Should I Really Pay Out 100%? Great Question!

Suppose you are in a conversation with a new contact. You’ve talked about what’s in it for them, fluffed their ego a bit, asked questions and expressed a genuine interest in them. There will come a time when people will ask you what you have going on as well. It’s only natural. When this happens, one important note is that it is critical that you are completely honest with a potential partner. Tell the truth. Don’t share conversion percentages if you don’t have them. Don’t express that you’ve tested your offer if you haven’t. Don’t claim high EPCs if you’re not sure about them. Just be honest and tell people exactly where you are at that moment. If you don’t know something, admit that you don’t know. You’ll find that most people are very accepting because we have all been there!

Suppose you’re new to the business and don’t know how to do split testing or have that skill set on your team? Or what if you don’t have much currency to barter with? What could you do then? Here’s a ninja tactic for you and be sure to read the whole thing because it’s super cool and very few people know about it. 

Offer to pay out 100% of the commission. No kidding.

Picture the situation. You’re in a conversation with someone and you don’t have much to offer. You’ve talked all about them and their product and how great it is. Finally, they ask what they can do to help. So you say to them: “Look--I’d really appreciate it if you would be open to mailing to a small portion of your list. That would be so amazing. I want to make sure that you get something good out of it, but like I said, I don’t have numbers yet nor do I want to pretend that I do. So--what if I pay you 100 percent of the commission?” 

Now you seriously get their attention. That is not an offer that they receive very often. That will cause almost anyone to listen closely to you. Maybe they will be impressed by your abundant mentality. Maybe it appeals to their human nature. In any case, you will come across as someone that they want to get to know better.

Think about it. They still have almost all of the risk. Assuming that you have a digital product, it doesn’t cost you anything to provide it to a user. That other person is sending you 100 percent of the traffic and building your list and your currency for you. From your perspective, you’re building a list for free. You’re getting free exposure and free leads.

Because of a scarcity mindset, many people might react negatively to this idea. They might ask themselves: “Why work if you’re not going to make money?” Hold on. Wait a second. You may not make money on this one particular mailing--but what about all the money you will make because you have a bigger list? What about all the currency that you are creating that you can use to ask for other mailings that will pay you well into the future? 

If you know your numbers, instead you might offer to pay out 80% or 90% to make an offer irresistible. Remember that in the affiliate game, you are always looking to raise yourself up a tier and reach a higher level as an affiliate. Every affiliate out there has 100 other affiliates that they can promote for. To get them to choose you, you want to take as much risk as possible out of it for them. Notice that offering a 100% commission doesn’t actually take the risk out. It just makes your offer more attractive and makes you more likeable as a person. On a very human level, you are helping them tap into that place of personal abundance that everyone wants to experience. This is very subtle yet super powerful. It shows them that you know what you are doing and that you, too, are abundant--a good person to do business with.

Some people may think it’s nuts to pay out 100%. Personally, under the right circumstances, I believe it’s a great idea. I hope it benefits you!