What to look for before joining an Affiliate Program (continued, part 2)
2- Synergies with your site
I am a big proponent of this. All too often, I see sites sign up for every affiliate
program they can, figuring if they make a few bucks on each, that they will be profitable.
For a select few, this may very well work. However, for most sites it will not, and many cases
you will turn off your audience because of the 'over-commercialization' of your site. As you are
considering the various affiliate programs available, be sure to consider what exactly your
audience, your visitors, might be interested in clicking on, and eventually buying.
For
example, if your site caters to a general audience, then perhaps
general affiliate programs such as Amazon,
CDNow,
or Reel.com (movies) will be effective. If your site only caters
to auto enthusiasts, programs such as Carprices.com
might be excellent money-makers. If your audience is comprised
of hardcore techies, then Beyond.com
may be your best choice. The key is to not just think of the affiliate
program as a way for you to make some easy money, but rather an
extension of your web site--a service you offer your visitors
to help them find the products or services they are interested
in, at good prices, and with a merchant they can trust.
3- Commission Tracking
An important aspect to consider is whether or not the affiliate program offers some
way for you to track your sales, and even the number of visitors you refer. There are several
ways this can be accomplished, such as real-time, online reports showing you sales and your
commissions. Or perhaps sales can be tracked through a simple email each time you receive a
new customer. This can be very important for allowing you to test and evaluate the effectiveness
of the program, make comparisons with other programs or advertising opportunities, and give
you piece of mind that you are receiving what is fairly do.
Virtualis,
a web hosting service, offers excellent online reports that tell
you the date of sale, what you sold, and what your share is. Beyond.com
sends out weekly reports by email detailing the sales and commissions
you made. Spree, on the other hand, recently has come under fire
for their lack of reports. To rectify this they have claimed to
be working to add full commission tracking for all members in
the future. Unfortunately, it has faced continual delays.
4- Opportunity for Repeat Business
As any business person knows, a business can not generally survive on one-time
purchases. Instead you have to find ways to not only attract new customers, but also keep the
ones you have. This is also very true with affiliate programs. One of the largest complaints many
webmasters have had with programs such as Amazon and CDNow, is that they refer a customer once,
see their $1-2 commission, but in the process the customer bookmarked the Amazon or CDNow home
page. The next time the customer is interested in buying a book, they return to the home page
through the bookmark, and the webmaster never sees another penny.
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