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Seven affiliate strategies that actually make money.
Most beginner affiliate advice is a list of platforms. That is not a strategy. This is the order I would put things in if I were starting over, what each step is really for, and what to do first this week.
The tools I use
Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you sign up or buy through them I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. I only ever share tools I actually use.
Lasso
Every affiliate link on this site lives in one place. When a program changes its URL I update it once and every post follows. It also turns a bare link into a product box, which converts better than blue text in a paragraph.
Check it out →Tailwind
This schedules my Pinterest. I batch pins once and it keeps posting for weeks, which is the only way Pinterest works without eating your whole week.
Check it out →Pinclicks
Pinterest keyword research. It tells me what people actually search before I write the pin title, instead of guessing at a clever hook nobody looks for.
Check it out →Ideogram
I generate my pin graphics and blog images here. It handles text on an image better than anything else I have used, which matters when the headline is the whole pin.
Check it out →What actually decides whether this works
A niche you can sustain
People pick off a commission chart and quit in four months. Pick something you would read about anyway. Interest is the only thing that survives the year it takes to compound.
Content that catches buyers
Comparisons, honest reviews, setup walkthroughs. There is a difference between someone learning about a topic and someone about to spend money on it. Write for the second one.
A list you own
Every platform can change its mind about you overnight. Your email list cannot. This is also where the money lands, because the third mention converts far better than the first.
Sales, not clicks
Clicks feel good and tell you almost nothing. Find the one post that produced a sale and make three more like it. That is the entire optimization loop.
The seven, in the order to do them
Not a menu. An order. Skipping ahead is why most people stall at step four.
Choose a niche you can sustain
Narrow enough to be known for, broad enough to have buyers. Write down the one person you are talking to and keep her in front of you.
Write content that catches buyers
Every post answers a question somebody asks right before they spend money. Comparison, review, or how to set it up.
Start the email list on day one
One specific free thing, delivered instantly. Do not wait for an audience. Eleven subscribers is a start.
Pick one platform and go deep
One. Not four. Post on a rhythm you can hold for a year, because that is the timeline this actually runs on.
Make every post findable
One clear question per post, a title that matches how people search, and internal links so a reader who lands on one finds three more.
Track sales, not clicks
Find the posts that produced money. Make more of those. Stop making the ones that only produced traffic.
Update the winners on a schedule
A post that earns is an asset. Refresh it, add what you learned, replace dead links. Maintenance beats new content more often than anyone admits.
Want all seven with the templates?
Content to Commissions is this system written out, with the program picks, the post formats, and the link setup.
Get Content to Commissions →“Most people quit at the exact point where this starts working, because month five looks identical to month one.“— Lori Ballen
The 3-Bucket Business Field Notes
How I split a one-person content business into three buckets so I always know which one needs work. Short, no fluff, straight to your inbox.
The written versions of this system
Content to Commissions
Choosing programs, writing content that converts, and setting up the links so they keep paying after you stop touching the post.
Side Hustle to Six Figures
How the pieces stack into one real income instead of a handful of disconnected side projects that each earn a little.
Pick step one and do it this week
Not ready to buy yet? Grab the free field notes above, or get Letters from Lori for more field notes.
Hey there! Just a quick heads-up: some of the links on this site are affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase (including through the Amazon Associates program), at no extra cost to you. Occasionally, products featured here are gifted by brands.
I also use AI tools to help research and create content for you! While I love sharing strategies to help you succeed, please remember that everyone's journey is unique—individual results vary, and there are no guarantees. Thanks so much for stopping by!
