Selling Affiliate Products. What Can We Learn From Forbes Vetted

The idea of a large news publication going into selling- like Forbes Vetted, is not new. Pro content creators are getting into affiliate marketing as a more stable way to generate income with the threat of irregular ad budgets.

it is also a great way to leverage a company's trust account with their subscribers and reader.

So when we noticed Forbes applying their knowledge to products then we wanted to check out what their pages looked like and how did they do it.

First up, they use their staff to generate the content- so fashion editors would create content for fashion which then gets supplemented with a contributor. This has a couple of effects:

• We don't know how much the Editor applies their knowledge but it is trust factor for the audience
• Google likes trust and will notice that there is a link to an editors bio- which might give it some SEO love
• We also get some pro layouts and pro finishing to the pages:
  

Forbes Vetted is clever

If you look at the above title "Best Halloween Decorations..." you will notice that the picture is nice, stylish and artful.

The picture is the thumbnail that I clicked on to get to this page.

The thumbnail is really clever because it shows us a couple of things:

• Forbes Vetted knows its audience. They know people who read Forbes do not want junk, they want style...it is very tasteful
• The whole article looks like this- on point styling that looks like all the other articles of Forbes. 

Knowing your audience therefore seems to be the main factor in making these pages successful.

The article has been released 2 weeks before Halloween, so it is relevant.

It is also going to be timeless as Halloween doesn't change. The article is going to age, maybe get refreshed and have some SEO love maybe next year. Apart from the products which might change (those can easily be updated or added to). This page is going to generate money over time.

The amount of text and keywords

When you have been creating content for a while keywords stick out. Halloween Decorations seems to be the main keyword combination for this page.

With the large paragraphs at the start and end of the page there are 2000 words, without those there are 1800. Each picture/ product gets a paragraph of text and doesnt necessarily have "Halloween" within it but has related text:

"This pair of crows stand ready to observe over all this spooky season with their watchful eyes. The sculpted statues stand upright on their wire feet and offer subtle details like etched wing feathers. Post them atop your table, a shelf or mantel".

Links

When we have a look at the links, everything is linked. Pictures and the link box:

Title, Price and red link box is there, nothing else. What is odd is:

• Does red work, or does a lighter colour, say blue work? This has always been a battle- what colour to use on a buy link. Red means urgent, but could a different colour work better? No-one really knows for your audience unless you test
• Why "shop at Grandin Road?". Are they assuming that visitors know the company? Do they place it here so that when you do click on it, it isn't a big shock when you are directed to their sales page?

It is also worthy to note that all the links are different. Some of them are for Grandin, other for Pottery Barn. Maybe that is the reason for the different link names rather than "buy now".

Therefore, Forbes Vetted must have affiliate links to each?

It is also interesting that Forbes Vetted just has a title, picture, price, link, paragraph. I have to admit, "pictures are a thousand words". I looked at the picture before the text. The text doesn't really go into:

• review of the item
• positives, negatives, stars, reviews
• "highly recommended" or other sales text
  

The text states what we are thinking and what can be done with the item. It is odd, those words mirror what you are thinking when you look at the picture. Take the following:

There is a below headline that also states" Gus The Pumpkin Pillow". First thing: cute and soft? Their text:

"Spruce up your couch with this adorable ghost pillow. Gus has a soft feel similar to that of a fleecy throw and is made from yarn-dyed fiber that holds its color over time. This ghost is filled with stuffing and can double as a pillow for naps as needed."

That's it. Price and link are before the text- which seems to go against what we have been led to believe. Talk about the product then give them a link.

I suppose it comes down to if you like the picture the text will back up what you have thought but you have probably made up your mind before reading the text. They are then moving out of the way, offering a link to the provider.

Other noticeable contradictions

When you go down the page you will notice that there are newsletter sign up forms inbetween some of the items. We have been told that this shouldn't be there. Money links shouldn't be interrupted. Why not have the newsletter signup running down one of the boarders of the page?

There are ads for random other items.

At the bottom of the article there are links to other Forbes articles within the Vetted universe, but not many Halloween related.

Further down there are articles for other items.

So I wonder if these are here to build up "time on page" so that it is relevant and gains more SEO. Or do people go straight down the page, or some people start down and work their way up? Either way you are keeping the person there longer:

Staying legal

You have to tell people that a link is an affiliate link, that you are getting paid to promote it. I don't see too many links to this so maybe the different stores are promotional/ sponsors rather than affiliate. Or Forbes Vetted is just being nice.

Regardless, Forbes has this on the top of their pages:

"We independently select all products and services. If you click through links we provide, we may earn a commission. Learn more".

When you learn more, you are opened up into a page that doesn't necessarily talk about their compensation, but the actual Forbes Vetted website in general. It is a good idea because it focuses on the quality of the site and reviews rather than income/ compensation generated from clicking on the links. It is very smart- also including links to other sections of the site:

"Our recommendations for products and services are the result of careful, thorough research from our team of writers, experienced consumer advocates and subject matter experts. Each product we feature is doubly vetted by our staff editors to ensure that only the best advice reaches our readers.

We test the items we feature as rigorously as possible, from comfortable pants for working from home to the most perfect beach chairs for summer lounging. When we don’t have personal hands-on experience with a specific product, we tap the top experts who do, from dermatologists determining the best face sunscreen for your skin type to family adventure influencers sharing their favorite hiking baby carriers. When we recommend anything—whether it’s Bluetooth speakers, office chairs or air purifiers—you can trust that we’ve done our due diligence".

Again, we have the following:

• team of writers, experience, experts
• vetted even more
• testing
• if they don't know, they ask- which wipes out the question of how Forbes would know so many different items

It is a clever piece. It also doesn't end with the above, text, it goes on. Even to a point where it asks if you want to recommend a product. Or if you are a retailer to see if they can partner with you.

The Forbes Vetted website is a great example of how to sell products through affiliate marketing using a strong brand. It covers all bases and promotes trust.

Check out other affiliate pages here, our blog can be found here.

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