By Cynthia Arko
We've discussed many obvious affiliate snafus throughout this Affiliate Revenue Sharing 101 series. Let's review some of the most common mistakes in order to help keep affiliates out of trouble while generating revenue!
Spam is basically any unsolicited e-mail message sent to multiple mailing lists, individuals, or newsgroups; also known as junk mail. The practice of spending spam is frowned upon and can get you in loads of trouble. For starters, many merchant programs will automatically suspend or terminate your affiliate account if they suspect you are sending spam.
Banner farms won't bring home the bacon. Promote a select group of quality merchants that pay well. Don't plaster hundreds of affiliate banners and links all over your site. Stay focused on your visitor's main interests. Create stickiness and frequently update your content.
Fraud is the practice of deliberately trying to deceive someone; in this case stealing from a merchant program. It is illegal and not only will you get kicked out of the merchant program, you may wind up in front of a judge defending criminal charges filed against you. Thousands of sites all over the globe have developed robots designed to defraud pay-per-click programs. Most merchants, especially those using Commission Junction technology, have taken a proactive approach to the practice of fraud; and most, if not all, these "cheaters" will eventually be caught.
For more information about affiliate programs, check out these other articles from Cynthia Arko's ongoing weekly series:
Getting Started in Affiliate Marketing
Revenue Sharing 101
In this first in a series of weekly articles, Cynthia Arko, Product Director for internet.com's Refer-it.com affiliate directory, presents a no-nonsense approach to generating revenue from your Web site.
How to Indentify Quality Affiliate Programs
With literally thousands of affiliate programs available on the Internet, it could be difficult to determine which ones are high quality. However, the process could be made easier when using some basic criteria.
Understanding Affiliate Commission Structures
If you want to get paid, you need to understand affiliate commission payments and the many different commission structures that exist.
Content Sells
Making money with affiliate programs requires much hard work and continued attention to developing and retaining visitor traffic.
Search Engine Tips, Part I
For affiliates, it is important to be listed with the major search engines because they can potentially generate much needed traffic.
Search Engine Tips, Part II
Cynthia Arko explores the impact search engines have on affiliate programs in this second article of a two-part series.
Develop an Opt-in E-mail List
Mailing lists are a very popular way to create traffic and generate repeat visitors to a Web site, often leading to additional affiliate sales and referrals.
How to Achieve Super Affiliate Status
How to take your affiliate program from "ordinary" to "extraordinary."
Common Mistakes of Affiliates
If you're not generating much revenue from your affiliates, it could be due to some common errors.
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Have you forgotten to collect e-mail addresses? Mailing lists are a very popular way to create traffic and generate repeat visitors to a Web site, often leading to additional affiliate sales and referrals. Developing an opt-in e-mail list can be an effective vehicle to letting your visitors know of upcoming sales, promotions and hot deals. A newsletter that has a good mix of content, tips and special deals can generate a steady flow of affiliate income.
Listed below, successful affiliate managers share some not-so-obvious affiliate mistakes.
Shawn Collins, affiliate manager for ClubMom lists his biggest affiliate offenders as those that do not test their links, or paste the long solution provider URLs in e-mail newsletters -- resulting in broken links. Other offenders save time sensitive banners to their own server; hence running expired promotions.
To combat these problems, Shawn provides a META redirect code to affiliates as a fix for the long URLs, and makes information available for fixing corrupt links in MicroSoft FrontPage. Be sure to update your site and keep those links short after they've been tested.
Tim Storm, founder of FatWallet.com says, "Affiliates who are not performing some level of merchant due diligence are making a big mistake. Is it smart to affiliate with bankrupt or soon-to-be sold companies?"
Be sure to keep a pulse on what's happening in the affiliate world by reading industry news publications. Review financial statements to determine if a merchant site has a viable business model. Read your e-mail and occasionally click on your affiliate links to make sure the merchant site is still in business.
We've seen some big players (CyberRebate.com, eToys, Pets.com, Zany Brainy) close down or declare bankruptcy over the last several months. Unfortunately, many of these companies may not have the funds needed to pay hard-earned affiliate commissions. Farewell e-mails are often overlooked and traffic is lost every hour of every day the now defunct merchant banners are not removed from your site.
Ryan Phelan of PromoCode says, "Maintain professionalism and exercise good judgment." Many times affiliates send nasty e-mails to a merchant site without having all the facts. What is the frequency and threshold of payment as detailed in the affiliate terms and conditions? If you have all the facts, state your case first in an e-mail and follow up with a letter in writing to the merchant site. If your matter is not resolved to your satisfaction, legal counsel may be needed. Using curse words or bad language will only hinder your chances of an expeditious settlement.
To err is human ... One resourceful Epage affiliate created a site to help stop affiliate blunders before they start. Affiliate Blunders.com provides a brief list of some common affiliate mistakes to avoid.
Stay focused and motivated and remember that affiliate programs do not provide overnight success. With some hard work and common sense, affiliate revenue can play an integral role in your Web site's success.
Cynthia A. Arko is the Product Director for internet.com's Refer-it.com (Refer-it.com) affiliate directory. She coordinates advertising, site development, and conference planning. Cynthia helped grow Refer-it.com from a small directory of Affiliate Programs to the Web's leading resource for information about affiliate programs. She also currently maintains KidsTown Direct, a shopping portal for parents and young families. Cynthia can be reached at carko@internet.com.
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