The latest AffStat report shows that Online Services comes in third place among vertical preferences in the affiliate world, with 28.69% of affiliates choosing the category. That’s right behind Clothing/Apparel at 35.46% and Computers & Electronics at 38.65%.

There are several reasons why the Software and Digital Goods category has long been among the top choices for affiliates when choosing what products to promote:

  • An “evergreen” perception. In an increasingly digital world, people and companies are constantly seeking new and better performing programs for their businesses. Software products are updated frequently and new companies come out with winning products all the time.
  • High payouts. Online Services is probably the best niche when it comes to payout amounts. The Avangate Affiliate Network specifically offers up to 75% commission in this vertical.
  • Good prices at high volumes. Fashion items sell well at relatively low prices and luxury products like yachts or cars sell at high prices in small quantities, but digital goods and software products combine good prices and high sales volumes. B2C software products in particular can bring in a constant stream of high revenue for affiliates.
  • Constant cash flow. SaaS products and subscription-based titles guarantee a continuous payment. Basically, you sell the product once and get commission for every renewal.

But not all software products sell as well as others. Usually, the products that people need on an everyday basis are the best bet for the most sales. Here are a few examples:

  1. Utilities and Antivirus Titles. At some point, everybody using a computer has to install an antivirus or maintenance product for their device, such as a back-up or disk fragmentation solution. Norton, Bitdefender and STOPzilla are some acclaimed brands recognized for offering top-quality protection. IObit, IOLO, DriverMax, Zemana and Genie9 are also leading choices when it comes to boosting a system’s speed or performance.
  2. Audio/Video. This is another software category that will always sell well. As long as electronics keep evolving into smarter devices, the software will have to adapt in order to offer a better experience from an audio/video point of view. Telestream, Magix, Movavi, AVS4YOU and VSO Software have a tradition of being trusted by customers worldwide.
  3. Multimedia/Web Design Tools. Creative Code, Markzware, Soft Orbits can all help individuals and companies design beautiful websites: a need that’s not going away.
  4. Website management/Office Tools. Always in demand and with better and better performances, available from vendors like Premium Press, Apowersoft, 123contactform, ABBYY USA – these help companies keep their web presence up and running with ease.

There are just a few of the many reasons why Online Services and Software Products continue to be key verticals in this business. Explore more about software and SaaS affiliates here.

The Avangate Affiliate Network was named the 1st CPS Network Worldwide for Digital Goods in mThink’s 2015 and 2016 Blue Book surveys. With over 22,000 products in its catalogue and having award-winning vendors as partners, our network has a proven track record of top-quality services and a dedicated team that has managed to bring the 10 years’ network to the peak of the affiliate marketing world.