Sex sells. We’ve heard this before and whether or not you agree or support this notion, the proof is in the porn statistics.
With over $3,000 spent every second on pornography on the internet and 40 million users visiting porn sites regularly, business is booming. But what does this have to do with you?
If you run a website, e-commerce store, or even host your own blog, participating in adult affiliate programs can mean big bucks for you. And that doesn’t mean displaying offensive or overly sexual banners across your pages. There are more discreet ways to break into the adult affiliate program industry.
Read on to discover how it’s done.
What is an Affiliate Program?
Before we discuss how adult affiliate programs can help make you money on your site, here’s a crash course in how affiliate programs work.
Affiliate programs are a win-win for both you and the merchant. Most programs are free to join and only require a simple application process. You may not be approved right away, depending on your site’s page views, domain authority, and monthly traffic.
But once you do get approved, making money is pretty simple. The merchant you’re working with provides you with specific links and banners to use on your site. When a visitor clicks on one of these items, they’re directed to the merchant website. If that click converts to a sale, you get a percentage of the purchase.
This is the most common way to make money through affiliate programs and is known as cost-per-acquisition. Other affiliate programs offer a smaller percentage for cost-per-lead clicks (if the visitor signs-up or fills out a form on the merchant’s site) and cost-per-click (if the visitor simply clicks the link and visits the merchant page).
Do your research when choosing affiliate programs and make sure you understand how and what you’ll be paid before getting started.
Understanding Adult Affiliate Programs
Adult affiliate programs work in the same way as any other niche. But there are some specific things to keep in mind and understand about these types of programs.
There’s a Larger Market Than You Realize
Adult affiliate programs are not designed only for hardcore pornographic sites showcasing videos and racy photos. There are plenty of other niche’s that lend themselves to these types of programs including dating apps, erotica blogs, and matchmaking platforms.
Disclaimers
If you plan to display adult content or links that direct visitors to adult websites that sell products, you should say so up front. You can do this by creating an NSFW (not safe for work) disclaimer or simply state it somewhere on your homepage.
When adding affiliate links to your website, it’s always best to tell your readers. This is easily done by including an affiliate program disclaimer or side note letting visitors know that you may receive a percentage of sales based on the links on your pages. This helps reinforce credibility with your audience.
Product Options
When you think about adult websites selling products, what comes to mind? Most likely, sex toys. And yes, many adult affiliate programs offer different sex toys for men, women, and couples. But toys aren’t the only product for sale in this market.
You can link to pages selling lingerie, lubricants and massage oils, erotic novels, and bondage materials. Did you know that furniture can be considered an adult product also? Check out the Liberator Esse for example. It’s important to research potential affiliate programs and see which one offers products most relevant to your niche.
It’s also important to choose products that your readers will like and might actually purchase. Try not to push products that are outside of your target audience’s interest.
Highest Paying Adult Affiliate Programs
Now that you understand a little bit more about how adult affiliate programs work, let’s cover the most popular sites out there.
Adam & Eve
Adam and Eve is one of the United State’s largest suppliers of adult products for both men and women. On this site, you’ll find everything from vibrators and lingerie to lotions and adult movies.
And with 20% commission rates, this site offers some of the highest affiliate marketing payouts of any adult site out there. There are several networks through which Adam and Eve run their affiliate programs including Pepperjam, Viglink, and Affiliate Awesome.
You’ll need to fill out some basic information on whichever network you choose and wait for approval.
LELO
LELO offers luxury sex toys at high-end prices. Here you’ll find massagers, vibrators, lubricant, and even candles and gift sets.
Joining the LELO affiliate program is fairly simple. Visit the websites affiliate page and create an account. You’ll find out whether or not your site is approved within a few days.
LELO offers commissions from 5-20%. The commission is determined by the type of publisher and traffic sources. The site also offers customer support and access to product banners and images that are updated monthly. Members of the affiliate program are also rewarded with free gifts.
Fleshlight
This adult affiliate program is not for the faint of heart. Fleshlight products are pretty graphic in nature. They are basically a replica of the female vagina. They come in several different colors, materials, and styles.
On the site, you’ll find photos of the Fleshlight girls, which are models for the products. Fleshlight does sell other products such as sex toys for couples and anal toys. Applying to this affiliate program is simple and the payouts are pretty high.
You receive 30% of every sale made on Fleshlight. Most products are priced between $60 and $100, depending on your preference.
Amazon
Amazon’s affiliate program may be one of the world’s most popular. And though it doesn’t have its own adult affiliate program, Amazon does sell a wide variety of adult products. You can easily link to lingerie, sex toys, massage oils and lotions, erotic novels and more.
Amazon’s affiliate program offers a very small percentage of each sale and is based on the number of sales. You receive 4% for up to six sales and 6% for between seven and 30 sales. You’ll need to make between 321 and 630 sales to receive 7.5% commission.
Amazon will approve your application almost immediately and then review it within 180 days. If you don’t make at least three sales in this time period, your affiliate account will be terminated.
Make Money While You Sleep
The great thing about any affiliate program is that once the links are in place, you can make money with little to no effort. Your biggest challenge will be driving traffic to your site. The more visitors viewing your pages, the more chances they’ll click on an affiliate link and make a purchase.
With a net worth of approximately $100 billion, the adult industry is one market that could mean big bucks for you. Monetizing your site could ultimately mean quitting your 9 to 5 job and working from home. Check out how other people are making it happen with home based jobs.