Hi there,
here’s my question.
I am a blog/site that recommends products for my readers to purchase. Everything I have read about affiliate programs is written for the “retailers website”. I wish to know [...]]]> I’ve just been emailed with a request from an interesting perspective and thought it was worth sharing the response.

Hi there,
here’s my question.
I am a blog/site that recommends products for my readers to purchase. Everything I have read about affiliate programs is written for the “retailers website”. I wish to know if an “affiliate sales tracking thing” can be set up from my end, where I convince the sales website to pay me commission when I send them a sale.
I hope this make sense.

The short answer to the question is sadly a simple “No”.

That said however it’s worth explaining why and what else can be done.

It is of course up a to a retailer to decide whether or not they’re going to offer a retail affiliate program with a commission available for sales that are passed through. This decision is usually a question of margins and whether or not the retailer has a margin that is large enough for both the affiliate and the retailer to earn revenue that is worth the out-lay of effort in generating the traffic to their website.

This tracking takes a reasonable level of technical setup and therefore usually development cost by the retail website to allow for correct tracking right through from the in-bound traffic to the sale to be able to tell exactly where the sale came from. This is something that just can’t be set up by an affiliate from their side.

While there are more and more simple tools that can help to track affiliate sales (Google Analytics can do it in a basic form) there is still a lot of time and effort that goes into the setup and running of an affiliate system.

So, what is the best way to convince a retailer to get involved with an affiliate program?

Talk to them.

Give them a call, let them know you have traffic and you’d like to send it to them and see what they say about it and if they’re not interested in spending the time setting up affiliate traffic tracking, perhaps they’ll be interested in directly paying for the traffic?

If you’ve hit a bit of a brick wall in convincing the retailer to bring tracking online, the last option would potentially be to send through a reasonable level of traffic for free that will generate sales to prove to the retailer that they are going to receive value from your promotion.

Prior to doing this you would of course need to know that the retailer can at least track the referrer of the traffic (e.g. your website) through a statistical package like Google Analytics.

It’s a good question so I thought I’d post the Q & A here;

Good morning Gary,

I live in Whangaparaoa and I am [...]]]> This morning I was asked if there is any direct affiliate coaching in New Zealand available to help someone who is interested in getting into affiliate marketing as a supplementary income.

It’s a good question so I thought I’d post the Q & A here;

Good morning Gary,

I live in Whangaparaoa and I am interested in learning about Affiliate marketing as a means to earn a supplementary income.

Are there people you know of close to me who are into Coaching people like me?

Regards

XXXX  XXXX

Stanmore Bay
Whangaparaoa

Here’s my response;

Hi XXXX,

I’m afraid there is very little in the way of direct coaching for affiliate marketing in New Zealand.

The best I can suggest is online research and getting involved in forum communities to ask as many questions and read as many answers as you can.

One thing to note is that there isn’t any need to buy any services (e.g. e-books) related to affiliate marketing strategies / tools.

In my opinion you can find anything you need to know that will be in those books elsewhere online on an affiliate resource site or by chatting in forums.

Good luck with it.

Regards

Gary

The affiliate newsletter is commonly under-utilised when, done well, it can be one of the better means [...]]]> The most regular means of communication between affiliate managers and the wider group of affiliates in their program is generally going to be the affiliate newsletter, otherwise known as CRM (customer relationship management) if you’re the affiliate manager.

The affiliate newsletter is commonly under-utilised when, done well, it can be one of the better means of building a community around a program.

If your an affiliate, it is important to make sure you’re signed up to the affiliate newsletter for your best performing (or most sophisticated) programs as this is going to be your quickest way of keeping up to date with whatever is new in the program and potentially give you tips and insights into what is going to perform best for you as you work with the program.

Affiliate managers should understand that the affiliate newsletter is the second most important tool in keeping an affiliate community up to date with what’s happening in the business. The first is, without doubt, shouting the affiliate a beer at the bar during an affiliate conference

Affiliate managers who are looking to build a community will often find a way to get more into the newsletter than just the latest promotion. Whether it’s a featured piece about a top affiliate, the best performing product that they have or ideas surrounding the next meet up of like-minded internet geeks, you should be receiving a newsletter that helps you interact with the program and learn ways of improving the ROI of your time spent promoting their program.

If you’re not receiving tips from your most preferred or profitable affiliate program (they’re not always the same) then you should be talking to your affiliate manager to start getting them more involved with building your community and potentially even offering to help.

Who knows, you may get some good contacts out of helping out.

As much as affiliates can feel like they’re out on their own in the world and don’t want to pass on any secrets of their performance, there are many situations where getting involved and helping the community as a whole will help lift the affiliate program you’re working with thereby improving your bottom line and hopefully enhancing your affiliate knowledge.

It’s a reasonable argument that there are a lot of people who are currently using Twitter as purely a promotional tool for pushing their [...]]]> Personally, I’m not particularly keen on the idea of using Twitter for affiliate marketing beyond promoting your site directly. It just reeks a little too much of spamming a social network.

It’s a reasonable argument that there are a lot of people who are currently using Twitter as purely a promotional tool for pushing their online products or services to a wider social market however affiliate marketing on Twitter is using a social tool to trick a user into clicking on a commissioned URL. That’s pretty close to spam in my books.

A big part of Twitter is the use of short URL services and there is no way for a user to know that they’re clicking through an affiliate link. If you’re going to be completely up-front about the use of affiliate links in shortened URLs then you should be notifying the potential clicker that the link is an advertisement or at least that it’s an affiliate link.

There’s nothing wrong with using Twitter to promote your affiliate site (particularly if you have good content on it), that’s what a large portion of people on Twitter are doing however even in that scenario it should be relevant content that you’re posting on your site for your Twitter followers.

PPCVillan.com is a laugh, it’s a great take on what you can actually find out there in the PPC world and covers the best of the best in terms of [...]]]> I don’t usually write about other blogs that I’ve come across but it’s pretty rare to find a blog that’s actually full of PPC humour!

PPCVillan.com is a laugh, it’s a great take on what you can actually find out there in the PPC world and covers the best of the best in terms of what not to do…

Here’s a link to the top ten signs you’re a PPC Poser

The idea behind the service provided is to solve the problem of the ever increasing length and complexity of URL’s.

Many sites will [...]]]> If you’ve ever used Twitter or if you’re really into short URL’s you will be likely to have come across the URL shortening services that are available from a few different companies.

The idea behind the service provided is to solve the problem of the ever increasing length and complexity of URL’s.

Many sites will have increasingly difficult and long URL’s that do not suit linking the entire URL within a piece of content on another web page.

My understanding is that these services started out as a way for people to link to content within emails, specifically so that long URL’s do not wrap to different lines on an email, they have however evolved into more common usage for content services where short URL’s have major advantages.

News articles, particularly excerpts, are starting to use these shortened URL services as well as the new micro-blogging systems (e.g. Twitter) where the amount on content in any single post is limited to a number of characters so space is a premium and the shorter the URL the better.

Since their launch, URL services have also been promoted by their companies as a way for affiliates to link to an affiliate URL without displaying the fact that it’s an affiliate link.

In its worst form, there are people who have started to use services like Twitter to link to ‘interesting’ information where the link is in fact a hidden affiliate link.

The real problem here is the user who is clicking on the link has no way of knowing where the link is going to take them. This leaves the situation quite open to abuse by either trusted parties or potentially by someone who could hack the URL shortening service itself.

One of the immediate benefits of some of these services in affiliate marketing is the option to include tracking statistics on things like the number of clicks and timing of when people have clicked through.

If you don’t already have a tracking system in place, this can be a good use of a freely available system to track certain links e.g. email links or even links through social networks.

Here are examples of some of the services that provide the short URLs:

• tinyurl.com
• is.gd
• bit.ly
• snurl.com
• twurl.nl
• eb.cx
• elfurl.com
• shorl.com
• url.fm
• shurl.org
• qurl.net
• notlong.com
• url123.com

The key in using these URL services is about trust. Make sure you don’t leave a feeling like you mislead the user into clicking to somewhere they didn’t know they were going. If you’re always clear about where the link is going to take the user or at the least what service it will take the user to then the Short URL’s can have a real place in your marketing.

I’ve noticed over the last month a few portals of note (e.g. geekzone.co.nz) have been running the adverts. So far it looks like the sites are completing trial runs but it will be interesting to see if the trend catches on.

In-Text Advertising is [...]]]> It looks like In-Text Advertising has finally found New Zealand portals.

I’ve noticed over the last month a few portals of note (e.g. geekzone.co.nz) have been running the adverts. So far it looks like the sites are completing trial runs but it will be interesting to see if the trend catches on.

In-Text Advertising is where a script is loaded on a web page and as the page is generated, any keywords in the main body of text that match advertising keywords appear with a special underline or highlight. Usually when you roll over the text there’s a pop-up which shows relevant advertising that you can click on.

Generally if you work in the online industry you’ll spot these pretty quickly as they look quite different within a block of text (that’s part of the idea) and are often shown with a double underline which is supposed to highlight that they are an advertisement.

I’ve played around with In-Text Advertising in the past and have to say the click rates can be quite high however it is usual that the CPC (cost-per-click) values offered are significantly lower than a CPC value through a standard advertising program such as Google Adsense.

The closest thing to In-Text Advertising that Google has is the Google Link Unit format which displays a set of links with basic keywords related to the content on the page. While not exactly “In-Text” there are many people who use the Link Units in ways that make them look considerably like text links within a page. It’s interesting to note that Google have it in their terms and conditions of Adsense that the links should not look like navigation on the site.

Generally the biggest issue with In-Text Advertising is the impact on usability for the average reader. Not only is the average user not expecting a pop-up when they go to click a link on the page, I have seen it time and time again when a user is just rolling their mouse across a page with these advertisements in it and the pop-up’s come up and go away completely distracting and confusing the user.

Whatever your take is on In-Text Advertising, it’s here to stay in some format or other and if any of the current programs can gain some form of critical advertiser mass (or Google Adsense decide to launch it) then CPC values are likely to go up and we’ll all be using it as the default form of advertising.

At least it beats the good old 468×60!

If you’re looking to trial the advertising check out the following;

• Kontera ContentLink (http://www.kontera.com) – has excellent administration and reporting system. Good sign-up, clear and concise tax and payee information area and simple implementation with standard script dropped into page as well as download plugins available for the major CMS / Blogging platforms (Blogger, WordPress, Joomla & Drupal).

• infolinks (http://www.infolinks.com) – there was a long delay (couple of days) in acceptance to the program and the reporting is no-where near as sophisticated as Kontera ContentLink but the implementation (which they call “1 minute implementation) looks quite simple.

If you have feedback on In-Text Advertising yourself within the New Zealand market drop me a note and let me know what your experiences were.

Next you’re going to ask yourself, what should my website look like?

If you’re a designer by trade, you’re going to spend hours pondering [...]]]> If you’re an affiliate and have a bright idea for what you’d like to build an affiliate website about (and potentially a domain you like) you’re ahead of the curve already.

Next you’re going to ask yourself, what should my website look like?

If you’re a designer by trade, you’re going to spend hours pondering the correct design for the audience that you’re looking to target and you’re probably going to go through a half-dozen iterations of a website design in Photoshop or Illustrator. There’s even the chance you’ll get most of the way through a design, scrap it and start again. I know I’ve done this a couple of times before and it’s probably a good display of the lack of planning I put into what I was trying to achieve in the first place.

Many affiliate marketers aren’t designers but they would prefer to have a website that looks good. This is where templates come into their own as paying for a designer to build you an affiliate site is reasonably rarely a cost effective solution (particularly when you’re trying to build a site’s traffic organically). We’re going to ignore Ferrit in this discussion although I’m pretty sure it’s no-where near cost effective to date .

So, you have an idea a domain and need a design.

There are so many template design options out there now it’s a wonder that any real design work gets done at all. I would have to say that a large number of newly created affiliate marketing website I’ve seen this year are created through template designs.

Template designs offer just the right level of cost effectiveness e.g. they’re free and are generally well tested, particularly if you’re working with a large scale Open Source blogging or CMS platform like WordPress, Joomla! or the like.

Here are a few template directories: WordPress Themes, Joomla Templates, Drupal Themes, Xoops Themes

All it takes is a couple of quick adjustments on a logo file and the website you’re trying to get off the ground can look (to the untrained eye) like you’ve spent the last month in development and have some pretty hot design skills.

So, if you’re looking at designing a website specifically for affiliate marketing, perhaps you can start with a template, build up the traffic to the site (which is what’s really going to gain you the revenue) and then if all is going well, look to expand or re-design once you have proof of your concept.

Learn Affiliate Marketing 101
Affiliate marketing is a great way to earn [...]]]> After discussing affiliate marketing and the difficulties people have with finding basic information on the internet recently with another affiliate marketer he decided to write a piece specifically for AffiliatePrograms.co.nz that might help new affiliates with find answers to the basic questions;

Learn Affiliate Marketing 101
Affiliate marketing is a great way to earn money from your website by providing links driving traffic to other sites (the “merchants”). It is common to work through affiliate networks, who oversee the relationship between affiliate and merchant. There is a huge amount of information available on affiliate marketing for those who want to participate, it is really just a matter of gathering as much information as possible and then going for it. But how do you get started?

Learning on the job
Formal training isn’t necessary to get into affiliate marketing. It is straightforward to start out and you can learn as you go along. The first step is to set up your own website, including purchasing your own domain name and organising hosting. Adding content to your site is next and will affect your affiliate marketing options. Something that can be regularly updated, can acquire high levels of traffic and lends itself to merchandising will obviously be more profitable. However, you should aim to add high quality content regularly, to maintain traffic to the site and optimise the site for search engines, so it is worth choosing a topic close to your heart! The next step is to sign up with an affiliate network. Depending on your content you may choose to go for a regional network or a more international one. You then start adding relevant links to your site. It is helpful at this stage to read up on the numerous affiliate marketing blogs and forums to get initial advice and tips on what works best. It is also a good idea to use a website analytics program to monitor and improve your site.

Courses available
If you want to gain some more in depth training in affiliate marketing there are many options. Online training courses are readily available and for these you don’t even have to leave your house! For something which is accredited and includes face-to-face tuition then marketing or e-marketing organisations in your area usually run day courses specifically focused on affiliate marketing. For those who know the basics and wish to develop their skills further, a good option is an affiliate marketing conference or expo. Here, alongside a program of expert speakers, each offering tips and advice on how to get the most out of affiliate marketing, you can mingle with other affiliates, merchants and networks in the exhibit hall. These events are a great way to learn from other like-minded individuals and make contacts for future work.

Keeping up to date
To learn affiliate marketing and continue to develop your skills it is important to keep up to date with current industry trends. Subscribe to some of the countless affiliate blogs and forums giving tips and ongoing advice on how to improve your site. By reading new content as soon as it is published you can keep up with changes in the industry and take advantage of them.