Many publishers promoting retail advertisers on a cost-per-sale basis are hesitant to move to the “other side” and promote customer acquisition or lead generation offers. Perhaps they don’t think it fits their model or their type of customer. Yet with demand growing among advertisers for new customers, and more US states looking at taxing affiliate sales, now is the time for … [Read more...]
Affiliate Program Multiplicity
On various stages of their involvement with the affiliate marketing channel, merchants look in the direction of launching affiliate programs for the same products on multiple networks. The most common reasoning for this being that by so doing they will expand their affiliate reach, significantly improving chances of recruiting powerful affiliates across different networks.Such … [Read more...]
Let’s Get Personal
Imagine that you are shopping at a department store and you ask a salesperson for men’s summer sandals and he takes you to the main entrance and drops you off. Your reaction?There’s a good chance you’re frustrated. You probably think less of the store for its poor service. You’re probably going to leave without buying any shoes. You might even tell your … [Read more...]
Double Down: Q & A with William Cooper
As the CEO of TradeDoubler - a Swedish performance network with a vast European presence - William Cooper has his eye on global expansion. TradeDoubler, with its local offices in 15 countries across Europe, is known as the biggest affiliate marketing network in the U.K. Cooper was appointed president and CEO in March of 2007, riding a wave of first-quarter revenue for 2007, up … [Read more...]
eBay: What’s in Store
Describing eBay as a commerce website is like saying Elvis was a singer. The 11-year-old company that began as a virtual flea market similarly has become an international phenomenon, spurring the creation of cottage industries and sustaining thousands of small businesses.And despite being one of the Internet's forebears, the company is in many aspects just getting started. As … [Read more...]
Going Out Is In
Companies are outsourcing affiliate managers to fuel online marketing programs. Former London-based freelance writer Rob Palmer knew he was on to something when he launched the affiliate program for his FreelanceWorkExchange.com subscription site. For several years he ran the program in-house; revenues were decent, affiliate applications were steady, but "there simply … [Read more...]
Community Commerce
Until now online shopping has been a lonely endeavor. Think Sandra Bullock in "The Net," the 1995 film where she works from home, orders everything online and has few friends outside of cyberspace. Even 10 years later most people still shop online alone, sneaking it in during work hours or squeezing it in after everyone's in bed. "If you look at the first 10 years of … [Read more...]
Flipping the Switch
Maybe your relationship with your network has soured. The reports are frequently late, revenue is down and your questions are not being answered in a timely fashion. You're thinking about switching to another network, but that means learning new tracking processes and establishing relationships with an unknown group of affiliates.So, is it really worth all the potential trouble … [Read more...]
Managing Affiliates in a Rapidly Growing Market
Over the past two years, the online real estate traffic volume has increased exponentially. Part of this dramatic growth is driven by the low interest rate environment, but a bigger reason for the increase is the rapid shift in realtor marketing dollars away from offline media - such as print - toward online advertising venues.Affiliates play a large role in the success of … [Read more...]
Targeting Affiliates
Name: John Hobson Job: Manager, Online Advertising, Target.com Date of Hire: September 2002 Previous Job: Manager, Online Advertising, FingerhutTarget's program is powered by LinkShare and earns affiliates 5 to 7 percent on purchases based on volume. The program currently has a 10 percent commission offer for October 1 to December 31.DIANE ANDERSON: How did you come into the … [Read more...]
A Show-Stopping Performance
In times when change comes quickly, many things can keep online marketing managers up at night. The question is: What should keep them up?Some grapple with balancing their own search marketing efforts against affiliates' or understanding which marketing strategy delivers a better yield in terms of marketing cost as percentage of sales (CAPS). Others struggle with an increasing … [Read more...]
The Overstock Obsession
Every so often, there's a company, a person or a philosophy that attracts such a rabid following it can be only be described as a phenomenon.In music, the Beatles and Elvis come to mind. It's hard to think of either without envisioning ecstatic throngs of screaming, teary-eyed fanatics who would do anything for a souvenir to link them forever to their idol.In technology, Apple … [Read more...]
Five Who Drive
It takes a special something to be among the best in your field, especially when the field is as competitive as affiliate marketing. We all know it takes more than commission checks and banner ads to rise above the crowd.Revenue decided to take a look at five strong programs and the people who run them. Of course, convincing program managers to talk about their success is … [Read more...]
Indie Labels
As the affiliate manager for Calendars.com, Hilary Poseski hawks more than 6,000 different calendars. They feature dogs, fashion models, families, folk art, God, teens, transportation, lesbians, history, cooking, ethnic groups, patriots, sports, cars, photos, travel, nature, music and wild animal tamers. Among many other things."Whatever your hobby is, we have a calendar for … [Read more...]
The Way To Ebay
To state the obvious, eBay has become a household name, at least in the US where everyone recognizes the brand as the largest online auction site. What may be less obvious is that eBay also has one of the largest affiliate programs. That may seem odd given that most merchants use affiliates to sell goods or services, and eBay doesn't sell goods or services. Instead, it's a … [Read more...]