How To Start Affiliate Marketing With No Money In 2023 (7 Methods)

So, you want to start affiliate marketing, but you’re broke. That’s okay! You can still get started in this exciting and lucrative field.

It’s easy to start an affiliate marketing side hustle in 2022 with nothing more than your computer and an internet connection.

Affiliate Marketing is a booming industry. There are many opportunities to find products that match your interests and connect with customers who will be interested in what you offer.

In this article, we’ll go over seven sure-fire ways that you can start your affiliate marketing business with no money. But first, let’s cover the basics of affiliate marketing and some things you’ll want to think about when you’re starting out.

What Is Affiliate Marketing?

If you’ve ever bought a product online, whether it’s after watching a YouTube video or visiting a website, you’ve come across an affiliate marketing business.

Affiliate marketers create content that reviews and markets products within their niche and leverage that content to build partnerships with brands to promote their products and services.

In return – they receive a small commission for each sale influenced by their content.

Affiliate marketing is a hypergrowth industry. According to Business Insider, affiliate marketing spending reached $8.2 billion in 2022 in the US alone. Worldwide, that figure is estimated to be over $17 billion.

It’s easy to see why so many are choosing to start their side hustle in this growing space!

How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?

Affiliate marketing works by leveraging the power of content to connect with potential customers and build brand partnerships.

Many affiliate marketers start by choosing a niche and establishing authority within that niche. Many popular algorithms and search engines rely on authority to decide which content to boost or prioritize within their platform. Here are some examples of niches:

1. Health: Fitness, nutrition, weight loss, and supplements
2. Travel: Travel gear, apps, destinations
3. Fashion: Clothing, shoes, beauty products
4. Tech: Smartphones, tablets, laptops
5. Pets: Food, toys, accessories

Once you’ve established yourself in your chosen niche, the next step is creating valuable and relevant content for your audience. This may be in the form of a blog post, a video, or even an infographic.

To get started, you’ll first need to identify products that interest you within your niche and then create quality content on those topics. This could be anything from product reviews, to best-of lists, to informational articles on topics within your niche. You can create content using a variety of different channels:

• TikTok
• Blogging (Website)
• YouTube
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

By promoting products in the content you’ve created within your niche on each of these different channels, you can begin to drop affiliate marketing links on those pieces of content.

You can create and find affiliate links for various products within your niche; you’ll need to join an affiliate program. Here are five of my favorite affiliate programs/networks:

• ShareASale.
• ClickBank.
• CJ Affiliate (formerly Commission Junction).
• Pepperjam.
• FlexOffers.

Utilizing an affiliate program is the easiest way to find affiliate links and build partnerships with brands that are willing to pay good money for you to promote their products.

When your audience or the targeted traffic you’ve sent to that site clicks your link that directs to the product page and makes a purchase through your link, you receive a commission. Commissions can vary anywhere from 1-20% depending on the product, and there are often additional bonuses for high sales volume.

With hard work, dedication, and commitment, you can start your affiliate marketing side hustle today and see massive success.

Why is Affiliate Marketing A Worthwhile Business Model?

There are many reasons why affiliate marketing is a great side hustle to start in 2022.

• It’s low risk – while you can spend money to make money, many affiliate marketers begin without making any initial investment. Your costs can stay low (if there’s even any at all), but the potential to make a significant income is there if you’re able to get the traffic.
• It’s scalable – as your network of affiliates grows, so does your potential income. You can diversify your revenue streams by signing up for multiple networks and affiliate programs. Using tools like copywriting software, you can significantly boost the speed you’re putting out content, so you can focus on building links and growing traffic to your affiliate links.
• You can work from anywhere in the world – as long as you have an internet connection, you can build and manage your affiliate marketing business from anywhere.
• It’s a win for the business and the affiliate marketer – affiliate marketing is mutually beneficial for both the company and the affiliate marketer, who receives a commission for each sale.

Is It Actually Possible To Start Without Spending Any Money?

Affiliate marketing is one of the few businesses you can start without much money. Often in order to see some initial results, you’ll need to make at least a small initial investment, although it’s not *technically* necessary.

The beauty of the business is that you can spend as much money as YOU need to scale the business. You decide how flexible you want to be with your capital, and you can pivot in response to different trends within your niche.

If you have a limited amount of money to spend, you can start with your time and effort, but as you begin to see results, you can start reinvesting some of your earnings back into the business.

With a combination of time and effort and a bit of initial investment, you can start affiliate marketing and grow your business to create a sustainable income stream.

Once you start seeing some results, you can outsource some of the tasks to decrease the time it takes to create content.

Remember – there’s only one thing you need to become a successful affiliate marketer – and it’s not money!

It’s Traffic! Targeted traffic to your affiliate links is the name of the game. Below, we’ll detail some of the ways that you can generate free traffic and go into greater detail about how to start affiliate marketing with no money.

How To Start Affiliate Marketing With No Money – 7 Methods

1. Create a YouTube Channel

YouTube is one of the largest video platforms in the world, and you can create a channel focused on your niche. With over 1.9 billion monthly users, YouTube is a great platform to promote products and reach new audiences. By creating engaging content and establishing yourself as an authority in your niche, you can build a following of loyal viewers who will value product reviews and informational content you create. If you’re good, they’ll even click on your links to make you commission!

How To Create An Affiliate Marketing YouTube Channel

• Create a channel focused on your niche
• Do basic keyword research using tools like VidIQ to understand what content to create.
• Film videos on targeted keywords to go viral on YouTube. Suppose you’re in the pet niche, for example. In that case, you could make a video reviewing the latest dog leash from Flexi or create an informational video about how to teach your dog to “roll over,” provided VidIQ agrees that it’s centered on a good keyword to go after.
• Use free editing software to edit and upload the videos to YouTube, share across your social media platforms, and rinse and repeat.

2. Build A Following On Instagram

Instagram is another great place to start affiliate marketing with no money.

With over 800 million monthly users and a high engagement rate, Instagram is a great place to reach potential customers and build relationships with your target audience.

You don’t need any money to create an Instagram page – just a smartphone and engaging content.

Once you build a solid following, you can start to place products and affiliate links for those products within your posts.

How To Start Affiliate Marketing With No Money On Instagram

• Create a free Instagram business account and research relevant Instagram/social media hashtags that are trending within your niche.
• Start creating quality content that will go viral – utilize reels, and hashtags to understand what type of content to post on social media. Trending content will get more eyeballs on your page.
• Post photos, reels, and videos related to your niche.
• Post multiple affiliate links with your bio using a service like Linktree, and use a call to action to tell users to click the link in your bio if they want to learn more about the products you’re promoting.
• Build an organic following by genuinely engaging with followers in your niche. This means liking their photos, commenting on their photos, and even starting conversations with them over direct messages.

3. Build A Following On TikTok

TikTok is very similar to how you would set up affiliate marketing on Instagram. The main difference is that TikTok’s algorithm is a little bit different. TikTok is set up so a user without followers can instantly go extremely viral if their content is well-made.

This slight difference from Instagram, which seems to weigh follower count more heavily within its algorithm, means that you can start your affiliate marketing journey with TikTok much faster.

TikTok also caters to the younger generation, with a higher percentage of users being teens and young adults.

To create viral content on TikTok, you’ll need to become comfortable with regularly creating video content that’s centered around emerging trends within your niche.

If you can nail this concept, TikTok is an ideal platform to start affiliate marketing with no money.

How To Start Affiliate Marketing With No Money On TikTok

• Create a free TikTok Business Account.
• Create viral content and product reviews related to your niche.
• Post multiple affiliate links with your bio using a service like Linktree, and use a call to action to tell users to click the link in your bio if they want to learn more about the products you’re promoting.
• Jump on TikTok trend videos to grow your follower & like counts and get more traffic pointed to your affiliate links.
• You can also go live directly from TikTok and interact with your audience to promote more affiliate products.

4. Build A Following On LinkedIn

Like other social media platforms, LinkedIn is a powerful tool for affiliate marketing with no money.

With over half a billion users, LinkedIn is the social media platform of choice for professionals, and thus makes a great place to start affiliate marketing.

Unlike other social media platforms, though, LinkedIn is focused on providing high-quality business-related content to its users.

So it’s important that you create high-quality product reviews and other engaging content if you want to see results on LinkedIn.

How To Start Affiliate Marketing With No Money On LinkedIn

• Create a Free LinkedIn profile and turn on “Creator Mode.”
• Spend time filling in your profile as much as possible – Job History, Contact Info, Description, etc. – make it look as professional and reputable as possible.
• Create viral posts on LinkedIn that are centered around your niche. These can be blog posts or regular posts.
• Add an affiliate link within these posts, and include a call to action that encourages users to click on your link if they’re interested in learning more about the products you’re promoting.
• Unlike other social media platforms, LinkedIn has many other exciting features like LinkedIn groups, courses, and videos that you can leverage to get more eyeballs on your affiliate products.

5. Start A Blog – Rank Your Articles In Google

Starting a blog is an excellent option if you’re serious about affiliate marketing and don’t have any money to spend.

With blogging, you can create high-quality product reviews, tutorials, and other content that will help you to build a following on search engines like Google.

While it often requires a bit of capital to get up and to run, blogging is a popular option for many affiliate marketers because it can drive consistent traffic to your chosen products.

And because Google is such a significant traffic source for most bloggers, ranking your articles in Google can be a compelling way to start affiliate marketing with no money.

Using affiliate marketing, you can even monetize a blog without ads.

How To Start A Blog To Promote Affiliate Products

• Choose a blog platform – There are many free options, from Blogger and WordPress to Squarespace.
• Create a free blog with your chosen platform and add relevant content. Focus on creating high-quality product reviews that are search engine optimized and that appeal to your target audience.
• Increase your search engine rankings by creating backlinks to your blog posts, and think about leveraging social media to drive more traffic to your blog.
• Consider partnering with other bloggers or even posting sponsored content on your blog. This can help build your audience and drive more traffic to your affiliate links.

6. Use Pinterest For Affiliate Marketing

Pinterest can be a powerful affiliate marketing tool and a great way to build a following around your chosen products.

Pinterest is beneficial for promoting physical products like clothing, furniture, and household goods. But you can also use Pinterest to promote digital products like ebooks, guides, and online courses with the right strategy.

There are over 400 million Pinterest users, and the platform is known for its highly engaged community.

With time and effort, you can start using Pinterest to drive more traffic to your affiliate products and see results in no time.

How To Start Affiliate Marketing With No Money On Pinterest

• Create a free Pinterest Business Account
• Create boards for your products and focus on creating visually appealing pins that include keywords relevant to the products you’re promoting.
• Look for popular Pinterest groups or communities relevant to your niche, and consider joining them.
• Optimize your pins for the Pinterest Smartfeed algorithm by creating text overlays or using the URL shortener that Pinterest provides.
• Use scheduling tools like Tailwind (a popular option among bloggers) to automate your pinning schedule and to get more traffic from Pinterest in less time.
• Measure your success by tracking clicks, referring URLs, and other key metrics on Pinterest.

7. Use Facebook For Affiliate Marketing

Facebook can also be an excellent platform for affiliate marketing and is another way to drive consistent traffic to your affiliate products.

Unlike Pinterest and Instagram, which are more focused on visuals and images, Facebook allows you to post a wide variety of content types.

This can be a great way to engage with your audience and create a deeper connection with them.

When you have more money later down the line, you can also use Facebook ads to drive targeted traffic to your affiliate products and to build your audience by promoting relevant content on your Facebook page.

Facebook is one of the OG social media platforms, making it an excellent option for an affiliate marketer looking to start an affiliate marketing business.

How To Start Affiliate Marketing On Facebook

• Create your free Facebook Page and Group.
• Use this page to build an organic community within your Facebook Group where you can share content around product reviews, information about your affiliate products, and more. Consider posting regular updates to keep your audience engaged with your page and publish relevant content to your target audience.
• Create Facebook ads targeted to specific demographics and interests, so that you can get more traffic to your affiliate offers so can make money.
• Create posts, videos, memes, and long and short-form blog posts to drive traffic to your Facebook group organically.

Wrap Up

Well, there you have it.

With a little effort and dedication, affiliate marketing could be an excellent way to make some extra money in 2022.

Choose a niche you’re passionate about, do your research, and start promoting products you believe in.

If you do the work, starting an affiliate marketing business can be a lucrative way to earn income without spending any money upfront.

Do you have any tips on how to start affiliate marketing with no money? Let me know in the comments below!

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Some Affiliate Marketing Tips For Beginners?

Some beginner tips include researching the right products to promote, defining your target audience and creating content that speaks directly to them, building an engaged community, and using tools like scheduling and analytics to measure your success.

How Do I Promote Affiliate Products?

There are several different strategies you can use to promote affiliate products. Some popular methods include creating content like blog posts, videos, and social media posts; joining relevant Pinterest and Facebook groups or communities; using paid ads to reach new audiences; and engaging with your existing followers through regular updates, contests, and other activities.

What Are The Best Social Media Platforms For Affiliate Marketing?

Some of the most popular social media platforms for affiliate marketing include Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook. Each platform has a unique set of strengths, so choosing the best suited for your business goals and target audience is essential.

Some factors to consider when choosing social media platforms include the size and engagement of your audience, the types of content you plan to post, and the level of competition in your niche.

But ultimately, the best social media platforms for affiliate marketing will depend on your specific business and niche. So be sure to research different platforms, and listen to your audience to find the right mix of platforms to help you achieve your marketing goals.

How Do I Choose A Good Affiliate Program?

When choosing an affiliate program, you should consider several different factors. Some important considerations include the payment structure, product quality, commission rates, support and resources available, and marketing materials you can use to promote the products.

Additionally, it’s important to look for affiliate programs with a high level of engagement with their audience and provide affiliate partners with the tools and support they need to promote their products effectively.

Finally, it’s essential to research the reputation and legitimacy of any affiliate program you’re considering, so that you can be sure you’re choosing a reputable affiliate program for your affiliate marketing efforts.