We've already gotten used to the fact that only a lazy affiliate coach hasn't said that affiliate marketing is a gold mine — all it takes is to invest a little at the beginning, and in a month you’ll be making millions, buying apartments, cars, and all that.
But even for those who deal with conditionally free traffic, expenses can be many times more than $10. In this article, we'll try to figure out how much money is really needed at the start, what a beginner webmaster has to spend on, what services will be needed in work, and how to save money smartly.
What Makes Webmaster’s Budget
The expenses and budget of a beginner webmaster will depend on the specific vertical and traffic source. We will talk about those expenses that will be relevant for practically any vertical, but remember that all of this can change.
What webmaster's expenses depend on:
Vertical and niche in general with which you decided to work. For example, expenses for white offers will be lower, but at the same time, the rewards from them will be lower too.
Advertising platform and geo. For example, Tier-1 countries are very expensive to launch in — there is high competition, higher payouts, and a more capricious audience. There are also difficulties with platforms - in some places, CPC is higher, in others, lower.
Consumables — this is also an important point. If you buy cheap accounts from dubious stores, there is a chance that they will quickly be banned.
Creatives — some people don't bother and make them quickly using AI tools, while others resort to the help of designers. And this means additional expenses.
Additional software — it depends on what your niche requires. In some cases, you can do without it.
And this is only part of what can affect the initial budget of a webmaster. Now it's time to move on to expenses that will be independent of the niche and industry. This is a basic set of tools for working in any advertising network.
These tools include:
Platform accounts;
Cards;
Anti-detect browsers;
Proxies;
Tracker;
Spy tool;
Domains;
Landing pages/pre-landing pages.
The budget for advertising itself is not included here because it depends on the factors we listed above. It is more dependent on the vertical.
What and how much we spend at the start: examples
Next, let's consider expenses for each category, examining approximate values to understand what to base our spending on.
Platform accounts
Here, expenses depend on the advertising network you've chosen. For instance, if it's complex platforms like DV360, which is more suitable for team work rather than beginners. You might opt for classics like Facebook and Instagram. By the way, costs of working with Twitter are significantly lower — read this detailed article on how to make money on Twitter.
You'll need around 5-10 such accounts. Most likely, your first few accounts will get banned, but eventually, you'll understand the moderation principles and find a good combination. The price of accounts also depends on their ‘lifespan’.
Cost: from $15 for 5-10 accounts.
Buying Cards
If we're considering purchasing cards without a budget, then such cards won't be too expensive. However, you'll have to top them up yourself, and you'll also need to pay separately for topping up and transfers.
Cost: from $5 per card + commission, which depends on the specific service, but not less than 2% for reloading and 1% for transfers.
Creatives
Prices for creatives can also vary depending on whether you decide to do it yourself or delegate it to designers. Additionally, the cost and creation process will be influenced by the vertical.
Cost: from $0.
Cost: from $0.
Anti-detect browsers
This is a must-have for any webmaster if they want trust-accounts and successfully passed moderations on platforms without obvious issues. At the initial stage, a beginner will suffice with around 10 profiles to learn the tools and set up their first advertising campaigns. A great solution is to find an anti-detect tool that immediately provides a proxy manager.
Once you understand how to work with the platform, you can afford to take unlimited devices, profile templates, and their transfer.
It's important to note that an anti-detect browser is one of those consumables where it's not worth saving even at the initial stage. Try to avoid free solutions to prevent unnecessary blocks. Believe us, you'll have enough pitfalls even without it.
Cost: from $30 per month.
Buying proxies
Proxies and anti-detect browsers cannot be separated from each other. For the successful operation of an anti-detect browser, you need to purchase proxies. Proxies act as intermediaries between your device and the platform, replacing your IP with another one.
Proxies do not encrypt traffic, making a webmaster appear more like a regular user.
Cost: from $3 per unit per month.
Trackers
A tracker will be necessary to track, manage, and optimize traffic. Its main purpose is cloaking, so it's important that the chosen tracker includes filtering among its list of functions.
Cost: from $50 per month.
Spy-tools
They are needed to uncover combinations and separate creatives in the niche. This is an indispensable tool for beginners who are considering the best approaches to work with their audience.
Free spy tools are suitable for beginners at the initial stages — they are easy to use and do not require special skills. There, you can view examples of creatives for your chosen vertical.
Cost: $0.
Domains
A domain is needed for hosting landing pages and pre-landing pages. At the initial stage, there's no need to buy a fancy domain name because they usually cost more.
You can buy domains in popular zones at an affordable price. Depending on the theme, the price will vary.
Cost: from $5 per domain.
Landing pages and pre-landing pages
Landing pages and pre-landing pages are needed to prompt the user to click on the CTA button. After that, the potential buyer is directed to the offer page. The main task is to increase conversion.
To achieve this, landing pages should have simple elements such as attention-grabbing headlines, engaging content, and a clear call to action.
Some webmasters create such landing pages themselves using AI tools and simple code. This will be cheaper but will consume a lot of your time. Alternatively, you can use landing page builders - there you can create multiple landing pages, add interesting elements, and use templates when creating your landing pages.
Cost: from $100 per month.
How much is it eventually?
As we can see, only consumables can cost from $200. If you try hard, you can spend even less at the initial stage, but it will require investing your time. Moreover, the budget for advertising itself is not taken into account here.
How to save on consumables
To avoid taking out loans for consumables and borrowing money from everyone you know, you need to look for alternative options. You can seek advice from experienced individuals in the niche, ask for contributions towards consumables, or search for great deals from trusted services to gain access for a month and try your hand in the niche with more confidence.
One of such great spring deals is discounts at Octo Browser. Octo Browser is an anti-detect browser that helps webmasters work with thousands of accounts, each having a browser fingerprint of a real device.
With such promotions, you'll be able to save quite a bit and acquire the best tools from trusted services for webmasters.
Conclusion
Nowadays, affiliate marketing is not the same as it used to be. Jumping into a niche with just $10 in hand won't work out, even if you try to find ways to get started with conditionally free traffic, purchase the cheapest accounts in shops, and deal with creatives yourself.
To avoid wasting your time, it's better to look for trusted services that offer discounts on their products and help newcomers get oriented in the variety of services and additional tools.
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