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* Does the program pay just commissions on sales, or do they also pay for hits and/or impressions? Getting paid for impressions and/or hits, in addition to commissions on sales, is important. This is especially true if the program has a low sales to hit ratio.
* Who is the online retailer? Find out who you are doing business with. Is this a solid company? How do they fill orders? What types of payments do they accept? How long have they been in business? What are their return policies and how do these affect you?
What products do they sell and what is their average sale amount? The more you know about the retailer offering the affiliate program, the easier it will be for you to determine if this is the program for you and your site.
* Is this a one or two tier program? A single tier program pays you only for the business you personally generate. A two tier program pays you for your business, plus it pays you a commission on the sales generated by any affiliate you sponsor into their program. Some two tier programs will also pay you a small fee on each new affiliate you sponsor - a recruitment fee.
* Finally, what is the amount of commission paid? (And fee for impressions/hits - if available.) 5% - 20% is common for commissions paid on sales. $.01 - $.05 is common for the amount paid for each hit (click through). If you find a program that also pays for impressions, don't expect the amount paid to be much at all.
From these numbers you can see that the program's average sale amount and hit to sale ratio are extremely important. This is especially true if yours is a low traffic site to begin with.
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