Master resell rights vs affiliate marketing are popular methods for earning money online. Master resell rights (MRR) involve buying a digital product, selling it to others, and allowing them to resell it. On the other hand, affiliate marketing involves promoting products and earning a commission for each sale you make.
Master Resell Rights
Master resell rights require an investment of around $10 to $500 as you must buy a product first.
Master resell rights let you keep 100% of the profit; you can earn more with fewer sales.
You can set your own pricing and even customize the product (if allowed) with master resell rights.
You manage everything with master resell rights - from marketing and sales to customer support and distribution.
To start with master resell rights, you must find and purchase a product, set up a platform, customize sales pages, and manage customer service.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing requires no investment as you just need to sign up with an affiliate program.
Affiliate marketing lets you earn a 5% to 40% commission; you need more sales to increase your earnings.
You have no control over the product or pricing in affiliate marketing.
You only need to promote the products with affiliate marketing, while the company handles the rest.
To start affiliate marketing, you simply need to join an affiliate program, get your unique link, and share it to earn commissions.
Master resell rights are highly profitable. It allows you to sell the product as many times as your license agreement allows. Plus, you keep 100% of the profit. Digital products, especially online courses, are also in high demand. According to Forbes, the e-learning market will grow by 20.5% from 2022 to 2030.
Jonathan Seller earned $15,000 in his first month of selling MRR. He says the key was selling an online course he was passionate about. It also had to be high quality. Since most of his audience was on Instagram, he immediately started posting there. Using his strong marketing skills, he generated over 600 new leads for the course.
Affiliate marketing is also profitable, though it tends to earn more slowly. What's great about it is that there is no overhead cost, making it low-risk. And even though you only earn commissions, you can make good money if you have a strong influence in your niche. According to Authority Hacker, affiliate marketers earn an average of $8,000 per month.
Kirsty McCubbin is one successful affiliate marketer. Her affiliate journey began in 2003 after working as an SEO specialist. She built an online business promoting products in niches like travel and finance. Kirsty earns over $1 million from affiliate marketing. This is thanks to her skills in SEO, PPC, and content creation. Today, she runs several successful websites, such as Affiliate Stuff, and enjoys time with her family.
However, both master resell rights and affiliate marketing come with challenges. For MRR, you must make sure the product is high quality. You don't want to risk your reputation with your audience. You also need special marketing skills to convince potential customers to buy it. Moreover, a Reddit user says that MRR is already super crowded. Here's how they put it:
In affiliate marketing, you must follow the company's guidelines. They may change terms, reduce commissions, or discontinue products without notice. This makes it harder to plan long-term strategies and leads to unpredictable income. You'll also have to be patient as commission earnings can be slow. Moreover, success depends on gaining and maintaining trust with your audience. Promoting the wrong items or appearing too salesy can damage your credibility. One Reddit user shares their experience with this:
Over the years, I've tried and looked into several business models, including affiliate marketing and master resell rights. Both models offer a lot of potential, but I faced challenges relying heavily on high sales or the success of someone else’s products. Eventually, I discovered a business model that gave me more control and didn’t depend on constant sales or external products. In this article, I’ll break down the 9 key differences between master resell rights and affiliate marketing. I'll also highlight the pros, cons, and top reviews. Plus, I’ll reveal the business model I now use, which has proven to be far more profitable and stable.
9 Key Differences Between Master Resell Rights vs Affiliate Marketing
FEATURES
Master Resell Rights
Affiliate Marketing
Business Nature
MRR is buying the rights to resell a digital product (like e-books, software, or courses) as is. The rights to a product can differ, usually outlined in a license agreement. This includes distribution channels, bundling, price limits, modifications, and any other restrictions. However, you get 100% of the profit by selling the product. Also, part of the value your buyers get is the right to resell it themselves.
Affiliate marketing is promoting a company's product or service through referral links. When someone clicks your link and makes a purchase or signs up, you earn a commission. This is typically a percentage of the sale or a flat fee. You don't handle the product or service. Your main job is to get people to click and buy.
Beginner Friendliness
MRR isn't the best for complete beginners. This is because you need to have a business mindset and invest upfront in a digital product. You're the one who handles customer support, refunds, and marketing. You also have to manage pricing, sales platforms, and technical setups like payments. These tasks can be overwhelming for someone without experience.
Affiliate marketing is more beginner-friendly. Your only focus is on promoting a product or service and driving traffic. You don't have to deal with business operations. You don't even need to make any initial investment to get started. This makes it less overwhelming for newcomers.
Cost & Investment
The cost associated with master resell rights can range anywhere from $10 to $500, depending on the product you buy. MRR products like e-books and templates are much cheaper at around $10 to $50. Courses and software tend to reach hundreds of dollars. For example, The Roadmap to Riches course is $497. Some platforms offer membership packages. This gives you access to entire libraries of products for around $19 per month or a one-time payment of $97 to $200. Of course, these prices don't consider your marketing efforts, which can cost $5 to $1,000.
Affiliate marketing is free as it doesn't cost anything to join an affiliate program. But for the most part, affiliate marketers like to spend a bit on marketing. For example, a website or blog needs domain and web hosting, costing $10-$15/year and $3-$10/month respectively. Ads are also important to reach an audience - this is anywhere from less than a dollar to $20 a day. Email marketing tools range from $12 to $100 a month. It's significantly cheaper than MRR.
Potential Profit
MRR stands out due to its potential for higher profits and quicker returns. You can sell the same product to several buyers without additional effort. So if you buy an online course for $300 and sell it to 3 people at the same price, you've made double what you initially spent. And the money you earned is all yours. Some MRR agreements even let you sell for higher, increasing your profits even more. Pretty quickly, you'll be able to cover your investment.
Affiliate marketing can earn big profits, too. However, it's much slower since your income comes from commissions. If you're promoting pet food that costs $99 and you have a commission rate of 10%, you'll only get $9.90 per sale. You'll have to sell quite a lot of pet food to make it profitable. Plus, you only get a commission when a sale is made through your unique link and it's within the cookie timeframe.
Sales Difficulty and Conversion
Although MRR has high returns, it may be harder to convince people to buy these digital products. The main reason is that they think they can find similar content for free online. Trust is a big factor as well as they won't be able to see the product until bought. Many can't justify the price, especially for the more expensive courses or software. The bright side is that the buyers can resell the product and earn high profits themselves.
Affiliate marketing earns less per sale, but it's easier to attract buyers. You can promote a product or service in a very common niche, including health, beauty, and travel. What's more, many affiliate programs are from well-known brands. People are always willing to spend on things they already want or need. Your role is to simply connect them to the brand or seller, making conversions simpler.
Product Variety
With master resell rights, you can buy and sell various digital products. Here are the most common products:
• E-books
• Software
• Video courses
• Membership sites
• Audio files
• Graphics and design assets
• Templates
• Articles and blog content
• Webinars and tutorials
• Email marketing campaigns
• PLR (Private Label Rights) products
• Marketing tools
With affiliate marketing, you can promote any affiliate product or service across different industries. Here are some of the most common categories:
• Physical products (electronics, apparel)
• Digital products (online courses, apps)
• Financial products (credit cards)
• Travel and hospitality (hotel bookings, flights)
• Web hosting and domain services
• Health and wellness (fitness programs, medical services)
• Marketing tools
• Streaming services
• Security products
• Real estate
Product Control
Master resell rights give you more control over the product. You can resell it, set your price, distribute it freely, and offer resell rights to others. If you sell a product with Private Label Rights (PLR), you can even rebrand and customize the product as your own. MRR lets you sell a product as if it’s yours, without the hassle or expense of product development.
Affiliate marketing gives you no control over the product or service. You're not running your own business. You're simply recommending someone else's product and earning a commission when people buy it.
Operational Responsibility
MRR is like running your own e-commerce business. You're in charge of the sales platform, customer service, refunds, and issues that come up after the sale. You'll also handle marketing, sales tracking, and making sure customers access the product.
Affiliate marketing doesn't handle customer service, inventory, or delivery - just the promotion. You don't even need to worry about creating and managing sales platforms or pages.
Ease of Setup
Setting up an MRR business requires more hands-on involvement. Besides buying a product with resell rights, you'll need to establish a sales platform. This can be a website, an e-commerce store, or a sales funnel. It's important to have compelling copy and design on your sales pages. You'll also have to prepare customer support, transaction handling, and product delivery. Developing a marketing strategy to promote your product is also crucial. It's a more complex but rewarding business model.
Becoming an affiliate marketer has a much simpler setup process. You first join an affiliate program and get your unique referral link. You can then promote your link on a website, blog, or social media platform. You don't need any advanced technical expertise. You only need to know how to promote a product effectively. It's a straightforward and accessible way to start earning commissions online.
Master Resell Rights vs Affiliate Marketing: Pros & Cons
Master Resell Rights Pros
MRR allows you to run a business without creating or managing a product.
You hold resell rights to the product, which can be a valuable long-term asset in your business portfolio.
You can use the product (like studying an online course about digital marketing) and resell it using your new knowledge.
You have control over the pricing and can keep 100% of the revenue from each sale.
You can package products together for a more unique offering.
Affiliate Marketing Pros
You can start without upfront costs, business operation skills, or technical expertise.
You can promote a variety of products within the same niche or across multiple niches, creating diverse streams of income.
Once you've set up effective marketing strategies like SEO and email campaigns, you can enjoy passive income as these continue to drive traffic and sales over time without requiring constant effort.
You can easily switch the affiliate products that don't meet your audience's preferences.
Many successful affiliate marketers prove it works and can lead to significant earnings.
Master Resell Rights Cons
There's financial risk involved in purchasing products that may not sell, especially for beginners with no marketing skills.
Since all buyers can resell the same product, the market can quickly become saturated, causing the product to lose value.
MRR requires consistent active engagement (sales, customer service, marketing) to keep profits coming.
Some people view MRR products as a scam, believing that they are being sold for profit, without regard for their quality or value.
You don't have any say in the product content and quality unless it's with a Private Label Rights (PLR).
Affiliate Marketing Cons
Your income heavily relies on the merchant's commission rates and continuation of products.
Many affiliate niches are highly competitive, making it harder to rank content and drive traffic to your links.
You must convince people to buy a product before the link cookies expire and you lose out on commissions.
Since you only earn a percentage of the sale, it takes a lot more time and effort to gain profits.
You can't build your own customer base or brand loyalty as you're driving traffic to someone else’s product.
Top Reviews on Master Resell Rights vs Affiliate Marketing
Master resell rights have a lot of mixed reviews. One quick search and you'll find lots of people calling it a scam, pyramid scheme, or MLM. However, there's also a bunch of people that defend it. One Reddit user says it's legitimate and is just like ghostwriting. Another person on Quora compares master resell rights to the flea market of the internet.
Moccee Lawme turned her $497 investment in the Roadmap to Riches course into a profit. The course taught her all she needed to know about digital marketing. With her newfound knowledge, she convinced others to buy the online course from her. She claims that she earned a profit of $1,500 from it.
Chalene and Brock Johnson, a mother and son duo, have a middle-ground stance on MRR. In their Build Your Tribe podcast, they agree that it isn't a pyramid scheme or MLM. In fact, they like the idea of being able to sell a digital product without creating it. What they don't like is how it's often marketed. They say many sellers don't fully understand the product they're offering - some don't even check it out. They simply sell it to earn profit. To avoid this, they advise researching MRRs that you believe in instead of following the hype. Others on Reddit and YouTube have called it a complete scam.
Affiliate marketing has its fair share of positive and negative reviews. One advantage is that you often hear about many successful affiliate marketers. Pat Flynn is a well-known figure who earns over $3M from affiliate income alone. He shares tips and tricks for success through his Smart Passive Income blog and YouTube.
Michael Rogers is another successful affiliate marketer. He promoted certified online driving courses and later branched out to other niches. Just recently, he released his affiliate earnings from January to September 2023. He earned $145,171 from commissions. Here’s a screenshot from his website Affiliate Marketer Training:
Users from Reddit and Quora share their experience with affiliate marketing. One person says they enjoyed $7k commissions for several months before dropping to $2K. Pradeep from Quora says he earned $55K in a single month for 7 months.
The negative reviews claim that affiliate marketing isn't as lucrative as it used to be. A Redditor noted that Google now prioritizes news and forum sites, causing affiliate websites to drop rankings. Another person says it's much harder starting from scratch than a few years ago. People must find a way to stand out as so many others are doing the same thing. One affiliate marketer worries about the future, especially with the impact of AI.
What is Master Resell Rights (MRR)?
Master resell rights (MRR) is a type of license that lets you buy a product, use it, and then sell it to others. You also give those buyers the right to resell it, allowing them to make money from it too. It’s a way to earn by selling products without having to create anything yourself. You will have to manage it like your own product, though. This means handling marketing, customer support, and sales.
Master resell rights aren't a pyramid scheme or MLM. This is because, though you keep 100% of your profits, you don’t make money by recruiting others. So it isn't illegal. However, you must always stick to the product creator’s license agreement. This usually includes restrictions on modification and rebranding, pricing limits, or ownership claims. If you don’t obey, you could lose your rights to sell the product or face legal action. You can find master resell rights products to sell through:
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a way to earn money by promoting someone else's product or service. You share a unique affiliate link given to you, and when people buy through your link, you get a commission. In a way, you're the middleman between the company and the customer, earning money for each sale you help make.
Affiliate marketing works by using cookies to track users who click on your links. These cookies usually last for several days (like 30 days) to give people time to think before buying. If they come back and buy within that time, you still earn the commission. After the cookie expires, no credit is given for sales.
You can find an affiliate program for just about any product or service. According to Authority Hacker, a whopping 81% of brands have affiliate programs to help increase awareness and sales. Here are some platforms where you can find quality affiliate programs:
Is Affiliate Marketing More Profitable Than Master Resell Rights?
Affiliate marketing is more profitable than master resell rights as it's more established. You can make money with affiliate marketing as it has a broader range of products and services people are willing to buy. What's more, you can use and review the product yourself to build trust and boost conversions. So even though it's commission-based, you can make a steady income. A Glassdoor survey found the average salary of affiliate marketers. Entry-level respondents earned $40K to $60K, while the senior level reached $80K to $100K+.
That said, master resell rights can be profitable, too. You can make money with master resell rights if you're able to build trust and show people the value of the product. If you can do that, you'll be able to earn back however much you spent on the product and even more.
Is Master Resell Rights a Good Online Business to Start in 2024?
Master resell rights isn't a good online business to start in 2024. Many master resell rights courses and products are low-quality or outdated. You don't want to ruin your reputation by selling them. Worse, MRR is often mistaken for MLMs or pyramid schemes, making people skeptical about it. Master resell rights are oversaturated as lots of people buy the rights to the same product. This includes your buyers and their buyers and so on.
However, if you find a digital product that's truly valuable to you and your audience, then you should give it a go. The great thing about MRR is that you'll keep all the profits from each sale. With great marketing skills, you'll earn back your initial investment and much more. Plus, you can sell the product repeatedly without the need to create your own. It saves you time and effort in product development.
Why Local Lead Generation Is Better Than Master Resell Rights and Affiliate Marketing?
Local lead generation is better than master resell rights and affiliate marketing because:
Local lead generation starts with creating a home service website for a local area. For example, "Plumbing services in Sacramento, CA". You then rank the website through local SEO, using local keywords. When it has many visitors, you rent it to a local business within the same location and industry.
I've tried both master resell rights and affiliate marketing. Although I've earned a decent amount, I found local lead generation beats them by a mile. That's why I've put all my focus on this business model. I now rent out 10 service websites and earn an income stream of $50,000+ a month.
