Shawn Collins' Blog

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

Archives for December 2011

Interactive Schedule Tool Available for Affiliate Summit West 2012

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The interactive schedule tool for attendees of Affiliate Summit West 2012 is now available at http://asw12.sched.org/.

My schedule for Affiliate Summit West 2012

Attendees will now be able view detailed agenda information by the type of pass they have registered for and create a customized schedule based on the events they would like to attend.

The schedules can be accessed via a mobile-formatted version for Android, Blackberry, and iPhone; downloaded to iCal, and added to Google Calendar or Microsoft Outlook.

Additionally, users can coordinate schedules with friends, view popular sessions, and find other attendees to network, based on where they will be during Affiliate Summit.

To use the basic functionality of the scheduling tool, simply:

  1. Visit the Affiliate Summit Schedule tool at http://asw12.sched.org/.
  2. Sign in with Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or create an account.
  3. In the “Audience” drop down tool, select the pass type that you have registered for (See below). The events that you can attend will be displayed based on your pass type.
  4. Select the events that you would like to attend.
  5. Once finished, you may display your customized schedule and print.

Selecting your pass type for Affiliate Summit West 2012

Here is a sample of a printable version of a custom schedule for Affiliate Summit West 2012.

Printable interactive schedule for Affiliate Summit West 2012

There are additional features that you may wish to explore including connecting your account to Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn; viewing schedules of attendees who have opted to share them; viewing popular sessions, etc.

Advertise on ShoeMoney’s Chest at Affiliate Summit West 2012

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Jeremy “ShoeMoney” Schoemaker is running a charity auction for one company to put their logo on his chest during Affiliate Summit West 2012.

Proceeds of this auction will benefit Matt Talbot’s Kitchen in Lincoln, NE.

Jeremy will wear the shirt of the winning bidder for the three days of Affiliate Summit, so this good karma opportunity comes with lots of exposure.

In addition to all of the in-person exposure, Jeremy will be in lots of photos and videos. Bid on eBay for the ShoeMoney auction.

If the auction goes for more than $5,000, that would push the ShoeMoney t-shirt charity auctions over $50,000 in funds raised in recent years.

More details at http://www.shoemoney.com/2011/12/12/affiliate-summit-west-2012-t-shirt-auction/.

Many Affiliates Never Read Affiliate Agreements

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Affiliates were asked “When signing up for an affiliate program, do you read the affiliate agreement?” for the 2011 Affiliate Summit AffStat Report.

Fifty-three percent of affiliates responded “always” for this survey question.

This should be of great concern to affiliate managers that nearly half of affiliates sometimes, rarely, or never read affiliate agreements.

Over fourteen-hundred affiliates were surveyed on their methods, preferences, and strategies for the 2011 Affiliate Summit AffStat Report.

More details on AffStat at http://affstat.com/.

Affiliate Summit West 2012 Has Raised $1,586 So Far to Fight Breast Cancer

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The Race to Affiliate Summit West 2012, a dailymile challenge where Affiliate Summit will donate $1 to benefit the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in support of Affiliate Marketers Give Back team for each mile cycled, run, swam, or walked (up to $5,000) through the challenge, is running through 12/31/2011.

There are currently 44 folks involved in the challenge, and the top ten competitors have already tallied 1,059 miles.

Overall, there have been 1,586 miles by all of the participants, so it’s $1,586 raised so far.

I am at #7 right now (see my dailymile profile) with 91 miles – catch me if you can.

Here are the top ten, as of December 5, 2011.

dailymile syncs with Garmin (205, 305, 310xt, 405, 405cx), Nike+ device and iPhone app, as well as a number of iPhone and Android clients.

You can also manually enter your cycling, swimming, running, and walking efforts.

In order to participate in dailymile activities, you will need to friend me on dailymile and I will invite you to the challenge. The challenge is going through 12/31/2011.

Get more details at http://www.affiliatesummit.com/race-to-affiliate-summit-west-2012/.

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

The participant with the most total miles at the end of the challenge will receive a Platinum pass to the conference. 2nd to 5th place finishers will each receive a Gold pass, and 6th to 10th place finishers will each receive a Silver pass.

Please note that all information you provide as part of the contest is public and may be used by Affiliate Summit in our marketing efforts for this event.

IAB Research Predicts Growth in Affiliate Marketing

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The IAB Affiliate Advertiser survey indicates there will be growth over the next 12 months.

Affiliate marketing is growingThe survey was answered by 140 advertisers in the UK.

According to the survey, 77% of respondents said marketing spend for affiliates had grown, and 71% expect it to grow further in 2012.

Some other interesting items from the survey:

  • 19% of respondents are paying out over £100k month in affiliate commissions
  • 59% of respondents worked with just one affiliate network
  • Over 25% of respondents spend more than 20% of online marketing budgets on the affiliate channel
  • Half of all respondents said that knowledge of affiliate marketing at CEO level was little or none at all

More details: IAB research predicts affiliate sector growth

Deciding on a Niche in Affiliate Marketing

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Q: Just wondering what your thoughts are on the current state of affiliate marketing, particularly with regard to finding a niche to pursue. Would you say there a still plenty of niches to attempt?

Shawn CollinsA: I really think the best approach is to go with the topics you really care about.

If you try to build an audience around a popular niche or trend, and it’s not something that interests you, it will likely fade away after a short period of time.

It took me going through the motions a number of times before I realized that a popular topic that doesn’t interest me is a recipe for failure.

You will find it’s a struggle to update it regularly because it bores you. And the early stages of a site don’t typically provide a monetary return, so all you’ve got at that point is your passion.

What I would suggest is to come up with two or three topics that interest you and do some research.

Check the related keywords in Google for each topic to determine which are most popular.

But wait, it’s not necessarily best to go with the most popular, because it will be more competitive with other affiliates. If you zero in on a less popular area, you have a better chance of dominating it.

Either way, go with your heart and not your head.

I discuss this topic in chapter one of Extra Money Answer, my free online book for getting started as an affiliate: Narrow Down Your Potential Topics.

Video: Deciding on a Niche in Affiliate Marketing

Ask Shawn Collins your affiliate marketing question and it will be added on the affiliate blog.

You Can Dictate How Your Day Goes

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I used to write a zine (printed, not online) back in the mid-90s called Velocity NYC, and I recently re-discovered a bunch of the stuff I wrote back then on archive.org.

This is one of the editor notes that I liked from back then…

I woke up the other day freaking. The clock mocked me with that green 8:27. How was I going to take a shower, shave, get dressed, eat my Cookie Crisps, read the Daily News, and then walk clear across town to make it to the office before 9:00? My brain was buzzing, my eyes were burning.

You Can Dictate How Your Day Goes

Then it hit me. Once again, I was victimized by a local phenomenon known as Vicky Time, where the alarm clock is set at a random time in the future. Having survived that, I crawled out of bed, stumbled into the shower, dried off, then faced the mirror. And I smiled.

The Dead Milkmen once sang, “The secret of life is no secret at all / for secrets hold death and lies only build walls.” Well, that’s not strictly true. There is a sort of secret to life that’s easier than you would imagine. You’ve got to do stuff that makes you happy.

As I sit here today, no one can tell that a seemingly grown man is actually a little boy. What I’m trying to say is that every day, I direct, produce, and edit the sit-com that is my life. I hope it turns out to be a hit, and pray that it doesn’t land me in a Saturday night slot on the WB network.

The show starts out on a happy note. After fastening my daily Windsor knot, I pack away some sugar cereal and orange juice. A seemingly simple pleasure, but it lures me out of bed in the morning.

After the first commercial, we return to the show and I’m pouring over the Daily News. Sure, I could do the erudite pose of so many New York Times readers, but that’s not for me. I go for the candy news. Give me news about what bar Alec Baldwin is hanging out in or a scoop on Darryl Strawberry violating parole. That stuff entertains me, brings a laugh on days of snow and work deadlines.

Once in a while, I punch in a soundtrack for the show. This usually happens in the scenes when I’m strolling along the sidewalk. Today, the episode featured stirring versions of “Creep” by Radiohead and “You Are Not Alone” from Michael Jackson. No, these songs didn’t have anything to do with today, I just like the way it sounds when I sing them.

Sometimes, when I am extra self-conscious – talking to the guy next to me at the urinal, vying against a thug with a boombox for the last seat on the subway, riding the elevator with a curious stranger – I can feel the camera on my shoulder, panning the faces around me, catching every blink and sneeze.

In more relaxed moments, sitting in a pizza parlor booth, I think of how I’d like to paint the grey buildings in yellow, green and blue, or how much better a Rangers game would look in black and white.

I’m sure you do the same, you just don’t realize it. We all oversee our daily sit-com, and to a degree, we have the unyielding power of giving most of our shows a happy ending.

Too often, you needlessly screw up your own episode. Before the cameras begin to roll, you look out to the set and see that it is raining and you left your umbrella at work last night. So what, you get a little wet. Look on the bright side, maybe you’ll see some dope get splashed by a puddle, or you might see a puppy decked out in a slicker and boots.

The trick is to always come back from the commercial with a smile on your face. Yeah, the A/C isn’t working and you’re so poor that you had to break out the Visa to buy Oodles of Noodles. So what, there’s a new Melrose tonight!

Sure, once in a while, there will be a monkey wrench thrown into your plotline. Just remember the immortal words of the King of Stuntmen, Evel Knievel, “For every adversity, there’s an equivalency to benefit. Sometimes you just have to look for it.”

You’re writing the script to your life, so add a few more steamy sex scenes, give yourself plenty of treats, and smile a lot!

Free Access to Videos from Affiliate Summit West 2010

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Videos of educational sessions from Affiliate Summit West 2010, which took place January 17-19, 2010 in Las Vegas, are now available to watch for free.

Facebook session at Affiliate Summit West 2010

The keynote speakers were Dr. Robert Cialdini and Brian Clark.

The full-length videos of the Brian Clark keynote, as well as the breakout sessions are now all available on YouTube.

Just go to the agenda from Affiliate Summit West 2010 and click on any of the session titles to watch the videos.

And while you’re enjoying these past Affiliate Summit moments, also have a look at the photos from Affiliate Summit West 2010.

Affiliate Summit Central 2012 Will Be Smaller and Different

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I’ve heard from a handful of people that they’re trying to decide whether to go to Affiliate Summit West 2012 (January 8-10 in Las Vegas) or Affiliate Summit Central (May 15-16, 2012 in Austin, TX), and I just wanted to clear a few things up.

Hilton AustinAffiliate Summit Central 2012, taking place at the Hilton Austin in downtown Austin, will be a different kind of Affiliate Summit.

Rather than several thousand attendees, as we will have at Affiliate Summit West 2012, it will be capped at a few hundred.

Also, the typical Affiliate Summit runs three days, and Affiliate Summit Central 2012 will be a day and a half long. It will be followed in Austin, TX by the ShareASale Think Tank event.

While we usually have a few keynote speakers and dozens of breakout sessions across four tracks, we will have two tracks of educational sessions and one keynote in Austin.

Finally, our east and west conferences typically have hundreds of sponsors in the exhibit hall and Meet Market, but we will only have a Meet Market with a couple dozen tables at Affiliate Summit Central 2012.

Registrations are nearly sold out for Affiliate Summit West 2012, but you can still get a pass at affiliatesummit.com.

Stay tuned for details on registrations, sponsorships, and speaker proposals for Affiliate Summit West 2012.

Self-Promotion Will Save The World

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Affiliate Marketing by the Numbers presentation from Affiliate Summit West 2010, which took place January 17-19, 2010 in Las Vegas, NV.

Speaker:

  • Peter Shankman, Founder, HARO

“It’s the economy, stupid!” has given way to “It’s the social economy, stupid!” We’ll examine a handful of successful companies, what they did to turn customers into Raving Fans, and how you can, too.

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

Note: the company(ies) and position(s) listed above were current as of the time of the conference. Some of this information may have changed since then.

Video: Self-Promotion Will Save The World

If you liked this video, be sure to register for the next Affiliate Summit. The session videos aren’t made public until a year or more after each conference.