Love it or hate it, ClickBank is first port of call for many digital information publishers.
You can use it to sell every type of digital product you can imagine.
Want to sell a course on pet grooming, Forex trading, betting, dating… martial arts? You name it, it’s all there.
There’s even a course on how to create your own ‘Cosmic Star Ceiling’. I’m not joking – you can see it here.
Why ClickBank?
1) It’s trusted model
They’ve been going since 1998 – almost an eternity in the digital age. In that time they’ve helped publishers sell billions of $ worth of products
2) You don’t need a merchant bank account to sign up
They handle all the payment processing for you, which means you can accept any type of card from customers
3) You get instant access to an army of affiliates
There are online bloggers and marketers who’ll push your product if they like it (and the commission is right!)
4) You get access to your buyer’s contact information after a sale
That means you can promote new products to them in the future. Not all digital marketplaces offer this
5) There are no ongoing monthly fees to pay
You’re only charged on the products you sell and there are no recurring membership fees
6) They offer a more competitive rate than a lot of online retailers
More on this in just a moment…
7) Payouts are reliable and regular
You can get paid by cheque or bank transfer. The system works
How much does it cost to get set up and selling on ClickBank?
As a publisher you have to pay a one-off ‘activation charge’ of $49.95 when your first product’s approved. If your product isn’t approved you don’t have to pay this.
While there are no ongoing monthly fees, you do have to pay a $2.50 processing charge each time ClickBank pays you your earnings. It’s a bit steep but you can raise your payment threshold to minimise these fees.
So those are the fixed fees. Then there are the transaction costs…
ClickBank charge $1 per transaction (for card processing) and a percentage of the total product value.
This is where it gets a bit more confusing…
In simple terms ClickBank keep 7.5% of every sale for themselves. That’s BEFORE the transaction fee and before any affiliate split you might have.
Here’s an example:
– You sell your product for $50
– You offer affiliates 50% per sale
In this example, after ClickBank’s 7.5% share, you’re left with $46.25. After the $1 transaction fee that leaves $45.25.
If the sale comes in via an affiliate you then have to pay their commission. So at 50% that comes to $22.63 – and that’s your final figure.
It might sound like a lot but remember you set your own affiliate commission rate, so that’s down to you. The key figures to bear in mind are ClickBank’s 7.5% share and the $1 transaction charge.
Compare this with something like Kindle marketplace and ClickBank’s actually a pretty attractive proposition. If you’re selling on Amazon you typically need to charge a lot less. That’s because buyers expect Kindle books to retail for under £10. This makes it more of a numbers game. On top of that you then have to pay Amazon upwards of 30% commission per sale. You can see more about selling on Amazon here.
Insider scoop – new ClickBank developments coming soon…
I spoke to a top ClickBank seller who attended an exclusive junket in London recently. In attendance were some of the head honchos from the US and they revealed some interesting developments, which they plan to roll out in the coming months.
These include:
– The ability to offer physical products (not just digital downloads). This will be a huge boon for any seller who wants to provide physical course materials with their products. There’s also higher perceived value with physical goods.
– The ability to offer coaching events. Currently you can sell courses and systems on ClickBank. Soon you’ll also be able to sell live events as well (such as coaching and seminars).
Sounds great, what’s the downside?
There’s a big elephant in the room…
The problem is ClickBank’s a strange place… and not always in a good way. Increasingly buyers are writing off products that are sold via ClickBank, because they’ve been disappointed or burned on there in the past.
ClickBank just don’t have an adequate vetting process and a lot of shoddy products slip through the net. This sometimes means that the good products (and there are some really good products on ClickBank) are tarred with the same brush.
It’s important to bear this in mind if you’re thinking of selling a product on ClickBank. Next week I’m going to talk about some viable alternatives to ClickBank, so keep your eyes tuned for that.
Maybe you’ve had a good or bad experience buying or selling on ClickBank? If so please leave a comment below.