Affiliate software, desktop and web-based, are critical for the success of professional affiliate marketers. Tools include website design software, commission tracking software, accounting software, e-mail (legal) marketing solutions, graphic design software, affiliate program management solutions and much more.

Once an affiliate marketing pro has setup these programs and established a routine, then it's just a matter of tracking the performance of affiliate campaigns, utilizing the effective campaigns and depositing your commissions.

I'll break down the different categories of affiliate tools below and provide some helpful links to help you get started. Some of these tools I have used successfully and some I still use to maximize my commissions.

Affiliate program management tools are intended to provide affiliates with a central management platform for a variety of affiliate networks and campaigns. This is a relatively new area in the affiliate marketing industry due to the success and popularity of the affiliate marketing industry.

The most effective software platform I have used is from a company called Move Software LLC.

"It’s the first software platform of its kind to be designed exclusively for the affiliate marketing industry by former industry leading affiliate marketers. From our full integration with all major search engines and affiliate networks (and several tier 2 affiliate networks), to our advanced ROI-based analytics, you’ll discover that this is the first end-to-end SEM platform designed just for you. You will have access to the tools we used for years to generate more than $20 Million in affiliate commissions, before selling that business in November of 2008."

This solution is ideal if you are managing affiliate campaigns from a variety of sites, including Commission Junction (CJ), LinkShare, Performics (Google Affiliate Network), ShareASale, PepperJam Network, ClickBank, PartnerFusion, Converseon, Kowabunga, and more. The great thing is that it was designed by successful affiliates in the same industry who recognize the problems with keeping track of all the different affiliate campaigns.

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There are many ways to market your affiliate campaigns, including the use of web pages, websites, e-mail marketing, print ads and more. Web pages and websites are two of the more common methods or promoting links. They are also much safer than E-mail marketing campaigns. Internet users can become extremely agitated over E-mail marketing and affiliate programs typically have strict rules about the use of E-mail campaigns, resulting in the revocation of your affiliate relationships & resulting profits.

Web pages are a simple method of promoting affiliate links and no longer require HTML programming knowledge.