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.