Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing Fanatics 39: Interviewing Karen Garcia & Wade Tonkin #BWE10 #ASW11

Posted on Oct 8, 2010 in Affiliate Marketing, Affiliate Marketing Fanatics, Conferences & Networking |

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Affiliate Marketing Fanatics – A couple of hyper-caffeinated affiliate marketers (Mike Buechele) and (Trisha Lyn Fawver) talk about all things Affiliate Marketing. From blogging to branding, social media to search, video and more!

We’re continuing our series of interviews, this time talking to folks involved with Blog World Expo, coming up in a couple of weeks in Las Vegas at Mandalay Bay.  Today we talk to Karen Garcia & Wade Tonkin, co-founders at GTO Management and managers of the Blog World Expo affiliate program.  We chat casually about what they’re looking forward to about Blog World Expo, and a bit about our proposed panels at Affiliate Summit West 2011 in January.  In in this episode we discuss:

Want to catch up with us & ask questions for the next show? Find us on Twitter: @AMF_Podcast, @MikeBuechele & @TrishaLyn. Like us on Facebook! You can also ask Trisha questions through FormSpring.me. Or leave us a comment!

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CJU Course: Feed Me: Why a Product Catalog is Just the Beginning

Posted on Oct 4, 2010 in Affiliate Marketing, Conferences & Networking |

A product catalog feed for the affiliate channel is critical to the financial success of any advertiser’s program, but that’s really just the beginning. We’ll show you why a product feed is important and what a good, optimized feed should look like. Now for the best part: you’ll learn how to take that feed and expand its use across a variety of other channels. This session took place September 22, 2010.  The panel consisted of:

  • Ashley Parducci, Product Manager, Commission Junction
  • Jim Harriman, Technical Lead, Commission Junction

Bullet Point Review!

  • 40% of CJ advertisers submit feeds.  Out of the 40%, half update the feed daily.  33% have not updated in at least a month, 17% haven’t updated this year.  So only 20% submitting feeds on a regular basis.
  • What is a product data feed?
    • Name
    • Price
    • Product page URL
    • Image URL
    • Description
    • Category
    • And more…
  • The CJ feeds can also help you push your feed to comparison shopping engines (CSEs)
  • Why?
    • Distribution
    • Performance
    • Publisher Business
  • Feeds reduce click-to-purchase and increase conversion.  Also increase online exposure with distribution to CSEs (with CJ management help if needed).
  • Advertisers generally see a 20% – 25% lift in transactions with an optimized data feed.
  • Better to have too much data than too little.
  • A good feed has high resolution images, lots of good technical specs in the description, accurate SKUs, and is well written.
  • Build a feed!
    • Get involved.
    • It’ll require your technical teams or a 3rd party.
    • A solid feed is worth the time and money.
  • CJ advertisers who were live before 2010, but just added their feeds this year:
    • 20% performed well.
    • 20% had zero products.
    • 10% had dummy SKUs.
    • 80% didn’t upload changes daily – of that, 45% hadn’t sent any updates in the last month, and 35% hadn’t updated since May 2010.
  • Product feeds are tools.  Poorly designed tools don’t get the job done and don’t get adopted by publishers.
  • Feed optimization:
    • Names & descriptions.
    • Utilize the fields.
    • Make sure you have proper categorization.
    • High resolution images.
    • Submit fresh feeds.
    • Have thorough pricing information (tax charged, sale price, shipping costs, retail price)
    • Use tools available (analyze product/sale performance).
    • Customer reviews.
    • Even if there are no updates, send updates to get distribution to publishers.

Points brought up during the Q&A

  • Explain high resolution images: An image large enough for publishers to manipulate.
  • A content feed requires slight tweaks to what data you put in what fields.

Conclusion

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CJU Course: If You Only Knew #CJU2010

Posted on Oct 1, 2010 in Affiliate Marketing, Conferences & Networking |

Advertisers and publishers each have a unique way of “getting the job done” and often times, neither understands what the other needs to succeed. “If they could just see it from my side…” seems to be a frequent plea. Well, now you can! We’re getting together three advertisers, three publishers, one moderator, and audience feedback to cover all the topics you’d always wished you could. This session took place on September 22, 2010. The panel consisted of:

As you can see, I didn’t catch Cheryl’s last name, so I apologize in advance to Cheryl – especially if her name is spelled wrong!  Overall this was a great session.  It was nice to see both advertisers and publishers tackle the same questions from different sides of the affiliate coin.  None of the panelists promoted their sites, they just used examples that were pertinent to points they were trying to make.

Bullet Point Review!

What are some recommendations on the best way to manage offers and tools to generate quality transactions for everyone?

  • Focus on improving your conversion rate.
  • Make your coupon code box clear & show the savings.
  • Have a really clean Add to Cart product page.
  • Enable deep linking.
  • The most important tool is the communication between advertisers and publishers.  What are the things that advertisers need to give publishers to get the best success.
  • Networks need to put some initiative into getting one sheets from publishers outlining what they want from advertisers.
  • At the end of the day, everyone wants an order placed.
  • Use your CJ account reps to make that connection.Ask for feedback from the publisher account reps.
  • If I continue to be small and not have tools and resources, how do I get those tools and resources?
  • It’s important for advertisers to work with account reps, because it holds more weight if they recommend a program to a publisher instead of a blind pushed offer.
  • Rev-share isn’t as important as showing them the economic value.
  • At the end of the day, the channel is managed by ROI.
  • You have to be open minded because you don’t know where or when you’re going to meet your next big affiliate.

What are some of the challenges you deal with when it comes to advertiser program guidelines and restrictions?

  • You have to talk to the publishers to know what is and isn’t acceptable to help develop your terms and conditions.  You don’t know what you don’t know.
  • This isn’t a playground – we don’t all have to share the ball.  We all have to play by the rules, but there are different rules.  You have to determine what’s going to best grow your program.
  • Mistakes do happen, but reach out because 8 times out of 10 it’s just a miscommunication.
  • If you manage a program & login, and you see that your top affiliate is someone you don’t recognize and you have no idea how they got up to the top, chances are they’re probably doing something wrong.
  • Sometimes it could be an emerging market with a business model you’ve not encountered, so reach out and ask.
  • If you get no response, or a 2 line response that doesn’t make sense, something’s wrong.  Don’t be afraid to ditch the bad people even if they’re you’re top sellers.
  • Be transparent – merchants aren’t going to take your secret sauce and spread it all over the place.

If you could ask for one and only one simple thing from your partner, what would it be?

  • Alexis: An open ear.
  • Yung: Landing page conversion.
  • Tony: Be open to having a conversation and analyzing your business to achieve your goals.
  • Cheryl: Bring new ideas to merchants – they’re open to testing new things & learning.
  • Shawn: Reach out & introduce yourself if you’re new.
  • Mike: Be my partner.

Points brought up during the Q&A

  • Why aren’t there more self-service tools for merchants? It’s tricky – making it self-service is really difficult.  You don’t necessarily get to determine how the publishers use their real estate on their site.  It’s not always what’s in your best interest as an advertiser, it’s what in the combined best interest of the merchant and publisher.

Unfortunately, the conversation was so good amongst the panelists that there wasn’t much time left for questions.  But considering how approachable all the panelists made themselves, I think there was probably considerable opportunity for them to be asked questions 1-on-1 instead of in front of the entire audience.

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CJU Course: At Your Service

Posted on Sep 30, 2010 in Affiliate Marketing, Conferences & Networking |

Unleashing the power of web services can literally change your program. Getting the data you need faster and then customizing it to suit the exact needs of your program or web site—that’s what web services are all about and Commission Junction is the industry leader. Hear real-world examples of clients using the CJ Web Services APIs in all kinds of creative ways to help them run their businesses more efficiently than ever
before.  The panel consisted of:

  • Bram Roukema, Director, Product Management, Commission Junction (Moderator)
  • Adam Viener, imwave
  • Michael Khodos, Simply Best Coupons

Bullet Point Review!

  • Most APIs in CJ are done in ReST & SOAP (which will be phased out eventually).
  • 6 APIs are offered:
    • Publishers: Commission details.
    • Publishers: Advanced look up
    • Publishers: Product search.
    • Publishers: Link search.
    • Advertisers: Commission details.
    • Advertisers: Publisher look up.
  • Before APIs, people used feeds.  Those took 1 day+, APIs are real-time.
  • How to get started:
    • Talk to your developers.
    • Go to Webservices.cj.com.
    • Review the APIs documentation.
    • Register for a developer’s key.
    • Remember to use ReST, not SOAP.

Points brought up during the Q&A

  • All APIs are pull; they’re considering using push APIs too so publishers can apply to the programs, etc.
  • When a link expires, they still track – they’re just not promoted anymore.
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CJU Course: Joel Comm – Top 11 Social Media Mistakes

Posted on Sep 29, 2010 in Affiliate Marketing, Conferences & Networking |

There’s a basic misunderstanding about “advanced social media”.  It really doesn’t exist.  Social media is just basic human interaction and common sense.  However, there is such a thing as a social media fail, and mistakes one can make when entering into the world of social media from a professional standpoint.  Joel Comm, best selling author and CJ Performer (@JoelComm), came to CJU on September 22, 2010 to impart to us the top 11 social media mistakes.

To be completely honest, this was nothing new to me.  However, Joel is a good presenter and it was very entertaining and still worth my time to attend and take copious notes to pass on to you!

Bullet Point Review!

  • Mistake #1: Believing the world of social media isn’t real life.
    • State your opinion.
    • Be polite.
    • Don’t libel.
    • Avoid flame wars.
  • Mistake #2: Regarding social media as a marketing tool.
    • Put your relationship with followers first.
    • Train employees or interns on proper use of Twitter.
    • Make it up to your fans with special offers if you make a mistake.
    • Like me, know me, trust me, pay me.
  • Mistake #3: Forcing audiences to follow your marketing instead of following you.
    • Reward loyalty.
    • Know your audience.
    • Accept criticism, even if it’s over the top.
    • Answer positive posts publicly.
  • Mistake #4: Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.
    • Keep control of your sites – inmates should never run the asylum!
    • Guide the conversation.
  • Mistake #5: Spamming sites (or asking others to do it for you).
    • Don’t bribe.  Don’t subterfuge.
    • Pay for honest, sponsored mentions.
    • Become influential legitimately.
  • Mistake #6: Not being authentic.
    • Write your own Tweets (remember it’s a personal thing, so your logo might not actually be the best user icon to use).
    • Focus on the relationships.
  • Mistake #7: Silencing critics instead of listening.
    • Moderate but allow dissent.
    • Make mistakes right quickly.
  • Mistake #8: Not being professional.
    • Be professional!
    • Know your audience – this will help you to be personal, but also not too personal where you cross a line that might hurt your brand.
  • Mistake #9: Loose lips sink ships.
    • Watch what you say.
    • Apologize quickly if you offend or cross a line.
    • Engage the community.
  • Mistake #10: Stopping your campaign – and your relationship.
    • Build campaigns for the long term.
    • Don’t cast aside engaged customers.
    • Remember real people build real relationships.
    • Treat your audience with respect – they know where you “live” online.
  • Mistake #11: Not realizing that the world is watching.
    • Engage your brain before Tweeting.
    • Make it right when you make a mistake.
    • Don’t become a negative example in Joel’s presentation.
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CJU Course: Kerri Pollard – It’s All About Growth

Posted on Sep 28, 2010 in Affiliate Marketing, Conferences & Networking |

Of course,  at every CJU the general manager of the company has to give an encouraging “state of the company” type speech.  This year it was all about growth.

I really enjoyed the statistics Kerri shared, despite her saying she wasn’t a numbers person.  Neither am I, but these were very “feel good” numbers for current CJ publishers and advertisers.

Bullet Point Review!

  • Unless you were a coupon publisher, growth was hard in 2009.
  • $1.9 billion spent on affiliate marketing in 2009 – it’s estimated to be $4 billion in 2014.
  • Online advertising has tripled.
  • Affiliate marketing is growing faster than other advertising types.
  • 28% of consumers’ time is spent online, but online advertising is typically only 13% of a company’s marketing budget.
  • E-commerce sales are still only 3.8% of total retail sales.
  • 62% of adults shopping online seek out a coupon before purchasing.
  • Old Spice was the most viral campaign in 2010.
  • Twitter is seeing 90 million tweets per day.
  • 63% of online retailers that use a 3rd party advertising tracking solution, use CJ.
  • Bed, Bath, & Beyond is the newest big-box retailer to come to CJ.
  • CJ has seen a 40% increase in advertisers over the last 12 months.
  • Publishers need to generate $10k/month in commissions for 3 straight months to qualify for CJ Performer status.
  • Monthly income doubled on average after publishers become a CJP.
  • There’s a new “Get Links” area, in beta right now.
    • Advertisers supporting direct linking are clearer.
    • There’s additional filtering options.
    • Everyone at CJU now has access to the new “Get Links” area.
  • CJ has seen a 24% increase in publisher relationships over the last 12 months.
  • Affiliate marketing is now retailer’s first stop instead of their last stop.
  • CJ feeds product helps advertisers fix data feeds and also works with 200+ comparison shopping engines.
  • CJx beta takes care of finding advertisers, getting approved, finding products, and managing links for the publisher (name is temporary).
  • CJ media is more short term campaigns (like an internal CPA network).
  • 10 largest publishers on CJ experienced 50% year-over-year growth in Q2.
  • 20 largest advertisers on CJ experienced 26% year-over-year growth in Q2.
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