I love all the points @peacefulaff listed. But he stayed on the positive side. Of course they sell better.
Here are some serious negatives (long version):
No human interaction (lonely) 😢
It’s hard to make any ‘friends’ in the industry. My ‘interactions’ are normally talking/working with people for 6-24 months, before they move on and do paid ads, client work or flip burgers. Very few people are still there beyond those 24 months. But at the end they will also leave. All the people I am talking to right now are ‘fresh meat’.
No stable income 💸
We talked about this before. You can go from zero to hero and back to zero almost on the same day. One targeted Google update on your specific ‘method’ and you have to literally reinvent yourself. Offers come, offers go, earning accounts get banned. There are many reasons for your income being not stable, not just Google.
Fierce competition 🔪
For almost every term in every vertical there’s fierce competition nowadays. In some niches they fight with everything in their arsenal. It can be very exhausting when people are throwing shit at you from all angles. Some people can play the game very dirty.
Industry full of envy 💎
This goes hand in hand with the previous point. The industry is full of people not wishing you well. They might play your friend, but actually they are your friend only because they hope to benefit from you in some way someday.
Spiritual 💫:
Unethical people/products
Regarding people, this goes hand in hand with the last two points. Never met so many shady people. It’s this toxic mix of (false) anonymity and money which turns people into assholes. Talking behind your back. Your affiliate manager shaves you, then wishing you a good morning. Your ‘partner’ abuses your joint project for his personal gain. You can’t trust anyone. Period.
Same with products. You either get betrayed by people or you betray people with the products you promote. Sadly, the products with the highest potential are the most crappy ones.
No meaning beside money
What’s the point in promoting all this crap beside money? Right, there’s none. And the older you become, the more this becomes a problem. I don’t say don’t do everything to make money when in your 20s. But when reaching your 40s there are nagging questions. At least there should, otherwise you aren’t that far on your journey, and I don’t mean a journey measured in miles 😂. It’s the same processes and work over and over again. I often feel kind of stuck, not really moving forward in any area. Maybe you can relate.
I think it’s a nice and fun way to make money, but I truly believe there are ways and things where your time, energy, god given talents, whatever you call it, are better spent than here.
If you made it here, I’d love to hear your negatives. What do you think is a true downside in affiliate marketing.
I believe the envy and competition is applicable to any job/industry where there is lots of money or power/influence on the line.