Shawn Collins' Blog

Affiliate marketing and other stuff from Shawn Collins, co-founder of Affiliate Summit.

Archives for June 2005

Affiliate Programs and Cookies: Is the Relationship Crumbling?

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The following is what John Dalton of WeGiveCash.com had to say in response the the question, What is wrong with affiliate marketing and how can it be improved?

With the increase in high security browsing and cookie disabling, it seems that unless new methods are derived for the majority of the tracking software, publishers will become increasingly unhappy with conversion and compensation beyond what advertisiers have control over.

As an advertiser, I can say that we do not want untracked business as it hurts our affiliate relationships.

What’s next CJ? ShareASale? MyAP? Let’s find another way to track this business.

It is undoubtedly the best method for advertising online.

Ask Shawn Collins: How to Write an Affiliate Agreement

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Q: I am going to be starting an affiliate program for my site. I am in the early stages now, researching good programs, and one thing I noticed is that all programs have their own set of terms and conditions. Now, I am not a lawyer, and in any case, I would also like the “rules” to be really clear to me and the people who are signing up, so I was wondering whether there is any “standard” set of Terms and Conditions I could get and adapt for my program? If I can also slip in a “sub-question” as well, I would also be interested in hearing what Terms and Conditions affiliates particularly like or dislike with other programs.

Shawn CollinsA: There isn’t really a standard agreement out there for the taking. Many programs have unique issues that require customized items in their affiliate agreements.

What I would suggest would be to look through a number of affiliate programs and their agreements, and draw up some notes of the common elements that you see across them.

Then, make another list of issues that might be industry specific for you. Provide all of this information to a lawyer, and ask them to draw up an agreement for you.

While it may be tempting to lift an agreement from another program, I would discourage this practice, because (a) it’s unethical, and (b) it wasn’t written for your company, and will likely not address all of the issues you face in your niche.

In response to your second question, affiliates come in all shapes and sizes, and focus on different areas (web, email, search, etc.), so there is no single answer there.

There is a thread on ABW that touches on many issues that should help to give you an idea of what affiliates want and need.

On a parting note, since the agreement is written in legalese, I would suggest summarizing the main points in your affiliate FAQ, so that your terms are as clear as possible.

New Skipper in the ReveNews Affiliate Marketing Blogosphere

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On the heels of an announcement by Wayne Porter that his company, XBlock Systems LLC, was acquired by FaceTime Communications Inc., Wayne also posted that his role at ReveNews is changing.

Moving forward, the new Kingfish of ReveNews will be Jim Kukral. Jim is a Brand Manager at KowaBunga! Technologies and has been into the blog scene for quite some time.

Good luck, Jim!

Too Many Lousy Affiliate Programs Obscure the Good Ones

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The following is what Greg Mareski of CPAffiliates.com had to say in response the the question, What is wrong with affiliate marketing and how can it be improved?

The biggest problem that my colleague Brian Appel and I face as Affiliate Managers at CPAffiliates is getting past all the background noise of the great multitude of programs out there.

Too many programs offer the promise of a quick buck for the affiliate without genuine value to the consumer.

It takes a large amount of effort to get people to take a moment, review your programs and see if it is a fit for them. I believe the primary reason for this is the huge number of programs out there.

The next challenge is that they follow all the methods of delivery under the sun. Email, data feed, banner advertising, text links, content, etc.

Our programs are CPA. I have had to find ways to convey to our Affiliate Partner Candidates that our programs provide excellent value. This requires time invested beyond just email.

I now work to establish a relationship with a candidate which allows me to discuss if there is a good fit with our offerings and our methods.

Our company is a division of one of the top ten independent advertising firms in the country. This usually allows a toe hold to open a broader discussion.

Our Affiliate Partners currently enjoying the greatest conversion rates are using text links inside focused and specific content. The advantage here is that it takes no banner ad real estate from the affiliates’ site.

We are certainly not an affiliate network for everyone. But in the course of my initial communication, I invest the effort to establish that we cost nothing to try and that we pay on completion of the sale.

Since we represent premium and quality programs, we are experiencing new sales records every month for the last six months since our Affiliate program began.

But I am closing this discussion as I began above: It takes an amazing amount of effort to get people to take a moment, review your programs and see if it is a fit for them.

How would you answer the question, What is wrong with affiliate marketing and how can it be improved? There are no right or wrong answers – just opinions that can help improve the industry.

The author of any response that is published at affiliatetip.com or affiliatesummit.com will receive a limited edition “It’s an affiliate thing, you wouldn’t understand.” t-shirt.

Share your thoughts now at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=56601070891

Affiliate Marketers: Don’t Let the Flying Monkeys Get You Down

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The following is what Shane Graper of Video Professor had to say in response the the question, What is wrong with affiliate marketing and how can it be improved?

The only thing wrong with affiliate marketing is quite simply perception. Here is what I mean. I have yet to read anything REALLY positive about affiliate marketing from the major affiliate outlets.

No one reports on the benefits or the people who do good things with affiliate marketing.

No, it’s always fraud this and spy ware that or, who stole my commission this month? And even the articles that do outline the great things going on in affiliate marketing are just manufactured press releases from the company who is doing so well.

I am certainly no “affiliate guru” but is the only mission of affiliate marketing to “screw” someone for a buck? The way things get reported or discussed one might think that.

I understand that in this business it’s not always lollipops and rainbows, but isn’t there a silver lining anywhere? Not to sound too much like and old wrinkled up Andy Rooney, but these are things that really bother me.

In a perfect affiliate world, we would all get along and commissions would run high through the valley of large sales. Words like parasite would only relate to the organisms that cause that upset stomach with leads to, well, you know.

This world would be great except that I know someone would come along and try to landscape it to fit their own vision. Well, there you have it.

I sound just as negative as all of those reports and articles that bothered me in the first place. Can I just ask that “reporters” dig a little deeper for their articles instead of scraping the scum off the top of the pond?

Maybe if I click my ruby sneakers together 3 times I will wake up and find it was all just a wonderful dream. You were there, and you and Toto, too.

How would you answer the question, What is wrong with affiliate marketing and how can it be improved? There are no right or wrong answers – just opinions that can help improve the industry.

The author of any response that is published at affiliatetip.com or affiliatesummit.com will receive a limited edition “It’s an affiliate thing, you wouldn’t understand.” t-shirt.

Share your thoughts now at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=56601070891

Ask Shawn Collins: Recruiting Affiliates

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Q: Next to message boards, where can an advertiser find all these affiliates?

Shawn CollinsA: The short answer is that you should make sure you have a presence where the affiliates are looking, or else reach them increative ways.

There are a handful of tools that will enable you to identify and contact affiliates, such as ARELIS, the Internet Success Spider, and Link Capture.

These tools will provide you with varying amounts of contact information. I would discourage trying to recruit by email, unless you are prepared to be CAN-SPAM compliant with your solicitations.

My personal favorite approach for targeted recruiting these days is to use direct mail – mostly postcards.

Back to having a presence where affiliates are going. Consider advertising in the affiliate program directories (i.e. AssociatePrograms.com and Refer-it).

If you haven’t done so already, a good way to get your progran indexed for your desired keywords in the search engines is to create an affiliate resource site (i.e. InstrumentProAffiliates.com).

Also, consider doing some co-marketing with other affiliate managers, whether it be a newsletter swap or a commission check insert.

Affiliate Marketing Pioneer, Corey Rudl, Dies in Car Crash

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According to the Associated Press this afternoon, “Two men were killed when their car crashed and caught fire at the California Speedway, authorities said.

Benjamin Miles Keaton, 39, and his passenger, Corey Nicholas Rudl, 34, both of La Jolla, died Thursday when Keaton’s 2005 Porsche Carrera GT left the track and slammed into a barrier. The engine compartment then caught fire, according to a sheriff’s report.

Rudl was pronounced dead at the scene. Keaton was airlifted to Loma Linda University Hospital, where he died about an hour later, according to the San Bernardino County Coroner’s Office.

The accident occurred while the track was being rented by the San Diego chapter of the Ferrari Owners Club.

The men are the fourth and fifth fatalities at California Speedway since it opened in 1997.”

Corey has long been a mainstay in the affiliate marketing space with his Internet Marketing Center.

In addition to being a frequent speaker at marketing events, Corey put out a number of software programs for marketers, including AssocTrac, which powered affiliate programs.

I had the privilege of introducing him when he spoke at Affiliate Force back in March 2000 in Miami, and he was quite a dynamic speaker.

RIP Corey.

I Want a Better Affiliate Network Now

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The following is what Eyal Hay Moshe of Infomall Israel had to say in response the the question, What is wrong with affiliate marketing and how can it be improved?

In two words: The Networks. In my humble opinion there is not one single Affiliate Network that is reliable and working flawlessly that let you concentrate on what that really is important.

Affiliates and Affiliate Managers have to deal on a daily basis with technical problems – sales tracking, reporting, broken links, instead of developing the business and bringing more sales.

I think it’s time for a high *quality* network. I want to sleep well at night, knowing that I get credited for my sales.

Another thing that is wrong with Affiliate Marketing is it’s acknowledgement. Affiliate Marketing was here ages before. Selling someone’s merchandise and earning a commission isn’t something special.

However, from some reason, Online Affiliate Marketing is like a big secret for anyone with no online marketing background. A Mystery.

People keep asking me: “Okay, but what exactly do you do? How do you sell products from your PC at home?”

And if only more people understood the real potential of Affiliate Marketing, I think it would encourage more and more ‘offline’ merchants to go online and taking advantage of its best ‘sales person’: Affiliates.