Most profitable Niche for Affiliate Marketing

The affiliate program market is huge – many, many offers and affiliate programs in a variety of areas. It’s not easy identifying the path that will lead you to maximum profit. Especially if you are just starting your journey in affiliate marketing. Over the years of painstaking work, we at LeadBit managed to identify a number of signs that indicate the profitability of a niche. In this article we reveal the secrets of how to look for these signs and how to choose the most profitable affiliate marketing niche.

Please note: this article will not focus on market giants or major verticals. You don’t need an article to tell you that the Amazon affiliate program or Dating offers bring in many, many dollars a year. Next, let’s talk in detail about those niches that will provide you with a decent income.

The main criteria for choosing a profitable niche

All goods and services promoted through affiliate programs will be profitable if there is demand and adequate supply. However, there are products that are relevant here and now, and there are those that are timeless – i.e. do not lose their relevance in the long term, there’s constant demand for them.

Such niches are characterized by the following features:

• Relevant always and everywhere. When we talk about an affiliate program that focuses on cryptocurrency investments, there are no guarantees. It could collapse in a couple of years. IPhone sales, travel, etc., as recent events have shown, it can also be “come and go”. But beauty, 18+ themes, gambling and online entertainment are niches that were, are and will be. The conclusion suggests itself: you should look for suitable niches in these verticals.
• High payouts. In practice, we have repeatedly faced the fact that large payments in affiliate programs are linked to the CPA/COD model. CPL/SOI/DOI, of course, also provide a good income, but only if the project is large-scale. An experienced affiliate marketer with a good advertising budget can afford to attract 3,000 unique visitors per day to the CPL offer and get a solid profit even with a relatively low ROI of 30-40%. In theory, a beginner can do the same. However, most likely, they have a smaller budget, therefore, will bring fewer visitors, while CPL payments remain no higher than $3. Ultimately, he will make a profit, but the amount will be small. Let’s explain in numbers: a pro affiliate marketer spent $1000 on CPL advertising, got $1300 – 30% ROI. 300$ profit. The newbie worked according to the same scheme, let’s say that he did not make any mistakes (and this happens rarely), but spent $100 and received $130. His income is $ 30. As for CPA, here payments for one lead reach $ 200. Of course, you need to know how to work with the model, but other things being equal, it turns out to be more profitable.
• Inexpensive traffic. Your task is not just to bring many users who will later become the advertiser’s clients, but to achieve the maximum difference between revenue from leads and traffic expenses. Since rewards for offers are fixed, you need to increase profits by reducing advertising costs. An almost free stable source of high quality traffic is your own website (if you have one of course). The only cost is domain and hosting. However, you will be limited by the topic of the site and the inability to filter visitors by GEO. The way out is to choose niches for the promotion of which this will not be a hindrance. For example, drugs to improve potency can be offered to almost all men over 50, and anti-wrinkle remedies can be offered to all women over 30. Even a small website or blog will work when advertising such offers, if payments are made according to the CPA/COD model.

Note that the affiliate marketing industry is still growing. According to Statista reports, in the US alone, arbitrage traffic spending will increase to $ 8.2 billion by 2022 (link to source). Therefore, there are definitely opportunities for earning and development. The main thing is to choose the right niche!

Video on How to Find a High-Paying Niche in Affiliate Marketing

TOP 10 Most Profitable Affiliate Marketing Niches

Let’s move on from theory to practice. Below we describe suitable affiliate marketing niches, and at the same time give examples of specific affiliate programs.

Weight loss

Nutra is a trending vertical in affiliate marketing with a variety of beauty and health products. Weight loss is one of its main subcategories. Dietary supplements, calorie burners, body shaping creams and ointments are all part of this niche.

Among the advantages:

• Independence from trends.There is always a demand. With the onset of the warm season, it increases – after winter ends, everyone is traditionally perplexed by the issue of losing weight they got over the holiday season.
• Great coverage. The offers are aimed at women from 25 to 55 years old who dream of a slim and fit body. And they lack the time, money and/or self-discipline to just work out. Their goal is to get a product that will give visible results quickly and effortlessly.
• Lots of traffic sources. The target audience is very wide, traffic for it can be found almost everywhere – any GEO, any type of advertising, including inexpensive ones: teasers, your own website, ads in thematic blogs and communities (when you negotiate placement directly with the owner).

An example of a specific affiliate program – DETONIC MK (SLIM)

• What is it: slimming capsules. They return slimness and beauty in 2 weeks. Action: weight control, toning, cellulite reduction.
• GEO: Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Latvia, Romania, France, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Spain, Hungary, Croatia, Austria, Bulgaria, Germany.
• Payouts up to $30.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads, YouTube.

A Video About What is Nutra and How to Choose the Most Profitable Network in it

Wrinkle removal

Anti-aging drugs are another popular Nutra subcategory. As an affiliate marketer, you will have to promote creams, ointments, scrubs, and other beauty products that are designed for women in their 30s and older.

The target audience is, obviously, those who’ve begun noticing the results of aging the form of wrinkles. Their main fears are to lose beauty and therefore the attention of the opposite sex. Their desires – to restore elasticity and firmness to the skin, to look younger.

The target audience is constantly searching for a new miracle product that would “wipe” the years from their face, make their skin smooth and healthy.

Sources of cheap traffic are suitable here: thematic groups and communities, targeted ads and teaser, social media spam. To increase conversion rates you can use pre-landing pages where people will see “recommendations” from celebrities, data about successful tests, and striking “before / after” photos.

An example of a specific affiliate program – BEAUTY

• What is it: anti-wrinkle serum.
• GEO: Romania, Greece, Bulgaria, Germany, Spain, Italy.
• Payouts up to $18.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads, YouTube.

Loans

A white-hat niche with a fairly good ROI and a good community. There’s plenty of space on the market since the financial leads market is still growing. Payouts here are higher than in other verticals – you can get several thousand rubles from one approval. But it is much more difficult to make the client perform the target action.

Financial offers fall into two categories:

• Banking products. Large banks known to a wide audience offer loans and credit cards, mortgages, and other services. One of the advantages of working with these offers is that they operate legally, and therefore it is easier to promote than shady microcredits. The audience is mature solvent men and women who need a large amount of money for a serious purchase: real estate, cars, etc. You shouldn’t mix several audiences on one offer, it’s better to select the target audience narrowly.
• Products of microfinance organizations. Working with MFOs is a gold mine of affiliate opportunities. The audience is already interested in getting money, the microcredit conditions seem attractive to them. A typical MFO borrower is a 25-35 year old man with high demands, a low-paying job and secondary education. Women rarely turn to MFOs, if they do it’s probably a single mother or women with an abusive husband. The advantages of working in this sector are freedom of choice of traffic and good conversion rates.

Your income is a percentage of the given out loan, sometimes it’s a fixed amount for each loan regardless of the latter’s size.

Search engine traffic (Google and Yandex) and contextual ads bring the best results. Social media, thematic websites, banners and teaser ads also provide decent results. It is most effective to work with large ad bundles – contextual ads + social networks + retarget.

An example of a specific affiliate program – FREEZL CPA ES

• What is it: credit cards, microloans.
• GEO: Spain.
• Payouts up to $25.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads, YouTube.

Video on How to Make Money Promoting Financial Products and Loans

Anti-bad habits products

Another Nutra subcategory. The offers focus on goods and services that help people quit drinking, smoking, etc.

Promotion mechanics:

1. Proof – the course or drug gives instant results, has passed clinical studies, etc. Trigger words: a reliable way to break the habit.
2. Guarantees – “hypnosis is no longer needed”, “rehabilitation is not needed”, “you won’t want to smoke again.”
3. Dares – “Do you have enough willpower to quit smoking?”, “Real men quit like this!”
4. Caring – “Help your husband!”, “It will save your family.”
5. Secrets, traditions, revelations – “Good old grandma’s method”, “You don’t know what the doctors are hiding from you!”

When developing creatives, you can use references to celebrities, folk methods of dealing with addictions. What should not be on advertisements: outright pain, women, alcohol or tobacco products.

The target audience is men over 40, women over 35. The former are interested in getting rid of bad habits. They want to change their lives or stop spending money on cigarettes and alcohol. The latter usually do not smoke, but have a smoking spouse. Their interest is to get him to overcome his addiction.

Traffic is attracted by thematic websites, banners, teaser ads, social media spam. To increase conversion rates, you can use pre-landing pages which will feature “recommendations from celebrities”, data on successful tests or stories “from the average Joe and his fight against addiction”.

An example of a specific affiliate program – ALKOZERON

• What is it: a remedy for combating alcohol dependence, intoxication.
• GEO: Czech Republic, Italy, Hungary, Germany, Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Australia, Croatia, Portugal, Switzerland, Poland, Estonia, France, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Albania, Kosovo.
• Payouts up to $28.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads, YouTube.

Potency, penis enlargement

Erection enhancing and penis enlarging drugs – the “male” Nutra subcategory. There is a constant demand for these goods, which does not depend on GEO, social status or age.

The target audience is very likely to:

• be lacking in self-confidence, insecure;
• be looking for self-affirmation;
• believe in the miraculous properties of exotic products and secret ingredients.

All this makes men click the links and buy potency enhancers and “extenders”.

Where to get cheap traffic from? From social media groups. Just make sure that the audience is adult and predominantly male. Teaser ads and push notifications are also suitable.

When developing creatives, the emphasis should be on “success stories” packed with reviews, mentions of a quick effect and reliable results. And, of course, success with the ladies.

An example of a specific affiliate program – AMAROK

• What is it: a drug for increasing potency.
• GEO: Indonesia, Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Cyprus, Greece, Poland, Italy, Latvia, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Macedonia
• Payouts up to $26.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads, YouTube.

Joint pain

Another subcategory of Nutra, exploiting the pains and needs of people with chronic diseases. The target audience is predominantly represented by retirees and those involved in sports (not necessarily professionally). In creatives, it is important to emphasize “secret” ingredients or a unique formula, natural composition. Stories about successfully implemented clinical or laboratory studies, recommendations of the WHO or the Ministry of Health find a good response.

Since people are driven by the desire to be forever young, healthy and active, the niche can be exploited endlessly. Even if some drugs manage to annoy the audience or become notorious, affiliate programs are ready to offer “new”, “effective” and “unparalleled” ones. Sprinkle some fresh original creatives on your ad campaign and you’re good to go.

Speaking of ad campaigns. Traffic is best sourced through push-notifications, teaser networks, message boards, or YouTube videos.

An example of a specific affiliate program – OPTIMOVE

• What is it: gel and capsules for joint health. New improved formula with natural composition.
• GEO: Australia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Estonia, Spain, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Greece, Cyprus, Croatia, Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Macedonia.
• Payout up to $28.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads, YouTube.

Casinos, sports betting

Gambling is a niche that remains profitable and in demand despite all attempts to shut it down. Online casinos and other gambling sites are not afraid of legal restrictions or not being shown in search engines queries. The offers promise getting rich quickly, and since everyone wants that the niche is quite popular. It generates income both for the casinos and bookmakers themselves and for the affiliate marketers.

Video About Affiliate Marketing in Sports Betting

You can work with either the CPL model (payment per registration) or the CPA model (payment per first deposit).

The audience is huge. Different groups of people are interested in online casinos, so content and advertising should be carefully selected and adjusted for each type of player. All players can be conventionally divided into three groups:

• Those who play to relax and gamble for fun. For them, make sure to have the following features: a user-friendly interface, high-quality graphics, smooth performance and the absence of ads.
• Those who believe in secret recipes for guaranteed winnings. You can invite new users by creating forums where game strategies will be published.
• Those who hope to get lucky and count on random winnings. As a rule, they are low-income, ready to register for bonuses, special promotions or increased odds.

One of the niche’s drawbacks is the ban on advertising in AdWords, Direct, Facebook Ads and other major exchanges. Traffic is usually obtained through:

• teaser networks;
• groups on social media (but you need to negotiate about placing ads with the groups’ owners directly);
• websites used to get SEO traffic.

An example of a specific affiliate program – GRATORAMA

• What is it: an online casino with scratch cards, slots and bet simulators. Offers generous bonuses and progressive jackpots.
• GEO: Ireland, Greece, Germany, Lithuania, Portugal, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Latvia, Czech Republic, Moldova, Macedonia, Belarus, Romania, Montenegro, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, Romania, Denmark.
• Payouts up to $150.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, SEO, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads.

Sexual dating sites

Dating is a trending vertical in arbitrage that allows you to monetize “adult” traffic. The high demand stems from the fact that nowadays all aspects of life are slowly migrating online. And dating, relationships and sex are no exception. People, especially those living in big cities and megalopolises, find it much more convenient to look for a partner or for “adult” entertainment on the Internet. The niche is actively developing, over time the demand for it will only increase.

According to Statista, Dating is one of the most popular niches in the US. Over the past decades, increased working hours and the popularization of mobile applications have only led to growth of the demand for such services. What was previously considered the last resort of the desperate and lonely is becoming a totally normal and accepted thing (link to source).

The target audience is men aged 25-60. GEO – Western Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

There’s a wide choice of offers: dating sites, erotic video chats, etc. You can buy traffic, or you can create a thematic site with 18+ content.

Video About How to Make Money With Adult Dating Affiliate Programs

An example of a specific affiliate program – ANASTASIADATE

• What is it: an 18+ dating website.
• GEO: Great Britain, Germany, USA, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, France, Portugal, Greece, Sweden, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, South Korea, Norway, New Zealand, Taiwan, Czech Republic, Ireland, Greenland, Iceland, Singapore, South Africa.
• Payouts up to $140
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, SEO, adult traffic, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads.

Gadgets (saving electricity in the house, saving fuel)

There are affiliate programs dedicated to selling “useful” gadgets. Those that allow you to save on fuel, electricity, etc.

Target audience are men over 30, regardless of GEO or social status.

Where to get traffic from – native advertising, posts in social media communities, targeted Instagram ads, thematic portals, banners and teaser ads, contextual ads.

An example of a specific affiliate program – E-ENERGY SI

• What is it: an energy saving gadget.
• GEO: Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Hungary, Portugal, Czech Republic, Spain, Lithuania, Slovakia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Latvia, Greece, Cyprus, Poland, Slovenia.
• Payouts up to $24.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, SEO, adult traffic, banners, branded traffic, push-notifications, teaser ads.

Webcams

Another subcategory of the Dating vertical. Affiliate programs with erotic content are a profitable niche with bitter competition. On webcam sites, girls pose for the camera for a fee. A fixed percentage of the earned funds is transferred to the webmaster.

There are several monetization schemes:

• per confirmed registration;
• a percentage of the model’s earnings;
• a percentage of the money spent by the attracted client;
• per sold session.

An example of a specific affiliate program – IMLIVE

• What is it: an adult site with erotic content, chats with webcam models.
• GEO: any
• Payouts up to $130.
• Many traffic sources: mobile ads, ad networks, email ads, social media, contextual ads, PopUp/ClickUnder, doorways, apps, adult traffic, SEO, banners, brokered traffic, branded traffic, push-notifications, teasers, Toolbar, YouTube.

FAQ – «What are the most profitable affiliate marketing niches…?»