Shawn Collins' Blog

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

Archives for August 2015

Do Affiliates Have an Advocate?

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Q: Do affiliates have an advocate? I feel that advertisers and networks egregiously take advantage of publishers and I want to know if we have any recourse.

Shawn CollinsA: I guess in days past in affiliate marketing the promise of the networks was to be an impartial middleman if there were any disputes between affiliates and merchants.

But I guess, in your experience, the networks and merchants have colluded against you? If that’s the case, it’s certainly a shame.

How about turning to the Performance Marketing Association (PMA) to see if they could advocate on your behalf?

According to the PMA site…

“The PMA’s mission is to champion and protect accountable performance marketing. Our main goals are:

  • To promote the growth of the industry,
  • Help model standards and best-practices and
  • Advocate on behalf of the businesses that comprise the performance marketing industry”

I think it would be worth the effort to go to the PMA to see if there is some way they could help you.

What is the Best Way to Promote the WP Engine Hosting Affiliate Program?

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I was chatting with the WP Engine team at Affiliate Summit East 2015 a few weeks ago, and I was excited to hear that they are paying a minimum of $200 per referral.

In addition to their high commission rate, WP Engine also has a nice setup for bonuses that starts at five referrals per month.

But now I have to figure out how to drive that qualified traffic. I’ve never been much of a PPC affiliate, and I don’t plan to start. Growing a social media presence related to hosting could be a long grind.

I am thinking the call is to make tutorials, either video or with screenshots and text, that take newbies through the process of signing up and setting up a WP Engine account.

I’ve got lots of sites hosted over there, so tutorials wouldn’t be too tough.

Stay tuned.

Apply to the WP Engine affiliate program.

Meet Market is Sold Out for Affiliate Summit West 2016

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The Meet Market for Affiliate Summit West 2016 has sold out. Affiliate Summit West 2016 is taking place January 10-12, 2016 at Paris Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV.

Oh no! The Meet Market is sold out.

Most of the booths in the exhibit hall are gone, too. There are still a limited number of other sponsorships available for Affiliate Summit West 2016.

If you’re not familiar with the Meet Market, it is an extended session of structured, face to face networking on the Sunday of Affiliate Summit.

Affiliate programs and networks have tables set to meet with affiliates to discuss their offers and cut deals. Vendors that cater to affiliates and merchants will also have tables to share information about their products and services.

Each table is a meeting spot for teaching, learning, closing deals, creating partnerships, and finding new opportunities.

Get on the Affiliate Summit West 2016 Meet Market Waitlist.

Don’t Forget to Submit Your Affiliate Summit West 2016 Speaking Proposal

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Speaking proposals for Affiliate Summit West 2016, taking place January 10-12, 2016 in Las Vegas, are currently being accepted.

Don't forget that speaker proposal

The submission deadline is Friday, September 4, 2015.

One complimentary VIP pass is provided to speakers. Travel and hotel are not included. There is a limit of one person per company on the speaker roster. No exceptions.

How are speaker submissions selected?

The speaker submissions are chosen based on the following:

  • Public voting scores and comments.
  • Voting scores and comments by the Affiliate Summit Advisory Board.
  • Voting scores by Affiliate Summit founders Missy Ward and Shawn Collins.
  • Past session feedback if you previously spoke at an Affiliate Summit.
  • Meeting speaker deadlines if you previously spoke at an Affiliate Summit.

What topics are preferred?

Submit a proposal based on your expertise, not what you think we want to see.

Proposals should be of an advanced nature. We are not interested in introductory material. Also, it must be original material – don’t propose a session you’ve already given at Affiliate Summit or somewhere else.

Submit your speaking proposal for Affiliate Summit West 2016.

Meet Market and Exhibit Hall Sell Out for Affiliate Summit West 2016

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The Meet Market and Exhibit Hall are just about sold out for Affiliate Summit West 2016, which is taking place January 10-12, 2016 at Paris Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV.

Meet Market at Affiliate Summit East 2015

The Affiliate Summit West 2016 Meet Market is open on Sunday, January 10, and the Exhibit Hall will be open on Monday, January 11 and Tuesday, January 12.

The Meet Market is nearly 90% sold out, and there are approximately 20% of the booths in the exhibit hall remaining.

Book a Meet Market table or booth in the Exhibit Hall before they are all gone.

Exhibit Hall Nearly Sold Out for Affiliate Summit West 2016

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The majority of booth spaces are already sold out for Affiliate Summit West 2016, which is taking place January 10-12, 2016 at Paris Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV.

Exhibit Hall at Affiliate Summit East 2015

The Affiliate Summit West 2016 Exhibit Hall is open on Monday, January 11 and Tuesday, January 12.

The Affiliate Summit Exhibit Hall Booth Space Package includes the following:

  • Exhibitor Booth Space (Space only. Booth related costs such as tables, chairs, cleaning, electricity, Internet, etc. are additional).
  • Three (3) VIP Passes to be used for booth staff, clients or affiliates.
  • Five (5) Networking Plus passes to be used for booth staff, clients or affiliates.
  • Ability to purchase additional passes at 20% off the prevailing rate, at the time of purchase.
  • Your company description (maximum 650 characters, including spaces) in the Exhibitor & Conference Guide (Subject to receipt of description by the deadline).

More than half of the Meet Market tables are already sold, too.

The price increases after September 18, 2015. Book a booth or table before they are all gone.

Don’t Forget to Submit Your Affiliate Summit West 2016 Speaking Proposal

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Speaking proposals for Affiliate Summit West 2016, taking place January 10-12, 2016 at Paris Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV, are currently being accepted.

Don't forget that speaker proposal

The submission deadline is Friday, September 4, 2015.

One complimentary VIP pass is provided to speakers. Travel and hotel are not included. There is a limit of one person per company on the speaker roster. No exceptions.

How are speaker submissions selected?

The speaker submissions are chosen based on the following:

  • Public voting scores and comments.
  • Voting scores and comments by the Affiliate Summit Advisory Board.
  • Voting scores by Affiliate Summit founders Missy Ward and Shawn Collins.
  • Past session feedback if you previously spoke at an Affiliate Summit.
  • Meeting speaker deadlines if you previously spoke at an Affiliate Summit.

What topics are preferred?

Submit a proposal based on your expertise, not what you think we want to see.

Proposals should be of an advanced nature. We are not interested in introductory material. Also, it must be original material – don’t propose a session you’ve already given at Affiliate Summit or somewhere else.

Submit your speaking proposal for Affiliate Summit West 2016.

Last Call for Article Ideas for the October 2015 Issue of FeedFront Magazine

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Time is running out to propose an article idea for issue 32 of FeedFront Magazine, which is coming out in October 2015.

Time is almost out

The deadline for article proposals is August 14, 2015.

The content in FeedFront is first person and articles are a maximum of 500 words – quick reads from the people who are doing things related to digital marketing or the life of an entrepreneur.

We are looking for concrete take-aways that can be applied by the readers. No fluff – just useful stuff based on your experience and success.

So, we don’t want any ghost-written articles. We only want content from people writing from their personal industry experience.

Please note that we are only interested in writers who have not previously been accepted to write an article and then either failed to meet the deadline or did not adhere to the editorial guidelines.

All you need to do by the August 14, 2015 deadline is to submit a one sentence summary.

If you haven’t read FeedFront magazine, take a look at issue 31 to get a feel for past content that was published.

Video of Brian Littleton Keynote at Affiliate Summit East 2015

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Brian Littleton, Founder and CEO of ShareASale, gave a keynote address at Affiliate Summit East 2015, which took place August 2-4, 2015 at the New York Marriott Marquis in New York, NY.

Affiliate Summit East 2015 keynote from Brian Littleton

As the founder and CEO of ShareASale, Brian has connected thousands of merchants and affiliates alike, ensuring mutual profitability while preserving the spirit and core values of the affiliate marketing industry.

Since 2000, his leadership and vision have helped shape the industry into what it is today.

ShareASale celebrates its 15th anniversary this year and currently supports over 4,000 retailers on the ShareASale Network, working strategically with its clients, both on the advertising and publishing end, to maximize their individual potential.

Brian is a three-time winner of the Affiliate Summit Pinnacle Award for Affiliate Marketing Advocate of the Year, and has served as the President of the Board of Directors for the Performance Marketing Association since 2012.

More details on Affiliate Summit at AffiliateSummit.com.

Video: Brian Littleton Keynote at Affiliate Summit East 2015

Affiliate Summit East 2015 Day 3 Recap

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Tuesday, August 4, 2015 was the third and final day of Affiliate Summit East 2015 at the New York Marriott Marquis.

Meeting in the Affiliate Summit East 2015 exhibit hall

The day started with a tasty attendee breakfast, and I got nice and fueled up on some eggs, fruit, and other food groups.

Breakfast on the final day of Affiliate Summit East 2015

Shortly after, there was a keynote from Tim Ash, CEO of SiteTuners.

Tim Ash at Affiliate Summit East 2015

The final day of Affiliate Summit East 2015 also featured a series of breakout sessions and lots of networking and good times in the exhibit hall.

Last day in the Affiliate Summit East 2015 exhibit hall

The exhibit hall wrapped up with a Pub Crawl for some cocktails and last visits to the exhibiting companies.

Pub Crawl at Affiliate Summit East 2015

On the final afternoon, there were also a series of one-on-one workshops.

One-on-one Workshops at Affiliate Summit East 2015

As the companies broke down booths in the exhibit hall, all of the work and play was officially coming to an end.

Breaking down the exhibit hall at Affiliate Summit East 2015

Thank you to everybody who came out to network, learn and have fun with us at Affiliate Summit East 2015.

Register now for the early bird prices for Affiliate Summit West 2016, taking place January 10-12, 2016 in Las Vegas.