'Net Features : back to school

Educate Yourself on These Back-to-School Affiliate Programs

Michael Garrity — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 19:30:00 GMT

As the summer draws to an unfortunate close, merchants are scrambling to bring in the rest of the back-to-school shoppers out there preparing for the upcoming academic year. Here at Website Magazine, we’ve already looked at some of the best online marketing practices of e-commerce merchants for this school shopping season, but that leaves out one crucial element of the Internet advertising landscape – affiliates.

A Commission Junction study from earlier this year looked at how back-to-school shoppers use the Web to make their purchasing decisions and determined that affiliate marketing channels are “well-suited” to help marketers reach these consumers. With the school shopping period’s sales peak coming up in the fourth week of August, it’s now or never for affiliate marketers to partner up with one (or more) of these hip affiliate programs to bring in some of that back-to-school cash.

Walmart

Walmart is unquestionably the leader in the retail industry, and it is bound to be the go-to destination for many consumers looking to purchase school supplies, clothing, electronics, dorm room furniture, food, cosmetics, vitamins, chewing gum and a multitude of other goods needed to start the school year off right. The retail giant runs its own affiliate program and offers partners banners and text links, data feeds, RSS feeds, a link generator and more.

Urban Outfitters

This chic clothing retailer offers fashions (as well as fun books and knickknacks) for young men and women from high school through college. Boasting hip apparel that appeals to such a wide range of back-to-school shoppers makes Urban Outfitters an ideal merchant partner. Plus, it will even provide you with reports that track your traffic and earnings, so you can keep up with the performance of your campaign.

Best Buy

Yeah, yeah, I know, Best Buy isn’t exactly doing great right now, but the faltering electronics retailer has at least one more big back-to-school shopping season left in it, and that means that students will inevitably flock to it to purchase new laptops, iPods, home theatre appliances and other accessories. The Best Buy affiliate program pays its affiliate partners based on how much the visitors they direct buy from the site, and helps them out by offering text links, banner ads, widgets and its Best Buy BBY Open API that provides access to the entire Best Buy product catalog. They’ll even throw in weekly newsletters and special announcements highlighting special products, promotions and services.

Justice

If there’s one segment you really want to reach during the back-to-school shopping season, it’s “tween” girls. Justice is an apparel and accessories retailer that does just that, selling products that are unique to the interests of this particular consumer segment. This program offers up to a seven percent commission payout, and Justice has teamed with the renowned Commission Junction affiliate network to offer publishers third-party tracking, real-time reporting and monthly commission checks.

Barnes & Noble

Okay, so this one may not be as immediately obvious as the others, but if you’ve ever had to buy college text books from a university bookstore, you’ll know why looking for the best book deals online is about the smartest decision you can make. Target these eager (and often broke) young scholars by partnering with one of the world’s premier book retailers. Barnes & Noble gives affiliates a variety of marketing tools, including a datafeed and API, provides personal account support and pays out as much as a six percent commission on their books, music, movies, electronics and NOOK products. And, of course, the company is sure to offer a slew of enticing back-to-school textbook promotions.

Merchants Ready To Profit with Back to School Promotions

Allison Howen — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 20:00:00 GMT

It's time to focus on beating the bell for back-to-school sales if you’re an e-commerce merchant.

According to a recent infographic from AdRoll, 44 percent of parents start their back-to-school shopping in August. And many of these parents are looking toward digital shopping, because the infographic also reveals that online school shopping is expected to increase by 10 percent this year – meaning that 79 percent of back-to-school shoppers are buying supplies online.

Although there are many reasons why parents prefer shopping online over traditional brick and mortar shopping, the most popular reasons why parents are turning to the Web is because it offers an easier way to save money and find discounts as well as research products and pricing.

In order to grab some of the back to school traffic, merchants must be prepared to entice customers to not only visit their online shopping destinations, but also provide them with incentives to make purchases. So let’s learn from the experts – take a look at these big-named retailers back to school selling strategies:

Apple

Most college students know all about Apple’s special pricing and promotions for back to school. In fact, when I was in college I received a free iPod Touch with the purchase of a Macbook, and I am still receiving Apple’s emails regarding back to school promotions (good use of email retargeting, Apple).

However, Apple’s commitment to education hasn’t faltered, because the company is currently offering even more promotions than they have in the past. For example, qualified students receive a $100 gift card that can be used on apps, books, music and movies with the purchase of a Mac, as well as a $50 gift card with the purchase of an iPad. Additionally, students also receive special education pricing on Apple computers, software and select third party products.

Target

Target is one of the most popular locations for traditional brick and mortar back-to-school shoppers, however the company’s website is also looking to attract digital shoppers as well. In fact, the retail giant’s landing page boldly features back to school sales for college students, while the top of the site promotes free shipping and the left side of the site features a 20 percent savings promotion for back-to-school shopping.

Office Depot

I can almost smell the brand new crayon box aroma upon arrival at Office Depot’s website. Not only does this office supply retailer boldly feature back to school at the top of its website, but the company also makes it easy for consumers to shop for age-specific supplies by splitting the materials into grade categories. Additionally, Office Depot features a dollar deal section for shoppers on a budget, and also promotes free shipping with purchases that are more than $50.

Old Navy

Paper and pens aren’t the only supplies needed for back to school, especially since everyone knows the most anticipated part of the first day of school is the first outfit. This is why Old Navy has prominently featured a one day sale promotion for back-to-school clothes on its landing page. However, don’t be disappointed if your shopping for school uniforms, because the retailer is also promoting a sale for uniform clothing – including solid color polos and khakis.

Macy’s

Not only is Macy’s landing page solely dedicated to back-to-school, but the retailer also offers digital consumers an innovative way to shop for clothes. The back-to-school style mixer enables users to mix and match clothing items and accessories in order to build the perfect back-to-school outfits. This technology not only makes it fun for consumers to shop online, but it can also help minimize consumer returns since outfits can be viewed together before purchases are made.

Use Affiliates to Reach Back-to-School Shoppers in August

Michael Garrity — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 13:00:00 GMT

It may only be early August, but much to the chagrin of many schoolchildren, it’s time to start thinking about heading back to school. This, of course, means back-to-school shopping.

According to a recent report from affiliate marketing network Commission Junction, back-to-school shoppers are typically inclined to take advantage of available tools to research and purchase products online. Many of them will use consulting search and price comparison engines to make their decisions, as well as coupon and cash-back websites.

This comes from Commission Junction’s annual Back to School report for online retailers, which aims to give them insights on consumer trends and key shopping updates for the hectic shopping season. By analyzing past sales data, CJ found that an increasing number of consumers (approximately 30 percent) are using content websites for product discovery and shopping.

As a result, it seems that affiliate channels are well-suited to provide marketers with a chance to more effectively reach back-to-school shoppers at various touch points in the decision-making process.

For two years now, back-to-school sales have peaked in the fourth week of August (with a second surge in the first week of September), which this year will be between August 19 and 25. Consumer electronics, hardware, and software retailers all saw major spikes in the middle of August, while apparel purchases were more heavily concentrated at the end of the month.

Free Shipping Incentives for the Upcoming Back-to-School Rush

Pete Prestipino — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 17:20:00 GMT

If you’re looking for a digital leg up for the rapidly approaching back-to-school season – here’s the answer: offer free shipping.

A recent PriceGrabber survey reveals that while consumers are intending to spend more money this year, they will continue to look for ways to save and stretch their dollars by taking advantage of retailer incentives to save – the most common way of course being ‘free shipping.’

According to the PriceGrabber survey, 74 percent of consumers chose free shipping as the top retailer tactic that would entice them to make a back-to-school purchase this year. There were other tactics that can be employed to encourage shoppers to visit and buy from merchants including sales, price cuts, coupons, online promotions, and price-matching.

"Whether shopping in stores or online during this back-to-school season, consumers should leverage the multitude of money saving tools and retailer incentives that are available," said Graham Jones, general manager of PriceGrabber. "We can deduce from our survey that free shipping will be a huge deciding factor when consumers purchase online. Savvy shoppers will get the most for their money by searching for coupons and actively using comparison shopping websites to ensure they are getting the best deal."

Five Smart Back-to-School Affiliate Programs

Linc Wonham — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 19:00:00 GMT

It’s mid-July and much of the country is sweltering in temperatures near 100 degrees, which means it is time to be thinking about back-to-school deals. For affiliate marketers, that means partnering with the retailers that give them the best chances to rake in substantial commissions from now until Labor Day.

We’ve done our homework on the subject and below are five programs that make the grade:

Macy’s
Few retailers are pushing harder to become the go-to destination for back-to-school shoppers than Macy’s is right now. They’ve just announced several new initiatives offering exclusive fashion brands, family-oriented activities and charitable partnerships with Reading is Fundamental, DoSomething.org and the new online Web series, Wendy. Macy’s affiliates earn generous commissions with the average online purchase value being $120, and the program is run through LinkShare.

Wet Seal
This hip clothing retailer is a favorite among young women for having its finger on the fashion pulse and also for its generous discounts. Whether returning to high school or college, millions of girls will be turning to Wet Seal for the latest styles at prices a student can afford. The company knows its way around the Web and social media marketing, and its affiliate program is run through the Google Affiliate Network.

Sephora
If Wet Seal provides a good fit for your site, many of the same shoppers will be visiting Sephora next. The JCPenney property carries hundreds of top brands in makeup and accessories, as well as a full line of men’s products to help returning students start the semester in style. The affiliate program is run therough the LinkShare network, and offers tiered commissions from 5 to 7 percent.

Apple
Apple’s back-to-school promotions are legendary, and the most recent one is going on right now through September 20. Students buying a qualifying Mac product will receive a $100 Back to School Card to redeem at the Mac Store, App Store, iTunes Store or iBookstore. Apple affiliates earn tiered commissions by selling widely used products such as the brand new Macbook Airs that are sure to be on millions of students’ back-to-school lists this summer.

Office Max
Whether it be simple supplies such as paper and pens, a stockpile of accessories for that new Apple product or office furniture for the dorm or bedroom, few students are able to avoid shopping at Office Max when the summer winds down. Run through the Google Affiliate Network, the program offers commissions ranging from 4 to 6 percent.

31 Back-to-School Keyword Targets

Mike Phillips — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 19:30:00 GMT

For most students, summer is in full swing. Going back to school is far from the top of their minds. However, for retailers, online marketers and publishers, back-to-school should be top-of-mind. Take a look at the chart shown here. This is the search volume for "back to school," taken from Google Trends. You will notice that consumers start their back-to-school research (and, therefore shopping) right about now. In fact, from today to mid-August, search volume will triple.

The chart below "Search Volume index" indicates news references across Google. That's also about to spike -- meaning the opportunities to benefit from back-to-school traffic is not limited to retailers but can include bloggers and publishers, too.

Clearly, its time to optimize for for back-to-school traffic and keywords. Below the chart are 31 keyphrases to consider targeting, either for organic rankings or for paid search. These keywords were found using Google's External Keyword Tool and Wonder Wheel. Keep in mind, variations of these keywords and phrases can be used as well -- for example, 'back to school kindergarten supplies,' 'back to school college supplies,' etc.

back to school activities
back to school ideas
back to school supplies
back to school supplies list
back to school supplies sales
back to school supplies college
back to school shopping
back to school shopping tips
back to school shopping list
back to school sales
back to school deals
back to school bargains
back to school checklist
back to school worksheets
back to school crafts
back to school fashion
back to school clothes shopping
back to school tips
back to school resources
back to school lesson plans
back to school trends
back to school coloring
first day of school
school supplies
teacher school supplies
school supplies list
school supplies online
school art supplies
educational supplies
free school supplies
classroom supplies

Back To School Already?

Administrator — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:45:00 GMT

Most consumers will purchase back-to-school items in August and plan to spend between $100 to $500, according to survey findings released by Platform-A’s ADlytics Strategic Insights Group. Don't think for a minute that those brick and mortar folks get all the activity though. The survey revealed that there is plenty of opportunity for online marketing to influence back-to-school revenue:

83% of consumers indicate that they’re somewhat likely to seek information on promotions they see online.
Women are typically the primary decision-makers for back-to-school purchases.
40% of consumers who buy early are likely to purchase electronic items vs. later shoppers (17%), suggesting that advertisers may want to promote laptops, cell phones and other electronics during the earlier summer months.

Avail Intelligence (a provider of behavioral merchandizing software) seems to agree that it will not be long before students head back to school and that now is the time for merchants to prepare.

From a recent announcement: With only a handful of high-sales shopping seasons per year, it is critical that eCommerce sites capitalize on spikes in traffic to build trust with shoppers, converting them to repeat customers. To achieve this, eCommerce Websites can easily deploy behavioral merchandizing technology designed to mine the various data collected from each consumer transaction.

Avail Intelligence has devised the following list of key functionalities online merchants should look for in eCommerce optimization software:

Intelligent mining of large data sets - Offers real-time, automated predictive suggestions
Behaviorally driven recommendations - Generated by peers, opposed to marketing professionals, these are the most respected and trusted by consumers
A/B testing - Illustrates the conversion rates of consumers and the overall effectiveness of the software. More advanced systems use these results to identify sales uplift for only those transactions directly affected by the technology