As an affiliate marketer, we are always thinking of creative ways to attract customers to our sites, and ideally, keep them coming back.

However, the latter often proves to be the most difficult of the two challenges and can leave even the most experienced affiliate marketer banging his or her head up against the wall in frustration.

So, what is an affiliate to do?

In a nutshell, offer an incentive – or an irresistible free product or service.

Explain to your visitors that they can only get this free bonus at your site.

The incentive can be a special report or manual in PDF form. It could be a downloadable video or audio. You could also offer some nice software, such as a screensaver or desktop theme.

Incentives work wonders because…

1. They boost your CONVERSION rate.
More people will buy from YOU, or opt into your mailing list, because hey, they want that freebie (who doesn’t?)!

2. Customers VOLUNTARILY give you their contact information.
You don’t have to beg them for their e-mail address. They gladly give it because once again, they want that freebie !

3. The incentive is VIRAL.
People will inevitably share it with others… who also want that freebie! (Do you sense a theme here?) And that’s okay, because your freebie should include affiliate links, or at the very least links that lead back to YOUR affiliate site.

4. The incentive generates REPEAT TRAFFIC.
People remember that your site was the one with the great freebie – so they come back to buy from you again.

5. The incentive can generate interest in your upsell.
In it, you can even mention your upsell (which of course should have its own great freebie incentive that people will want!).

The pattern here is simple, isn’t it?

Your free incentive is not just a happy little bonus to make people buy from you. If you do a good job on it, it can be a follow up sales machine.  It’s also about offering your visitors some extra VALUE at your website.
That means you need to put effort and thought into your incentive. It should not be some low-value, junk giveaway. And you shouldn’t stuff it with 57 affiliate links.

Your incentive should offer some real and unique value – a little something extra special that people will appreciate so much they’ll say “Hey, what site did I get this from, anyway? I need to go back there and also tell my mom, grandpa, and nephew all about it!”

Think of it as the smartest viral marketing of all – the kind that acts as a purchase incentive and keeps on selling long after the sale is made. This works even if your incentive is a service.

In the process of giving service, you will have many natural opportunities to mention your upsell, and in the same move, encourage your visitors to keep coming back!