"Affiliate Marketing for Beginners: How to Get Started Without a Big Audience?

[Mateusz2]

Hi everyone!


I’ve been getting more and more into online marketing recently. One person who really inspired me is Jason Fladlien – especially his approach to using affiliates to promote webinars and online courses, even when those products aren’t his own.


I have a few questions:


1. How can I attract affiliates if I’m just getting started and don’t have a big audience or personal brand yet?
Who should I reach out to, and how should I approach them?


2. Let’s say I have an online course about sales.
Does the affiliate also need to be an expert in sales to promote it effectively?
I’m wondering if it might seem strange to their audience – like one expert recommending another expert. Could that affect the affiliate’s credibility?


3. If the affiliate promotes my product regularly, won’t their audience eventually get tired of it?
You know – the “oh no, here comes another promo” reaction.
How can I make sure the promotions are effective, but not overwhelming or salesy?
How can the affiliate maintain trust with their audience?


4. I also realize how important bonuses are – I’m planning to create extra materials that affiliates can brand with their own name and logo.
I know that people often buy because of the bonus, not just the core product. But I still have some mental blocks around this… like:

• How do I create bonuses that actually help conversions?
• Will affiliates even want to use my materials under their brand?
• What should the bonus be so that it feels valuable?

If anyone here has gone through this or has advice, I’d truly appreciate your thoughts.

 

[Graybeard]

WELCOME ABOARD ...

━━━●──────────────
how many of your "online courses" have your sold yourself, to real customers, with your own money and how have you done it?
That's the first thing I would want to know.

 

[Mateusz2]

WELCOME ABOARD ...

━━━●──────────────
how many of your "online courses" have your sold yourself, to real customers, with your own money and how have you done it?
That's the first thing I would want to know.

650 people have already bought the course I sold using webinars and Facebook ads. Now I want to test the promotional model that Jason Fladlien uses

 

[Graybeard]

Make a deal with Clickbank or some other affiliate network then. Post the guarantee of payment that their network requires, agree to pay them their cut—tap into their many affiliates.

Trying to form and manage a freestanding affiliate network for an online course is probably not going to make anyone money.

 

[Mateusz2]

"I'm from Poland, so ClickBank is not an option. Why are independent affiliate programs not a good fit?

 

[Mateusz2]

Make a deal with Clickbank or some other affiliate network then. Post the guarantee of payment that their network requires, agree to pay them their cut—tap into their many affiliates.

Trying to form and manage a freestanding affiliate network for an online course is probably not going to make anyone money.

"I'm from Poland, so ClickBank is not an option. Why are independent affiliate programs not a good fit?

 

[Graybeard]

. Why are independent affiliate programs not a good fit?

Risk management. You are an unknown with unproved financial resources. Maybe some will risk that—I won't.

 

[Ariel-ActiveRevenue]

Great questions — and it’s awesome to hear you’re diving into affiliate-driven webinars. Jason Fladlien’s model is brilliant because it builds urgency, provides real value, and lets affiliates tell a story instead of just pitching a product.

Here’s how I’d approach your situation:

1. Attracting affiliates without a big brand - Start with quality, not quantity. Reach out to smaller creators or bloggers who already speak to sales/marketing audiences. Look for podcast hosts, newsletter writers, and niche YouTubers with engaged followings. Offer them a custom experience — personal outreach, a private affiliate walkthrough, and a bonus bundle they can brand themselves.

2. Does the affiliate need to be an expert in sales? - Not necessarily. In fact, some of the best promoters are not experts — they’re just great storytellers or educators who can say, “I found this great resource and wanted to share it.” That builds trust, especially if they’re positioning themselves as a guide, not the guru.

3. Avoiding “promo fatigue” - You’re right — audiences can get burned out. The key is to make every promo feel new and tailored. Help your affiliates rotate angles: one week it's “selling with empathy,” another week it’s “5 sales mistakes to avoid.” Give them storytelling hooks, not just swipe copy. And space out promos so they feel like events, not noise.

4. Creating effective bonuses - You nailed it: people buy the bonus, not the product. Affiliates love white-labeled bonuses if they’re useful, fast to consume, and unique. Think: worksheets, scripts, mini-audios, private Q&As, or swipe files. Make the bonus feel like “something they couldn’t get on their own.”

And for what it’s worth — we work with affiliates and product owners who scale with paid traffic once their funnel converts. Our self-serve DSP lets you run traffic via push, pop, direct click, or in-page formats on CPC/CPM. If you ever want to test webinar attendance or bonus landing pages via paid traffic (without relying on Facebook), happy to help you explore that route.

One final question: are you offering one-time payouts or recurring commissions to your affiliates? That can really impact how attractive your offer is long-term.