Starting pay per lead affiliate programs is a simple yet effective way to advertise your brand. Learn how to set one up!
Affiliate marketing spending is due to reach $8.2 billion by 2022. For that reason, influencers are looking more and more like wise investments. The pay per lead model in particular can offer a lot of flexibility. However, you might not know exactly how to get started.
Fortunately, you can take advantage of this strategy without breaking a sweat. By using Formidable Forms and Easy Affiliate, you can quickly and easily pay each affiliate for leads they generate.
In this article, we’ll introduce you to pay per lead affiliate programs. Then we’ll show you how to set one up in just three steps. Let’s get started!
What is a pay per lead affiliate program?
Affiliate programs come in all different shapes and sizes. With so many potential strategies, you're probably not the only in search of a great pay per lead model.
Fortunately, it's not a complicated concept. In a pay per lead affiliate program, you partner with an influencer as usual. However, instead of paying them for purchases only, you pay them for each lead they generate.
Leads can come from anything from email list signups to consultation appointments. Moreover, they could also include orders themselves – the point of this model is marketing freedom! You can pick the approach that best fits your brand's unique needs.
Flexibility isn’t the only benefit. For example, a pay per lead program can also help you:
- Focus on your highest-performing lead generation forms
- Expand your potential customer pool
- Provide a clear incentive for your influencers
Given these varied strengths, using a pay per lead program can be an adaptable way to meet your marketing goals. As such, we recommend adding it to your advertising arsenal.
How to set up a pay per lead affiliate program
Now that we've hopefully answered the question "What is pay per lead?", here are three steps to help you launch your own program!
Step 1: Install Formidable Forms and Easy Affiliate
First, you should have the right tools for the job. The first plugin you'll need is our very own Formidable Forms:
Formidable Forms is the ultimate marketing multitool. With almost limitless ways to generate leads, adding an affiliate program will only take a few extra steps.
On that note, you'll also need a WordPress affiliate plugin that can help you set up your pay per lead affiliate program. We'll be using Easy Affiliate:
True to its name, Easy Affiliate helps small businesses seamlessly manage your influencers right from your WordPress dashboard. In-depth reports also make affiliate link tracking and paying your affiliates a breeze. For more info on setting up your program or setting up recurring commissions, you can check out Easy Affiliate's beginner's guide.
Once you have both programs installed and activated, you'll need to link them. Start by going to Easy Affiliate → Settings → eCommerce. Then, make sure to switch the Formidable integration to the 'on' position. Afterward, click on Update Options:
That's all you need to do. The two programs should now be connected.
Step 2: Create a new form with affiliate functions
Next up, you'll build a basic lead generation form. As we mentioned earlier, this can target any type of lead you're interested in. Don't worry about the affiliate payment features just yet – we'll get there in the final step.
Go to Formidable → Forms → Add New. You can start with a blank slate or choose a template to save time. We'll be using a basic order form in this walkthrough for simplicity's sake. Remember to keep the form simple for the best conversion rate.
After picking one, you should see the editing interface. Go over to the Settings tab and scroll down to the Easy Affiliate section:
First, check the first box to enable commissions. Then move on to the Payment Amount drop-down. Select the amount you'd like to calculate the commissions from. For example, this might be the Total field on an order form.
You can also choose a Payment Description, but this is optional. Click on Update when you're done.
These settings will set up a general affiliate program. For reference, our sample influencer would earn $1 on a $10 purchase if we set a 10 percent commission rate. You can see this reflected under Easy Affiliate → Affiliates:
This will be your generic influencer-based order form. To make this a pay per lead affiliate program, move on to the final step.
Step 3: Add pay per lead features to your form
If you'd like to use the typical affiliate model or paying a commission on a purchase, you can skip this step. Otherwise, transforming this form into a pay per lead solution only requires one extra field. You won't even need to change your commission rates!
Let's start with the field. In the editor interface, drag and drop a Hidden field anywhere onto your form. To get the value you'll place in it, divide the commission you want to pay out by the default commission rate.
For example, we want to pay out $10 per lead. Our affiliate commission rate is 20 percent. Thus, we'd enter 50 into the hidden field:
Finally, go back to the Settings tab and find the Easy Affiliate section one more time. Under Payment Amount, change the drop-down menu to your Hidden field:
Make sure to click on Update, and then you're done! Your customers won't see the hidden field, your base affiliate commission rate won't change, and you can start reaping the rewards of a lead-based affiliate program. Consider using a few style elements to personalize the form for users as well.
Wrapping up pay per lead affiliate programs
Affiliate programs can offer you a lot of possible profits. However, they don't have to be about commissions on purchases alone. With the help of Formidable Forms and Easy Affiliate, you can create a pay per lead program to grow your potential customer pool.
In this article, we showed you three easy steps to start your own pay per lead program:
- Integrate Formidable Forms with Easy Affiliate.
- Create a basic affiliate form.
- Add pay per lead features.
Formidable Forms is a flexible tool capable of running affiliate programs – plus a lot more! Check out a few of our other features today.
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This was helpful. Thank you
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Really helpfull post.