I’ve been inspired recently by some conceptual videos, articles and thoughts I’ve been having about products and services in the future. Some of you know I am a bit of a futurism geek, occasionally sharing technology and innovation that spark my interest on my personal Twitter profile.
I’ve also previously shared some resources and ideas you can use to predict and profit from the future today. However, in this article I am going to be writing about the world of tomorrow.
[Header Image: Jason DeRusha, Sam Loves To Blog, April 23, 2008 via Flickr, Creative Commons Attribution]
QR-Codes and similar technologies for gathering and sending information from images are just now emerging. You can make your own right now and begin living this dream once you have contacts owning devices with a QR-Code reader.
Once these technologies become mainstream, I envision a world of enthusiastic affiliate marketers both professional and part-time, because it will be so easy. Those who do not refer friends, family and associates to their favorite products will miss out on the opportunity to earn a substantial amount of money for very little time invested.
Example 1: Grandma Has a Tablet Computer
Grandma will have a paper-thin, light-weight tablet computer with a front and rear facing camera for video calls and snapping photos.
You print a stunning coupon advertisement that represents a coded link to a website URL embedded with your affiliate ID. Paper is still good for milling-over purchase decisions and posting on the GE All-in-one Kitchen kiosk. Grandma simply takes a snapshot of your coupon to be directed to the latest online sale.
Large affiliate networks enable virtually anyone with a website to sell thousands of products. By 2030, you’ll probably be able to earn a small commission for Grandma’s weekly virtual visit to the grocery store and immediate delivery service.
Example 2: Winter Olympics 2030
Imagine your friend is about to go on a family trip to the 2030 Winter Olympics under the Dallas, Texas city-dome and needs a handful of round-trip airline tickets fast. Take out your mobile device, have them capture and navigate to a sweet deal that also earns you a sizable commission.
Consider offering an instant split of the commission for your friend’s courtesy in using your referral. Credits in virtual hand, all parties are happy.
Example 3: Inventor Entrepreneur’s Dream
You are off to sell the latest product you’ve spent the last week developing on your super-computer along with the assistance of your friendly household AI. The free virtual modeling software and pricey, but must-have 3d printer went a long way towards the creation of your dream startup business. You embed a cheap RFID tag identifying your affiliate and a smart NFC chip so anyone can purchase your product with a wave of their mobile device, wherever the affiliate goes.
Share the great news with all your friends on the social network flavors of the decade and give them the opportunity to earn a commission on any sales.
Example 4: The Super Blogger
You’ve been blogging since 2012 and have built up a following of several hundred-thousand enthusiastic fans and virtual friends in the Facebook metaverse. You share great content and write interesting articles about the latest standards in interactive web design trends, supplemented with live video coverage of events with the HD video camera embedded in your glasses.
Every so often you have the opportunity to review and promote high quality products and services to a massive audience. Devoted followers will refer their network to your article review. Affiliate marketing will likely become the top revenue producer alongside direct advertising sales. The super blogger provides a needed service to readers in discovering the best products and services in a niche while living out their passion. Those articles you wrote in 2015 generating weekly commissions will come in handy when the biggest industry conference is hosted in the latest space hotel.
I Look Forward To…
The market in affiliate marketing is going to get much bigger. Not only will there be billions more people, but we will be able to speak to anyone through live-translation applications on mobile devices. A truly global economy will emerge.
This beta technology was just launched earlier this month by Google. It is presently working with 15 languages and is available on Android devices. Here is a demo of the prototype recorded some months ago.
Live Translation
Virtual Currency
The adoption of virtual currency is another trend that will lend many benefits and open a wider customer base to affiliates. We don’t deal with cash, but if you’ll swipe your phone here you can earn 1% back with PayPal, free Groupon bucks or Facebook credits.
More Transparency
I would be thrilled to find more transparency from all affiliate networks and individual retailers. This would come in the form of live analytics, more accurate referral tracking and more frequent payments.
Something I haven’t seen before in many retail settings is an option to manually declare a referrer upon signup. This would be for situations where offering a direct affiliate link is not viable. This would earn you a lifetime of recurring commissions for any purchases made. Such a program would be very attractive to affiliates and would draw the benefits of a virtual army of marketers selling their products.
The Future is Bright
There is a lot to look forward to for everyone involved in online business. I believe the future of affiliate marketing is particularly bright. You can get started today with my guide on 20 ways to make money blogging in 2011.
What do you envision life as an affiliate marketer to be like in 2030? Please share your thoughts in the comments below and consider sharing this article if you enjoyed the short trip to 2030. Thanks!