When selecting a niche for affiliate marketing, there’s a basic rule: you can earn a lot of money in niches with high demand.
Today, Enter Niche wants to recommend a specific niche: personal loans.
Despite the negative reports about the personal loan industry online, the demand for personal loans remains consistently high, which means you can earn substantial commissions from this niche.
However, I must caution you that while the personal loan niche can be very profitable, it also has a lot of potential competitors, many of whom are very strong.
Therefore, if you are a beginner, I do not recommend choosing personal loans as your affiliate marketing niche. Instead, I suggest starting with an industry that has fewer competitors, You can also start by learning how to make money with affiliate marketing.
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How Much Can You Earn From Personal Loan Affiliate Programs
According to affiliate data, annual affiliate marketing commission payouts in the personal loan sector can reach hundreds of millions of dollars. Compared to the same period last year, the personal loan market has grown by approximately 15%.
Although exact figures are hard to come by, overall, the commission payouts for affiliate marketing in the personal loan sector are quite substantial worldwide. This means that if you enter the personal loan niche, you could potentially earn significant income.
From the global affiliate network CJ, we can see the following data:
Advertisers are willing to pay between $50 and $200 per lead or sale. This figure far exceeds 95% of other industries, making it difficult to find such high commissions in other niches.
If your goal is to earn $100 online each day, this means you only need to make one successful personal loan referral per day to achieve your target.
Taking Fairstone as an example, we can see that their 7-day EPC is as high as $554, and their 3-month EPC is even higher at $629. This indicates that there is very high demand in the personal loan industry, and promoting affiliate programs in this space can be very lucrative.
In personal loan affiliate programs, the average monthly income for affiliates is around $8,000 to $10,000. Top affiliates can earn up to $100,000 per month. Even a beginner in affiliate marketing can earn a few hundred to several thousand dollars per month from personal loan affiliate programs.
Of course, if you want to earn higher returns from personal loan affiliate programs, you will need to focus on obtaining higher-quality traffic, finding advertisers with higher commission rates, and improving your conversion rates.
I suggest creating a personal loan blog and using content marketing, SEO optimization, and social media promotion to attract high-quality traffic. This can effectively increase your conversion rate and significantly boost your affiliate marketing income.
7 Best Personal Loan Affiliate Programs
Fairstone
Within the CJ Affiliate network, Fairstone stands out as one of the top advertisers with the highest sales and commissions, making it the number one affiliate program we must discuss.
Fairstone primarily provides personal loans to customers in Canada. It’s important to note that their affiliate program is only applicable within Canada, meaning no commissions are earned for promotions outside of this country.
Fairstone has a history spanning over 100 years and has made a name for itself by offering personal loans ranging from $500 to $35,000 to individuals who might not qualify for loans from banks. Their application process is online, and you don’t need a perfect credit score to apply, making it a popular choice in the market due to its more lenient lending criteria.
Affiliates can earn up to $200 for each new customer they refer to Fairstone who gets approved. However, based on the details of their affiliate program, it appears that this $200 commission is only available for new homeowner clients.
Fairstone is partnered with CJ Affiliate, so you’ll need to register with CJ before applying for Fairstone’s affiliate program. Fairstone has been part of the CJ network since 2011 and has been paying commissions for over 13 years, making it a reliable choice.
When choosing affiliate programs, it’s essential to opt for those with a long history of consistent commission payments, as they tend to be more trustworthy and timely with payouts. No affiliate marketer wants to spend time promoting a program only to face delays or non-payment.
LoanMart
LoanMart is a website offering short-term personal loans, but you need to secure the loan with your vehicle. LoanMart has been operating since 2002 and currently serves over 250,000 customers across 30 states in the U.S.
LoanMart’s approval process is relatively relaxed. Even if you’re bankrupt or have a low credit score, you can still get a loan by providing ownership of your car. The approval process is straightforward and can be done via phone or through their website.
Once approved, funds are either deposited into your bank account within 24 hours or you can pick up cash at one of their 1,300+ locations across 30 states.
LoanMart does not offer loans in California and does not provide credit.
LoanMart partners with Awin Affiliate Network, where affiliates can earn $100 for each new loan customer they refer who gets approved.
Zippy Loan
Zippy Loan is slightly different from most online payday loan providers in that it doesn’t issue loans directly. When you apply for a loan on their website, Zippy Loan matches you with third-party lenders who can provide short-term personal loans ranging from $100 to $15,000.
The loan application process on Zippy Loan is straightforward, taking less than 5 minutes to complete. Approval typically happens within a day, with funds disbursed soon after. A major advantage of Zippy Loan is that some of its partner lenders offer repayment terms as long as 60 months and even small business loans.
Even with a low credit score, you can qualify for a loan if you are over 18 years old and have a steady income.
Zippy Loan partners with the Awin Affiliate Network. Affiliates earn $45 for each lead, but a downside is their 1-day cookie duration, compared to the 30-day cookies offered by most other advertisers. This means if a lead doesn’t apply for a loan within 24 hours, you won’t earn the commission.
Zoca Loans
If your refrigerator or washing machine breaks down and you can’t afford to replace it until your next paycheck, Zoca’s short-term personal loan might be a good option. However, the downside is that Zoca’s interest rates are quite high. Despite this, many customers choose Zoca due to its fast disbursement and lenient application criteria.
Zoca offers short-term loans ranging from $200 to $1,500 without requiring a good credit score or collateral. You can apply online, and funds are typically available within 24 hours.
From an affiliate perspective, promoting Zoca’s affiliate program might not be the best choice as it only pays $5 per lead, which is very low compared to other personal loan programs.
However, because low-amount short-term loans are relatively easy to promote, generating leads can still be straightforward.
Zoca Loans partners with Partnerize for its affiliate program.
Smarter Loan
Smarter Loan is Canada’s largest personal loan website, operating similarly to Zippy Loan as an intermediary. The site features over 50 loan providers offering loans ranging from CAD 250 to CAD 30,000.
Smarter Loan is a loan comparison site. You simply submit your loan application on their website, and they match you with the best loan providers based on your needs, such as the amount you need to borrow and the repayment term. This saves you the time and effort of searching and comparing multiple websites on your own.
Smarter Loan is partnered with Rakuten Affiliate Network. Affiliates earn $140 per lead, which is very generous, making it an excellent choice for affiliates.
As an affiliate, it’s crucial to know that the conversion rate of the products you promote is highly dependent on the strength and reputation of the advertiser. Stronger brands with high commission rates typically offer higher conversion rates, making them a core part of increasing affiliate income.
SoFi Loan
SoFi isn’t just a loan provider. In their words, they are “…a new kind of finance company taking a radical approach to lending…we’re committed to helping our members get ahead and find success.”
SoFi offers loans ranging from $100 in funding to $100,000 in small business loans, with interest rates ranging from 5.99% to 17.53%.
Whether you have a need for a small personal loan or a large long-term business loan, SoFi has options available.
As an affiliate, I think SoFi is a very worthwhile affiliate program to promote because they offer $150 per lead, and to date, SoFi has paid out over $10 million in affiliate commissions, proving they are a powerful and reliable advertiser.
In addition to paying $150 per lead, SoFi offers multiple affiliate programs with commissions ranging from $50 to $1,000, including for investments, student loans, and personal loans.
SoFi does not partner with third-party affiliate networks. To apply, you’ll need to visit their website directly.
Viva Loans (UK)
While the previous affiliate programs have been in the U.S. and Canada, Viva Loans is a UK-based loan provider, offering short-term loans up to £10,000.
The repayment term is no longer than 12 months and no shorter than 2 months. However, the downside is that their interest rates are very high, with a typical APR of around 600%. Unless it’s an emergency, this may not be the best option.
Viva Loans partners with the Awin Affiliate Network, where affiliates can earn $45 per approved loan. However, like Zippy Loan, Viva Loans has a 1-day cookie duration, making it less ideal compared to other programs.
How to Promote Personal Loan Affiliate Marketing
To effectively promote personal loan affiliate programs, you need to consider where you can find your potential customers and how to present your products to them.
As someone with ten years of experience in affiliate marketing, here are my suggestions:
The personal loan sector is part of the financial industry, which typically offers high commissions in affiliate programs. However, this also means there’s significant competition. Customers in this industry often compare multiple loan companies to find the best option for them.
Given these characteristics, I recommend two effective methods for beginners to promote personal loan affiliate programs:
Method 1: Strat a Blog
Start a blog and regularly update it with content related to personal loans. Educate your readers on tips for applying for loans, and help them compare and choose companies that offer flexible terms, higher loan amounts, and lower interest rates. This can significantly improve your conversion rates. I also suggest learning about SEO to help your site attract high-quality search traffic from Google.
Method 2: Create a YouTube Channel
You’ll need to learn about personal loans and create videos on the topic, which you can then publish on your YouTube channel. Use YouTube to drive traffic, and include affiliate links to personal loan websites in your video descriptions.
Personal Loan Affiliate Programs VS Insurance Affiliate Programs
Both personal loans and insurance fall under the financial industry, but how do these two sectors compare in affiliate programs? As a beginner in affiliate marketing, which one is more suitable?
Commission Rates
Typically, personal loan affiliate programs offer $50–$200 per lead, while insurance programs generally offer $10–$50 per lead. In terms of potential earnings, personal loan affiliate programs are undoubtedly more lucrative.
Promotion Difficulty
Although the potential earnings are higher with personal loans, they are also more challenging to promote. This is due to the high level of competition, with many strong competitors in the field.
Product Variety
Insurance affiliate programs tend to offer a broader range of products to promote, such as auto, home, and health insurance. In contrast, personal loans usually involve only short-term loans and payday loans. This means insurance programs often have higher conversion rates. Even though the commissions are lower, you may be able to generate more customers.
Considering these factors, if you’re a beginner in affiliate marketing, I recommend starting with insurance affiliate programs. Although the earnings might be slightly lower, they’re easier and quicker to promote, helping you build confidence and momentum in your affiliate marketing journey.
