
- Second, it has to deliver value, otherwise, if people click on your awesome-good-looking content but learn nothing, they won’t come back again.
- Third, it needs to have a call-to-action. To get your content to reach the vast majority of people, add a call-to-action to your post. Ask people to share, like, and follow your post. Both of these help your content to reach a large number of people.
P.S. I have another post where I go more into detail on how to succeed with affiliate marketing. Check it out!
Why Would Teenager Be The New Affiliate Marketing Experts?
In affiliate marketing, you need time and patience to become successful at it. And a lot of teenagers are more likely to become experts in this field than those who are old simply because they have enough time and patience to learn about this business model.
Which in the long run, allows them to make more income and invest in other courses to increase their knowledge about affiliate marketing for the future.
IMPORTANT: If you ask for my advice on how to become an expert or professional in affiliate marketing as a teen, I would recommend you invest in a good training course to learn about your field and not waste time on some of the free, outdated, useless, and thin content out there on YouTube.
Try as much as you can to invest in a premium course if you want to achieve success in this field fast.
TAKE NOTE: Not all paid methods out there are legit, so before you invest in any of them take time to do your research.
PRO TIPS:
You need to build audiences that are more likely to be interested in your offer. This allows you to be able to turn those audiences into loyal customers over time, which increases the likelihood that they will purchase your offers in the future.
Stick with your niche and establish yourself as an expert. By establishing yourself as an expert in one field or area you’ll be able to build raving fans who will be most likely to buy any product you recommend to them.
Frequently Ask Questions
Can Anyone Do Affiliate Marketing?
Yes. One specific thing about affiliate marketing is that anyone can do it. It is not limited to a specific group of people or a special age, gender, tribe, country, or the color of one’s skin. Because it is mainly about promoting a product, service, or offer to an audience or customer that you have built.
However, I would advise you to think about two things: 1. Why do you want to do affiliate marketing? 2. What do you actually want to gain or take away from the process?
This will help you make a good start with affiliate marketing which will not only enable you to make money but also shape you to become a better business person in the near future.
How Old Do You Have To Be To Do Affiliate Marketing?
Usually, most affiliate companies accept payment methods such as PayPal and bank accounts. This payment method requires you to be around 18. However, if you have these payment methods, you can do affiliate marketing irrespective of your age.
Can Kids Under 18 Learn Affiliate Marketing?
The answer to that is yes. Anyone can learn about affiliate marketing irrespective of your age. Learning affiliate marketing can be fun, though when you try to make money from it, there will be hassles and failures. However, even when you fail, you learn something, so it’s worth learning about affiliate marketing as a teenager.
If you’re just starting out in affiliate marketing, you must educate yourself and learn skills such as how to market products online. Learning a skill like that will ensure your success in your affiliate marketing journey.
Can A 13 Years Old Do Affiliate Marketing?
Yes, you can do affiliate marketing at the age of 13, there is nothing wrong with that. Though most businesses may require you to be 18 and above, however, in affiliate marketing there’s no age requirement. The only advice I will give you is to enroll in a quality training course, where you will be taught all you need to know about affiliate marketing and how to succeed at it.
Can A 14-Year-Old Do Affiliate Marketing?
In affiliate marketing, age is not a requirement. You don’t have to seek permission from your government or state laws to become an affiliate. All you need to do is invest in a course or find a mentor to teach you the foundation of affiliate marketing and how to implement the right strategy and you’re good to go.
Can A 15 Years Old Do Affiliate Marketing?
Well, to put it simply – yes, you can start affiliate marketing at the age of 15. It is inspiring to see nowadays teenagers trying to start their own businesses and make their own money.
Can A 16 Years Old Do Affiliate Marketing?
Though it is illegal or not accepted in most countries for a teenager who is under 18 years of age to engage in any job. However, in affiliate marketing, you can absolutely start your own affiliate business even if you’re below 18 years of age. If only you can find and promote products people are in need of.
What Is The Best Affiliate Marketing Website For Teenagers?
There are so many affiliate marketing websites out there you can choose from. However, the one you go for often depends on your niche however signing up for the best affiliate networks will usually connect you with the best products and offers.
Below are some of the best affiliate marketing websites out there:
ClickBank
ShareASale
CJ Affiliate
Amazon
Rakuten Advertising
eBay Partner Network
Shopify, etc
Can You Post Affiliate Links On Instagram As A Teen?
Instagram is one of the world’s most popular social media platforms out there used by many influencers. You can post your affiliate link in your account bio, stories, and photo or video description. And when your followers click on your link and purchase the product you’ll earn a commission.
Can a 12-Year-Old Do Affiliate Marketing?
Yes, a 12-year-old child can participate in affiliate marketing as long as it does not interfere with their education, health, or personal development. But in most countries, there may be a legal restriction for a 12-year-old child to engage in affiliate marketing. This means they cannot legally sign up for an affiliate program or receive payment without their parental consent.
However, if the 12-year-old child is smart, has good knowledge about affiliate marketing, and knows how to use a computer to sign up for an affiliate program, they could potentially participate in affiliate marketing without involving their parent.
The 12-year-old child could create content, share affiliate links, and earn a commission for every purchase made through their affiliate link.
However, the parent would be responsible for managing the account and receiving payments unless the child has his own payment account (bank or PayPal account).
Can Teens Learn Affiliate Marketing?
Yes! A teenager can learn affiliate marketing. You don’t need any special skills, degree, or age requirement to learn how to do affiliate marketing. Learning affiliate marketing as a teenager, the earlier the better: You can learn valuable skills and also start to earn decent money at a younger age. Learning affiliate marketing as a teen can be fun as well.
Can A Student Be An Affiliate Marketer?
Yes, a student can be an affiliate marketer. Affiliate marketing is not bound for any kind of particular people, age, gender, or color of one’s skin. Affiliate marketing can be a great way for students to earn extra income on the side or on weekends. There are college students who are making around $1,000 to $30,000 promoting digital products as an affiliate and launching their own as a vendor.
Over To You
In the corporate world, you’re required to have a specific degree, qualification, knowledge, or relevant experience before any company can hire you to work for them.
However, in affiliate marketing, you don’t need to have any of those to become an affiliate marketer as a teen.
Although there are some major skills an affiliate marketer needs to learn or have to succeed such as marketing, content creation, and so on.
However, the good news is those skills can be learned along the journey.
So, is it possible to engage in affiliate marketing as a teen – there is no age limit.
If you have a simple LAPTOP with an INTERNET connection, and most importantly time TIME, and basic KNOWLEDGE about your topic, you’re off to go.
Why do I say most importantly TIME and KNOWLEDGE?
Let me explain that:
Time:
Most people who heard about affiliate marketing jump into it without knowing that it takes a very good amount of time to start making money with this business model.
When you enter this field, know that you’re not going to make money overnight, it’s going to take time.
Knowing that will help you stick with your business no matter how long it takes.
Knowledge:
Affiliate marketing is a value game, the more you know, the more you’ll be able to serve your target market.
The number one reason why only 3% of affiliate marketers are actually making a pretty decent income in this industry is that they learn and share that knowledge with others.
The more you help people, the more money you’re likely to make.
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