Affiliate Marketing Blog

Affiliate marketing news and opinion from Shawn Collins, co-founder of Affiliate Summit.

About Shawn Collins

Shawn Collins has been an affiliate marketer since 1997. He is a Co-founder of Affiliate Summit, the leading global conference and tradeshow for the affiliate marketing industry, and Co-Editor-in-Chief of FeedFront Magazine.

He has authored the books “Affiliate Manager Boot Camp“, “Extra Money Answer“, “How to Get the Most from Exhibiting at Conferences”, “How to Get the Most Out of Attending a Conference”, “How to Become a Successful Conference Speaker“, and “Successful Affiliate Marketing for Merchants“. Also, he co-publishes the annual AffStat affiliate marketing benchmark reports.

Shawn blogs at AffiliateTip.com. Additionally, Shawn has been quoted in numerous publications, including Entrepreneur Magazine, Internet Retailer, Inc. Magazine, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal.

The Things I Use to Podcast in 2019

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I started podcasting in 2006 with a show called Affiliate Thing that was co-hosted by Lisa Picarille.

We started out on a service called BlogTalkRadio, and the first episode was an interview with Lily Shen, who was then the senior manager of eBay’s U.S. Affiliate Program.Shawn Collins wants to interview you

After we stumbled through a dozen episodes on that platform we moved on to WebmasterRadio, where we co-hosted the show for a year or so.

At that point, I decided it would be nice to host and own the shows, so GeekCast.fm was started as a division of Affiliate Summit. We made it available as a place for any business podcast to get free hosting and promotion. Affiliate Thing went on for a bunch of years there.

Since then I’ve hosted a handful of podcasts solo, and the latest is This is Affiliate Marketing, which I started in 2016 to interview people who have some kind of tie to affiliate marketing. But I didn’t want to interview them about affiliate marketing, because those podcasts are boring to me at this point. Instead, I go through their social media and ask them questions about themselves.

Anyhow, the way I’ve recorded, edited, and published podcasts have changed a lot over time, and I figured I’d share what I’m using currently for anybody looking to start their own podcast.

So here’s what I use…

Recording the Podcast

I use Ringr to record the podcasts – this platform enables my guests to call in either from a phone or their computer. Ringr is a paid service and they have a few levels to choose from – this has been the most reliable tool for recording that I have used over the years, and when there is a glitch they have a responsive support team.

As far as the microphone, I have the Logitech Stereo Headset H110, which is less than $15 on Amazon and I’ve used the same one without any issues for over 5 years.

Editing the Podcast

My podcast editing is done with a free software program called Audacity. It’s an easy, intuitive program, and if you have any trouble there are plenty of videos on YouTube to help you along the way.

In order to give my podcasts a more professional flair I wanted to have an intro and outro done by somebody else, so I went to Fiverr and got some quality sound files for cheap to open and close the podcast.

Hosting the Podcast

I learned about Libsyn as a podcast hosting service years ago at Social Media Marketing World, and I’ve been very happy with the service. They have packages starting at $5/month and in addition to the hosting you also get stats on your podcasts, and the service enables you to easily distribute to the main podcasting apps and platforms.

Also, they provide code for a variety of players so you can put your show up on a blog post, website, etc. And they offer the option of using your own domain to point to a page where they have all of your podcast archives.

That’s it – it’s pretty easy to get up and running, and then all you need is original content and consistency to build your podcast audience.

When You Talk, Does Anybody Listen?

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I thought I was good for a long time. Over ten years. But as the days went by, I realized I wasn’t.

One of the biggest catalysts in my entrepreneur journey was also my greatest burden… the memories of working in New York City on 9/11.

I didn’t die. I was only really scared that day, so I had a hard time accepting that it brought me pain and sadness and anxiety. It made me feel guilty. When I brought up what happened that day it seemed to make people uncomfortable. I got that, and it also made me wary of mentioning it. So I bottled it up.

It was around six years ago that I finally got to a point where I thought I needed some help. It was my first visit to the 9/11 Memorial Museum, and I was overcome. I felt really irritable and claustrophobic.

It really bothered me how jovial some people were in what I thought should be a very solemn place. And then I saw a bunch of people mugging for the camera in front of a destroyed fire truck. I had to get out of there.

Damaged fire truck in the 9/11 Memorial Museum

I verbalized to myself shortly after that I was going to find somebody to talk to about it. I went to Yelp to look up therapists who dealt with PTSD.

My choice was a psychotherapist because I just wanted someone to talk to about things vs. a psychiatrist, who could also prescribe medications.

It felt so good to have somebody to talk to about things I felt like nobody wanted to hear, or I wasn’t comfortable talking about. As I worked through lingering 9/11 feelings, I also began to talk to a lot about work and the toll it took on me.

That whole entrepreneurial story that people idealize, but that can be isolating and scary more often. The failures and self-doubt, while putting on a brave face, and the tricky balance of being an entrepreneur with healthy relationships and outlets.

As I spoke to a therapist about personal and professional struggles, I found it beneficial in a number of ways.

First, there was having a safe and private place to talk about sensitive issues. No judgment, nobody taking offense. It was a foreign feeling to have somebody just listen and share their perspective without their feelings or biases intruding.

Second, it was an avenue to discuss how to improve sleep, nutrition, and physical activity patterns. These new, healthy behaviors and habits all had quick impacts on my physical and mental well-being.

Third, my relationships became more satisfying with an understanding of the need for better communication and fewer assumptions.

Finally, I became more mindful, less stressed, and more relaxed. I always heard the phrase “stop and smell the roses,” and I finally started doing it.

Our toughest struggles are just that – they are ours and the toughest things we are dealing with. Don’t worry about measuring them against others or worrying yourself about the stigma of getting some help. We all need somebody who will listen.

The Making of a Quality Conference Speaker Proposal

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Speaking at a conference can benefit you in a lot of ways, and there are dos and don’ts when it comes to submitting a speaker proposal. You only have one opportunity to make your case for speaking, so make the most of it.

Shawn Collins speaking at Affiliate Summit APAC 2019

Pay attention to the details and invest time in a quality speaker proposal.

Don’t rush through it.

Typos, lack of clarity in your writing, and failing to follow the instructions send a very clear message that this is not a priority for you.

I’m guessing you don’t want to send that message since you’re bothering to read this.

Based on the thousands of speaker proposals I’ve seen over the years, I’ve compiled the following on what to do to improve your chances of being selected.

Read the Guidelines and Follow Them

This should be basic advice – so basic that it doesn’t need to be included here.

However, every time we put out a call for speakers, I see lots of talented, successful people turn in proposals that show they’ve paid no attention to the guidelines.

If there are character or word constraints, be sure to follow them.

It’s that simple.

Failure to follow simple instructions can disqualify a good session, so read the guidelines like they matter… because they do.

Check Your Schedule

Are you sure you do not have a conflict on your schedule with the conference day(s)?

Check and double-check your schedule to see if you have any other obligations.

If you realize you have to cancel after being accepted to speak, it could hurt your credibility and cause trouble for the conference organizers.

Adhere to the Deadline

There is inevitably a deadline to turn in a speaker proposal. If you want to speak at a given conference, make it a priority to get the proposal in on time.

Lots of successive dates hinge on that deadline, and if that doesn’t work for your schedule, so be it.

But your failure to meet the deadline is just that – your failure.

Don’t Be Lazy

When you are submitting your speaker proposal, provide the requested information in full.

Don’t cut corners with comments like “I will provide this later,” because there will likely not be a later.

Exhibiting such arrogance, that you think the conference wants you to speak so bad that they’ll accept your incomplete submission, may well result in your submission being declined.

Proofread!

There seems to be a theme here about attention to detail, right? Right.

Run spellcheck, read through your material for clarity, and have somebody else look it over before you send it.

People with typos on their resumes don’t get hired.

Don’t Be Too Broad

Are you one of those people who hopes to give a 30,000-foot view of your chosen topic?

If so, stop with the buzzwords and focus on a topic.

The big picture can be nice for a keynote, but if you’re interested in giving a presentation at a breakout session, broad is bad. People want specifics.

Sell the Topic

Your speaker proposal should focus on the benefits, takeaways, etc. of your proposed session.

Don’t talk about yourself. That is the function of your bio.

Review Past Agendas

One of the best ways to get a feel for the type of content that is typically featured at a conference is to review the past agendas.

Then, come up with a new, unique, interesting topic that draws some inspiration from past, recurring themes.

Don’t Recycle

It’s really nice to recycle paper, plastic, and grass clippings, but don’t recycle content.

Nobody wants your greatest hits from the past few years. Respect your audience and propose new, quality content.

Focus on Clarity

Be clear about what you want to cover in your presentation. It should be something you can sum up in a sentence.

A string of buzzwords is annoying to read, has little meaning, and will likely help to put your proposal in the reject pile.

Have You Attended the Conference?

While there are certainly first timers speaking frequently at conferences, it is in your best interest to first attend conferences where you hope to speak at beforehand.

Know the conference culture and types of attendees, so you’re not going into it blind.

Find Out What They Want

Do your homework as to which sessions have been most popular in the past, so you know what attendees like.

Also, read blog posts on the past conferences to gain insight.

Don’t ask the organizers what they want – they want quality, original content.

Know Your Limits

It can be tough to carry an hour-long session by yourself.

Are you ready? If not, try proposing for a shorter time slot, or submit a proposal for a panel.

Running a long session shouldn’t be your first step. It’s really helpful to get some experience by speaking at meet-ups and other smaller, professional get-togethers.

OK, now you’re ready to submit that killer speaking proposal.

Dr. Julie Gurner on Negatives of Perfectionism, Hot Dogs, and Dog Dogs

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Dr. Julie Gurner, Executive Performance Coach, podcast host, and angel investor joined me to chat on my podcast, This is Affiliate Marketing with Shawn Collins.

Dr Julie Gurner

I wanted to learn more about the real Julie, so I asked her a variety of questions I figured she had not been asked in previous interviews.

Topics included…

  • A seeing-eye dog statue
  • Negatives associated with perfectionism
  • Speaking French
  • Entrepreneurs and relationships
  • Hot dogs
  • Being awesome
  • Adopting an older street dog

Links from this episode

I Ran a Background Check on Myself

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I saw an ad online somewhere about background checks through BeenVerified, and I was curious what would be there in my own background check.

Private detective

Well, I had a good idea of what would be in there.

I was surprised when I got results, and also there were some items in there that were for another guy who shares my name.

One area that seemed funny to me was their list of possible aliases for me. Some were logical with including my middle name or initial, but then others were odd like Mickey Collins. That was one of my past dogs, but I never went by that name.

My list of previous phone numbers goes fairly far back – not as far back as my childhood home phone or my college number, but some records around 20 years old. I didn’t recognize some, but with lots of house phones and Google Voice over the years I’m not sure if they were errors or forgotten memories.

The email addresses include emails I had as far back as the mid to late 90s, including a couple on AOL.

My list of past addresses went far back, but there were some addresses in places I’ve never lived. I gave a thumbs down on those items where it says “Is this accurate?”. I am not sure if that eventually removes it from the record.

I am not sure why they provide a list of current and past neighbors, but that was interesting to me, because I didn’t know most of the names, so it probably wouldn’t benefit anybody knowing they currently or in the past lived near me.

The part that surprised me was the “Criminal & Traffic” section. I’ve had a handful of moving violations in my life and figured those would turn up, but they didn’t. Not sure what traffic infractions make the cut.

But I was surprised by an arrest that came as I result of a frat prank when I was in college. It was a misdemeanor and at the time I was told it would clear my record if I fulfilled the terms in my PBJ (probation before judgment). Well, I completed it and was off the hook, but apparently clearing the record doesn’t include the initial arrest. Doh!

My jobs and education have mostly good information, but a lot of the items are repeated in the list. I don’t know how they sourced this information, but it’s a bit of a mess.

They were spot on for my educational background – maybe that’s pulled from LinkedIn? Social media & websites were very partial for my sites, but they included lots of my social accounts.

When I got down to the assets there were properties and vehicles I’ve never owned, but they had my information, too.

Overall it was a neat process to see what others see in my background check.

Chris Park on Rugby, Why He Likes the Mets, and KISS Mini Golf

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Christopher Park, Senior Affiliate Manager at JEBCommerce, joined me to chat on my podcast, This is Affiliate Marketing with Shawn Collins.

Chris Park

I wanted to learn more about the real Chris, so I asked him a variety of questions I figured he had not been asked in previous interviews.

Topics included…

  • How he ended up in marketing after studying English, economics, and religious studies
  • Riding on a mobile bar
  • Which pro sports teams he likes
  • Playing guitar with a Neil Diamond tribute band
  • Playing rugby in college
  • Serving on the city council

Links from this episode

Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable by Jim Kukral

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Old school digital marketer Jim Kukral has written a new book, “Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable“, and you should take a look at it.

Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable by Jim Kukral

Jim discusses how to make an impact in today’s distracted world to make the most of your life and work.

If you’ve read any of Jim’s previous books, you already know the conversational tone that he writes in; but for anybody new to Kukral’s work, you’re in for a treat with his style.

He writes a different kind of business book. I’ve got a big collection of business books, and many are a chore to get through with the heavy use of buzzwords and overly complicated descriptions or processes.

You won’t get that with Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable, and that makes the advice so much easier to digest and implement.

Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable provides you with practical ideas, no-nonsense approaches, and honest advice to make your business or self unskippable.

In addition to this new book, Jim has also co-written a book with Lisa Picarille titled The Unskippable Handbook For Dealing with JERKS, IDIOTS & TERRIBLE People.

SEMrush is Great to Stay on Top of Your Search Marketing

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I have been blogging since 2004 or so – I can’t even remember at this point, but I was on Movable Type before I moved over to WordPress.

I figured if I was writing quality, original content that it was enough. But my arrogance over putting out content blindly has officially ended.

I signed up for SEMrush and I had no idea what I was not doing all this time.

SEMrush is a set of analytics reports, tools, and projects, which are campaigns for your site where you get all the necessary metrics for competitors, keyword rankings, and on-page health.

I really like it for tracking competitors and doing keyword research, as well as comparisons of domains and SEO tools.

Check out the SEMrush free trial.

James Martell is a Legend in Affiliate Marketing

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It was an honor to say some words about James Martell as we honored him as an Industry Legend at Affiliate Summit East 2019. Accepting the award were Arlene Martell, Justin Martell, and Kimberly Juchnowski.

James Martell and Shawn Collins

I had a hard time getting the words out that I’d written about James. Here they are for anybody who couldn’t be there…

There are lots of awesome accomplishments and distinctions we can talk about when it comes to James Martell.

He taught tens of thousands of business owners how to effectively market their businesses online through his books, courses, live trainings, webinars, podcasts, and speaking engagements.

He was a true Internet pioneer, thought leader, and influencer who knew how to bring success online.

James had more than twenty years of online business experience, and was successful in online marketing, blogging, podcasting, coaching, outsourcing, and video creation. He authored several business books, and developed twelve popular marketing courses.

He also authored of one of the first and best-selling eBooks on affiliate marketing, and was a host of the longest running affiliate marketing podcast, starting in 2003, with listeners in more than one hundred countries. That is crazy to me – I got into podcasting in 2006 and thought I was breaking new ground – the reality is that James was there and so many other places first.

I think this testimonial I gave to James for his site many years ago does a good job to say what I thought of him…

“James is a one of a kind – an Internet marketing rock star. When he has spoken at Affiliate Summit, his sessions always receive a 10 out of 10. In a space with many imitators and pretenders, James is the real deal.”

But James was more than an awesome business guy – he was a husband, father, grandfather, and so much more.

James had a giant personality and an even bigger heart.

His presence, guidance, and stewardship to so many in affiliate marketing and the in the real world will forever be missed.

James was a big Elvis fan, and I was going to try and pick out an Elvis song and sing a little bit in his honor. I came across a song by the King called Memories, and that choked me up:

“Memories, pressed between the pages of my mind
Memories, sweetened through the ages just like wine
Quiet thoughts come floating down
And settle softly to the ground
Like golden autumn leaves around my feet
I touched them and they burst apart with sweet memories
Sweet memories”

Goodbye, James – you’re a legend.

Thank you to Liz Fogg for recording the award ceremony for James.

Know When It is Time to Leave

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I was really excited on the morning of September 11, 2001. It was a gorgeous, sunny day in New York City as I headed into my job at ClubMom.com.

My dog Mickey when I lived across the river from the World Trade Center

My CMO with an impressive MBA from an Ivy-League school forced me to pause the affiliate program for the summer, even though it was cash positive with every lead and doing great. But that’s a discussion for another day.

Anyhow, September 11, 2001, was the day I was tasked with resurrecting the affiliate program. It was on Be Free (a popular affiliate network at the time) and I had an email scheduled in BFAST (their technology that had to be installed locally!) to hit all the affiliates that afternoon announcing the return of the affiliate program.

As I was finishing up my everything bagel and strawberry Yoo-hoo I got an email from one of the IT guys. It was sent to the whole company and it was a breaking news alert from CNN about a plane hitting the World Trade Center. The idea of that was impossible in my mind and I thought he must have been trying to make some bad joke.

But no, it was real. Somebody wheeled out a TV on a cart to a conference room and turned it on. It was reminiscent of 15 years earlier when a TV cart was brought into my class in high school for coverage of the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion.

One big difference, though. The Space Shuttle was way far away from me when it exploded. The World Trade Center was a couple of miles away. I was in shock. We all were. I alternated between watching and chatting with friends and family on AIM. Then I saw a plane hit the South Tower on TV.

The bosses were telling us to stay calm and stay put. Then the South Tower collapsed before my eyes on TV. I needed to get out of there.

I chatted with some people and then gathered my things to try and make my way home. In addition to being totally freaked out, my now 17-year-old daughter Lexie was due to be born on September 27, 2001, and I wanted to live to see her birth.

That might sound overly dramatic now, but nobody knew what the hell was going on then, except that this was apparently terrorism. And our office was a couple of blocks from the Empire State Building. I figured that could be the next target and I didn’t want to be there to find out.

So, I headed over to my supervisor’s office to tell her I was heading out. She said, “No, you can’t leave.” It was at that moment that my fight or flight instinct kicked in. My first thought was to fight, and I was going to do that by saying, “Fuck you.” But I chose flight and just left.

As I headed down Fifth Avenue towards 34th Street, where I was going to hang a right towards Penn Station, I heard thundering noise across my whole body. People in the street were screaming and running.

I looked up and right there in front of me, the North Tower was collapsing. I froze. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. It was too much to handle. I watched the whole thing crumble and I was in shock. Shortly after, I snapped out of it and started running towards Penn Station to escape from New York by way of an NJ Transit train.

It was all a blur. Some people were walking There was screaming and crying in every direction, and I was running as fast as I could in jeans. Finally, I got to Penn Station and sprinted down to the tracks to jump on the next Jersey bound train. I got a seat and about 30 seconds later the doors closed, and the train began to move. The train erupted in cheers that lasted about ten seconds. Then it stopped.

We sat there for a while and they wouldn’t let us off. Finally, they announced that there may be explosives in the tunnel, and we should safely evacuate the train. I’d like to say I sat there and did the women and children first thing. But a few years earlier I saw those guys die in the Titanic movie. I broke out ahead of everybody and ran all the way to the Hudson River to get away from buildings and people and everything.

I tried frantically to make a phone call and say I was on the way home, but there was no getting a phone signal. I walked into a line of people about ten blocks long waiting to get on a Circle Line Cruise boat to cross over to New Jersey.

When I finally got on the boat there was an eerie calm. We started moving south towards lower Manhattan before cutting over and pulling into a dock in Weehawken, NJ. I didn’t know what to do and wandered off the boat until I saw an NJ Transit bus. I asked the driver where it was going, and he said they were taking everybody to Giants Stadium. I just wanted to get away, so I got on board.

After they brought us to Giants Stadium there wasn’t a plan for moving on from there. Bus after bus unloaded people and we all walked around confused and flustered and hot and thirsty. They were not allowing traffic in – only out. So, I got an idea – I took a piece of paper out of my bag and wrote the name of the town where I lived: MILLBURN.

I stood along the road hoping to hitchhike. And I was ecstatic that a car pulled over within ten minutes. It was a station wagon that already had like ten people in there and they let me jam in with them. The driver was some guy who worked for the Giants. We rode mostly in silence while hosts on the AM station WABC tried to make sense of things for themselves and us. There was all sorts of confusion and misinformation.

The highways were empty, so we made good time. I was the third or fourth to be dropped off and they let me out at my local train station where I’d parked that morning for the commute. There were literally no cars gone, yet. The lot was packed. I am pretty sure I was the first one to make it back. I wondered how many of my fellow commuters weren’t making it back that day or any day. I learned later that eight guys from my town were killed.

Over the course of the day, I was thinking a lot about how I was told I couldn’t leave. I had to leave, and I really didn’t like that feeling of being told I couldn’t. It weighed on me and I just couldn’t shake it. I spent the rest of that fall in a daze, except for the birth of my daughter, Lexie, on October 2, 2001.

My daughter Lexie born weeks after September 11

I was so wrecked by the whole thing that I was asking the obstetrician, during the birth of my daughter, about the risks of Anthrax exposure, as there was some monster mailing it to places in NYC after 9/11.

I started to get a grip on things in 2002 and figured out my first step in leaving the company. I started my own OPM company on the side to see if that could take off and replace my day job. The affiliate program management gigs started taking off, and then a random conversation with Missy Ward turned into us starting Affiliate Summit. We registered the .com on May 19, 2003.

That was the final thing I needed to leave my job for good. We held the first Affiliate Summit on November 3, 2003, in New York City. It was 783 days after 9/11. Shortly after I quit my job.

Know when it’s time for you to leave and don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t.