Affiliate marketing is a popular way for bloggers and website owners to earn commissions by promoting products or services. Many affiliate programs only pay commissions when a referred user makes a purchase. However, some programs will pay you simply for generating new signups to a service or platform.
If you want to monetize your site through affiliate marketing without worrying about users completing purchases, then signup affiliate programs are ideal. Here are 10 great options to consider:
1. Grammarly
Grammarly is a popular grammar-checking and writing enhancement tool. Their affiliate program offers an impressive $20 for each new user you refer who signs up for a Grammarly account.
You'll earn the signup bonus when the user creates their free Grammarly account via your affiliate link. No purchase is necessary. This makes it easy to promote Grammarly organically in blog posts and content when mentioning writing tips or grammar tools.
2. Audible
Audible is Amazon's audiobook platform. Their affiliate program provides a $15 signup bonus for each new Audible member you recruit.
To get credit for the referral, the user must signup for an Audible membership via your affiliate link. There's no need to have them make a purchase. Audible offers a 30-day free trial period, so users can signup to score the bonus without any commitment.
3. Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime is a top-rated service that offers free fast shipping, streaming entertainment, and other benefits for an annual or monthly fee.
Amazon's affiliate program will pay you a $10 bonus for each new Prime member that signs up via your affiliate link. They don't have to purchase anything - simply signing up earns you $10.
4. Lynda
Lynda is an online learning platform that offers thousands of video courses on topics like graphic design, marketing, software, and more. Their affiliate program provides a generous $25 signup bonus.
To get the bonus, the user you refer must create a new Lynda account through your affiliate link. No purchase or trial signup is required. They simply need to register for an account.
5. CreativeLive
CreativeLive is an online education platform that offers live and on-demand streaming workshops and classes in creative topics like photography, design, business, and more.
Their affiliate program offers a $15 signup bonus when a referred user creates a free CreativeLive account using your affiliate link. No purchase is required to earn you the bonus.
6. Skillshare
Skillshare is an online learning community with courses taught by industry experts in topics like illustration, writing, technology, and entrepreneurship.
Referring a new user to create a free Skillshare account via your affiliate link earns you a $10 signup bonus. No trial or paid subscription is necessary to get the bonus payout.
7. LinkedIn Premium
LinkedIn Premium provides users access to premium features on the LinkedIn platform and job board. Their affiliate program provides a generous $25 bonus for each new LinkedIn Premium subscriber referred.
To get the signup payout, the user must start a paid Premium subscription within 90 days of signing up via your affiliate link.
8. Dropbox
Dropbox is a popular cloud storage and file-sharing service. Their affiliate program offers 500 MB of extra storage space as a bonus for each new Dropbox user you refer.
While not a direct cash payout, the extra 500 MB of storage is valued at around $10 and is a nice perk for signing up for a free Dropbox account via your affiliate link.
9. Hostgator
Hostgator provides web hosting services and domain name registration. Their affiliate program offers $50 for each new hosting account signup referred.
The user must signup for one of Hostgator's paid hosting plans via your affiliate link within 45 days. Hostgator has plans starting at just a few dollars per month, so this is an easily achievable bonus.
10. Bluehost
Bluehost is another well-known web hosting company that offers WordPress hosting, shared hosting, VPS, and dedicated server plans.
Their affiliate program offers a $65 bonus for each new Bluehost hosting account signup via your link. As with Hostgator, the user has to sign up and pay for a hosting plan within a month to trigger the bonus payout.
Final Thoughts
Signup bonus affiliate programs provide excellent opportunities to earn commissions without requiring the user to make any purchase. Try incorporating these programs into your website monetization strategy to earn cash for generating new user signups.
Just ensure your promotions are relevant and provide value to your audience. Disclose your affiliate relationship and link organically within high-quality content geared to the platform you're promoting.
With a thoughtful approach, signup affiliate programs can become a steady revenue stream that rewards you for referrals while providing value to your users.