When we talk about social media, LinkedIn isn’t as exciting as Twitter or TikTok. Twitter is getting more popular, and TikTok came out of nowhere and became a big deal. But poor LinkedIn hasn’t really changed much.
Now, you might wonder why affiliate marketers would bother with LinkedIn when there are so many other options. The thing is, there are actually lots of good reasons to give LinkedIn a shot.
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Why Use LinkedIn For Affiliate Marketing?
LinkedIn is the world’s biggest professional network, with around 740 million members in 200 countries. It beats Snapchat and Twitter in users and is close to Instagram and TikTok.
What’s special about LinkedIn isn’t just the number of users, but the quality. About 63 million users here are decision-makers. To break it down, more than one in every 12 LinkedIn users has the power to make big business decisions. That’s why a huge 80% of B2B marketing leads from social media come from LinkedIn.
And it’s not just decision-makers – LinkedIn attracts more high earners than other social media. Only 27% of those making under $30,000 use LinkedIn, but it jumps to 60% for those earning over $100,000. If your target audience is well-off people with buying power, LinkedIn is a golden opportunity for affiliate marketing.
What is LinkedIn Affiliate Marketing?
LinkedIn is not just for professional networking – it can boost your affiliate marketing strategy too! How? By connecting with people and using those connections to promote your products. Like other platforms, you can earn a commission for referrals based on your chosen affiliate program.
What makes LinkedIn special? It has unique features. You can share affiliate links in different ways. Write a blog post directly on LinkedIn, share posts with your network, or create a company page for branded content.
There’s more! Engage with your audience through members-only groups or use direct messaging. LinkedIn offers many tactics for affiliate marketers. To succeed, start by building an audience.
Learn more: What is Affiliate Marketing?
How to Do Affiliate Marketing on LinkedIn?
- Set up a LinkedIn page
- Post regularly with valuable content
- Join the conversation
- Promote affiliate links carefully
In the following sections, let’s dive into each step:
Step 1: Set up a LinkedIn page
LinkedIn is a great platform for affiliate marketers to connect with an audience.
There are two types of profiles on LinkedIn:
- Personal pages
- Company pages
But when it comes to building a following, personal profiles have the upper hand.
People are more likely to interact with personal profiles than company pages. A study from Forrester (when Google+ was still around) found that LinkedIn company pages had a low average engagement rate of just 0.054%. So, with 10,000 followers, you’d only get 5.4 interactions on an average post.
On the other hand, a decent engagement rate for a personal account on LinkedIn is around 2%. Also, personal profiles offer more functionality compared to company pages.
In short, if you’re using LinkedIn for affiliate marketing, focus on your personal profile. Build a following there for better engagement and results.
Step 2: Post regularly with valuable content
If you want to grow your followers as an affiliate marketer, here’s the deal: post regularly and give people a good reason to connect with you. But, you gotta find the sweet spot for how often and when to post. Got it?
Best time to post
When it comes to how often you should post, statistics reveal that there’s a noticeable drop in clicks once you exceed five posts a week or go beyond one post per working day.
Pages with at least 100 followers tend to generate an average of two clicks on their first two posts per week.
However, this engagement drops significantly to around 0.5 clicks by the 10th post in a week.
LinkedIn likes quality more than quantity, so don’t go crazy with non-stop posts.
Choosing the right time to post is equally important. According to the data, Tuesdays and Wednesdays are optimal days for posting.
If you find yourself posting more than twice a week, weekdays are generally suitable, but it’s recommended to steer clear of weekends for better results.
Content quality
When you post on social media, like LinkedIn, what’s equally important is what you share.
Instead of just trying to sell something right away, share content that is helpful and interesting.
Remember, people on LinkedIn are picky, so make sure your content talks about things they care about or helps them solve their problems.
This way, you can connect better with your audience.
Format
When creating content for affiliate marketing, try using eye-catching formats. While a regular blog post or text update is good, don’t hesitate to experiment with more attention-grabbing content types.
Consider adding images and videos to make your content pop in a busy LinkedIn feed. Did you know that LinkedIn users are 20 times more likely to share videos than any other type of post?
This means more people might see your content, leading to more clicks on your affiliate links.
Step 3: Join the conversation
LinkedIn is known for business networking, but it’s also a social network.
The key to growing your presence lies in the word “social.”
There are no quick tricks here.
To truly be part of a community, you have to participate!
Join the groups your target audience is in, engage in conversations, and respond to comments on your posts.
If you’re after easy, high-reward affiliate marketing, this isn’t it.
However, once you build a reputation as a reliable community member who knows their stuff, affiliate marketing becomes easier.
People will trust your recommendations for products or services.
It takes time, but the outcomes are valuable.
Step 4: Promote affiliate links carefully
Feel free to add affiliate links to your LinkedIn posts, blogs, comments, or messages, but be careful.
Why?
Most affiliate programs require a disclaimer when you share their links.
LinkedIn automatically shortens links in posts, making it unclear where you’re directing people.
It might seem unintentional, but you don’t want to give the impression that you’re trying to mislead anyone.
Also, avoid spamming LinkedIn with a barrage of affiliate links. Your followers may lose interest, and you could end up with restrictions or even get blocked. Keep it balanced for a better experience.
Instead of flooding LinkedIn with links, here’s a simple way to make money through your affiliate program: practice inbound marketing.
Create top-notch content on your website, adding affiliate links where they fit naturally. Then, share this content with your network.
Direct people to a blog post or set up a landing page with a form to collect email addresses. This not only helps build an email list but also provides another opportunity to include your affiliate links.
Best Practices for LinkedIn Affiliate Marketing
Though LinkedIn isn’t as popular as other social media platforms, you can still make some money with affiliate marketing. Just keep these tips in mind:
- Create a custom LinkedIn profile URL to let your audience know where they’ll be directed.
- Put SEO keywords might search for in your profile to be found easily.
- Write blog posts to share your expertise and get ranked on Google for more organic traffic.
- Link to other social media accounts where you have a strong presence. You can always advertise your affiliate offers on every network.
- Share your career achievements to boost your authority. This can increase your conversation rates because most people trust recommendations from experts.
- Add calls to action on your posts and share links to other pages which contain helpful content.
Remember, it takes time to build a relationship with your audience and win their trust. Don’t focus on pitching your offers and spamming LinkedIn with affiliate links. It might get your account suspended.
Pros of LinkedIn Affiliate Marketing
Affluent Audience: LinkedIn has a user base of professionals and high-income individuals. This means you can reach a financially capable audience that is more likely to make purchases.
Decision-Makers Hub: It is a platform filled with business professionals and decision-makers. If your affiliate products or services target the business-to-business (B2B) market, LinkedIn is an excellent fit for you.
Multiple Opportunities for Affiliate Links: LinkedIn offers various ways to incorporate affiliate links. Whether you’re sharing articles, posts, or participating in discussions, you can strategically insert your affiliate links where they make sense.
Business-Focused Conversations: Users on LinkedIn are open to discussing professional topics and networking. This creates opportunities to organically share your affiliate links within relevant conversations.
Less Competition: Unlike popular platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn is still relatively untapped by affiliate marketers. This means there is less competition, giving you a chance to stand out and capture your target audience’s attention.
Impressive Organic Reach: LinkedIn’s organic reach can be impressive, often surpassing platforms like Facebook. With a well-thought-out strategy and engaging content, you can potentially reach a larger audience without relying heavily on paid advertising.
Cons of LinkedIn Affiliate Marketing
Higher Advertising Costs: Paid advertising on LinkedIn is more expensive than on other platforms. This can be a challenge for affiliates with lower-budget programs.
Professional Audience Prefers Authenticity: LinkedIn users are savvy professionals who value genuine interactions. They are less receptive to direct sales pitches.
B2B Focus May Not Suit Consumer Products: LinkedIn is primarily a B2B platform. If your product or service targets the consumer market, it may not align with the platform’s audience and purpose.
Lower Daily Usage Rates: Compared to platforms like Facebook or Instagram, LinkedIn has lower daily usage rates. This means there’s a risk that your content might not receive as much visibility or engagement.
Should You Start Affiliate Marketing On LinkedIn?
So, is LinkedIn a good fit for affiliate marketing?
Well, it really depends on who you’re trying to reach and what you’re selling.
In most cases, it’s possible to sell B2C products on LinkedIn, but you might get better results if you’re promoting a course or some other B2B service.
Keep in mind that most people use LinkedIn strictly for business purposes. Unlike Instagram during lunch breaks, Facebook on commutes, or Twitter in the evenings, people are less likely to casually browse LinkedIn.
In fact, people spend less time on LinkedIn compared to other social networks:
- LinkedIn: 10:51 minutes per day
- Twitter: 12:50 minutes per day
- Facebook: 18:28 minutes per day
Considering all these factors, LinkedIn may not be the easiest platform for affiliate marketers. However, with dedication, it can still be effective.
Jack Davis is an internet entrepreneur. He created the Affiliate Marketing Masterclass and offers personal coaching on affiliate marketing. He has been featured in major publications like Forbes, Entrepreneur, and CNBC for his achievements in online marketing. He owns more than 10 niche websites and has made millions of dollars from them. So, he’s the guy you can trust when it comes to building niche sites and SEO.