Is the current fascination with social media as a method of marketing justified ? We are increasingly being told that this type of advertising is the way forward, but is it just hype ? And how does it fit in with your affiliate campaign ?
That social media is a very powerful weapon to have in your marketing armoury, there is no doubt. But its effectiveness is only as good as the content that is contains. It goes without saying that the content we deliver should be something people want, presented in an easy and personal way. Now, this may seem to be stating the obvious, but many marketers still fail to bare this fact in mind when building a campaign, so please stick with me on this.
Social media works because it gets personal. It talks to people, as people. Not as a resource to be exploited. It has not ,as yet, been infiltrated, manipulated or controlled by the big advertising corporations. Hopefully it will remain this way. As the name implies, it is a social media that talks to people at a social level.
As a marketer this is a profoundly important point to remember and if we start to disrespect the ethos of the social media networks and try to exploit the people who use it, the effectiveness of this tactic will be lost.
Viral marketing, where messages are spread by “word of mouth” is very powerful if used correctly and far more effective than those messages sent direct from a company. However, if you abuse the “word of mouth” tactic it can backfire spectacularly and will show its ugly side. The danger here being that your online profile can be severely damaged.
Remember also that Content is the Key. Lets face it, this is what the internet is all about. But it must be high quality content, delivered in a simple way that does not patronise. Of course it must be a thorough , professional and well thought out campaign. But it must also be done in such a way that the recipient feels that you are talking directly to them. This approach should always be incorporated as an integral part of any marketing strategy and run throughout all methods of product promotion.
Never has the old saying “a picture paints a thousand words” been more relevant. Maybe we should replace the words “picture paints” with the words “video speaks”……..then again maybe not ! But you get the idea. Google loves video and so do people, just look at the popularity of sites such as Youtube. This form of marketing can quickly push your site up the search engine rankings but, I repeat at the risk of becoming very boring, your video must be contain good quality information and it must hold the viewers interest, after all you want them to click through to your sales page.
It is almost certain that your affiliates are going to use this type of marketing at some stage during your partnership. It is essential, therefore, that you give them the correct training and tools to do your product/service justice.
Viral marketing through social media is a powerful tool if we use it wisely. For a well trained affiliate it can bring big rewards and remember, their gain, is your gain.
Sunday, 7 December 2008
Keeping your affiliates happy
What follows is more or less a repeat of statements made in previous postings. I make no apologies for this because it is essential that you understand that you must do what ever it takes to keep your affiliates happy.
Far too many affiliate managers feel that their work is done once they have recruited their affiliates. Whilst it is true that, for the merchant that attracts large numbers of affiliates, having enough time to manage these can prove difficult. But it’s a good problem to have!
Once recruited, it is essential that you keep them happy and on board. Remember there are numerous programs out there that they can promote, not just yours. You want to encourage your affiliates to work hard for your business and work towards becoming super affiliates. There is so much regurgitated rubbish out there that is sent affiliates and many of the best and most experienced would have seen much of it many times before. I can honestly say that if I were to receive some of this dross I would delete it from my in box without a second thought. This is great news for you however. Make this fact work in your favour by providing resources way above that of your competitors. The fact is anyone can attract affiliates, but having a program that can attract an army of hungry affiliates is a whole new ball game. And training is essential if you want to convert a large number of these to super affiliate status.
Most internet business owners are happy to apply the 80/20 rule for their affiliate program, that is 20% of your affiliates will make 80% of the income. To put this in to context out of every 100 affiliates only 20 will bring any revenue. That’s fine if you are you are happy with that kind of return but very much higher conversion rates are achievable if the right type of quality training and support is given.
You should offer your affiliates as much of this high grade support as possible from their first sale and right the way through a hopefully long and mutually profitable association. Offer incentives and bonuses. Affiliates are more likely to stick with marketers who offer these.
Once your affiliates start to generate traffic it is essential that you then fulfil your end of the partnership.
Offer links that go directly to the product that they are looking for. It is well known that these Direct Product Links will convert very much better than links that go to a home page. This can leave the prospective purchaser frustrated if they have to fumble around your web site looking for the required link and it leaves you in the vulnerable position of being one click away from losing a sale.
Also be aware that affiliates are not with you for ever. This is to be expected. Affiliates will come and go for a variety of reasons no matter how good your training and subsequent support may be. But your aim must be to keep the good ones with you as long as possible. You should also be aware of the stage that your affiliate is at in their dealings with you. Be they novice, experienced, super affiliate or even inactive you should afford them the appropriate support and encouragement through each level. From this you see that the value of High Quality training, communication and support is a must for any successful affiliate marketing program and it is worth repeating this fact time and again to drive the message home. Your success depends on it.
Far too many affiliate managers feel that their work is done once they have recruited their affiliates. Whilst it is true that, for the merchant that attracts large numbers of affiliates, having enough time to manage these can prove difficult. But it’s a good problem to have!
Once recruited, it is essential that you keep them happy and on board. Remember there are numerous programs out there that they can promote, not just yours. You want to encourage your affiliates to work hard for your business and work towards becoming super affiliates. There is so much regurgitated rubbish out there that is sent affiliates and many of the best and most experienced would have seen much of it many times before. I can honestly say that if I were to receive some of this dross I would delete it from my in box without a second thought. This is great news for you however. Make this fact work in your favour by providing resources way above that of your competitors. The fact is anyone can attract affiliates, but having a program that can attract an army of hungry affiliates is a whole new ball game. And training is essential if you want to convert a large number of these to super affiliate status.
Most internet business owners are happy to apply the 80/20 rule for their affiliate program, that is 20% of your affiliates will make 80% of the income. To put this in to context out of every 100 affiliates only 20 will bring any revenue. That’s fine if you are you are happy with that kind of return but very much higher conversion rates are achievable if the right type of quality training and support is given.
You should offer your affiliates as much of this high grade support as possible from their first sale and right the way through a hopefully long and mutually profitable association. Offer incentives and bonuses. Affiliates are more likely to stick with marketers who offer these.
Once your affiliates start to generate traffic it is essential that you then fulfil your end of the partnership.
Offer links that go directly to the product that they are looking for. It is well known that these Direct Product Links will convert very much better than links that go to a home page. This can leave the prospective purchaser frustrated if they have to fumble around your web site looking for the required link and it leaves you in the vulnerable position of being one click away from losing a sale.
Also be aware that affiliates are not with you for ever. This is to be expected. Affiliates will come and go for a variety of reasons no matter how good your training and subsequent support may be. But your aim must be to keep the good ones with you as long as possible. You should also be aware of the stage that your affiliate is at in their dealings with you. Be they novice, experienced, super affiliate or even inactive you should afford them the appropriate support and encouragement through each level. From this you see that the value of High Quality training, communication and support is a must for any successful affiliate marketing program and it is worth repeating this fact time and again to drive the message home. Your success depends on it.
The Virtues of Good Communication
Hello again ! after my last post when i took a little detour in to rantsville, you may be glad to know that i am back on track with this one. After all it is what this blog is meant to be about. But be warned, it may happen again! The fact is, I think I am turning into a bit of a grumpy old git!
In this post I want to emphasise the importance of good communication. Communication should be very near the top of your list of strategies that will help to make your business a success. It is of primary importance that you contact your affiliates on a regular and personal basis. Your affiliates are the life blood of your future prosperity.
It is essential that your affiliates get all the training, backing and help that they need. And, it is equally important that those affiliates that could harm your business are weeded out. Let me explain.
Put simply, contacting your affiliates shows them that you care about the partnership. It is really poor business practice to spend time, effort and money trying to attract affiliates to your site and then cast them adrift is the uncertain and often daunting sea of on-line marketing. Don’t assume that your affiliates will contact you if they need anything. They will of course , but often only to iron out some problem that could have been avoided with proper back-up and training. Why have the hassle ! They don’t need it and neither do you.
Get into the habit of asking your affiliates if you can help them in any way. Let the buzz words, “encouragement” & “motivation” be the focus of your communications. There are many ways that this can be achieved. Personal e.mails, newsletters, promotional letters, free give-aways all help to build relationships. You should always try to make your affiliates feel that they have a very important part to play in your business. Encourage feedback. Positive feedback is a very welcome addition to your sales copy.
Contact with your affiliates also allows you to monitor whether they are promoting your product/services as you would wish. You know by now how I feel about the many con artists that populate cyberspace. We should all do our very best to weed these out. Unfortunately many of these undesirables are attracted to affiliate programs and profit from using many underhanded and illegal tactics. Merchants are now expected to closely monitor the activities of their affiliates and could be held to account should these activities violate online etiquette or more importantly national and international law.
You can see from the forgoing why it is essential that you communicate with your affiliates and even try to personalise your contact as much as possible. This may at first seem a daunting prospect but most if not all of this can be outsourced if required. The most important things to remember are, always keep your lines of communication open with the affiliate and always provide quality training and back-up. Make this a part of your overall business strategy and success will follow.
I hope this brief posting is of some help. Its just common sense really. Help your affiliates to help you and you will both reap the rewards.
Until next time, Nigel
In this post I want to emphasise the importance of good communication. Communication should be very near the top of your list of strategies that will help to make your business a success. It is of primary importance that you contact your affiliates on a regular and personal basis. Your affiliates are the life blood of your future prosperity.
It is essential that your affiliates get all the training, backing and help that they need. And, it is equally important that those affiliates that could harm your business are weeded out. Let me explain.
Put simply, contacting your affiliates shows them that you care about the partnership. It is really poor business practice to spend time, effort and money trying to attract affiliates to your site and then cast them adrift is the uncertain and often daunting sea of on-line marketing. Don’t assume that your affiliates will contact you if they need anything. They will of course , but often only to iron out some problem that could have been avoided with proper back-up and training. Why have the hassle ! They don’t need it and neither do you.
Get into the habit of asking your affiliates if you can help them in any way. Let the buzz words, “encouragement” & “motivation” be the focus of your communications. There are many ways that this can be achieved. Personal e.mails, newsletters, promotional letters, free give-aways all help to build relationships. You should always try to make your affiliates feel that they have a very important part to play in your business. Encourage feedback. Positive feedback is a very welcome addition to your sales copy.
Contact with your affiliates also allows you to monitor whether they are promoting your product/services as you would wish. You know by now how I feel about the many con artists that populate cyberspace. We should all do our very best to weed these out. Unfortunately many of these undesirables are attracted to affiliate programs and profit from using many underhanded and illegal tactics. Merchants are now expected to closely monitor the activities of their affiliates and could be held to account should these activities violate online etiquette or more importantly national and international law.
You can see from the forgoing why it is essential that you communicate with your affiliates and even try to personalise your contact as much as possible. This may at first seem a daunting prospect but most if not all of this can be outsourced if required. The most important things to remember are, always keep your lines of communication open with the affiliate and always provide quality training and back-up. Make this a part of your overall business strategy and success will follow.
I hope this brief posting is of some help. Its just common sense really. Help your affiliates to help you and you will both reap the rewards.
Until next time, Nigel
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