Self-Publishing Vs. Affiliate Marketing… Fight!
Before I reveal if (in my humble opinion) affiliate marketing is actually better than product creation, I want to let you know that both can be tremendously powerful.
I’ve often said that product creators (Authors and Teachers) make the best affiliates.
Because, product creators usually have something that many affiliates do not, which is an email list of customers.
Naturally, this will always be the best way to sell affiliate products, right?
Well, I used to think that.
More and more, I’m realizing that you can build a tremendously powerful email list without any customers of your own, theoretically.
That being said, I want to break down this affiliate marketing vs. product creation debate once and for all.
Let’s Start With Affiliate Marketing. Here’s Why Affiliate Marketing Rocks…
Affiliate marketing is tremendously powerful, because you don’t really need to do any customer support, unless you want to.
To me, and as someone who has worked IT, I see huge value in this.
The idea of doing customer support, is kind of enough to make me curl up into a ball and cry (lol).
The idea of simply sending traffic to some other product or service, and letting THEM handle all of the tech support, is truly a noteworthy endeavor.
Also Consider That These Days, There Are So Many Ridiculously Powerful Affiliate Programs.
Affiliate programs such as Amazon, Walmart, BestBuy, ClickFunnels, Udemy, SkillShare, among others.
Simply put, you can sell everything from gold, to real estate, to toilet paper and powerful marketing funnels.
Today, as of this date, there has NEVER been a better time to be an affiliate, simply because, you can literally promote absolutely anything you want as an affiliate.
The Main Disadvantage Of An Affiliate, And How To Overcome It
I would say, that the main disadvantage of being an affiliate, is that it can be so difficult to be unique among the army of competing affiliates out there.
Fascinatingly enough, that disadvantage can also be turned into your main advantage.
One of the best ways to differentiate yourself from the ocean of affiliates, is to create unique content.
Create unique blog posts, social media posts, Podcasts, videos, courses, books, literatures, and any other format you can think of that shows off the UNIQUE you.
That’s how you can remain different; by creating content that actually helps your end users.
And, you can simply add a “PS” at the end of your content, promoting whatever it is that you want.
This simply strategy, the strategy of creating helpful content, is designed to work in virtually any niche.
So maybe you’re writing about gold, sales funnels, or weight loss, it doesn’t really matter.
I mentioned how there are countless affiliate programs these days. That’s totally true. What’s also true, is that there are more ways you can express yourself through content marketing, which is truly exciting.
Let’s Talk About The Other Side Of The Fence; Product Creation.
I’m someone who absolutely loves to create my own digital products.
That’s because creating and launching your own digital products has never been easier.
There are dozens of marketplaces (Kindle, Udemy, Skillshare, ClickBank, among others) where you can list your digital products for free, or on the cheap.
And, every single time you launch a new digital product, your tiny little digital empire expands, and you open more doors for your ideal prospects to find you and your invaluable content. 🙂
So, product creation can help build authority like nothing else can.
That’s Just The Tip Of The Iceberg. Product Creation Also Allows You To Attract Affiliates.
Having affiliates promote your products for you is the best thing in the world.
Even better is that most digital marketplaces (think Udemy and ClickBank) have a “built in” affiliate program, so you don’t even have to hustle that hard recruiting affiliates, unless you want to of course.
That’s one of the biggest advantage, probably the single biggest advantages to creating your own products; you can recruit others to help market it in exchange for a piece of the commissions.
(I could argue that affiliates can theoretically attract affiliates if they have their own unique funnel and join a CPA network and offer to pay per lead; but that’s a totally different story for another time).
The Biggest Disadvantage Of Creating Your Own Products
The biggest disadvantage of creating your own products is obviously the idea that you have to devote countless hours researching and developing your product
You also have to offer top-notch support if you want to have even a tiny smidgen of credibility.
This can be hugely daunting, especially if you have lots of customers, and even more so if you’re a tiny one-person-team.
So, What’s Better, Affiliate Marketing, Or Product Creation?
If you asked me a few years ago what’s better, I would probably tell you product creation.
These days, there seems to be an infinite wealth of high powered affiliate programs, that offer high ticket commissions and recurring commissions.
It’s now to the point, where if you know how to drive traffic, it might be easier to be strictly an affiliate.
On the same token, there are so many powerful marketplaces where you can launch your own products too.
So, there are massive advantages, and massive disadvantages to both models.
My honest two cents, is to weigh the pros and cons of each.
Does the idea of having more authority, prestige, and rapport with your customers seem awesome? If so, then product creation might be your best bet.
Or maybe, the idea of having the freedom to promote products, without the responsibility of customer support seems the wisest course?
There’s also the potential for you to become a hybrid of sorts; someone who creates your own products, and then promotes affiliate products in the back end.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that model, right?
In any event, there’s really no right or wrong, and this has just been my humble two cents.
I hope that it finds you well, regardless of what you decide.
Until then, please have an amazing day!!
Thank You So Much For Checking This Out!
These days, I think that both affiliate marketing, and self-publishing are awesome.
That’s because there have never been this many opportunities for both situations.
There are endless marketplaces where self-publishers can promote and sell their content (like Udemy, Kindle, SkillShare, ClickBank, and more).
On the other hand, there are countless affiliate programs that are massive, and awesome. (Amazon, Udemy, ClickBank, ClickFunnels are some of my favorites).
At the end of the day, both affiliate marketing and self-publishing rock, and maybe it’s always a wise choice to consider using both for your own publishing efforts?
Simply ask yourself, which seems more ideal? The prestige and authority of publishing your own products, or, the freedom of simply promoting an awesome affiliate program that you believe can benefit your end users.
That’s my honest two cents, I hope that it finds you well, and I hope that you have an awesome day!
If you ever have any questions, or simply want to brainstorm, then please never hesitate to contact me.
I’ve got your back, and always look forward to hearing your comments, questions, and feedback!
Until then, stay awesome, and please have an amazing day.
Cordially and humbly yours…
Mike DeVincent
MrComputerScience.com