In part one of this article, we talked about why large product launches can be a complete waste of your time, especially if you approach them with the generic tools and email messages offered by most affiliate programs.

Now let's talk about how you can maximize your profit potential when new affiliate products are launched.

Ask for a Sneak Peak

This is one of my favorite tactics for making money with new product launches because it works soooo well, if you can get the merchant to work with you on it. Here's how it works:

1. The merchant will likely announce to it's affiliates that they will be launching a new product within days or weeks. When you receive one of those announcements, contact the merchant (or affiliate manager) and ask them if you can get a sneak peak of the product in order to write a review. Some merchants will be willing to offer you a beta version of the product, the first two or three chapters, or even the whole kit and kaboodle. Merchants will be much more likely to honor your request if you've been an active affiliate in the past, but don't be discourage if you get turned down flat. Some merchants just don't have any foresight.

2. Once the merchant has agreed to let you view part or all of the product, email your list and let them know that you've seen it and will be sending them your review as soon as it launches. This will help to build excitement and anticipation with your subscribers.

3. Once you get a peak at the product, write a well thought out article or review about it. Only put one or two links in the article so that they can get more information about the product direct from the merchant.

4. Hold your article until the launch date. There's no reason to send it out before the program is up and running so that you can profit from it. While you're waiting, however, you can set your article up to be announced in the directories, posted on your blog, sent in your autoresponder, etc. as soon as the official launch date arrives.

5. Launch your article/review and watch the orders pour in!

Video It

There are a couple of marketers who do this really well. It's quick and easy, let me show you how it works.

1. Create a video report about the product, what problem it solves, etc. Make sure the video is well thought out and offers something of value... not just an advertisement. (Camtasia works best for this.)

2. When you've finished the video, make sure you set it up to automatically send the viewer to the affiliate sales page when the movie is done playing. (You can find instructions on how to do this in the program)

3. Send a teaser email to your affiliates about some problem that you have the answer to. Tell them that it's a video report... people like watching videos.

The reason I really like this idea is that it's so quick and easy. It takes only a few minutes to create a video, people love them, and they can give you an advantage with your subscribers.

NOTE: If you have your own product/affiliate program, you may want to also consider creating videos for your affiliates to brand and send out. It's super simple! Click here for more information.

Create Special Report/Article

As with the video idea above, you'll want to create a special report or article addressing a specific problem or issue that the new affiliate product will address and send out a teaser email about it. Here are some guidelines:

1. Write the report or article as an informational piece, not a sales letter.

2. Make sure it contains plenty of REAL information.

3. Link only to the new product you're promoting and don't over-link. A "sponsored by" type of link always works well for me.

4. Articles should be pretty meaty and reports should run at least 3-5 pages... up to 10 if you can offer that much information.

Build Subscriber Loyalty and Trust

You might be able to get away with just sending out an occasional product announcement to your list, if you've worked hard to build the trust and loyalty of your subscribers... but don't over-do it! You don't want to destroy the credibility you've gained with your subscribers by taking advantage of them and sending out tons of product announcements.

If you decide to go this route, be sure to re-write the generic launch email provided by your merchant so that it sounds like it's coming from you and has your voice. In addition, I highly suggest that you don't pretend to be chummy with the product owner -- it screams of scam. Just be honest, your subscribers will appreciate it.

Your subscribers may choose to purchase the product from you just because they trust you, feel you've provided good advice/service in the past, or just plain like you.

Review It

Once the product actually launches, buy it and review it honestly. When you've finished and posted your review, send the link to your subscribers.

You might miss out on the initial rush in the market, but you'll probably have more sales in the long term. People who didn't buy during the rush will appreciate an honest review and may buy from you for just that reason. In addition, others who join the market after the original product launch will be searching for honest reviews of the product and you can make additional sales then.

A good review of a good product (or an honest review of a mediocre one) never goes to waste!

Conclusion

Are there other ways to maximize your profit when a new product launches?

Probably.

But, in my experience, the methods outlined above work extremely well. The beauty of these methods is that they work for a product launch, but they also work really well for long term profitability. In other words, you can create these pre-selling products once and reap the rewards for as long as the product remains viable.

I don't know about you, but I like long-term profits.

Do you have an idea for how to profit from new product launches that I didn't talk about here? Just let me know and I'll consider adding it to this page along with a URL credit to you!

Arvada Yates