The Wealthy Affiliate program is known to many online. But, what is it about and how does it work so you can get paid?
We break it all down below.
What's the payout from Wealthy Affiliate?
Wealthy Affiliate has a referral program that allows you to earn a commission by referring other people to their platform. There are 3 membership levels to choose from that pay you according to your level.
- Wealthy Affiliate Free Starter Membership
- Premium
- Premium Plus
The payout structure is the following...
For a more detailed explanation of Wealthy Affiliate's compensation plan, check out this article: Wealthy Affiliate Compensation Plan.
Are people having success with Wealthy Affiliate?
When scrolling through the Wealthy Affiliate dashboard, you'll find the section where members share their successes.
As you go through the list, you'll come across students who have successfully promoted Wealthy Affiliate, Amazon products and who have even sold websites. For a list of success stories and their earnings, click here: Wealthy Affiliate Success Stories & Earnings.
How do you succeed / promote Wealthy Affiliate?
To successfully promote and earn an income with Wealthy Affiliate, there are a few basic things that need to be done.
How long does it usually take to make money promoting Wealthy Affiliate?
New affiliate websites take anywhere between 6-9 months before they see any earnings. To see earn a full-time income, it can take at least a year. It's unrealistic to think that you'll immediately start making money with WA because there are many variables to consider.
The most logical reason it takes all that time is that your content needs to build up its authority and trust in Google. Once that's accomplished, your site will rank well.
What complaints do people have about Wealthy Affiliate?
No platform is perfect, and as a result, there will always be someone who will complain about something. Some of the more popular and legitimate complaints about Wealthy Affiliate are...
- Lack of SEO training
- Ambassadors aren't that helpful
- No phone number to call for support
To read more complaints about Wealthy Affiliate, read our article: Wealthy Affiliate Complaints.
Because of those complaints, many people don't think that the platform is for them and look for Wealthy Affiliate alternatives. Below, we made a comparison between Wealthy Affiliate and the Amazon Affiliate Program, followed by a comparison to the Amazing Selling Machine, Amazon FBA course.
Wealthy Affiliate vs. Amazon Affiliate Program
Here's a comparison between the Wealthy Affiliate and Amazon Affiliate payout structures.
Compensation Plan Comparison
Wealthy Affiliate
Amazon Affiliate
Payment Amount:
Starter members earn $11.75 monthly and $117.50 yearly. Premium members earn $23.50 monthly and $235 yearly. Premium Plus members earn $46.50 monthly and $465 yearly. These commissions are per referral.
How much commission you earn depends on what kind of product or service you're promoting on Amazon. Obviously, all product pricing is different, but Amazon breaks down the fixed commission income rates here.
When you are paid:
They pay commissions on the first of every month.
Commissions are earned when an order has shipped. They are deposited in your account around 60 days after the month for which they are being paid.
Wealthy Affiliate vs. Amazing Selling Machine
For those who are hesitant to jump into WA and are open to another business model, the comparison below is between the Wealthy Affiliate program and the Amazing Selling Machine Amazon FBA course.
Wealthy Affiliate
AMS
Price:
Free starter membership; Premium is $19 first month, then $49 per month; Premium Plus is $49 first month, then $99 per month after.
$5000 or 6 payments of $997
Course Started:
2005
2012
Coach:
Kyle Loudon & Carson Lim are successful bloggers and online entrepreneurs
Jason Katzenback & Matt Clark have built multiple 7 and 8 figure FBA businesses
Group:
Private community forum for help and support
Private Facebook group has over 30,000 students
Training:
Hundreds of training videos along with access to bonus training videos depending on your membership level
It's difficult to fully comprehend the training because they don't share enough real-world examples or case studies. Makes you wonder if the strategies are still effective.
Live:
As a premium member, you're able to access live training sessions within the platform
There are no live coaching calls
Compensation Plan Comparison
Payment Amount:
Starter members earn $11.75 monthly and $117.50 yearly. Premium members earn $23.50 monthly and $235 yearly. Premium Plus members earn $46.50 monthly and $465 yearly. These commissions are per referral.
There are 3 main offerings. You can earn either $1,495 or $2,392 for their flagship course (25% or 40%). You can earn up to $597 for referring people to their course without access to the private community (25%). Finally, you earn, on average, $425 for referring people to their annual conference (50%). There are even commissionable upsells, as you can view here.
When you are paid:
They pay commissions on the first of every month.
Commissions are paid on the 15th of each month after the 30 day refund period has ended.
Comparing Affiliate Marketing to Local Lead Generation
I have made plenty of money creating 6-figure businesses in affiliate marketing, Amazon FBA and other business models. Local lead generation, though, has earned me my most passive income to date.
Here's a comparison between Wealthy Affiliate and Lead Generation.
Affiliate Marketing
Lead Generation
Barrier to Entry
Low - many people can promote the same products or services you do
High - there is less competition/saturation
Control:
No control - The company whose products or services you choose to promote dictates how much commission you will make and if they will continue selling. You are at their mercy.
Complete control - You decide who you do business with and how much you earn per month. You also decide how often you get paid (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly). No one can fire you since you own the digital assets and control the flow of where the leads are sent.
Speed:
It takes 6 months to a year to build the authority of your affiliate sites.
Ranking locally is much easier, which helps you receive your profit much quicker
Traffic:
Paid traffic is a hassle because you always have to monitor ads and split test to see what works. You spend hundreds or thousands of dollars with little ROI.
Organic traffic ensures that you don't need to spend money on ads. This all equates to higher profit margins.
Niches:
Many popular niches are saturated, which makes it hard to earn a passive income
There are thousands of niches and many cities/towns to get into
Conclusion
Some people will become a member of the Wealthy Affiliate program and others will look elsewhere for a way to make money online. Local lead generation is by far my #1 online business model.
When I joined in 2014, I put my head down and worked hard to build out my digital properties. Eventually, I reached a monthly recurring income of $52K.
To learn more about how you can make money by generating leads for other businesses, click below.
