This article is written in partnership with and sponsored by Travelpayouts, a travel partnership platform, which allows me to earn passive income through affiliate marketing. All views are my own and I always recommend platforms that I believe in.
As a digital nomad, business owner and travel creator, being able to earn a living and make money while I’m travelling is essential to my business as well as my lifestyle.
I’ve been a travel blogger and content creator since 2019 when I first started blogging as a side hustle to make some extra money. Now I make a full time income every month between $5,000-$10,000 USD thanks to my travel content.
Being from the UK, it’s often hard for people to talk about money, but I think as a self-employed business owner working in the digital world, it’s important to be open about what is possible and to share tips and expertise that have helped me to get to where I am now.
So, what is affiliate marketing? How does affiliate marketing work? And how do I use affiliate marketing to travel full-time and make a full-time income? And how can you use Travelpayouts as a travel creator to earn that income?
Read on to find out.
What is affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a marketing method which allows a creator to share or promote a brand or product on their platform via affiliate tools such as links, banners or widgets. The brand then tracks clicks and sales via these tools and the creator earns a commission on the sale at no extra cost to the customer.
How do travel affiliate programs work?
One of my favourite hotels ever
In the travel industry, affiliate marketing is most commonly seen through travel creators and bloggers promoting hotels, tours, flights, car rentals or other vacation-related activities. The links they share to these products are affiliate links, meaning if someone clicks the link and books the hotel, tour, flight or experience, then the creator will earn a small commission percentage of that sale.
How to use affiliate marketing to make money?
I use Travelpayouts, a travel partnership platform, where hundreds of travel brands can be found on their platform. As a Travelpayouts member, I can then sign up for affiliate programmes with popular brands (like Booking, Agoda, Expedia and over 100 more!) and when I talk about a travel experience, I use the affiliate links from these platforms.
I share these links in my travel blogs, on my Instagram stories and on other social platforms. Once someone makes a purchase, I receive a small percentage of their purchase.
How much can you earn from affiliate marketing?
There is no single answer to this, the sky’s the limit when it comes to affiliate marketing. I make a liveable income from my travel content, but I also know of creators who are making $10,000-$100,000+ USD per month through affiliates!
The most important thing is to consistently implement links in your content, share content regularly with affiliate links and create useful content for your audience that will ultimately lead them to make a purchase.
This is why travel affiliate marketing platforms like Travelpayouts are for travel bloggers and creators rather than regular travellers - it’s beneficial to have an existing platform and audience to share your recommendations and links with.
What is Travelpayouts?
Travelpayouts is a travel partnership platform where trusted brands like Booking, Tripadvisor and GetYourGuide work together with over 300,000 bloggers and content creators around the world to bring people the best travel deals. This is affiliate marketing for travel bloggers and creators all in one place.
How does Travelpayouts work?
Once you’ve signed up to the platform, you can join as many brand affiliate programmes as you like with no minimum entry requirements. As soon as you’re accepted, start sharing your affiliate links on your socials and website.
When someone makes a purchase using that link, you earn money from that sale. Once you’ve set up your links on your blog or socials, that link can continue to earn you passive income for as long as you leave your content live.
I have blog articles on my websites that consistently generate hundreds of dollars a month - meaning I earn passive income for months and even years after I create that content.
Where can I use TravelPayout links and features?
If you’re like me and prefer some tangible examples, here are some of the best ways to use affiliate links in your travel content and where I find sharing TravelPayout links to be more effective:
In my blog posts on my travel websites
In my Instagram stories (best way to share clickable links if you want to know how to use affiliate marketing on Instagram)
In my Instagram stories saved to highlights on my page
In my Instagram bio (I regularly direct people to my bio from my feed posts)
In my other social media platforms such as TikTok, Pinterest or Twitter
In my subscriber newsletter
Features provided in the platform to support you
What are the benefits of affiliate marketing with Travelpayouts?
Travelpayouts is an all-in-one travel affiliate network, making it easy to keep track of your affiliate programmes, earnings and commissions in one place.
There’s no entry threshold to join brand affiliate programmes so you can start earning even as a beginner blogger or creator
Over 100 travel brands to choose from so you can find your favourites and most trusted brands
A single wallet for withdrawing money, making it easier to accumulate money across multiple brands
There are multiple ways to withdraw your money so you can access your commissions however is easiest for you
Once you’ve implemented links within your blog, in your bio, on your socials or saved in your story highlights, people can find them anytime and you can earn a passive income
How to become a travel affiliate and how to get started using Travelpayouts?
Find your trusted and favourite brands from over 100+ brands in the TravelPayout directory
Sign up to the brand’s affiliate programme - there is no minimum entry requirement and no fee, you can sign up to as many as you like!
Once you’re accepted into the affiliate programme, you can start sharing affiliate links, banners and widgets on your platforms. Many of these programmes don’t even require pre-approval.
See the money come in - you’ll earn up to 50% of the commission that Travelpayouts receives, so the more consistently you share affiliate links, the more return you’ll see. Commission is paid into your TravelPayout wallet, making it easy to keep track of all your earnings in one place
Choose how you want to withdraw your earnings, Travelpayouts offers multiple withdrawal options such as Paypal, bank transfer or WebMoney.
just some of the Travelpayouts programmes available
Who is Travelpayouts for?
Travelpayouts is suitable for:
Social media influencers
Bloggers
Content Creators
You can register for free here, add your business details and how you plan to promote brands, and then join brand affiliate programmes that best fit your content and audience.
Is Travelpayouts worth it?
In a word, yes. Being able to earn passive income while I travel the world, spending time with my loved ones and pursuing my passions all while earning is absolutely worth it to me.
The most important thing to understand about affiliate marketing is the compounding effect. This isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. Implementing, testing and optimising your content and how you share your affiliate links is a super important part of creating content as a content creator and it’s the same for affiliates. The more you test, optimise and implement, the more of a return you’ll see.
When I first started affiliate marketing, I made about £100 in my first year. But the more blogs I wrote, the more content I shared, the more I learned about SEO and optimising my affiliate content, the more I saw the compounding effect of travel affiliates in my content.
So the best time for you to get started is right now and it will pay off in the future (literally!)
Summary: How to make a full-time income as a content creator using Travelpayouts
I think using Travelpayouts is the ideal option for streamlining your affiliate strategy and maximising your earnings. Having so many brands in one place to choose from, plus no entry requirements and simple payout methods makes Travelpayouts an obvious choice for travel bloggers, influencers and content creators.
I think there needs to be more transparency about how content creators and bloggers earn money so if you have any questions about blogging, content creation, how to use affiliate marketing in travel content or using Travelpayouts, please drop me a message on my Instagram or in the submission form at the bottom of the page.
