No one wants to fail at their job, but tons of people start and fail at affiliate marketing every day. Most of these are fly-by-night efforts that were never destined to success, but some affiliates will pour thousands into a campaign hoping to make it work. Stop paying to learn what the experts already know. These obvious flags are guaranteed to turn your campaigns into failures, so avoid them to reap rewards of your work.

Automate Too Quickly

As recently as a few years ago, “set and forget” was the affiliate mantra for display advertising. There was a time when you could tweak your campaigns to get just the right settings before you sat back and watched the numbers roll in. This is not so true today. You can no longer rely on your targeting settings to remain effective, because other advertisers bid for the top spots in your area. You can no longer rely on your bids beating competitors, because advertisers are constantly fighting for the top position and will push your ads further down the page, if not entirely off of it.

Trying to automate your campaigns too quickly is the fastest way to fail. Instead, look for what you can automate, like the time of days your ads run, and try to take the stress off of your own workload.

Advertise Without Researching

Affiliate marketing is built on research. The more data you can assemble for your banner advertising, the more likely you are to hit your target and score a conversion. One of the biggest reasons that affiliates lose money is a lack of research. You need to know your core market for the product you’re selling, and any details you can glean about them. Learn about where they shop, what their income levels are, and what problems they deal with. You should also have a sense of what works in your niche, so you have some copy in mind when you design your ad.

Never Push Boundaries

If you don’t try to change up your advertising content, you’re bound to fail. Content marketing has been around for a while, going all the way back to vintage magazines and pamphlets from the Victorian period and earlier. If you try to rely on the same ideas, or in some cases the same content, you won’t be able to attract new attention. Your landing page should be specific to the buyer’s needs, which automation can’t account for.

Bio: Ted Dhanik is an expert in mobile, video and display advertising. As the co-founder of engage;BDR, Ted Dhanik manages business development and builds leads. Found out how to build successful campaigns with tips from Ted Dhanik.