Affiliate Summit Sneak Peak!
Thanks to the wonders of advanced planning, all the presentations for Affiliate Summit West 2009 – which starts on Sunday – are available to view now at http://www.slideshare.net/affsum. I’m going to try to bring my head above water enough to read through some before heading to Las Vegas tomorrow.
Are you going to Affiliate Summit? I am. Check out Ten Ways to Meet Me At Affiliate Summit from the New Edge Media blog.
In the meantime, keep your eyes open for some tips and tricks I’ll share with ya just in time for Affiliate Summit…
Read MoreAffiliate Summit Mentor Program – Deadline is CLOSE!
For those of you who don’t know what the heck I’m talking about, at the last Affiliate Summit in Boston a great new tradition was started. The Affiliate Summit Mentor Program. This program, headed by the gracious Teresa Caldwell for Affiliate Summit East and now headed by awesome Jen Goode for Affiliate Summit West, is a way for first time conference attendees to learn the ropes.
I remember my first summit, not that long ago, in Miami in July 07. SO overwhelmed with information, especially considering that was my first trade show at ALL and I was relatively new to affiliate marketing and hadn’t been exposed to the industry at large. I’m not the only first time attendee to feel consumed by it all, hence why the mentor program was created. The program matches up volunteer mentors who have experience attending the shows and know generally what to expect and how to get the most out of your attendance, with newbie first timers who’ve asked for a bit of guidance.
At the last summit I agreed to be a mentor, having that be my 3rd show attending, and I felt the experience didn’t go all that well. I exchanged a few emails with my assigned newbie/”mentee” and after they didn’t respond to the last email, that was it – unfortunately I didn’t know if they even ended up attending the show or not.
Hence my reluctance to sign up this time around. I didn’t feel like I was that helpful, and I guess the person was less-than-impressed with who I was the first time, which made me think that perhaps I’m not the best person to be a mentor. But the ever wise Jen Goode convinced me to give it another shot, so I’m happy to say that once again I’m participating in the mentor program for Affiliate Summit West 09 in Las Vegas next month.
I just received the email with my newbie’s information, and I’m off to shot them a welcome – if you’re a veteran attendee of the Affiliate Summit, and haven’t signed up yet, DO IT! Go to http://blog.affiliatesummit.com/affiliate-summit-mentor-program and sign up today – the deadline is December 28th!
Also, watch this video that former mentee turned mentor Michael Buechele of 11|15 Media did if you need more convincing!
Cribbed Content for December 22nd
The holidays are upon us finally! I suck and forgot to post this shorter version last week! Hanukkah started on the 21st, and Christmas is around the bend this week! Do you have sugar plum fairies dancing in your head yet? Here’s a few interesting things from this past week to keep your feet on the ground until you’re off for the holiday officially!
- Are you an affiliate? Take the AffStat Survey Here and let your voice be known in the industry. This coming year the results will be made available through FeedFront Magazine rather than by purchase.
- Speaking of FeedFront, publishers Shawn Collins & Missy Ward of Affiliate Summit have put together a compilation cover complimenting their story about the women of affiliate marketing. Yours truly is on the cover in the lower right hand portion, sharing space with some truly awesome and amazing women that I both adore and admire!
- ShareASale hosts a great party at every Affiliate Summit, and this coming January for Affiliate Summit West 2009, they’re hosting an 80s prom themed “Under the Stars” party. Righteous, dude.
Affiliate Summit West 2009 is Fast Approaching!
Can you believe that there are only 45 days left until Affiliate Summit West 2009?! Depending on your outlook of time, this might seem like it’s a long time from now, but just like a project’s deadline, Affiliate Summit sneaks up on you!
At this point all of the meet market tables are sold out, as are most of the sponsorships. According to co-founder Shawn Collins, there are still about a dozen booths available for any interested merchants or vendors. Conference passes grant attendees access to the expo hall, all break-out sessions, and the courtesy meals and drinks the conference graciously provides. These passes usually sell out about a week or two before the conference, so if you’re even considering going I highly suggest you register for Affiliate Summit West 2009 now.
When looking for a place to stay, I really do recommend staying at the conference hotel in all cases, and especially in this case I can personally vouch for the comfort and convenience of the Rio. Being an “all-suites” hotel is awesome as the rooms are totally comfortable and large, and downstairs if gambling isn’t your thing there’s a bowling ally and plenty of shops. Their Carnival World buffet is also excellent.
Or, you can read the reviews I did on Yelp after my stay there last year:
Sao Paulo Cafe
Rio All-Suites Hotel & Casino
Carnival World Buffet
McFadden’s
Harry Reid International Airport
Now Published! Affiliate Manager Communication Strategies
Issue 2 of FeedFront Magazine is hitting mailboxes as we speak, and will be distributed at Affiliate Summit East next week. I’m happy to say that an article I wrote has been published! Now you can read all about a great strategy to keep in contact with your affiliates as a manager. Check out my article on page 12 of the magazine.
If you can’t wait for your hard copy (as I couldn’t) you can download just my article here. Or, if you actually want to read the whole issue, you can get it here. There are a lot of other great articles this time around, including a look at ABestWeb.com founder Haiko de Poel Jr, coupon code woes, and avoiding NY state tax nexus.
I hope to write another article for FeedFront soon, I just need to rack my brain for some ideas :). If you’ll be going to Affiliate Summit East, we’re sure to have a blast. Remember to take lots of pictures – the gang at FeedFront is holding a contest and YOUR picture (or mine!) can win the coveted cover position for the 3rd issue of FeedFront. Not only does the winner get the bragging rights of having their photo on the cover of the magazine, but you also win a full conference pass to Affiliate Summit West 2009 happening in Las Vegas January 11th – 13th.
Read MoreMeet Me at Affiliate Summit West 2009!
Holy smokes, I leave in a week for Affliate Summit West 2009! Once again at the Rio All-Suites Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, I’m looking forward to a trip to the Carnival World Buffet and some networking madness! This will be my 4th summit, so I’ve begun to know what to expect – at least enough to once again take on a conference newbie through the Affiliate Summit Mentor Program to help them to know what to expect.
I’ll be arriving the afternoon of January 9th with a bag or two and some tentative dinner plans under my arm! I’ve been anxiously loading sessions I want to be sure to attend and other auxiliary events into my Tripit account to keep track of everything. If you want to chat with me I’m sure I won’t be hard to find, but you can always drop me a line too.
If you want to go and haven’t registered for the conference yet, DO IT NOW! They’re close to a sell out, as usual, by about Monday the 5th with only a couple hundred registration spots left.
See you there!
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