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This is the first in a series of articles I will publish in the next couple of weeks, explaining a step-by-step plan to successful affiliate marketing. This first article is aimed to introduce absolute newbies to the concept of affiliate marketing and to the different ways in which to find a product to promote.

This is the first in a series of articles I will publish in the next couple of weeks, explaining a step-by-step plan to successful affiliate marketing. This first article is aimed to introduce absolute newbies to the concept of affiliate marketing and to the different ways in which to find a product to promote.

This first article is not for experienced marketers neither is it for those who know and understand affiliate marketing and know how to find good products, as it covers only the essential basics. My following articles will hopefully discuss more complex steps and thus may be of interest even to experienced marketers.

Let me begin by answering the question "What is affiliate marketing anyway? I like to compare Affiliate Marketing to the California Gold Rush. The treasures are there and they only need to be discovered. However, to get to the point: if you are an affiliate marketer of a certain product, the merchant or the product publisher will pay you a commission each and every time he or she makes a sale as a result of traffic you have sent to their sale page.

There are different types of products: material products - from face cream to a million dollar villa; digital products - software, ebooks, videos, that can be downloaded instantly from the Internet; and products in the form of registrations to courses, opts-in to email lists etc. Many thousands of merchants pay commissions to their affiliates for sales and for leads.

You can see that the fortunes are there, hidden under the ground in Internet land. You need to go out there and dig it out. Most new affiliate marketers learn that their first step, i.e. finding the right product, is the most complicated one.

Here are a few ways to start:

1. Think of a product that you have purchased online and were very happy with. Try to become an affiliate. Visit the product's web site or sales page and click on the link to the "affiliate program." You can read there all the details you would want to know.

2. Think about your hobbies. Subjects you are really interested in, such as sewing, poker playing, gardening, anything. You may know a lot about your hobby and perhaps you are a member of some forums. This will come very handy when you are ready to promote the product you choose. For instance, if your hobby is poker. You play with friends on weekends; you watch the TV poker shows. Search for a poker learning software or course that you can easily promote.

3. Try to think of something that is very popular in the United States, but hasn't reached Europe yet, register to become an affiliate and start a Google Adwords campaign in France or in Great Britain. And, vice versa. Perhaps you've been to Europe and discovered a great product that is not yet known in North America. Contact the production company and start promoting it in the US.

4. Follow the popular products on your kids' list. Talk to them and to their friends or to any group of teenagers to find out what they like. These are usually best selling items.

5. Make a habit of looking at the popular magazines. They usually report on the latest trends and fashionable products.

6. And, obviously: become an affiliate at Commision Junction, ClickBank and other such services. Their database has thousands of products and they'll let you know what the best sellers are.

In a couple of days I will publish Part 2 of the step-by-step plan to lucrative affiliate marketing.