How to Use LinkShare

LinkShare is a popular tool that uses "affiliate marketing." With affiliate marketing, you place advertising onto your website from various online retailers. When a visitor on your site clicks an ad and orders a product, you receive a percentage of the sale.

Here is a LinkShare usage example: A visitor comes to your website. At the top of the site, you've placed a LinkShare advertisement for a computer company. The visitor clicks the link, is taken to the retailer's site and buys a computer. You would then earn a percentage of the sale. If the percentage were 5 percent of a $1,000 sale, you would earn $50, in this example.

The main advantage of using LinkShare is that there is no up-front cost on your end. You do not need to maintain inventory or ship products. You attract visitors with content. With millions of Internet users online every day, it is easy to see how affiliate marketing can quickly become profitable for a popular website.

To use LinkShare, you must sign up for an account (see link in Resources). Click "Join."

Read over the information on how the system works, and review the case studies. When you are ready, click the icon marked "Join Now."

A registration page will open. Complete this with details of your legal status (sole proprietor, corporation, etc.) and tax information. This information allows LinkShare to pay you for the commissions you earn. You will also provide details on what type of website you run. When finished, your account log-in information will be emailed to you.

Use the log-in details emailed to you to access your new account. Click the direct link provided in the welcome message to access your LinkShare affiliate page.

Once you are logged in with your LinkShare user and password, you will see an overview of your account. This shows advertising clicks, commissions and money earned. To begin placing money-making ads on your site, click "Programs."

There is a large list of categories from which to choose. Select a category that might interest your website visitors. For example, if you run a women's fashion website, you may want to choose "Clothing and Accessories."

Once you have narrowed down the category your visitors are interested in, a list of participating advertisers will appear. You can see what percent commission each advertiser pays per sale. For each advertiser you would like on your website, select the check box, and then click "Apply."

Some advertisers approve your application instantly, while others will review your website before agreeing to place their ads on your site. Approval notifications will be sent to your email.

Once approved by the advertisers, you can begin placing the actual ads onto your website. From the LinkShare member page, click "Links."

Select the advertiser whose advertising links you'd like use. For example, you might click "Office Depot" to place office supply ads.

On the left side of the advertiser's page, you can select which type of ad to place. These can include simple text ads, graphic banner ads and many other variations. Choosing "Banners / Images" is the most common.

You can now preview the ads available to place on your website. Find one you would like to use and click "Get Link."

A box showing the HTML link code for the advertisement will display. Copy and paste this code into your website. Details on how to edit your website are available from your website host. The ad is now active; you will now earn money any time a visitor clicks the link and purchases a product.