With being the co-owner of an affiliate training site, I get to see and work with several individuals – all with different backgrounds, experiences, training and knowledge. It’s no surprise that not everyone will become successful at Affiliate Marketing. It’s the nature of the beast, it’s like any business – it takes a certain mindset and dedication. I have noticed a trend of successful marketers that have not only come through our program but in general, they all share very similar attributes. I highly recommend anyone new to affiliate marketing or trying to break out in it to study these and try to adapt to them as much as possible.

Hard Working
I think this almost goes without saying, all the successful affiliates I have seen have a tremendous work ethic, they work hard and work often. The fatal mistake I see many people make is they treat this as a hobby and you just can’t do that. This is a business, you need to treat it like a business. It’s understandable that if you have a full time job that the time you have to dedicate to affiliate marketing might not be as much as you’d like, it’s very important for you to make the best of the time you spend, limit distractions and get down to business. Most of the time you don’t see these people talking on AIM, they are too busy working.

Clear Vision / Goals
Most people that excel at affiliate marketing have clear goals on what they have to achieve, they know where they want to be in a week, in a month, in a year, etc. They lay out what they want and then figure out how to get there, they don’t just fly blind in the dark, they make sure they have a clear path.

No Fear
They aren’t scared to try something out and not afraid to fail. Let’s face it, in this industry there is no guaranteed success. Everything needs to be tested and what works for me, might not work for you. Fear of failure can hinder even the most bright people. Even if you do fail on a campaign, take it as a learning experience, learn what you did right and what you did wrong.

They Listen
There is lots of advice out there on free and paid sites. Some of that advice is good, some of it isn’t. Either way it’s good to take it in and let it digest, even if it’s not good advice it might give you other ideas.

Obviously this list isn’t an end all be all, it’s just some of the attributes I’ve seen. Now get to work! :)