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Archives for September 2011

Number of Products to Add to an Affiliate Site

September 18, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Q: I am about to start a beauty website; how much products should I put on the website… 5k, 10k, 15k, 20k, or more?

Shawn CollinsA: I think you are asking the wrong question.

You should be more focused on how you can make the site into a unique resource that people will want to visit.

The world doesn’t need or want another giant directory of products without any value added to it.

There must be a compelling reason for people to visit your site.

Don’t worry about how many products will be featured, but rather why people would want to go to the site.

Then scale up the site with your unique content, whether it be consumer reviews or what have you.

Can you imagine going to a site that is offering consumer reviews and just a fraction of the products have any review at all?

I wouldn’t want to return when I can go to more active and established sites, unless there was some other unique value to the site that I wasn’t getting elsewhere.

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Filed Under: Ask Shawn Collins

Early Bird Ending for Booths and Tables at Affiliate Summit West 2012

September 17, 2011 by Shawn Collins

The early bird rates for booths and Meet Market tables at Affiliate Summit West 2012, taking place January 8-10, 2012 in Las Vegas, are ending on September 23, 2011.

That deadline is NOT flexible.

Meet Market at Affiliate Summit West 2010

There are still lots of good spots left – don’t miss the best locations and low price.

Exhibit Hall at Affiliate Summit West 2010

Book a booth or table now at http://www.affiliatesummit.com/12w-exhibitors/.

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Filed Under: Affiliate Managers, Affiliate Summit

Affiliate Summit East 2011 Video Recap

September 16, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Summit East, the premier affiliate marketing conference, took place August 21-23, 2011 in New York City.

Affiliate Summit East 2011This three day conference included an exhibit hall with affiliate merchants, vendors, and networks, as well as multiple tracks of educational sessions covering the latest trends and information from affiliate marketing experts.

Affiliate Summit East 2011 was the largest Affiliate Summit East to date with 3,943 attendees, and the conference has grown every year since starting in 2003.

The keynotes for Affiliate Summit East 2011 were Marc Ostrofsky, Wil Reynolds, and Bryan Eisenberg.

Video: Affiliate Summit East 2011 Recap

Affiliate Summit West 2012 is taking place January 8-10, 2012 in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace Las Vegas.

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Filed Under: Affiliate Managers, Affiliate Summit

buy.at Launches a Technology to Address Cookie Overwriting

September 15, 2011 by Shawn Collins

buy.at has announced the release of a new tracking solution, where any affiliate can be assigned a soft click cookie by the network that cannot overwrite cookies set by standard affiliate traffic.

Cookie

This tracking is intended for affiliates who have a greater tendency to overwrite other affiliate cookies, such as browser add-ons, toolbars, and plug-ins.

The process will begin when an affiliate applies to join the network, as an extensive review of their site and promotional methods will be conducted.

If this evaluation reveals that the affiliate could negatively impact existing affiliate cookies, a conditional acceptance to the network is offered using the soft click solution.

The process is transparent – all affiliates that fall within this category will receive full disclosure that their account will operate with this technology and they must confirm their acceptance of these terms before they are admitted to the network.

More information at http://blog.buy.at/buy-at-unveils-new-technology-to-address-cookie-overwriting/.

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Filed Under: Affiliate News

Jeremy Schoemaker to Keynote Affiliate Summit West 2012

September 14, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Jeremy “ShoeMoney” Schoemaker will be a keynote speaker at Affiliate Summit West 2012 on Tuesday, January 10, 2012 at Caesars Palace Las Vegas.

Jeremy Schoemaker speaking at Affiliate Summit East 2010

Jeremy’s skills have led him on a wild ride swinging from unemployment to an eight figure income in only a few years.

He is one of the most successful Internet marketers of our time. Jeremy has proven his skills online in the PPC community, time and again in affiliate marketing, and is legendary for his $133,000 Google AdSense check.

In 2007 Jeremy launched the AuctionAds advertising network and added more than 25,000 affiliates in a mere 4 months of operation who generated millions a month in revenue.

Whether it’s his blog or any of his companies, ShoeMoney has proven that he has the dedication, drive, and at times the audacity to get the job done.

More details soon on Affiliate Summit West 2012 at http://www.affiliatesummit.com.

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Filed Under: Affiliate Summit

Affiliate Recommendation Tool (ART) from Adknowledge

September 12, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Adknowledge has published a whitepaper about data analytics technology in the affiliate marketing space using their Affiliate Recommendation Tool (ART).

adknowledgeThe Affiliate Recommendation Tool is an algorithmic targeting platform that uses anonymous response data from past successful campaigns to provide recommendations for affiliates.

The recommendations are shared with affiliates twice weekly via email, and the user interface is regularly updated.

The whitepaper is available at http://adknowledge.com/sites/default/files/docs/Adknowledge_Affiliate_ART.pdf.

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Filed Under: Affiliate News

Prayers on the 10th Anniversary of September 11, 2001

September 11, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Today marks the ten year anniversary of the first time I ever prayed, but I’ll get back to that in a second.

Remember 9-11-01Back on September 11, 2001 I was working in New York City. I was a couple blocks north of the Empire State Building off Fifth Avenue.

I remember September 11th being a beautiful, sunny day. I got in the office around 8:30 and started catching up on email. A little before 9:00, one of the tech guys in the office sent an email around with a picture of the World Trade Center and it had smoke and fire pouring out of it.

My first thought was why would some jackass doctor a picture like that and pretend he got an email from CNN.com?

But it seemed odd that a usually serious guy would send it, so I tried to go to CNN.com myself. I couldn’t get to it.

Soon after, I joined some others and we turned on TVs in the office and started watching the live coverage as the second plane hit.

It was surreal, it was impossible. Each day, as I exited the PATH train at Herald Square, I’d always look south to the Towers. I loved seeing them down there.

Years before, I lived in Jersey City, and I took a bunch of pictures of my puppy Mickey in front the Towers from across the Hudson River.

Mickey in front of the World Trade Center

Another shot of Mickey in front of the World Trade Center

This could not be real. And just a mile or two away from us.

At the time, the landlines were still working, and I was able to reach my wife Vicky to let her know I was OK, and that I was thinking about how I’d make my way home.

I figured it was crazy in the streets, but I didn’t want to sit there so close to what I figured was the next logical target… the Empire State Building.

My second daughter, Lexie, was due a couple weeks from then, and I was thinking there might be widespread attacks in the city, and maybe I should stay where it was seemingly safe.

But I’d be a lot more comfortable if I could just escape from New York.

My decision was made when I watched the South Tower collapse on TV. I was totally freaked out, and I gathered up my things. Nobody else was leaving yet, and I let my supervisor know I was on the way out. She told me not to leave. I left.

But before leaving, I checked the NJtransit.com site to see if trains were still leaving from Penn Station to New Jersey. It said things were running on schedule, so that was cool.

As soon as I left the building and started walking down Fifth Avenue, I was looking right at the North Tower as it began to fall.

People were screaming, some were collapsing to the street. I don’t know if they were dropping to their knees or fainting or what. It was too much to process to have this all in front of me.

I’ve seen the video so many times over of the North Tower collapsing, and the way it looks like confetti is falling in the sky. That view, that smell never go away.

After lingering to watch a little, I started sprinting west on 34th Street towards Penn Station.

I remember it struck me weird. I was going as fast as I could, and some people were just strolling along like it was any other day. It seemed like they were in slow motion and blurry.

I ran down the stairs and escalators straight into the first Jersey bound train I saw. I didn’t care where it was going. I just felt lucky, because I was one of the last people on, and then the doors closed.

The train was usually very vibrant, but people were speaking in really hushed tones if they spoke at all.

Back to my tenth anniversary of praying.

It wasn’t something I thought about. I simply lowered my head. I said a prayer.

I was asking for an answer – for a path back to my wife Vicky and daughter Caity, and unborn daughter Lexie. And to my friends and the rest of my family.

Moments later, the train started moving. People were hugging each other, cheering. We felt saved.

About fifteen feet into it, the train just stopped. They killed the electric entirely, but wouldn’t let us off. There were no announcements, and it heated up quickly in there.

Maybe ten minutes passed, and they announced that they wanted to sweep the train tunnels for explosives. They told us to evacuate the train station.

When the doors opened, I was in a seat near the exit, and I bolted faster than I ever had in my life. Up sets of stairs and into the sunshine on the 8th Avenue side of Penn Station.

I just ran and ran towards the West Side Highway. I wanted to get away from any targets, and Penn Station/Madison Square Garden could be a big one.

I found myself on a line of people about ten or so blocks long. They were waiting for ferries to cross the Hudson River. As I waited, I saw people running and walking up the street. They’d been coming straight from the World Train Center, and many were covered in ash and whatever else.

Hours passed, and I couldn’t get a cell signal – nobody could. I was out of communication for so long with Vicky, and then I finally got to board a ferry bound for Weehawken, NJ. As we sailed, we went south a little on the Hudson River – down towards the Towers.

Time seemed like it was suspended on the water. When we finally docked across the river, I felt a sense of relief. I finally got a weak signal and was able to reach Vicky to let her know I was on the way home.

There were a bunch of buses waiting there, and I jumped on one. They took us over to the Meadowlands, where the New York Jets and Giants play.

After we got there, it turned out there wasn’t a plan to get people further. They just kept going back to bring more and more from the ferries.

I called Vicky again to let her know I was safe, and I’d be getting out of there at some point.

After a while, I started thinking I was going to possibly have to sleep in the stadium parking lot if I didn’t do something. I noticed some of the stadium employees leaving, so I thought maybe I could hitch a ride closer to home.

I had a piece of paper in my bag, so I wrote out the name of my town, Millburn, and started trying to get anybody to let me jump in their car with them.

Sign I used to hitchhike home on 9/11/01

Minutes later, a station wagon was passing and it already had too many people in it, but the driver stopped and let me squeeze in, too.

He dropped each of us off one by one. The first stop was Maplewood, NJ, and then he brought me to the commuter train station in Millburn, NJ, since my car was there.

I think I was the first person out of all of the people in my giant train parking lot to return, because it was still packed. This was 4:00 in the afternoon or so.

The only thing I could think was how many of those cars wouldn’t have people returning to them ever. Many of the folks in my town worked on Wall Street.

All of these people I would see on the train every day; it haunted me that some were already gone.

So I got in my car and drove a mile to my home. When I walked in, Vicky looked like she saw a ghost. Mickey and Caity thought it was just another day with their greetings. Lucky for them.

I don’t think I slept that night, and I walked to a newspaper box to get a copy of the New York Post the next day. I read that issue once a year.

It has such haunting photography of people leaping from the Towers and all.

Cover of the New York Post on September 12, 2011

Like I said, back on September 11, 2001 was the first time I prayed. But I’ve prayed regularly since then.

I am so grateful I found a path home that day, and I pray now for everybody we lost right away that day, as well as for all of us still here.

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Filed Under: Affiliate News

Book at Caesars Palace Las Vegas for Affiliate Summit West 2012

September 10, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Summit West 2012 is taking place January 8-10, 2012 at Caesars Palace Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV.

Caesars Palace Las Vegas

The special Affiliate Summit group rate is $199/night and rooms at this rate are available until December 7, 2011 or the group block is sold-out, whichever comes first.

Please use the links below or call (866) 227-5944 and ask for Group Code SCAFS2 to book your hotel reservation.

  • Book a Room at Caesars with One (1) King Bed
  • Book a Room at Caesars with Two (2) Double Beds

The address for Caesars Palace is 3570 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Las Vegas, NV 89109 main phone is (702) 731-7110.

A block of rooms have been reserved in the Caesars Palace Las Vegas Forum and Palace Towers January 6 – 11, 2012.

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Filed Under: Affiliate Managers, Affiliate Summit

Ebates Acquires FatWallet and AnyCoupons

September 9, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Ebates announced today that they have created a new company called Performance Marketing Brands.

Ebates

The new company has acquired super affiliates FatWallet.com and AnyCoupons.com, and united them with Ebates.com.

Ebates.com, FatWallet.com and AnyCoupons.com will continue to operate distinct websites, but merchants can now advertise through a single partner.

The launch of Performance Marketing Brands and acquisition of FatWallet and AnyCoupons has been funded by August Capital, Cannan Partners, Foundation Capital and Silicon Valley Bank. Terms of the acquisitions were not disclosed.

More details in the press release: Ebates Announces Creation of Performance Marketing Brands & Acquisition of FatWallet and AnyCoupons

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Filed Under: Affiliate News

Jim Kukral Uses Crowd Funding for a Book Series

September 8, 2011 by Shawn Collins

Jim Kukral is taking a unique approach to book publishing.

Rather than going through a “traditional” publisher, as he did with his book, Attention! This Book Will Make You Money on Wiley, he is funding a series of books through pledges before writing them.

Business Around a Lifestyle

His new book series is called Business Around a Lifestyle and it will have three volumes.

Volume 1 will be about teaching you how to re-think what you have learned that has been holding you back. It will include interviews with successful lifestyle entrepreneurs and it will motivate you into beginning your own lifestyle plan.

Volume 2 is all about how to take the knowledge and passion that is in your head and turn it into an Internet business of some type. It doesn’t matter who you are, or what you know a lot about, or what you’re passionate about, you can build a business on the Internet. This volume will include the how and why in complete detail, with examples.

Volume 3 is all about building a business in the world of Affiliate Marketing.

There are a variety of pledge options that come with a growing list of perks as you go higher. Think of it sort of like Kickstarter goes B2B.

So after Jim raises funds for the books through pledges, he will write them and hire a production team of editors, proofers, and designers to refine the final product.

He’ll also use the funding to pay for video production and editing.

Does this idea have legs? Well, he just recently launched it and already has over $15,000 pledged.

Check it out at http://www.businessaroundalifestyle.com/.

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