One of the easiest and best ways to cash in on all the hard work it takes to make a sale is to base your sales model on recurring billing. The two types of products and services which are easily billed on a recurring basis are those which generate automatic sales (renewals and reorders) and automatic income (residuals.) These two recurring billing models are really two different ways to achieve the same goal, but they will be treated separately here. Additionally, these two areas are not always to cut and dry, and there is bound to be some overlap in certain products and offerings.
Reorders and Renewals
Reorders and renewals refer to products which can be automatically delivered as the customer is automatically charged. Examples of these kinds of products would an automatic shipment of vitamins with automatic billing, or a magazine subscription with monthly billing. When there is a physical object being delivered, it is easier to think of the process as “reordering,” though the customer may not have had to actually place a new order. Renewals would refer to a monthly subscription such as a membership to a website. The period of renewal or reorder may be monthly or even yearly, depending on the product and the offer.
Residuals
Residual income refers to doing something once and receiving income from that action well into the future. Artists, such as musicians and movie stars, are often paid for years when their music or movies are purchased down the line. So, in this case, it is possible that very little work goes into earning the residual, as sometimes residuals are earned for decades with absolutely no additional work by the producer. One good thing about residuals is that they can often be sold or transferred.
The Benefits of Recurring Income
The top reason affiliate marketers should get into products which give recurring income is that this sales model helps the marketer earn more over the lifetime of a product than selling it on a “one-time” payment model. For example, if you sold razors to men with the one-time model, your customer may purchase 10 razors now, but then buy from a competitor next time. But with the recurring model he would automatically purchase 10 razors per month from you, and even come to depend on and expect their delivery.
