Start by creating your own web page. If you can, make your site at least three pages--an opening page with a few products, a page that tells about you, and a page with a few helpful tips. All these can help draw and interest targeted group of people who will buy from your affiliate program.

This isn't hard to do, even if you are all thumbs with computers. Create your own free page in seconds at http://www.webspawner.com Type in title of your page, provide a few links, and you're up and ready to go.

You can make a much more complete and attractive page with a free site at http:/ ripod.com Get even more lavish with easy to use page and logo creation system at http://zy.com It costs a low $8 per month.

The web addresses that free and low-cost hosts give you can be long and confusing. http://www.v3.com , http://beam.to/index.asp ,and http://iscool.net give you a free short address that forwards people to your longer free site address. Instead of http://www.replicate99.com/nunley/100.shtml you can use an easier address like http://go.to/nunley

Use these same principles for ads you place and signature file in your email messages (a 4 to 6 line ad that appears after your name.)

You can send people directly to a certain product page using a short address that "refers" to longer address.

Also look into affiliate networks that give you an easy way to link to your choice of hundreds of big programs. http://befree.com and http://linkshare.com/affiliates/ feature a great many big corporate programs from likes of Dell Computer, Priceline, AT&T, and 1-800-Flowers.

The days of sitting on sidelines while only rich investors profit from America's great corporations are over. By smartly using corporate affiliate programs, you can tap into flow of cash. Pull in checks ranging from pocket change to thousands each month.

This is standard procedure for average affiliate:

Stick a couple of banners on their site. Wait a few weeks. No sales come. Join another affiliate program. Stick these banners on their site. Wait a few more weeks. No sales! Then they sit back and think affiliate programs are a joke.

But it's not affiliate program. It's affiliate.

If you use right marketing methods that are working now, and spend many hours a week marketing your affiliate programs then you can be part of 'statistics'.

But if you expect things to just magically happen with a couple of flashing banners on your site then you will be sorely disappointed.

Do not just assume these enticing statistics apply to all affiliates. Sadly, they do not. Affiliate programs are not Holy Grail, but they are an excellent way to obtain a decent monthly check.

The most amazing statistic is that it is estimated that 90% of all affiliates earn little or no money at all from affiliate programs.

Now that's a statistic you do not want to be part of!!

David McKenzie of http://www.brisney.com produces a free twice monthly newsletter for affiliates. Sign up by sending an email to mailto:brisney@brisney.com?subject=subscribe and receive the free Special Report "7 Secrets to Making Money With Affiliate Programs."