'Net Features : affiliate networks

Affiliate Marketing, In-House vs. Network

Administrator — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 14:00:00 GMT

Affiliate marketing is a great way for a business to expand its reach into the online arena. Simply stated, an affiliate program is another way of saying reseller or introducer. You allow those signed up to your program to offer your products and service to their site traffic and in return you pay them on certain types of activities. This can be done on a low-cost and low-risk model.

There are two main ways to create and run an affiliate program.

1. In-house: You build an affiliate tracking platform for your business or you buy an off-the-shelf package to manage your affiliate program. All you need then is to go out and get affiliates.

2. Network: You sign up to an affiliate network that has all the tracking software already running and also has affiliates all ready and waiting to join your program.

As you can see both options pretty much do the same things and both have pros and cons.

In-House Option

Pros: Cheaper to set up; gives you full control; builds a private network; and with no network fees, this allows to you pay affiliates more.

Cons: No affiliate network and can take longer to start to see results.

Network Option

Pros: Built-in affiliate network; access to wide variety of affiliates; and can see sales quicker.

Cons: Higher setup costs and higher pre-sale fees due to overrides.

In summary, you can see there are benefits for doing both; it does really come down to expectations, budget and how quickly you want to see a Return on Investment (ROI).

Once you have decided which route to go down, you then need to think about a few more things. The first big one is remuneration.

Remuneration

There are a number of ways to pay affiliates:

Cost Per Click (CPC): You could pay affiliates on a pay-per-click basis to drive traffic.

Cost Per Lead (CPL): You would pay for a completed validated lead. Tends to work in B2B or insurance.

Cost Per Action (CPA): Again, similar to a lead but could be a survey, quote form, newsletter signup or guide download.

Cost Per Sale (CPS): Pay affiliates a flat fee per product sale or a percentage of their basket value. This works well in retail and travel.

Whatever payment type you choose, you need to make sure the numbers work for you as a business before you publish rates. Nothing kills a program faster than having to reduce commissions in week two because you missed something or tried to pay away too much.

Recruitment, Incentives and Communication

Once the program is up and running, it will need maintenance and work - even on a network you can't rely on them to be proactive for you. You need to make this work.

Actively go out and look for a potential affiliates, use Google and forums to find these guys and reach out directly. With current affiliates, incentivise them, run contests to drive more sales. Above all, make sure you communicate regularly. After all, these guys are your sales force. You wouldn’t go into a sales meeting without the proper product details, so make sure your affiliates don't. Affiliate marketing is a great way to drive sales and diversify your online income or traffic streams but it does take planning and effort to get it working for you.

About the Author:

Jason Hulott is Director of SpeedieConsulting and helps merchants globally grow their affiliate activities via SpeedieAffiliates.com.

Contact: Jason Hulott, Director of SpeedieConsulting. Tel: 01843 831088 / 07940 521056, email: jason@speediepr.co.uk

LinkShare Affiliate Network Sees Explosive Growth

Michael Garrity — Tue, 15 May 2012 19:00:00 GMT

Rakuten LinkShare has announced that its various global performance marketing networks saw impressive growth throughout Q1 of 2012, with some of its strongest network sales coming from the United States, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom.

This progress presents new opportunities for publishers, both at home and abroad.

Specifically in the U.S., the LinkShare network outperformed overall e-commerce in terms of growth by a large margin. Moreover, Forrester Research is predicting that overall e-commerce will grow by 12 percent by the end of 2012, while LinkShare has seen some of its store’s sales already increase 31 percent year-over-year in the first quarter.

The U.K. network also saw immense gains in some areas, with some overall store sales growing 52 percent year-over-year.

LinkShare has also added over 100 new brands in the first quarter. The U.S. network saw the inclusion of Steve Madden, while Canada signed Saks Fifth Avenue (who also joined the U.K. network), Kiehl’s, Biotherm and eBeauty.ca. The Japanese LinkShare network added Dyson Japan and Kurimo.

All of these brands represent a wide array of product categories (and publisher opportunities), from apparel to luxury and many more.

Five Affiliate Networks to Watch

Michael Garrity — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 20:00:00 GMT

We all know that it's really nothing new to say the Web is in a constant state of flux, with new trends and methods for success constantly popping up. Some of them stick, some fade away and some linger in a niche market.

While affiliate marketing has been a prevalent and important force on the Internet for over a decade now, it too has seen significant changes. The complexity of the market has greatly increased, and many affiliate networks have come and gone in the last ten years. Sure, some have risen to the top and succeeded, such as Commission Junction, LinkShare and ShareASale, but many more haven't fared nearly as well.

Those looking to start or expand their practice as a publisher or merchant will probably find that tracking down the right affiliate network can be a difficult task. Depending on how niche one's market is, what kind of a success rate one is looking for and just ensuring that the network will still be up-and-running in a few months, making this decision can be tough.

Fortunately, WM is here to help. After scouring the deepest recesses of the Internet and studying the valued opinions of affiliate networking experts and successful publishers, we've found a list of networks that may be just below your radar but may have shown great potential and/or success in the past.

ClassesUSA
Powered by Experian and built on the foundation of the once hot Affiliate Fuel, this network operates in the fast-growing market of online education. ClassesUSA sees over 2 million visitors a month and is partnered with over 300 accredited colleges and universities in various fields of study. Business colleges, trade schools, healthcare programs and many more are all represented on ClassesUSA. With its ties to the once highly regarded Affiliate Fuel, its affiliate program is top-notch. It provides publishers with timely payments, support and options in commission structure, as well as promising "deeper partnerships for high-performing members." If you're interested in getting involved in the education market, this is a great choice for an affiliate network.

Inuvo
This is another network that rose from the ashes of a pretty successful former affiliate network; this time it was PrimaryAds that was acquired by targeted Internet marketing company Inuvo to establish its own affiliate network. According to the company, the "key byproduct" of the Inuvo Platform is the data that both advertisers and publishers produce. Inuvo stresses the importance of analytics in the affiliate marketing game and promises to use its expertise to better analyze and predict fraud, accurately rate traffic quality from publishers and advertisers and provide targeted offers to users. This goal fits in well with the company's primary purpose, which is targeted online marketing, so it's a safe bet that they can use their analysis to hook you up with relevant users.

AffiliateWire
AffiliateWire is an affiliate network that focuses on the promotion of high-quality digital products. Many of the network's merchants are software companies like StopZilla, Pareto Logic and Avanquest Software. The company promises detailed support for help choosing keywords and creating effective ads, mini-sites and product pages. Affiliates are able to earn up to 75 percent commission per sale, and AffiliateWire provides them with an optimized shopping cart and real-time sales tracking. They also provide member benefits and incentives, such as the opportunity to compete for prizes like trips, cars and computers. By providing some of the best (and highest-converting) merchandise available, as well as tools, services and resources, AffiliateWire is a great choice for publishers looking to make their way into the market of digital products.

EWA Network
By being super-exclusive, EWA Network is able to "maintain personal connections with all our affiliates, pledge to beat any payout, and pay on time to all affiliates." It only allows a select number of new affiliates to join its network so it is better able to work with each publisher based on the individual needs. (As of last Sunday, only 10 new affiliates are being accepted.) However, this approach seems to work well for them. It is able to provide publishers with weekly campaign mini-guides that supply updates on your progress. You're sent an email that tells you what offers to run, where to run them, and which demographics you would do well to target. EWA also tends to give you the highest payout rates without any intervention needed from affiliates. You can also get updates and support from its Twitter account. This is probably the strongest network on the list; that is, if you can get past the velvet rope.

Empyre Media
One of the great things about this network is the Empyre University, an exclusive set of training courses offered to Empyre's users. It guarentees top offers in every vertical by providing exclusive, on-demand, custom offers to publishers thanks to its "vast connections" in the affiliate marketing industry. It also provides users with internal testing to help maximize revenue, providing well-informed and intuitive experts when you need them, reliable tracking through its Hitpath system and the highest possible payouts. Claiming to accomodate "every tool you need for every part of your affiliate marketing program," Empyre Media, though still relatively young, is a strong network choice for any affiliate marketer.

Merchant-Friendly Affiliate Networks

MaureenA — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 20:20:00 GMT

As a merchant, utilizing an affiliate network can increase revenue and extend your brand awareness farther and faster than many merchants could do so on their own. But sometimes it’s hard to know where to start or what to ask when filtering through the many affiliate networks available. Below are a few tips to guarantee a partnership with a trustworthy, credible network that fits your marketing goals.

Impressions Are Everything
Just as when you meet someone in person, you conclude your first impressions of a website within seconds. Going to the website of an affiliate network you’re considering can tell you a lot about how they understand the Web. For example, an aesthetically appealing design that doesn't overwhelm visitors, features clear navigation at the top for quick information and support contributes to a general feeling of confidence. Because an affiliate network does business online, their website should reflect they understand the Web in design and functionality.

The Company They Keep
The next step is looking for accreditations. Do they promote industry affiliations on their site to showcase they are recognized by associations and those active in the community. For example, do they showcase seals for Better Business Bureau (BBB), Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), Online Publishers Association (OPA). Do they attend tradeshows? Are they published in trade journals? Do they actively advertise? While there isn’t regulation online, partnering with an affiliate network that gets involved with its industry gives them some level of credibility.

Quantity, Quality and Everything in Between
What’s the size of their publisher and advertising networks? Publishers partner with affiliate networks that can provide them with a large number of advertisers – and advertisers that pay them. The more advertisers in a network, the more competitive the payouts are for publishers. Advertisers will partner with affiliate networks that can provide them with a large number of publishers to guarantee they get a broad reach. But quality of that reach is also important. Advertisers want to make sure their products are being promoted by affiliates with large traffic numbers and credibility themselves. Choosing an affiliate network that only has one of these two factors can be detrimental to the success of your affiliate marketing.

Let Me Hear You!
What level of communication and support is available? Being able to get in contact with your affiliate network management guarantees you can solve problems when they arise, ask questions when needed, and make any changes when necessary. Consider an affiliate network that provides you with a personal project manager to assist you with any and all kinds of support. Business on the Web is constantly changing so it’s important to partner with an affiliate network that will be there when you want them.

Affiliate Networks
Below are a sampling of four affiliate networks that operate under the traditional affiliate network business model of cost per action. However, it’s important to note there are companies that provide services on a cost per lead basis such as NetLine, which may fit your goals.

Commission Junction: Commission Junction has three different plans for merchants to choose from with basic functionality to advanced. Its website has detailed information about plans, FAQs, the company, as well as how to contact for support. Commission Junction is accredited by the Better Business Bureau.

ShareASale: ShareASale doesn’t offer plans but rather operates as a performance marketing network meaning there are set fees and the merchant establishes commission rates. Affiliate and Merchant information is separate on its website for quick navigation to applicable information. ShareSale operates the ABestWeb forum for assistance.

Pepperjam: Pepperjam is also a performance marketing network. It handles reporting and affiliate payments. E-commerce merchants are ideal advertisers for Pepperjam’s affiliate network. Contact information about the company is provided on its website, as well as detailed information about advertisers and publishers.

RevenueLoop: RevenueLoop has a set up fee and service fee which changes depending on the monthly volume. The fees include billing, tracking and customer service. It includes detailed support information on its site.

To view more affiliate networks, read Website Magazine’s Top 50 Affiliate Networks from the May 2009 issue.

What affiliate networks do you use and why? Comment below.

Merchants Pave Their Own Way

Pete Prestipino — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 03:50:00 GMT

I came across an interesting thread today at the ABW forum from a merchant who had decided to strike out on his own (away from networks) and manage their own affiliate offering.

Under the title "Leaving the networks and Paving Our Own Way”:

“After spending some time as merchant in a few of the popular affiliate program networks, we have decided to go out on our own and offer a truly unique affiliate program. The concept is simple, provide our affiliates with the tools they need (creatives, text ads, tracking links, dynamic co-branded pages) to bring new customers our way, and in return we deliver a $25 to $100 commission for each sale.”

While there’s a lot of value in letting affiliate networks do the recruiting legwork and develop the infrastructure necessary for tracking and managing affiliates, it is possible (in my opinion – we’ve done this internally ourselves) to develop an affiliate program and promote it to those within your industry. So here’s the question, if you’re a merchant, what’s stopping you from “paving your own way”? If you’re an affiliate network, how do you convince merchants to stick with it?

Share your thoughts on this issue - just comment below.

eBay Partner Network Impressive in Scope and Functionality

Pete Prestipino — Wed, 06 May 2009 15:54:00 GMT

Several weeks ago I had the pleasure of participating in a panel on alternatives to contextual publisher programs at the AdSpace conference. One of my fellow panelists was from eBay and that encouraged me to take a second look at the program opportunities. Since eBay left Commission Junction, the auction site has over time built a highly-competitive program that affiliates are going to be very interested in as a way to monetize their Web properties (or applications).

Let's look at the eBay Partner network in more detail and the tools they provide.

Link Generator: For those not wanting to mess around with deep integrations, eBay's Link Generator is a very quick way to participate in the program. Publishers select between eBay and Half.com links, the link type (sending traffic to the home page, to search results, to Item ID's, to specific seller stores, or custom URLs) and can even geo-target links. The eBay Partner network identifies the location of the user and will redirect the user to a particular landing page based on that location - very helpful if you only want to list local items or restrict users from seeing non-country specific listings. Affiliates (eBay partners generate a link and copy the code - available either in both JavaScript and HTML). Here's a sample from the link generator: Search for software deals on eBay

Creatives Generator: Publishers more interested in using display-type advertisements will probably use the Creatives Generator. The tool enables publishers to choose from a variety of ads (graphic and interactive) for use on their websites. While eBay covers most of the major IAB formats, there are only a handful of options for traditional banners, Flash and logo-type ads currently available . There are actually more sizes and types of ads (video for example) listed than are actually available, leading me to believe that over time the Creatives Generator will be the most utilized of eBay Partner Network tools.

Widgets: For those that classify themselves as a little more tech-savvy, eBay Partner network has made widgets available. There are actually four classifications of widgets (the Editor Kit, RSS Feed Generator, eBay To Go, and Custom Banner) each offering some valuable functionality for partner publishers.

The Editor Kit enables partners to add real-time eBay listings to their website (and filter results by category, keywords and other criteria and customize the look). Publishers choose the dimensions and theme, select content, set up tracking, and deploy the JavaScript code snippet. Sample of the widget is below:

RSS Feed Generator is perhaps the most customizable of the widgets available. Publishers can generate track-able RSS feeds with dynamic eBay content that provides users with live listing information. Publisher partners can build their RSS automatically (a vast improvement from the previous DIY version) and refine the listings they receive by excluding search terms, setting a price range, displaying all listings or auction and BIN only, pushing items from a specific seller ID and even have some geo-targeting capabilities to restrict what listing will appear. An RSS feed URL is provided which can be parsed as needed, integrated within existing applications or whatever your creative mind comes up with. I set up a quick example using one of my personal domains in GoogleHandset.com which shows G1 Android Accessories.

eBay To Go is the third type of widget available in the eBay Partner Network. The widget enables publishers to showcase specific listings and users interact with them. Publishers choose between displaying single items, multiple items, from specific sellers or entire stores. Visually, eBay To Go provides the best and most unique experience. A sample eBay To Go widget is available on the same site as the link above displaying G1 accessories.

The Custom Banner Tool (beta) in the eBay Partner Network lets publishers to customize flash banners with real-time eBay listings. Publishers can choose from available templates or design their own, then filter search results based on keyword, category, seller and more.

Overall I am very impressed with the eBay Partner Network and encourage affiliates to check out their offerings as they can add a very special dimension to your existing Web property.

AffSpy Affiliate Intelligence Tool

Pete Prestipino — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 15:10:00 GMT

Searching for the "right" affiliate program on the "right" network can be challenging but newly launched Affspy aims to change all that.

The free affiliate intelligence tool allows users to enter a keyword and find the best performing offers as well as which networks pay the most for each - that's important as affiliates can findwe. I played around with the service and found several reputable affiliate networks including RevenueLoop, ClickBooth, Advaliant, NeverBlue and others.

AffSpy is definitely an excellent service that affiliates should try out and one that, if you're an affiliate network, you should consider joining.

Here is a screenshot of the results page (all results can be sorted).

Easy Affiliate Solution for Start-Up Merchants

Pete Prestipino — Thu, 22 May 2008 16:39:00 GMT

Ecommerce remains big business (despite reports of slow growth). Of all the advice I give to start up merchants, the most frequent recommendation I give is to start, develop and promote an affiliate program. While affiliate networks like Commission Junction certainly have their place, those ecommerce merchants looking to just get their virtual feet wet in the world of affiliate marketing might just want to look into PayDotCom, a unique marketplace wherein advertisers (merchants) can sell both physical products and digital goods.

Perhaps the best part of the solution is that it leverages (and very nicely I would like to add) PayPal for both receipt of payments and payments merchants make to their affiliates (all major credit cards are accepted as well). PayDotCom can be used for more than just one time sales however - collecting ongoing subscription fees (perfect for membership sites) is another key feature. When compared to other affiliate merchant processors, the solution looks competitive for those just getting started. There is no setup fee, account approval and landing page approval is automatic, and it offers a customizable affiliate signup page for your website. No percentage is taken on sales, just a flat $1-3 sales fee which is split by the vendor and the affiliate (PayPal fees are considered separate).

To be honest, the pricing is a little confusing, but it remains a cheaper and more robust alternative on the surface than Clickbank. I plan on personally testing the PayDotCom platform to sell an ebook on buying and selling domains for the upcoming August issue on ecommerce.

Shopster Sweetens Affiliate Commissions

Pete Prestipino — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Shopster, an online dropship business solution, has sweetened its affiliate offerings - just in time for Valentines Day!

Within an announcement at 5Star Affiliate Marketing Forums, Shopster will be paying out a $5 lead fee for all new customers referred that sign up for a 7-day free trial. Shopster is even increasing the bounty for monthly and annual subscribers to 20% and 22% respectively.

More on Shopster at Website Magazine:
In a Perfect Affiliate Marketing World