Affiliate Links

Now we are getting to the stuff you are really here to read... Some easy and effective ways to make money using Craigslist. I call this first one “The Affiliate Link Method”. I know that’s not a very cool name but it works.

This method of making money using affiliate programs and Craigslist can be done completely free but I highly recommend getting one generic domain name and a cheap webhost (if you don’t already have a domain and host).

I’ll tell you why in a minute. The domain name will cost you around $8 per year and you can get hosting for less than $10 per month. You could easily make those costs back with just one ad and a few minutes of work.

Now the reason I suggest you get the domain and webhost is because Craigslist does not allow you to post Clickbank links within your ads. Being able to use Clickbank will make this method much easier and more profitable for you. If you have a domain and webhost all you have to do is set up a redirect link from your domain name to your Clickbank affiliate link and you can post the link within the ad.

Not to mention this looks much more professional than putting an affiliate link of any sort in the listing and will increase the amount of clicks you get from your ad.

Notice above I said you should get a “generic” domain name and the reasoning is simple… You will be re-directing to many different affiliate products in different niches so you don’t want your domain to pertain to any one niche. Something like http://informationforyou.com would be a good one.

If you already have a domain name you could use it to set up your redirects, even if it’s not generic, but since a new domain is so darn cheap you might as well get one that will serve you better for this purpose. It will be more than worth it in the long run.

If you don’t already have a domain and host and really don’t want to get one, that’s ok, you will just have to find affiliate programs to base your ads around that Craigslist does allow you to link to. It will be harder on you and take more of your time finding them but it can be done and it will be totally free.

Ok, now that we have all that out of the way let’s get going on how to use these affiliate programs to make money…

In my personal experience I have found that products and services which help people with their financial situation (debt help, make money, save money, real estate, loans, etc…) tend to convert the best.

So what I do is go to the Clickbank.com marketplace and find a product in one of those categories. I usually just pick one on the first page of the Clickbank results in the category I’m searching for. The reason I do this is because those are already the best sellers so the chances of them converting and being legitimate are much higher.

Just in case you haven’t ever chosen a product to promote on Clickbank, I’ll quickly go through the steps of picking one and give you an example;


1) First you need to sign up for a Clickbank account. If you already have one move on to step two. http://www.clickbank.com/accountSignup.htm

2) Once you have an account go to the CB marketplace at: http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace.htm

3) Let’s say you were going to post an ad about debt relief. You would click the drop down arrow next to “category” and click “Money & Employment”

4) Now click the drop down arrow next to “subcat” and click “debt”

5) I always just leave the keywords box blank, sort by popularity, and show 10 results per page.

6) Click “go”

7) You now see a list of 10 products covering different topics about debt. Click “view pitch page” to check out the website of each product until you find one you want to promote.

8) Create your affiliate link. Click “create hoplink” under any product and you will get a pop-up window allowing you to make your affiliate link. Just put in your clickbank nickname and hit submit. You will then be given your link.

9) That’s it. You are ready to promote. As I stated above, you will need to set up a redirect from your domain/website to your CB affiliate link in order to post it on Craigslist.

Now let’s look at a sample ad you might use:

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We Will Make You Debt Free In Just 3 to 5 Years

With our system you will become 100% debt free in as little as 3-5 years!

Higher than a 97% success rate.

See for yourself RISK FREE...

[Your Link Goes Here]

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As you can see it’s very simple but can be extremely effective. That’s just a model for you to use. Don’t copy it or there will end up being way too many of the same ad.

Remember, you are not limited to just using Clickbank for this method. You can use any affiliate program. I simply suggest clickbank because it’s so easy to find many different products to promote in one place and you only have to sign up once to promote them all.