Look there it is again. Right there in the middle of your screen. It’s not e-mail and it’s not a website. That funny little link that says, "join our affiliate program" or some such thing. Just think all you need to do is join up and watch the money start flowing in. Just when you think you’ve got it made reality sets in and you see yet another day of zero sales.

Don’t despair, and don’t go hide under your bed. There really is a good side to this endeavor of yours. Read on, for suggestions on how to promote your website with a free affiliate program directory that actually makes you money.

Okay, first you need to go get a domain. Please don’t choose "BillyBob.com" unless of course the niche you will be focusing on is indeed "Billy Bob". Your domain name needs to be reflected in whatever your niche is about. If it’s about dog’s you want dog.com, though that URL is most likely long since gone so maybe you will have to choose doggie.com or some such alternative.

Once you have your domain it’s time to build your website. Though the purpose of this article is not to go into the finer points of how to build your website it is important to note that proper SEO optimization early on will produce rich results later on down the track.

Many affiliate products come with a free aspect that you can promote from your website. Take the autoresponder services of Aweber for instance. Aweber gives people the ability to test-drive their service and then they allow their affiliates to add code so that people can take advantage of this opportunity directly from your site. How good is that?

Of course, if your niche is to sell ice to Eskimo’s then your success with Aweber will probably be dismal at best. Find free things related to your niche, especially from the affiliate programs you are working with and market those to your potential clients.

Or better yet, create a whole niche directory of related affiliate program freebies and give this to your audience. In their appreciation you will have found a long-term loyal follower who will be interested in whatever else you have to offer to your targeted niche audience.

Now that you have a SEO friendly website affiliate directory you can use free ezines related to your niche audience to drive traffic to your website. If your experience is like mine this is not an over-night proposition. You will not find a "get rich quick" scenario here. However, if you do it right and keep a steady flow of targeted traffic coming in when you start to see success it will likely be continuous as long as the content of your website remains relevant to the audience you are reaching.