Last Updated on April 17, 2024 by Eric Cantu
Which course is best for affiliate marketing? Are there any affiliate marketing training platforms that can be a true “one stop shop” without additional modules needing to be bought? And what about the flip side of the coin? Which affiliate marketing courses should you absolutely stay away from?
Let’s dive in and give you a comprehensive look at platforms that are both cost-effective and deliver solid training along with the duds that will slowly (or quickly) empty your savings account.
Which Course is Best For Affiliate Marketing?
My top courses for affiliate marketing, considering price point and overall training are:
1. Wealthy Affiliate
2. Authority Site System 3.0 from Authority Hacker
3. Chris Farrell’s 10 Minutes to Success
4. Affilorama
Key Takeaways
- Wealthy Affiliate provides the most bang for your buck considering its affordability along with extremely thorough, straightforward approach to teaching affiliate marketing.
- Authority Site System 3.0 is expensive, but delivers with solid training. The amount of work involved may make it harder for new affiliate marketers to succeed with.
- Stay away from any and all “done for you” systems! There is no such thing as a business that you can “set and forget”. Steer clear of unreasonable revenue promises and courses with very low-buys ins followed by MASSIVE upsells.
Training That Delivers!
• Turn your own niche website into revenue
• Step by step training, tools, & support
• Your own AI powered Business Hub
• Get me as your support coach!
• Free test drive to see if it’s a good fit!
Best Bang For Your Buck: Wealthy Affiliate
Straightforward, affordable, and with results that deliver, Wealthy Affiliate is, by far, my absolute top recommendation for anyone wanting to get started affiliate marketing.
- Risk Free Test Drive: Free Starter Account available to test drive the training first and see if it’s a good fit
- Affordable Premium Membership: Multiple tiers of membership, starting at $49/month
- One Stop Shop: New Wealthy Affiliate “Hubs” provide endless content ideas, AI article designer, AI author for blog writing, along with step by step training.
- Newbie to Expert: Detailed and thorough training lessons explaining each aspect of how affiliate marketing works step by step as you build out your business
- Get Hands On: Training is set up for you to apply what you’re learning immediately to your site, allowing you to earn as you learn
- Fully Customized Websites: Guided, easy to follow WordPress website building, even if you’re never done it before
- State of the Art Hosting: Website Hosting included with membership
- Websites Good on Mobile: Fast, responsive websites with features like domain email and more
- Included Tools and Resources: The best keyword research tool I’ve found online, fully integrated, with included training on how to get the most out of it
- Global Community: A community of like-minded entrepreneurs over 1.4 million strong to brainstorm ideas with
- Coaching and Support: One on one personal coaching throughout your training along with 24/7 site support for whenever you run into technical difficulties or questions. 24/7 live chat is also available for instant answers to questions.
- Choosing Your Direction: Step by step walkthrough for choosing a profitable niche that you’re passionate about
- Learn SEO: Extensive training in SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
- Visual Learner: Step by step video tutorials guiding you through each lesson
- Expert Classes: Advanced expert class training in aspects like social media marketing, use of AI tools, YouTube, Pay Per Click campaigns, email marketing, landing pages, funnels, and much, much more
Related Article at WorkFromYourLaptop.com!
Check out my full Wealthy Affiliate Review showing the very recent updates to the platform along with brand new tiers of membership and price points. Immediately see why it’s my top recommended affiliate marketing training course and why I owe 100% of my success to its training.
The Authority Site System 3.0 from Authority Hacker
Like Wealthy Affiliate, The Authority Site System 3.0 (TASS) goes for straightforward training instead of the flashy “guru” style training method. Unlike Wealthy Affiliate, It has a much higher price tag.
- Price Point: The Authority Site System 3.0 is priced at $997.
- Comprehensive Training: This course, created by Authority Hacker, guides you step-by-step video training in building a niche website that becomes an authority site, attracting high traffic and revenue.
- Founders’ Expertise: Gael Breton and Mark Webster, the founders, share their expertise in building profitable authority affiliate marketing sites.
- Realistic Expectations: They emphasize the requirement of time, work, and perseverance, positioning the course as a “get rich slow” plan rather than a quick scheme.
- Budgeting Aid: A budgeting spreadsheet is provided to help you understand potential costs upfront.
- Detailed Curriculum: The course covers everything from niche selection to selling your website for profit.
- Accessible Format: Each lesson includes an easy-to-follow video tutorial.
Check out my full Authority Site System 3.0 Review here!
Chris Farrell’s 10 Minutes to Success
A slightly lesser known affiliate marketing training platform is one called Chris Farrell 10 Minutes to Success. It’s also in that good “bang for your buck” lane, with solid video tutorials and an affordable monthly price for affiliate marketing beginners.
- Background of Chris Farrell: Chris Farrell, a successful internet marketer, started his online journey in 2008. He has developed a comprehensive training curriculum for building an affiliate marketing business.
- Pricing and Trial: The membership starts with a 7-day trial costing $4.95, after which you can choose to upgrade to full membership for $37/month.
- Membership Access: To access the program, you need to join the Chris Farrell Membership mailing list, which starts with receiving daily emails and videos.
- Training Structure: Chris Farrell Membership offers step-by-step guidance for beginners in affiliate marketing, slightly cheaper than Wealthy Affiliate though it doesn’t match Wealthy Affiliate’s training depth
- Ease of Learning: The training is made up of well-structured video tutorials that are easy to follow
- Features of 10 Minutes to Success: Ready-to-use websites, traffic generation training, product creation, business growth strategies, email marketing, full member support, and more.
Affilorama
Affilorama is a large affiliate marketing community and training website. They focus on the brand new affiliate marketer looking to start from scratch. Membership starts at affordable rates but does eventually get more expensive.
- Affilorama Pricing: Offers both free and premium training options. Free membership includes access to blog content and training videos, while premium membership provides additional, more comprehensive training modules.
- Premium Training Modules: Affilorama’s premium packages include Pathway to Passive, AffiloTools, and AffiloJetpack, each with specific features and benefits.
- Pathway to Passive ($37): Focuses on content strategies for affiliate sites to increase traffic, sales, and passive income.
- AffiloTools (Free for Members): Provides comprehensive web stats for marketers, including keyword ranking, backlink analysis, website health score, traffic, revenue data, and social media insights. Available for free to Affilorama members but with limited features.
- AffiloJetpack ($997): The most expensive package, offering a “Done For You” system. Includes five WordPress websites (setup and hosting included), content creation cheat-sheets, access to content writers, email templates, and reports for boosting email opt-ins. It promotes quick revenue generation but always beware of systems claiming to be “done for you”.
- Money-Back Guarantee: AffiloJetpack offers a 60-day money-back guarantee and an additional $100 guarantee under specific conditions. This guarantee applies if you can prove following the training without achieving results within 60 days.
Affiliate Marketing Courses & Training That You Should AVOID as a Beginner
In doing research for this topic, I found that some of the top results for affiliate marketing training courses on Google were ones that I would absolutely avoid as a beginner affiliate marketer. Many of these training platforms have huge red flags that you should avoid at all costs.
To be clear, the red flags I’m talking about that are a common theme with the following training platforms are::
- Unrealistic promises of revenue
- Low buy-ins followed by massive upsells
- A la carte training modules that become increasingly more expensive
- Flashy “guru” type leadership
- Promises of a “Done For You” business
- Teaching paid ads way too early
- “Coaching calls” that are actually pressured sales calls
Keala Kanae’s Fullstaq Marketer
From Keala Kanae who very well may be the king of high ticket online marketing platforms filled with upsells comes Fullstaq Marketer. This is Keala Kanae’s official reboot to his first extremely high ticket training platform called AWOL Academy.
With AWOL Academy, customer complaints began to come in once they realized that their low $99 buy in grew to needing $10k to finish the entire training. Unfortunately, Fullstaq Marketer is an exact replica of the same bad practices.
Price: $99 buy-in, $15k to finish
Red Flags: Unrealistic revenue promises, massive upsells, pressured sales calls, “done for you” business model promises, history of complaints
Related Article at WorkFromYourLaptop.com!
Check out “Is Fullstaq Marketer Legit?” for a detailed review on this platform and why you should stay away from its massive upsells!
John Crestani’s Super Affiliate System
John Crestani’s Super Affiliate System is all about high ticket pricing and paid ads: two things you should definitely steer clear from as a brand new affiliate marketer.
Adding to that is the EXTREME cringe factor from his not-so-live webinar where he hits every cliche a “guru” can hit, from bikini babes, a helicopter, and a massive stack of cash on his desk as he teaches.
Price: $997
Red Flags: Paid ads too early, flashy “guru” hype and cliches, “done for you” business model promises
David Sharpe’s Legendary Marketer
David Sharpe’s Legendary Marketer is another high ticket training platform that has an upsell of $2500! As a beginner it can be easy to fall right into their marketing and not see that the entire goal of this platform is basically to get you to buy and resell their product.
Price: $7 buy-in, upsell of $2500
Red Flags:. Buy and resell high ticket training, massive upsells, high pressure sales call, done for you business model, unrealistic revenue promises
The Super Affiliate Network
The Super Affiliate Network is another example of a high ticket “buy and resell”. Spend a lot of money on their “training” and then the only way to recoup that money is to go promote it and find other people to buy it from you. Affiliate marketing is much, much more than that.
Misha Wilson’s Super Affiliate Network hits all the cliche red flags with an ultra low $1 buy in followed by $12,497 of training teaching you how to resell the same platform you just bought.
Price: $1 buy-in, $12,497 total upsell
Red Flags: Buy and resell, low buy-in followed by massive upsell, done for you business promises, unrealistic promises of revenue, guru hype
Blake Nubar’s Social Media Lead Machine
Blake Nubar’s Social Media Lead Machine teaches you how to turn your Facebook page into a lead trap. What do I mean by that? I mean the training literally guides you on how to infiltrate Facebook groups and then lure them back to your profile which you’ve transformed into a landing page style lead trap where you can sell and upsell to these unsuspecting people you’ve friended.
Please don’t do this and make your friends hate you for being an affiliate marketer!
Price: $7 buy-in, $297 master class upsell
Red Flags: Bizarre premise, extremely unrealistic revenue promises, done for you system promises, buy and resell premise
Final Thoughts
Straightforward, affordable affiliate marketing training is out there. Lean towards platforms that focus on actual learning instead of just buying their product to resell it. Be aware of the common red flags out there and stay away from flashy “gurus” and their schemes!
Have some questions for me? Which of the affiliate marketing training platforms on my list do you have experience with? Have you had good or bad experiences with any of the platforms listed that you want to share? Drop me a line in the comments section below.!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Most Cost-Effective Affiliate Marketing Training Platform?
Wealthy Affiliate stands out as the most cost-effective option for learning affiliate marketing. It offers a comprehensive, straightforward approach with a free starter account and affordable premium memberships. The platform includes a range of tools, resources, and support, making it ideal for beginners and experienced marketers alike.
Are There Any “One-Stop Shop” Affiliate Marketing Courses?
Wealthy Affiliate and The Authority Site System 3.0 by Authority Hacker are considered “one-stop-shop” platforms. They provide extensive training and resources, covering all aspects of building and scaling an affiliate marketing business without the need for additional purchases.
Which Affiliate Marketing Courses Should Beginners Avoid?
Beginners should avoid courses with unrealistic revenue promises, massive upsells, and “done for you” systems.
How Important is Niche Selection in Affiliate Marketing?
Selecting a niche based on personal passion or interest is crucial in affiliate marketing. It ensures enjoyable and consistent content creation, making you more relatable to your audience. Avoid pursuing “untapped” niches; instead, focus on areas you are genuinely interested in for long-term success.
What Should I Look for in an Affiliate Marketing Course?
Look for courses that offer realistic expectations, comprehensive training without hidden costs, and support for both beginners and advanced marketers. Avoid courses with overhyped promises, high-pressure sales tactics, and limited practical training.
Is Keyword Research Essential in Affiliate Marketing?
Yes, keyword research is fundamental in affiliate marketing. It helps identify what your target audience is searching for, allowing you to create content that matches their queries.
Can I Trust Courses with High Price Tags?
A high price tag doesn’t always equate to quality in affiliate marketing courses. Be wary of courses that offer quick success or “done for you” systems. Research thoroughly, read reviews, and consider platforms that offer trial periods or money-back guarantees to assess their value.
KD says
This article was awesome. I am already a member of Wealthy Affiliate, but I have some associates who are interested in starting affiliate marketing. I am going to share this with them as it will help them narrow down what course will be best for them. Thanks for the detailed review. I appreciate it.
Eric Cantu says
You’re very welcome!
Eric,
Thanks for this review, I do have a question.
One of your ‘red flags’ is an already set-up website or premade business, you say to steer clear of these types. But yet Affilorama has that very thing, 5 preset-up WordPress websites and they are on your list of recommended programs. My question is why do you recommend Affilorama? I did read your brief warning on the preset-up sites pertaining to Affilorama, but I am still curious as to why they made the recommended list.
Thank you so much.
Stacie
What I list as a red flag are “done for you” businesses, meaning businesses that promise a “set it and forget it” type business model where they claim you can just buy their model and you’re done. 🙂 Big difference. Thanks for the comment.
This is exactly what I was looking for. Quick question regarding Wealthy Affiliate, I’m curious about its effectiveness for someone completely new to affiliate marketing. Does it provide enough foundational knowledge for beginners, or is it better suited for those with some prior experience in the field? Thanks again. I appreciate it.
Wealthy Affiliate is my top recommendation for anyone looking to make money online, whether they’re a complete newbie like I was or someone with a bit of experience. Thanks for the comment!