The Easy Way to Pick Awesome Prizes for Your Affiliate Launch

In case you didn’t know, affiliate prizes are a big deal. They not only attract affiliates to promote you, but they also incentivize affiliates to put in more effort. But how do you pick the right ones?

Picking affiliate prizes for product launch

Having the right prizes for your budget can make your affiliate offer more attractive to potential affiliates. On more than one occasion, I’ve chosen to promote a launch based on the prizes, even when I realistically stood no chance to win some of them.

I’ve also gone out of my way to win certain prizes once I was in a launch. The fact is…they work. Here’s why.

Why Affiliate Prizes Work

The easiest way to run an affiliate contest is to just offer straight up cash. Don’t get me wrong…that does work. But there is something about killer prizes that gets people even more excited.

Here are five reasons they prizes work better than cash:

1. Prizes are tangible.

A cool prize has a certain “feel” to it.

A Porsche Boxster (actual prize we’ve offered) just feels different than the cash equivalent. A person can imagine driving the car, wind in his or her hair, taking a tight turn just a little too fast.

Even a $400 prize like an iPad Mini has tangible appeal. It’s easier to picture yourself using it.

Cash on the other hand, while great, is more abstract. It might be used to pay off some of the mortgage or save for the kids’ college. Or perhaps it could be used for this or that. Not that exciting.

2. Prizes are experiential.

Imagine for a moment going to the Kentucky Derby and spending the day with an All-Access Clubhouse Pass. If that’s your thing, it sounds pretty cool.

Or how about a trip to the Final Four with three friends. That is something you can get a clear, vivid picture of. And it’s exciting.

This is why we love experiential prizes.

3. Prizes are aspirational.

I like to offer prizes that get people to think a little outside of their norms. Like the Kentucky Derby passes or the Final Four.

But also things like a golf simulator or a $5,000 television (or a $50,000+ car!).

We all aspire to own nice things…and isn’t it nice when someone else buys them for us?

4. Prizes are really, really, really fun.

During the Self-Publishing School launch last year, one affiliate, Ray Edwards, really wanted a drone.

Thankfully, that drone was one of the top prizes for the optin contest. Here’s what he wrote me:

I’m really shooting for third place. I’ve always wanted a drone but I know I’ll never buy it for myself.

I will, however, let you buy it for me.

These are what I call “Buy it for Me” prizes and they make great prizes.

When I was promoting Michael Hyatt’s 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever last year, I finished in fourth place, earning a $2500 MacBook Pro. I’ve used that computer like crazy since it arrived.

The thing is…I’d been talking about getting one for years. I never pulled the trigger, though. But as soon as Michael sent me one, I’m in love.

Cash is great, but it’s also boring. Prizes, on the other hand, are really, really, really fun!

5. Prizes have cool pictures.

When you’re putting together a list of prizes for an affiliate leaderboard it helps to have some cool pictures. And again, cash is great, but it makes for lousy pictures.

Compare a bunch of pictures of money to something awesome like this:

Best affiliate contest prizes

Those look appealing and fun to win!

Our Struggle Searching for the Right Prizes

For nearly two years, every time we did a new launch, we’d set off on what felt like an endless search for cool prizes. It was exhausting and time-consuming.

So we finally created our Affiliate Prize Database and made our lives a lot easier.

That’s when I began to hear from other business owners that they were struggling with the same things I was. They either:

Didn’t know what prizes to offer.
Didn’t want keep using the same prizes over and over again.
Didn’t have the time to research new prizes.
Offered lame prizes as a result.

Once I realized there was a need out there for an easy-to-use prize database, well…I created it.

Introducing the Affiliate Prize Database

In total, my team and I (I’ll admit it’s mostly been them) have spent more than 20 hours putting together this database. It includes all of the best prizes we’ve offered at more than 40 price points.

Looking for an awesome prize at the $2500 level? We’ve got it.

How about $10,000? Yep.

From $30 to $50,000+, this database has it all. It’s our go-to source of prizes.

And, for the first time ever, we’re sharing it with the public.

I know the frustration that comes with searching for these things, so we want to make it available to everyone. That’s why we priced it at only $7.

Yep, you get 20+ hours of our work for only $7.

Plus, you get a lifetime of updates (my lifetime at least…and I plan for that to be a long time). We’re constantly adding new prizes and deleting outdated ones, so it continues to grow and remains timely.

Free Training Bonus

If you get the database before August 31, you’ll also get my training video showing you how to pick the right prizes and how to run a killer affiliate contest.

This training is normally only available to our consulting clients who pay thousands of dollars, but we’re including it with the database so you know how to best use it.

I’ll share the psychology of great prizes, when to offer them, and how to design your contest for maximum results. I’ll also show you how to create a budget that doesn’t break the bank but does attract and activate awesome affiliates.