Affiliate marketing is a great way to earn extra income, but it takes more than just signing up for an affiliate program to be successful. You need to have the right affiliate marketing tools in order to make the most of your efforts.
The good news is, that there are plenty of great tools for affiliate marketing available that can help you boost your earnings. From finding the right keywords to cloaking your links, these tools can make a big difference in your bottom line.
In this blog post, we’ll share 16 of the best affiliate marketing tools that can help you earn more commissions. We’ll also offer some tips on how to use each tool to maximize your earnings potential.
So if you’re ready to take your affiliate marketing efforts to the next level, read on for some of the affiliate marketing tools I love that can help you earn more commissions.
16 Affiliate Marketing Tools
Affiliate Marketing Tools for Web Hosting
Before you can do any type of affiliate marketing you need to get a website up and running. The first step is to pick out the best web hosting company. I have a couple of favorites.
The first is for new bloggers and the second is for growing websites that need a little more power.
Bluehost
There are a lot of web hosting companies available but I almost always recommend Bluehost to newer bloggers.
The reasons are simple.
- Bluehost is cheap at only $2.95 per month.
- They give you a free domain name for the first 12 months.
- They help you automatically set up and launch a WordPress blog.
If you’re new to blogging make sure you read my article on how to start a blog on Bluehost.
Cloudways
Once your website starts growing, you’ll end up outgrowing your shared hosting plan. You’ll want a little more power to make sure it can handle the traffic you’re starting to deliver.
When that time comes, I recommend Cloudways.
Cloudways is a cloud-based managed hosting platform. You’re only going to pay for the resources your website uses and plans start at just $10 per month.
They have two features that I love.
- They’ll migrate your first website at no cost.
- If you ever have an issue, they have 24/7/365 support.
WordPress Page Builders
One of the nicest parts of starting a blog today compared to 10 or 15 years ago are the design options available. You can build an amazing website in no time at all.
If I wanted to make design changes to my first couple of websites, I actually needed to update the code — by hand.
Today, things are a little easy. There are some great WordPress page builders available that allow you to build and make changes to design with a couple of clicks of the mouse.
Here are a couple of page builders for WordPress that I love.
Elementor
Elementor is my favorite WordPress page builder and I’ve used it for a handful of the websites I’ve managed. They have both free and paid options available.
Elementor has a drag and drop feature that allows you to quickly make changes to your site design. Plus, they have live editing. As you make changes, you can see how they look in real-time.
The free version of Elementor is pretty powerful, but Elementor Pro has everything you need to build an amazing website in no time. Pricing for Elementor Pro starts at $49/year.
Beaver Builder
The second page builder for WordPress that I recommend is Beaver Builder. Similar to Elementor, Beaver Builder has a live drag and drop feature that makes updating your page a breeze. You’ll see all your changes as you make them.
Pricing is a little more expensive compared to Elementor. The first year is $99, but each year that you renew you’ll save 40% which drops the price down to $59.40.
Affiliate Marketing Tools for Content Creation
To be successful in affiliate marketing you need to produce great content. If you’re not putting out good content people aren’t going to want to read it and Google isn’t going to want to rank it well.
Here are a few content creation tools that can help you out.
Grammarly
I’m a marketer, not a writer. That means at times I make mistakes when writing an article. Words are misspelled, I don’t use always use commas in the correct places, and things can be worded the wrong way.
That’s why Grammarly is my best friend. This content creation tool helps make sure I’m writing as close to an English major as possible.
Grammarly has a free version available that checks spelling, punctuation, and grammar. However, I highly suggest upgrading to the premium version because it’s packed with more useful features including a plagiarism checker.
Grammarly Premium costs $12/mo and I think it’s well worth the cost to make sure you’re writing great content that’s grammatically correct.
Jasper.ai
If you’re looking for a great tool to help you write better content, look no further than Jasper.ai.
Jasper is an AI-powered content writing assistant that can help you improve your writing quality and speed. With Jasper’s help, you can quickly produce well-written and error-free content.
Jasper doesn’t just help you write blog content. They can also help you with social media headlines and copy, product descriptions, personalized cold emails, and more.
In addition, Jasper has a partnership with Surfer (more on them below) to help you optimize your content for SEO keywords. As a result, using Jasper can help you save time and energy while still producing high-quality content that ranks on Google.
Jasper offers a five-day free trial and then plans start at $29/month.
Keyword Research Tools
Unless you’re planning to drive a majority of your website traffic through email or social media, you’re going to want to rank well on Google.
To do this you need to focus on your on-page SEO and off-page SEO to make sure your content ranks well.
Here are a couple of my favorite keyword research tools you can use to make sure you’re targeting the right keywords.
Surfer
Surfer is a tool that helps you optimize your website for search engine optimization.
It’s designed to help you improve your ranking in Google’s search results, and it’s one of the most popular affiliate marketing tools on the market.
Surfer is a cloud-based tool, which means it doesn’t require you to download anything. You just need to create an account and log in. Once you’re logged in, you can start optimizing your website.
Surfer has a lot of features, but the main ones I use are the SERP Analyzer and the Content Editor.
The SERP Analyzer is going to help give you visibility to what your competition is doing to rank for certain keywords. Surfer looks at more than 500 ranking factors including:
- Word count
- Keyword density
- Number of headings
- Natural Language Processing (NLP)
- Structured data
- And much more
The Content Editor is going to help you create new content that has the best chance of ranking well on Google.
Within the Content Editor, you’ll enter your focus keyword and Surfer will give you the following pieces of information:
- Ideal word count
- Total number of paragraphs and headings your article should have
- LSI keywords and the number of times each should be used
With their cutting-edge technology and wealth of experience, Surfer is quickly becoming a leading name in the SEO industry.
KWFinder
Most digital marketers will tell you their favorite affiliate marketing tool is either Ahrefs or Semrush. I’ve used both of these and they’re great. However, for keyword research, I use KWFinder exclusively.
The reason is simple. I find that their data is a little more accurate and they’re a whole lot cheaper.
Pricing starts at $29.90 when you pay annually ($49 when you pay month-to-month).
Affiliate Marketing Tools for Website Speed
Site speed is an SEO ranking factor. If your site doesn’t load quickly, Google isn’t going to rank it well in SERPs.
Here’s my favorite tool to make sure my sites are loading as fast as possible.
WP Rocket
Hands down the most popular page speed tool is WP Rocket.
They hype themselves as an all-in-one site performance tool. Not only are they the best caching plugin available, but they’ll optimize your page load times and boost your core web vitals.
WP Rocket costs $49/year for one website and they have a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Email Marketing Tools
As an affiliate marketer, your job is much more than putting some affiliate links into an article and hoping they convert.
Building out other channels is going to help you grow your business and become more successful.
Email marketing is something you should focus on from day one. Google’s algorithm can change at any time. The same is true for any social media platform. In the blink of an eye, your traffic could be gone.
However, with email marketing, you’re always going to have your subscribers.
Because of this, two different email marketing tools ended up on my list of best affiliate marketing tools.
Mailerlite
Mailerlite is one of the best email marketing platforms out there. They offer a wide range of features that make it easy to create and send beautiful email campaigns.
One of my favorite features is their drag and drop email builder. It’s simple and straightforward to use, allowing you to create beautiful, responsive emails.
They also give users the ability to set up automated email workflows. You can launch a sequence of emails to be sent to subscribers based on different actions they take. This is a great way to stay in touch with your customers and nurture your relationship with them.
Mailerlite is probably my favorite email marketing platform for new bloggers because their platform is free for the first 1,000 subscribers. Once you hit 1,000 subscribers, pricing starts at $15/month.
ActiveCampaign
The next email marketing platform that I recommend for bloggers is ActiveCampaign.
I’m a huge fan of ActiveCampaign for two reasons. Deliverability and Automation.
They continuously rank as one of the best platforms for having emails delivered. If you’re mailing your list, you want to make sure your emails are actually reaching their inbox.
It’s one thing to simply email your list, it’s another thing to actually nurture them down your sales funnel.
If you’re running a small business, you’ll use automation to turn subscribers into customers and then first-time customers into repeat customers.
Pricing for ActiveCampaign starts at $9/mo when you pay yearly.
Social Media Tools
Social media is a big part of most affiliate marketing plans. It also takes up a lot of time.
That being said using a social media tool that can help free up your time is crucial.
Here are two social media tools that I use weekly.
MeetEdgar
When you’re trying to juggle multiple social media platforms at once it can be a little overwhelming. Now imagine if you’re running multiple websites.
MeetEdgar is a social media tool that helps make things a lot easier. MeetEdgar works with Facebook pages, Facebook groups, Instagram feed, Instagram stories, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn & LinkedIn Company Pages.
What I love about MeetEdgar is that you can set up a weekly automation schedule. This helps keep your social channels consistent so your followers know what to expect.
Pricing starts at $29.99/month and includes five social accounts, unlimited scheduled posts, 10 weekly automations, and more.
Tailwind
MeetEdgar can help you with all your social media accounts, while Tailwind focuses on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram.
For me, the feature that makes Tailwind stand out from other social media scheduling tools is its SmartSchedule feature.
Instead of guessing when a social post is going to have the biggest impact, Tailwind will publish to your social accounts when your audience is more likely to be responsive.
The end result is higher engagement.
Tailwind has a Free Forever plan which includes one Facebook page, Pinterest profile, and Instagram page. It also includes 20 posts per month.
While this is good for getting a taste of how Tailwind works, most people will need to upgrade to either Tailwind Pro or Tailwind Advanced which offers either 100 or 1,000 posts per month and starts at $9.99/month.
SEO Tools
If you focus on driving organic traffic to your affiliate sites, you need to make sure you’re on top of search engine optimization.
To make this easier, you should definitely be using either of these two SEO tools.
Yoast
I’ve been using Yoast SEO WordPress plugin on my sites for many years.
Most people who are just starting out don’t know how to write for SEO. This is why Yoast can be so helpful. They will break down everything you need to do so that you’re optimized to rank well for your target keywords.
They also have a readability feature that helps analyze how readable your article is. The easier it is to read, the better chances you have that Google is going to want to rank it high.
Yoast has a free SEO plugin but they also have a premium version that adds a lot of extra features including:
- Optimize more than one keyword
- Powerful internal linking tools
- Automatically create and manage redirects to avoid 404 errors
RankMath
Another popular SEO tool is RankMath. While I haven’t personally used this tool, I know people that have and they highly recommend it.
With RankMath you’ll be able to track your ranking for thousands of different keywords. It also gives you an advanced schema generator and the ability to integrate Google Search Console into your WordPress to track potential SEO errors.
RankMath is free but you can also upgrade to RankMath Pro for $59/year.
Affiliate Link Tracking
Nothing screams paid link more than using a link that looks like this…
https:// www.kqzyfj.com/click-8358301-11660078
Instead, using a link cloaking plugin can not only make your links look good but let you track performance.
ThirstyAffiliates
ThirstyAffiliates is a favorite affiliate link management tool for many affiliate marketers. It lets you manage all your affiliate links in one place.
With the ThirstyAffiliates WordPress plugin, you’re able to nofollow all of your affiliate links automatically. Plus, updating affiliate links couldn’t be easier. Instead of updating your affiliate links on every page, you can make one update on your account dashboard.
ThirstyAffiliates starts at $49/year and comes with a 14-day money-back guarantee.
The Bottom Line: Why Using Affiliate Marketing Tools Are Essential For Your Success
As an affiliate marketer, using the top affiliate marketing tools can make a big difference in your success. By using tools to automate social media, track SEO, and manage affiliate links, you can free up time to focus on other aspects of your affiliate business. While some of these tools come with a cost, they are essential for any serious affiliate marketer looking to scale a successful affiliate site.
What are your favorite affiliate marketing tools? Share in the comments below!
Frequently Asked Questions About Affiliate Marketing Tools You Should Use
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a type of marketing in which partners or affiliates are paid a commission for referring new customers to a company or website.
Typically, these affiliates will be bloggers, social media influencers, or content creators who have built up a large following and can direct their followers towards certain products or services.
Affiliate marketing can be an attractive way to earn extra income online.
What Is an Affiliate Network?
An affiliate network is a platform where businesses can create affiliate programs and manage their affiliates in one central location. This makes it much easier for businesses to find the right affiliates and track their performance.
For affiliate marketers, an affiliate network provides a convenient way to find new programs to promote and keep track of their earnings. In addition, some affiliate networks offer tools and resources that can help affiliate marketers to be more successful.
Overall, affiliate networks can be a valuable resource for both businesses and affiliate marketers.
What Are Affiliate Marketing Tools?
Affiliate marketing is a competitive and challenging field, requiring a great deal of time and effort in order to be successful.
There are a number of important factors that contribute to success in affiliate marketing, including strong relationships with customers and expert knowledge of the marketplace.
But perhaps one of the most important factors for marketers is access to effective affiliate marketing tools. These tools can help marketers track their progress, manage relationships with partners, find the right keywords to target, optimize website performance, and much more.
Without these critical tools, it can be difficult for affiliate marketers to be successful in today’s competitive landscape. So if you’re an affiliate marketer yourself, it’s crucial that you stay on top of the latest innovations and continue to hone your skills through the use of these valuable tools.
With the right combination of hard work and the right resources, you’ll be well on your way to achieving all of your affiliate marketing goals.
How Do I Find The Right Affiliate Marketing Campaigns?
When it comes to running an affiliate marketing business, picking the perfect affiliate program to promote can be one of the most challenging aspects. There are so many different options out there, from retailers and large brands to smaller niche companies and everything in between. So how does an affiliate marketer go about selecting the right affiliate marketing program for their audience?
One strategy is to do some research on your readers – what kinds of products do they tend to buy? What are their needs and interests? Then you can look for an affiliate program that matches those preferences. For example, if you run a personal finance website that is more geared toward millennials, look for brands that specifically target millennials.
Another thing to consider is the compensation structure of the affiliate program. Some will pay per sale or per lead, while others offer multiple tiers or tiers plus residual income over time.
You will also want to look at things like cookie tracking period and dispute resolution procedures in case a customer should ever complain about a purchase. By taking the time to do your research and explore all your options, you’ll be able to find an affiliate program that is the perfect fit for your business.
Is Affiliate Marketing Easy?
Affiliate marketing can be a great way to make money online, but it’s important to remember that this business model isn’t necessarily easy.
At its core, affiliate marketing involves selling the products or services of other companies in exchange for a commission. In order to do this successfully, you need to have a strong understanding of your chosen niche and market, as well as effective marketing and selling skills.
Additionally, you need to know how to create transactional content such as blog posts and social media posts.
So while affiliate marketing can certainly be an accessible way to start making money online, it also requires some hard work and dedication in order to succeed.
Which are the best available tools for affiliate marketing in 2022?
I’m a big fan of all the affiliate marketing tools I mentioned above. However, if I were to pick three that everyone should use, it would be Surfer, KWFinder, and Yoast.
What are the best affiliate marketing tools and plugins for WordPress in 2022?
Most of the tools mentioned above can be used on any WordPress website. However, some of them like Yoast or ThirstyAffiliates have WordPress plugins that make things easy for affiliate marketers.
What Are The Best Free Affiliate Marketing Tools?
Many of the tools I listed are either free or have a free trial available. Don’t shy away from using paid tools. Most of them are well worth the money and add value to your business as affiliate marketers.
