No one is going to take you as a serious on-line entrepreneur if you are promoting a program with URL such as: http://www.someonesmlm.com/member/script.cgi?59432 However if you have your own site - http://www.yoursite.com It will show you are serious.

Search Engines will strip off script.cgi?59432, so there goes your commission right out window. That is if they bother indexing site in first place. Undoubtedly affiliate page will already be indexed, and your page with them is most likely going to be ignored as they already have it. They won't re-index a page if it does not contain anything new, and since you can't change it, it won't.

With your own site you will be able to easily track which of your advertising campaigns are generating traffic and, more importantly, which ones are generating sales. Without being able to accurately track your ads, you will be wasting a lot of money and time.

Having your own site will enable you to build up trust with your clients and potential clients, something that is much overlooked these days. Everyone involved in online sales, recommends that you put contact information on your web site. You can't do this with an affiliate page, but can do anything you wish with your own.

Now here is best part. Suppose you join a program, and get an affiliate page that you spend a lot to promote. If program is "played out', or is simply not producing, and you decide to investigate another opportunity, all ad money you spent is wasted. Many people also are in multiple programs, and must advertise each independently as they all have their own domain.

A few ads are placed here and there, and responses "trickle in" but there are few, if any sales. Time for a reality check. If you have seen one affiliate web site for a particular product, service or opportunity, you have seen them all. There are a number of affiliate programs, which have thousands of people who have bit. Why should a person go to your site when they know from URL (address of your web page) what it is already?

They won't. Am I saying that affiliate program don't work? No - I am saying that tools they provide "don't cut mustard". It is a proven marketing fact that it takes 5-7 exposures to your ad before someone might purchase from you. If you have a "canned" web site, what are odds of them coming back to you to buy? Slim to none.

So how does a person who is serious about marketing an affiliate program get you to buy from them? First, they "deep six" affiliate web site as their primary web contact, and create their own. On their web site they provide content which is interesting for anyone who stops by. They also change content on a regular basis to keep them coming back, and let them know when it does change. They also provide a link to their affiliate web site.

The next step is to try to get a listing on search engines. Now, think about this. There are most likely several thousand people who have an identical web site to one you get as an affiliate. What do you think odds are of someone "stumbling across" your site when surfing web? Again - slim to none.