Today, I want to share with you a little secret but before I reveal how you can make hundreds of pounds, sometimes thousands over a period of time, I need to give you a little background information regarding an internet trend called Affiliate Marketing. 

1. ​An "Affiliate" is an individual that attempts to sell another companies products or services in return for a financial reward. 
   
2. ​An "Affiliate Scheme" is a business that offers a financial reward to the Affiliate for referring a customer to their website that successfully completes a purchase, known as a "Qualified Sale" 
   
   

Let's say for argument's sake that BT Broadband sell their Fibre broadband package for £50 per month. In order to increase their revenue, they set up an affiliate scheme whereby anyone passing business to them will receive 5% of the first month's subscription. 

 

The Affiliate would therefore earn commission as follows: £50 * 0.05 = £2.50 Revenue

A Real Life Example

You will all have heard of Martin Lewis, the founder of the website "Money Saving Expert" and TV presenter of "The Martin Lewis Money Show" on ITV. The site provides financial comparisons of bank accounts, mortgages and credit cards in order to outline the best deals on the market so you can then make an informed decision on what's right for you. Martin Lewis, in my opinion, is an absolute genius. 

Whilst the MoneySavingExpert website provides valuable information, it does make its income from you, the customer. Most of the products reviewed are in fact part of affiliate schemes which pay the sites owner when you sign up to a given product also know as a "Cost Per Action or CPA".

What does an Affiliate link look like? 

Once an Affiliate signs up to an Affiliate Scheme, they need to send over potential customers and they do this by using Affiliate Links. When the affiliate signs up to a scheme, they will be given an ID number or reference. This distinguishes you between other affiliates on the scheme. In this example, let's presume the Affiliate ID is GHRRT. 

The affiliates job is to now "Market" or advertise their Affiliate link in whatever way they choose. Martin Lewis for example has created a website outlining the best financial buys on the market. He also appears on TV as well as asking customers to sign up to his newsletter where they can include more links. 

If we think back to the BT Broadband example, let's presume the signup link to purchase the product was bt.com/buy-broadband. An affiliate link would need to include a reference that lets BT know that they should be paying commission to the affiliate "IF" the customer buys their product. An affiliate link would therefore look something more like bt.com/buy-broadband?refererID=GHRRT. 

Now the affiliate has their link to the product, their job is simple. All they need to do is market that link as much as possible. They may write a blog post or send out the link in an email or perhaps print out a flyer with their link and perform some door to door leaflet drops. 

Background information Complete - So What is Quidco?

​I hope the information above has at the very least shown you one aspect of how internet marketing can genuinely make money online. You could now make your own website geared towards publishing reviews of products with your own affiliate links geared towards your own interests for which you have a passion for. Or you can Join Quidco and take the commission for yourself.

STEP 1: Create yourself a Quidco Account.

Click the image to the left and sign up to Quidco.
Get £10 FREE when you sign up. The £10 is credited to your account once you make a purchase via Quidco with one of your favorite online retailers.

​

STEP 2: ​Shop til' you drop.

​It's very easy to earn money from your everyday purchases and the more you shop online, the more you will save and earn in the form of cashback. All you need to do is log on to Quidco.com BEFORE you enter the site you are looking to purchase from. Once logged into Quidco, click into the search box and enter the retailer you wish to shop with. Not all retailers will offer cashback but many do. If you find your retailer of choice does not offer cashback, try entering a keyword instead such as electronics. I'm going to type in Debenhams and at the time of writing, they are offering 4% cashback on purchases. The next step is to click their logo or offer. You will be shown all deals available so all you need to do at this point is click one of the Shop now buttons.

You will then be redirected over to your chosen retailer after which you would complete your purchase as normal.

BONUS TIPS

AFFILIATE CLASH:
Whilst you're browsing the internet, you may have already clicked on an affiliate link unknowingly. This usually means that the 1st affiliate to send the referral code will take the commission resulting in you missing your bounty. This can occur if you're looking at coupon code websites which again are pretty much websites stuffed to the rafters with affiliate links. To avoid this, use a web browser like Google Chrome which has an "In Private Browsing" or "Incognito" mode. The easiest way to open this up is to press CTRL + SHIFT + N in Chrome or CTRL + SHIFT + P if you use Internet Explorer or Edge. These modes do not remember previous affiliate links or other browsing data. When you're ready to make a purchase, start from here:

1. Open a Private Browser Session using one of the above options.
2. Log on to Quidco.
3. Select Your Retailer and be redirected to their website.
4. Add items to your shopping basket.
5. Make payment at checkout.

This way - only your affiliate link from Quidco will be valid and you will earn your cashback.

Does Quidco Really Work?

Yes, it really does. On purchases you're going to make anyway, why not take a slice of commission yourself instead of clicking through someone else's link. Below shows an example of a Quidco account that has been in operation since 2003. Over the years, the owner has received over £1362 in Quidco and if they had not have clicked through the Quidco website first, that money would have gone to someone else.