Do you need your own product and website to make a living on-line? Of course not it is possible to make unbelievable amounts of money on-line without having your own products or services by becoming an affiliate marketer.
The benefits that are conveyed to an affiliate include having no customer servicing issues, no refunds, product development costs or any major technical headaches.
This leaves the prime objective of the affiliate to find effective methods of promoting their chosen product, and ways of maximising their income potential through commissions.
Here are my tips to selecting and succeeding in sending your commissions into orbit.

1. It goes without saying that when recommending a product you want to be selective and choose only the best products and services to promote.
   Remember your reputation is at stake here.
   

• What is your gut reaction about the product? (Would you buy it)
• Does the sales page grab you and make you want to buy?
• What is the commission structure of the product?
• What time frame is involved in paying out commissions to affiliates?
• Does the merchant have a good track record of paying out money to its affiliates?

Remember that there are no shortage of affiliate programs available to the affiliate in multiple niches so this allows you to be choosy about the products you promote.
The decision on what to and not what to promote is based on your regard for your existing and future subscribers and the benefits that you can accrue, so be sure to choose wisely.
There are those who would have you believe that you can conduct affiliate marketing without a website of your own, although there is an element of truth in this if you follow this path you do so at a major disadvantage.
The reason for this is tow fold 1) You are directing traffic that you have worked hard for to the merchants site and will not see this again 2) You have just successfully built the merchants list as well as gained them some sales.
The way to build long term success is in the building the foundations first, not unlike the building of an house and its foundations, followed by it's walls, the same is true of affiliate marketing.
So lets move onto how you start to build upon those foundations.
The first step is in the collecting of your sites visitors name and email address.
The capturing of this information is going to allow you to build relationships and with it the potential for business for years to come.
2.
Key to this is the building of a responsive subscribers list - In other words this will only take place if quality content and offers are made to your subscribers and hence the importance on choosing the products you promote and the relationship you build..
So what do you need to have in order to collect these names and email addresses:

1. Your own squeeze page
2. A free offering to in exchange for the visitors contact details.
   
3. A system for collecting and recording the personal data, this incorporates the use of a auto responder service.
   

3.
So how do you build your relationship with your subscribers:,

1. A great way is to offer bonuses following the purchase of an affiliate product(No doubt you will have collected products that are either private label rights or Master resale rights that allow you to give bonuses with)
2. Do you have a blog, invite your subscribers to interact with your blog
3. Although you want to make sales, of course you do, don't always be pitching a product get balance by offering something for nothing.
   In doing so the trust will grow.
   

If you show care for your subscribers, ultimately they will show care for you and will become responsive to your offers and trust your judgement.