Affiliate marketing can be a great way to make money online. However, if you’re still learning affiliate marketing, you’ve probably already realized it can be a steep learning curve.
If you’re looking for the best affiliate marketing course to reduce the learning curve, you’ve come to the right place!
You see, there’s a lot of bad, outdated information about affiliate marketing on the internet. It’s easy for a beginner to suffer from information overload. Many beginners also waste time on methods that are no longer effective. It can be very frustrating and demoralizing.
We believe the best way to master affiliate marketing is to learn from someone who’s already a successful affiliate marketer.
But that’s easier said than done. The problem is, there are many courses on the internet. What further complicates things is that many of these courses are promoted by affiliate marketers. And many of them don’t advise you, as required by the FTC, that they earn a commission on sales.
So, how do you find the best affiliate marketing course?
In this article, we’ll review some of the most popular affiliate marketing courses. As affiliate marketers ourselves, we’ve seen it all and know what works, and we’ll be sharing exactly what we like and don’t like about them. We’ll also mention which one we consider to be the best course.
But first, before we get started, here are some tips that’ll help you on your journey to become a successful affiliate.
7 Affiliate Marketing Tips
Before we introduce you to the candidates for the best affiliate marketing course, consider the following tips and advice.
1. Affiliate marketing is an easy concept. Don’t overcomplicate it.
Remember the basics. It’s about entering into an agreement with a merchant to promote their product in return for a commission on sales. It’s not rocket science.
2. Becoming a successful marketer requires three steps.
Step 1: Find great products to promote.
Step 2: Place those products in front of the right audience.
Step 3: Give your audience a reason to buy.
It’s really that simple. The above steps are WHAT you need to do. No course can change that fact. Affiliate marketing courses are there to teach you HOW to do it.
Remember, there are many different ways to promote a product as an affiliate. You don’t need to do all of them or be an expert in all of them.
Tip: Start by selecting a method you feel the most comfortable with, and become an expert with that one method first.
As the saying goes, don’t be a jack of all trades, master of none. For example, it’s better to be an expert in Pinterest marketing than mediocre at marketing on all social platforms at once.
3. A good affiliate marketing course is an investment.
Some of the best affiliate marketing courses are not cheap. Putting together a great course, updating it on a regular basis, and providing support to members takes time.
It can take many years of trial and error for someone to become a super affiliate. It’s understandable why they may demand a premium price for access to their time and knowledge. Besides, it’s not in their best interests to share it with too many people, especially not at a low price.
There are many affiliate marketers that earn thousands of dollars every month from affiliate marketing. It’s certainly possible to become a successful affiliate marketer without buying an expensive course. However, if you can copy what works, learn from the mistakes of others, and save time doing so, it’s worth it.
4. Guard against information overload.
Chances are you’re reading this article because you’re suffering from information overload and want a course to help you cut to the chase. You want to go to one place to get the answers you’re looking for instead of searching for random answers online.
Unfortunately, you can also get information overload from some of the best affiliate marketing courses.
You see, it’s normal that a course creator wants to add as much value as possible. This is especially true for some expensive courses. However, ending up on a page with 200+ videos can be a recipe for information overload.
Our advice is not to wait until you think you know everything before you take action. Go through the whole course, make notes along the way, and take action. You can always return to watch important videos again or read through material if you get stuck.
5. Start a website.
It’s possible to become an affiliate marketer without a website. But we highly recommend you build or buy one. Many good affiliate programs won’t approve your application to become an affiliate if you don’t have a site.
By website, we mean a self-hosted website or blog you own, not a site on a free platform such as Blogger.com. The content management platform we recommend is WordPress (WordPress.org).
Many affiliates start off using a platform such as Blogger.com and only realize later it wasn’t the best choice. Instead of waiting, you should start with WordPress from the beginning.
Most successful affiliates have a self-hosted website on WordPress.
For example, Michelle Schroeder-Gardner is a successful affiliate. She regularly earns over $100,000 per month from her blog Making Sense of Cents. About 63% of her income is from affiliate marketing.
She started blogging using Blogger.com and calls it a “huge mistake.” At some point, her blog was shut down for no reason at all and she was lucky to get it back. According to Michelle: “After that, I switched to self-hosted WordPress and I’ve been 1,000,000 times happier.”
Note: Starting a website can be daunting for beginners. At Brand Builders, we specialize in pre-made turnkey affiliate websites and custom-made affiliate websites that are perfect for Amazon. We can also supply custom-made websites for other affiliate programs such as CJ, ClickBank, ShareASale, etc. Don’t let the technical stuff stop you from succeeding at affiliate marketing!
6. Build an email list.
Many top affiliates will tell you “the money is in the list.” The sooner you start building your email list, the sooner you can profit from it.
Building up sufficient traffic to really start profiting from affiliate marketing takes time. Many visitors will never return to your site. But by capturing their name and email address, you can continue to promote offers to them.
Your email list is the only type of traffic you own.
It’s people you can contact at will. If you have a large list of targeted prospects, you can earn good commissions from email marketing.
Just remember the golden rule: you must give before you can receive. You cannot only send your list ads all the time. You have to gain their trust by providing them with relevant, high quality, and useful information.
You also have to stay in regular contact with them or else they’ll quickly forget who you are.
The two service providers we recommend are ActiveCampaign and ConvertKit.
ActiveCampaign offers more features than ConvertKit.
ConvertKit is very popular with bloggers. It has a limited free plan that allows you to connect with up to 1,000 subscribers.
7. Be patient.
Affiliate marketing isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. It took many of the most successful affiliate marketers several months before they started earning regular commissions. Don’t expect miracles in your first month!
As previously mentioned, following a good course can reduce the learning curve. It can help speed up the process of you earning your first affiliate commission. But it’s not a magic wand.
It will require a lot of effort from your side for you to become a successful affiliate marketer.
Instead of growing impatient, see yourself as the CEO of a new startup. You have to treat affiliate marketing as a serious business and not just a part-time hobby. Remember, it’s up to you to make it work.
For additional tips and recommendations read 5 Best Affiliate Programs for Beginners.
Best Affiliate Marketing Course Candidates
With those tips in mind for success as an affiliate marketer, now it’s time to further your education! Here are our candidates for the best affiliate marketing course (in alphabetical order):
- 1*2*3 Affiliate Marketing
- Affiliate Lab
- Digital Worth Academy
- Protect 24
- Savage Affiliates
- The Affiliate Marketing Video Course
- The Authority Site System (TASS)
- Wealthy Affiliate
We’ll rate every course between 1-Star and 5-Stars, based on the following criteria:
- Beginner friendly.
- Value for money.
- Quality, comprehensive content that’s not freely available on the internet.
- Content that’s updated on a regular basis, and therefore still relevant.
- Refund policy, and how responsive the course creator is to questions.
Important: A 1-star or 2-star rating doesn’t necessarily imply it’s a bad course. It just means we think there are better courses available, especially if you’re a beginner.
They are all popular affiliate marketing courses, but are they good? Let’s find out!
1*2*3 Affiliate Marketing
1*2*3 Affiliate Marketing was developed by Pat Flynn from SmartPassiveIncome.com.
Pat started his affiliate marketing journey in 2010 and has made over $3.5 million from it over the years.
His course is built on 23 lessons across 5 modules. The curriculum includes three steps, namely:
Step 1. Choose the Right Product.
Step 2. Passive Promotional Strategies.
Step 3. Active Promotional Strategies.
Rating: * *
Teaching method: Video-based training program.
Price: $699 for lifetime access to the course.
Refund Policy: 30-day refund.
Support: Very good support. Pat can be contacted directly via email. You also gain access to an exclusive Facebook community where you can interact with fellow classmates.
Pros
- A huge emphasis on building strong affiliate marketing relationships.
- Good coverage of email marketing.
Cons
- Not suitable for beginners who don’t already have an online presence and some online following.
- Not enough coverage of important topics such as SEO.
- The price tag of $699 is very steep compared to the value offered by other courses.
Conclusion:
Pat is an honest and well-respected marketer. He teaches what works for him based on his personal experiences. His course is a bit lightweight to justify a $699 price. And by his own admission, it’s not suitable for beginners.
Affiliate Lab
Affiliate Lab is an affiliate marketing course developed by Matt Diggity.
Matt’s income model is based on building affiliate sites, getting them to rank well in Google, and then selling them. For example, he states that a site that earns $10,000 per month can be flipped (sold) for 30 – 40 times its monthly income.
Matt is a highly respected affiliate marketer and SEO expert.
The course contains 160+ videos and 24+ hours of training. It also has several templates and checklists.
Rating: * *
Teaching Method: Mainly video-based training.
Price: $997
Refund Policy: No refund offered.
Support: Available via their exclusive Facebook Group.
Pros
- A strong emphasis on SEO and how to rank well in Google.
- Suitable for both complete newbies and experienced marketers.
Cons
- Employs a mixture of both white hat and black hat link building strategies. This can be risky, as Google can severely penalize sites for unnatural links.
- No refund offered.
- High price tag.
Conclusion:
Despite many raving reviews for Affiliate Lab, we have some reservations. For one thing, $997 is a lot to pay for a course that doesn’t offer a refund.
Matt has had a lot of success using Private Blog Networks (PBNs) to get links. There’s no doubt it can be effective to boost your site. However, according to Neil Patel, they’re a hack. He compares it to a get-rich-quick scheme and says using it involves some serious risks.
If you want to build, rank, and flip a website, then Affiliate Lab may be a good option for you. If not, then Affiliate Lab may not be the most relevant course.
At BrandBuilders, we believe in white hat SEO, so we can’t recommend a course that has the potential to get your website penalized. Based on this, we’re not comfortable giving Affiliate Lab more than two stars.
One last thing. It’s puzzling that on the homepage, Matt states that Affiliate Lab doesn’t have an affiliate program. However, we’ve found affiliates that are promoting it. They’re linking to a special one-time offer (OTO) that offers a $200 discount off the $997 price.
The Authority Site System (TASS)
The Authority Site System (TASS) by Gael Breton and Mark Webster is one of the courses available on AuthorityHacker.com.
TASS is geared towards complete beginners. It shows you how to build a brand new authority site from scratch. It covers everything from selecting a good niche, to creating content for it, to link building.
The course contains 125+ videos, case studies, templates, and to-do lists. It also has an active members community and Q&A forums.
The course has five main modules:
Module 1: The Authority Site Business Model 101
Module 2: Niche Research & Content Planning
Module 3: Site Setup
Module 4: Content Production & Outsourcing
Module 5: Intense Link Building
Note: If you have an existing website that’s already generating $1,000+ per month, then TASS is probably not right for you. Instead, you should enroll in their course Authority Hacker Pro.
Rating: * * * * *
Teaching Method: Mainly video-based training.
Price: $997 for lifetime access. Includes free updates.
Refund Policy: 30-days money back guarantee.
Support: Through their Facebook Group.
Pros
- Structured, step-by-step course developed especially for beginners.
- Comprehensive, high quality content.
- Proven business model for generating revenue with affiliate marketing.
Cons
- High price tag.
- More advanced tactics are only shared in Authority Hacker Pro, their flagship training program. They could have included key topics such as email marketing in TASS instead.
Conclusion:
The Authority Site System is a breath of fresh air in an ocean of mediocre affiliate marketing courses. It includes everything a beginner needs to know about how to get started, and what it takes to become a successful affiliate marketer.
A lot of work is required upfront, but it does become easier over time. If you’re willing to put in the effort, we see no reason why TASS won’t be a good investment.
Project 24
Project 24 is a course developed by Jim Harmer and Ricky Kesler of IncomeSchool.com.
Project 24 isn’t only about affiliate marketing. It’s about how a website can be optimized and monetized to provide you with a passive income. The idea is that you start a project that can replace your current income in 24 months.
It’s not a traditional course as such, but rather a library that you have access to. The content include headings / topics such as:
“60 steps to a successful site”
“Picking profitable niches”
“No nonsense SEO”
“Web traffic snowball”
“Email marketing 101”
“Hire and train writers”
“Photography start”
“Reviewing your sites”
“Improve and speed up your writing”
“Monetize your site with ads”
“The success mindset”
You get access to 220+ videos, a members-only podcast, and the Project 24 community.
Rating: * *
Teaching Method: Mainly video-based training.
Price: $449 for the 1st year, then $199 per year for successive years.
Refund Policy: No refund offered.
Support: Mainly through the Project 24 community.
Pros
- Suitable for beginners and experienced marketers.
- Strong focus on the need for quality content.
Cons
- No refund offered.
- Easy to get information overload from 220+ videos, many of which are not directly related to affiliate marketing.
- Certain SEO topics such as link building are not covered in sufficient detail.
- Annual renewal fee.
Conclusion:
Project 24 contains some good information. However, it lacks the structure and focus you would expect to find in a good affiliate marketing course. $449 is a lot of money to pay for a “library” that doesn’t offer a refund if you’re not satisfied.
Wealthy Affiliate
Wealthy Affiliate was founded way back in 2005 by Kyle Loudoun and Carson Lim. It’s a massive membership site. According to Kyle, they have 2.2 million members.
Wealthy Affiliate follows a 4-step business building process:
Step 1. Choose an Interest.
Step 2. Build a Website.
Step 3. Attract Visitors.
Step 4. Earn Revenue.
They offer several training programs, including:
- Online Entrepreneur Certification – 5 courses, 50 lessons.
- Affiliate Bootcamp – 7 courses, 70 lessons.
They also have a Training HQ section with training videos, and classrooms.
Some of the topics you can find in the classrooms are:
- Authoring & Writing Content – 12 videos, 6 courses, 54 tutorials, 5 webinars.
- Keyword, Niche and Market Research – 14 videos, 4 courses, 46 tutorials, 11 webinars.
- Website Development & Programming – 28 videos, 5 courses, 55 tutorials, 8 webinars.
- Social Engagement & Marketing – 19 videos, 4 courses, 27 tutorials, 8 webinars.
- Search Engine Optimization – 8 videos, 4 courses, 29 tutorials, 15 webinars.
- Everything WordPress – 90 videos, 5 courses, 60 tutorials, 5 webinars.
- Email Marketing – 1 video, 5 courses, 14 tutorials, 2 webinars.
- Pay Per Click Marketing – 7 videos, 5 courses, 17 tutorials, 1 webinar.
- Video Marketing – 15 videos, 5 courses, 5 tutorials, 1 webinar.
Rating: *
Teaching Method: Mainly video-based training.
Price: Free 7-day trial with limited access, then $49 per month. They offer a $30 discount for the first month.
Refund Policy: Refunds are generally not processed. In all fairness, you do get a 7-day free trial and can cancel your subscription at any time.
Support: Mainly by asking questions to the community.
Pros
- An active community that supports each other.
- In-house tools for keyword research and building a website.
Cons
- A lot of outdated information.
- Inconsistent advice and recommendations.
- Using them is like drinking from a fire hydrant.
Conclusion:
According to Wealthy Affiliate, whether you’re just getting started, or are a highly successful affiliate, they are the right choice. Their one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t make sense.
They use a lot of hype to sell their membership site. For example, on their homepage they mention:
“Building your very own website is SIMPLE within Wealthy Affiliate. The process takes less than 30 seconds to build a beautiful looking, mobile, and revenue ready website.”
Seriously? Less than 30 seconds?
The first step of their 4-step business building process is to choose an interest. This is how they explain it:
“Step 1. Choose an interest. This can be anything at all, any interest, passion or even something you have no personal experience with.”
Seriously? This is their first step? Choosing the right niche is one of the most important steps to take. If you get this wrong, you’re off to a very bad start.
Can’t think of anything at all? No problem… as mentioned on their home page, they will help you choose from over 1,000,000 different niches. No comment.
In all fairness, we have no doubt you’ll find some good content on their site. However, we don’t recommend them for beginners and don’t see why any highly successful affiliate marketer would want to join.
They do have an affiliate program for Wealthy Affiliate and it can be lucrative for affiliates to promote them. We think this is more than likely why there are so many raving reviews for them on the internet.
Digital Worth Academy
Digital Worth Academy is an affiliate marketing course by Sarah Young and Andrew Hansen.
Their goal is to help you earn $100 a day from your websites, working 1 hour a day. This is done using advanced keyword research, high quality content, and white-hat link building.
To put it simply, they believe in building authority sites.
The 3 core elements of the course are:
- Finding low competition profit centers in big niches.
- Building small blogs that can turn into large content platforms.
- Using clean and effective SEO strategies for long term traffic.
The course content includes:
The Digital Asset Blueprint – 6 sections, 30+ modules, and 150+ videos detailing the entire process, step by step.
Part #1. Picking Markets & Products.
Part #2. Making Your Authority Site With WordPress.
Part #3. Making Money With Content.
Part #4. Getting Rankings & Traffic From Google.
Software Tools:
1. Commission Wizard – Helps you find best selling, high commission products on Amazon.
Note: They don’t only use or recommend Amazon but also other affiliate networks.
2. Diamond Keyword Miner Software – Uncover good keywords you can rank for.
3. Profit Calculator – Establish what’s profitable before you start.
Rating: * * * * *
Teaching Method: Mostly video-based training, with PDF transcripts.
Price: $797 for lifetime access, including updates.
Refund Policy: They offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Support: They have a support desk.
Pros
- Step-by-step system.
- Suitable for beginners.
- Comprehensive, quality information.
Cons
- High price tag.
Conclusion:
Digital Worth Academy is a good affiliate course that beginners and even more advanced affiliate marketers can benefit from. It’s a step-by-step, well-structured course.
Savage Affiliates
Savage Affiliates is a course offered by Franklin Hatchett. The goal is to have your first profitable passive income business in 30 days.
Franks offers two different plans, namely a Standard plan and a Super Plan. Both plans offer the following:
- Over the shoulder affiliate training.
- Niche research training.
- Website setup & training.
- Email marketing setup & training.
- Funnel setup & training.
- ClickBank Training & bonus funnels.
- Amazon affiliate marketing training.
- Google search engine optimization.
- Paid traffic academy.
- Free traffic academy.
- Private inner circle with Frank & other members.
- Weekly videos, including Q&A sessions.
- Instant access & lifetime updates.
The Super plan also includes the following:
- Full step-by-step ClickFunnels affiliate academy.
- His secret “done for you” affiliate marketing funnel.
- Multiple ClickFunnels pre-made funnels.
- Launch jacking affiliate method blueprint.
- Web hosting affiliate method blueprint.
Course Content:
- Affiliate Marketing Introduction – 6 videos
- Module 1: Affiliate Products To Promote – 7 videos
- Module 2: Building Your Website Asset – 17 videos
- Module 3: Email Marketing & Funnels – 13 videos
- Module 4: ClickBank Affiliate Marketing – 31 videos
- Module 5: Part 1: ClickFunnels Affiliate Marketing – 29 videos (Super Plan Only)
- Module 5: Part 2: ClickFunnels Affiliate Marketing – 19 videos (Super Plan Only)
- Module 6: Amazon Affiliate Marketing – 15 videos.
- Module 7: SEO Google Traffic Training – 19 videos.
- Module 8: Free Traffic Training – 18 videos.
- Module 9: Paid Traffic Training – 19 videos.
- Module 10: Launch Jacking & Web Hosting – 13 videos (Super Plan Only)
Rating: * * *
Teaching Method: Mainly video-based training.
Price: $197 for the Standard Plan & $297 for the Super Plan. Lifetime access.
Refund Policy: 30 Days – Only if you DO the program and DON’T get results.
Support: You can email Frank for support.
Pros
- Comprehensive step-by-step course for $197.
Cons
- Hidden costs. For example, expect to pay an extra $97 per month for ClickFunnels.
- Some black-hat SEO techniques can get you in serious trouble with Google.
- No training on prominent affiliate networks like CJ and ShareASale.
Conclusion:
It doesn’t create a very good first impression when the first thing you see on the page is a countdown timer. In the introduction video, Frank urges you to buy ASAP, as the price is about to increase. That’s before you’ve even had the chance to look at the page.
First impression aside, the course does offer a lot of value. Frank is a very knowledgeable marketer and passionate about what he does. The asking price for the course, considering the huge amount of work Frank has put into it, is very reasonable.
However, we feel it’s not the best course for beginners. It doesn’t cover some affiliate networks we would expect to find in such a course. And, some of the link building techniques are questionable and shouldn’t be recommended to beginners.
The Affiliate Marketing Video Course
The Affiliate Marketing Video Course is a course by Matt Giovanisci of MoneyLab.co.
Matt is an experienced and respected affiliate marketer who earns over $ 400,000 every year from affiliate marketing.
Course Content:
The Affiliate Marketing Video Course Introduction – 7 minutes
Affiliate Marketing Fundamentals
My Affiliate Marketing Fundamentals – 8 minutes
The Technical Ins and Outs of Affiliate Marketing – 14 minutes
What You Can Realistically Earn With Affiliate Marketing – 8 minutes
The Rules of Affiliate Marketing – 11 minutes
Affiliate Disclosures: Do’s, Don’ts, and Best Practices – Document
Common Affiliate Marketing Mistakes To Avoid – 5 minutes
Building an Affiliate Marketing Website
An Introduction To Crafting The Perfect Affiliate Website – 2 minutes
Brainstorming An Affiliate Friendly Niche – 11 minutes
Narrowing Down Your Niche – 7 minutes
Picking A Good Domain Name – 8 minutes
Setting Up Your Site Right – 7 minutes
Install These WordPress Plugins – 5 minutes
Create Content That’s Searchable and Converts – 8 minutes
How to Pick The Right Affiliate Products, Programs, and Networks – 7 minutes
Growing Your Affiliate Marketing Website
How To Supercharge An Existing Affiliate Site – 12 minutes
Tracking Your Affiliate Links and Affiliate Income – 19 minutes
More Ways to Promote Your Affiliate Links – 9 minutes
How to Grow and Scale Your Affiliate Marketing Efforts – 4 minutes
Bonus Content
Recommended Tools for Affiliate Marketing – 6 minutes
Additional Affiliate Marketing Resources and Who To Trust – 6 minutes
LASSO Affiliate Marketing WordPress Plugin Walk Through – 14 minutes
Building a Profitable Affiliate Niche Site From Scratch with BrewCabin.com – 24 minutes
The Best Affiliate Marketing Practices on a Podcast with Travis Sherry – 18 minutes
20% Off Carbonate WordPress Theme – Document
Templates and Spreadsheets
Affiliate Programs and Network List – Link
Google Data Studio Template for Affiliate Marketing Tracking – Link
Become an Affiliate
How to Join the Affiliate Program – Document
How to Get Your Affiliate Links – Document
Rating: * *
Teaching Method: Mostly video-based training.
Price: $199 for lifetime access.
Refund Policy: 30-Day money back guarantee, provided you haven’t accessed more than 30% of the course.
Support: Can contact Matt for support.
Pros
- Matt is not afraid to share his own personal affiliate sites.
Cons
- Doesn’t cover SEO.
- Not really suitable for complete beginners.
- Thin content.
Conclusion:
By his own admission, this course isn’t really for newbies and only lightly touches on SEO. He has another course on SEO called “SEO For Bloggers” that sells for $299.
The course only has 22 videos spanning 4 modules, including a bonus module. Several of the videos are very short.
Matt is a great marketer but he could have developed a better, more comprehensive course.
Our Verdict
Out of the 8 affiliate marketing courses we reviewed, two courses stood head and shoulders above the rest, namely:
The Authority Site System (TASS)
And
Both are excellent step-by-step affiliate marketing courses, suitable for beginners.
It’s very difficult to choose between them but if we could only buy one course, if would be:
The Authority Site System (TASS)
We consider TASS to be the best affiliate marketing course at the moment. It has a great reputation, and many success stories. We feel Digital Worth Academy is marginally behind TASS, but that’s enough to make TASS the winner.
Conclusion
There are MANY courses on affiliate marketing out there. The 8 courses we reviewed in this article are among the most popular ones at the moment.
TASS came out on top based on our selection criteria. We were looking for a top quality affiliate marketing course that we could confidently recommend to beginners and intermediate marketers. A course that follows a step-by-step, proven, and low-risk approach.
There is no system or course that works perfectly for everyone. We’re all at different stages of our journey. But wherever you are in your own affiliate marketing career, the most important thing is to take action. And in reality, no course can do that for you. You have to make it happen.
In the words of Wayne Gretzky: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone. BrandBuilders has a wealth of quality services specifically built for affiliate marketers and their websites. Book a coaching call with one of our experts and let’s explore how we can help you succeed!
