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Question: If you were to emphasize one important issue that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Brian Marcus: This year, we’re making sure that not only are we delivering for our publishers, but also really focusing on the needs and wants of the end customers. I think that’s a strategy that all affiliate managers can use to make sure their programs are really making an impact throughout their entire lifecycle.

Too often we lose sight of what the customer really needs to be successful, but I think greater success can be achieved if we’re all making sure that those customer needs are really the basis for all decisions. So what sort of tools, access and support do the customers need, and how can we make the process easier and better for them?

We’re thinking of this in terms of focusing on creating great experiences for eBay buyers and sellers, whether they’re coming to us directly, or through one of our affiliate partners. I think that’s a strategy that most affiliate managers can also apply in their organizations.

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for online and affiliate marketers in 2013 – 2014?

Brian Marcus: Social and mobile: These two have obviously been big opportunities for online marketers for quite some time now. But we think there are more ways for affiliates to tap into social and mobile channels to build their audiences and monetize content through emerging avenues.

Personalization: These days, there are a number of tools and strategies for creating seamless, tailored experiences for customers as they travel from affiliates sites to advertiser sites. This goes along with the idea that we should be focusing more on the end customer and giving them different ways to customize their searching and buying experiences, based on their specific needs.

Network wisdom: As technology advances, we now have much more insight into data on how online consumers are navigating their experience. With smarter tools and more data insights, online retailers, networks, affiliate managers and publishers can all make more educated decisions and can constantly fine-tune and optimize campaigns.

Question: It isn’t unusual to hear that since affiliates operate in the mix with other marketing channels that merchants use (paid search, re-targeting, social, etc) with multi-touchpoint eCommerce, that the last-click attribution model is not necessarily an optimal one?

In September 2009, eBay Partner Network (EPN) implemented Quality Click Pricing (QCP), which essentially meant moving from EPN’s previous CPA (cost per action) model to a CPC (cost per click) model.  How did the change to QCP affect the performance of your affiliates? What do you think about the last-click?

Brian Marcus: Since we are now able to evaluate and reward publishers for driving higher quality traffic rather than focusing on quantity, the overall quality of the program has greatly increased. Because we are rewarding quality, we are able to promote conversions, reduce non-performing traffic and essentially level the playing field for publishers of all sizes.

I think the method of attribution used depends heavily on the advertiser’s business model and how affiliates interact across the channel. While last-click may work best for some, it does depend on your goals, what kind of advertiser you are and who your affiliates and customers are. I don’t think we need to go to one rigid industry standard; there’s a case to be made that we don’t all have to choose the same model. EPN is always looking for better ways to tell the true story of attribution. I think the key is to have analytics in place that can give you a broad picture of the entire purchase journey and draw insights from there.

Question: What do you view as the main areas where affiliates can truly help online merchants, adding value to the pre-sale process?

Brian Marcus: Well, the most obvious place where affiliates can add value is by helping merchants extend their reach and find new customers that they aren’t able to reach on their own. Creating quality content that educates, engages and ultimately helps to guide purchasing decisions is another key area. The best affiliates add value by doing both of these things, naturally developing a loyal following of visitors who trust the publisher to provide quality content and recommendations.

Question: If you were to leave online advertisers, merchants and affiliate managers with one piece of advice, what would it be?

Brian Marcus: My advice is to truly take the time to understand why your customers are going to affiliate sites in the first place. Affiliates help to fill the gaps in areas in which we may not necessarily excel.

If your customers are going to an affiliate site, they’re probably doing so for a reason. By understanding your affiliates’ strengths, you can also uncover some of your own weaknesses, allowing you figure out how to work with affiliates to provide a richer overall experience for your customers.

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Visit the Affiliate Management Days Conference website.  See the rest of the AMDays interview series here.

The post Brian Marcus: EBay Partner Network’s Lessons for Affiliate Managers appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important issue that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Todd Crawford: Diversifying your publisher base.  Almost every advertiser I talk to has 10-15 publishers that are driving 90%+ of their results.  Many of these top publishers have similar business models.  A healthy program needs to be as diversified as possible, leveraging multiple types of publishers.

Dig into the mid-tier publishers and segment them to determine alternative opportunities.  Have a goal of balancing your publisher base so the top 10-15 are only 50%-70% of your results.  It’s hard work but it makes for a healthier, stronger channel.

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for affiliate marketers in 2013 – 2014?

Todd Crawford: I think the single biggest opportunity is utilizing better tracking, data and analytics.  From what I am seeing and hearing, legacy solutions aren’t providing the level of data advertisers need to manage their marketing channels.  There are so many more data points that need to be analyzed in order to understand the value of the affiliate channel and the individual publishers.

I know the term “big data” gets thrown around a lot, but more and more companies are analyzing more data points and affiliate managers need to have access to similar data.  Otherwise they run the risk of not being able to defend or champion their channel or even worse, not being able to answer questions raised by management.

Question: It isn’t unusual to hear that since affiliates operate in the mix with other marketing channels that merchants use (paid search, retargeting, social, etc.), with this multi-touchpoint eCommerce, the last-click attribution model is no longer an optimal one. What do you recommend?

Todd Crawford: We need to remember there is a difference between modeling data and firing pixels.  I think last click is still vital for actual tracking and de-duplication across channels, but that attribution analysis is becoming critical for understanding the role and value of media as well and the true costs.

Don’t confuse tracking and pixel firing logic with attribution modeling – they are two very different things. Once you understand the overall contribution of affiliates, you can then start changing your payout rates to be better aligned with the value of those partners.

For example, many content sites play a role higher up in the funnel and consequently don’t get credit for as many last clicks sales.  You may want to increase their payout rate or give them a spot bonus to compensate them for their efforts earlier in the buying cycle.

Question: As co-founder of an international marketing technologies company, what do you view as the main area affiliates can truly help online merchants, adding value to the pre-sale process?  

Todd Crawford: Personally, I am influenced by in-depth reviews. Especially videos when considering purchases.  If it works on me, I imagine it works on quite a few other people.

Introduce your visitors to unique information and opportunities that they can’t get from other sites.  This isn’t easy, but it builds sustainable traffic and long-term value for your website(s) and advertisers.

Question: If you were to leave online advertisers, merchants and affiliate managers with one piece of advice, what would it be? 

Todd Crawford: Having personal KPIs (key performance indicators) so they can measure their progress towards weekly, monthly and quarterly goals.  If your company doesn’t help create these KPIs, you can still create your own.  Look at the high-level objectives for your department and company overall and develop KPIs that help you track your contribution towards achieving those goals.

Without KPIs in place, you often end up showing up for work everyday doing the same things without understanding which efforts will move the needle and help you hit your goals.  A simple example is talking to 10 new affiliates each day to recruit them into your program(s).  This means you may need to actually call 50 to get 10 on the phone. Leaving voice messages doesn’t count.

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Visit the website for the Affiliate Management Days Conference.  See the rest of the interview series here.

The post Todd Crawford on Opportunities in Affiliate Marketing appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important area that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Gary Marcoccia: Attribution modeling for affiliate programs. Seek out more intelligent ways to track all sale referrals.

As performance marketing continues to evolve, affiliate managers should look beyond the all or nothing “last click wins” model of crediting publishers.

With online consumer behavior changing and becoming more savvy, customers visit many publisher websites searching for the best value. Insight on every move a customer makes (sometimes over many weeks) on the path to purchase is crucial to have.

With complete click stream data/analysis affiliate managers can make better informed decisions on who to work with and how to structure attribution, resulting in a much stronger program ROI (return on investment).

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for online and affiliate marketers in 2013 and 2014?

Gary Marcoccia: Mobile shopping compatibility. Whether you are a retailer using Magento, or a publisher using WordPress, be sure you have a mobile version of your site. Here are a couple of statistics to consider:

1. By the end of 2013, there will be more mobile devices on Earth than people.
2. The number of U.S. mobile coupon users will rise from 12.3 million in 2010 to 53.2 million in 2014, driven by the rapid adoption of smartphones.

Question: As a director of a reputable U.S. affiliate network, what do you view as the main areas where affiliates can truly help online merchants, adding value to the pre-sale process?

Gary Marcoccia: The most value publishers (in any category) bring merchants is via new customer referrals. Often times, new customer acquisition by way of affiliate marketers is completely overlooked. A 10% commission on a $100 sale (or commissions paid on several sales within a cookie life) is a small price to pay for a new and loyal customer.

Question: It isn’t unusual to hear that since affiliates operate in the mix with other marketing channels that merchants use (paid search, retargetting, social, etc.) With this multi-touchpoint ecommerce, the last-click attribution model is not longer an optimal one. What do you recommend?

Gary Marcoccia: One of our primary objectives at AvantLink is to be transparent with the data we collect. This is true on both sides of the equation. As long as program terms are clear, attribution modeling can be applied in a fair and effective way. This holds true within the Affiliate channel itself, and also with a merchant’s internal marketing channels.

Since you asked for my recommendation, take a look at AvantMetrics.com, an AvantLink product and solution for attribution modeling, multi-network de-duplication and more. It makes attribution modeling possible using the publisher referral classification framework of “introducer,” “influencer” and “checkout influencer.” Merchants set their own business rules based on this framework.

For example, perhaps they want to award a “checkout influencer,” defined as a publisher who sets a cookie after the customer has initiated the checkout process, 50% of a standard commission.

Question: If you were to leave online advertisers/merchants and affiliate managers with one piece of advice, what would it be?

Gary Marcoccia: Invest in your Affiliate program, and be patient. Do not put the program on auto-pilot.

To build an affiliate program the correct way is a process. It takes time. Be sure to have an experienced program manager, pick a network that fits (or two, but not five) and communicate regularly with publishers to build relationships.

Regardless of what you may have heard, you will not flip a switch to live status at any network and see sales start coming in immediately. If that does happen, look closely at publisher tactics to be sure there is a true ROI (return on investment) on their sale referrals.

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The upcoming Affiliate Management Days Conference takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter. When registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass.

See the rest of the interview series here.

The post Gary Marcoccia: Value of the Affiliate Marketing Channel #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important area that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Kristin Hall: Mobile.

Mobile is driving a fundamental shift in consumer behavior and it’s having a material impact on all aspects of affiliate marketing. More consumers are using their mobile devices to research and shop online and offline.

Researching on smartphones has proven to influence buyer decisions and purchases across channels. The share of mobile sales for all retail e-commerce is predicted to grow by 4% this year (eMarketer, 2013) and 85% of marketers report that they plan to increase their mobile advertising budgets in the near future (ANA/MediaVest, 2013).

Advertisers and publishers must redefine their marketing strategies to engage this constantly connected consumer across all of their devices. Affiliate managers today have a great opportunity to optimize their affiliate programs to reach consumers on their mobile devices to maximize conversions and influence across the purchase funnel.

Optimization strategies may include understanding and optimizing your website for mobile traffic, partnering with mobile-optimized publishers and implementing mobile creatives sizes. And, of course, making sure any mobile-only conversion pages are tagged for affiliate tracking. The first step is understanding the data to determine the impact.

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for online and affiliate marketers in 2013-2014?

Kristin Hall: Affiliate marketers have big opportunities in front of them to better understand and capitalize on mobile, data and analytics. There’s a real opportunity to apply insights from data along with using new ad formats to make the most out of the affiliate channel. There are also opportunities for advertisers and affiliates to partner more closely to bring the influence of affiliate higher up the purchase funnel.

Through attribution modeling and data insights, advertisers and publishers can use data to make more informed decisions to optimize and improve their programs.

Question: What do you view as the main areas where affiliates can truly help online merchants, adding value to the pre-sale process?

Kristin Hall: Smart marketers understand and evaluate the affiliate channel within the digital mix. For too long this channel has been isolated from other paid traffic channels. I think it’s important to look at the full impact of affiliate traffic – to understand and value upper funnel contributions. We need to be willing to measure impressions and value clicks, while understanding that the most productive publishers are trying to drive more conversions on fewer clicks.

Affiliate publishers are experts at sending customers to advertisers and can help advertisers close deals by reaching the right audience with a higher likelihood to convert.

Question: It isn’t unusual to hear that since affiliates operate in the mix with other marketing channels that merchants use (paid search, re-targeting, social, etc), with this multi-touchpoint ecommerce, the last-click attribution model is not longer an optimal one. What do you recommend?

Kristin Hall: Google believes that affiliate partners are incredibly valuable to the conversion process. In order for affiliates to continue to play a key role in assisting with conversion, affiliates will need to optimize their offerings to match the advertisers’ interest in reaching other areas of the conversion path. This should be done in close partnership with advertisers, who not only have access to their own data, but also have the best insight into their own approach to attribution.

Remember, there’s no correct answer to attribution – only better insights and better decisions. It’s a process supported by understanding and experimentation and closer alignment and partnership between affiliate publishers and advertisers.

Question: If you were to leave online advertisers, merchants and affiliate managers with one piece of advice, what would it be?

Kristin Hall: Affiliate managers: Invest in mobile traffic and be willing, perhaps, to over-invest in traffic now so that you have a targeted audience as more conversions shift across multiple screens.

Advertisers and merchants: Use data to understand attribution at the publisher level.

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The upcoming Affiliate Management Days conference takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter. When registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass.

View the rest of the interview series.

The post Kristin Hall of Google: Mobile Importance in Affiliate Marketing #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important issue that every affiliate manager and online merchant should be paying  attention to, what would it be and why?

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The upcoming Affiliate Management Days conference, where you can hear David speak, takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter; and when registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass.

The rest of the interview series from #AMDays may be found here.

The post David Naffziger: How Merchants Can Protect Themselves From Affiliate Violators #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important area that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Hunter Boyle: Engagement. That applies to long-time affiliates just as much as the new faces joining your crew. The channels you’re using – email, social media, webcasts, the offers and tools you’re presenting – have to capture the attention of your affiliates and get them excited to promote you.

So if you’re not focusing on, measuring and testing ways to improve engagement, you’re leaving a ton of money on the table.

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for online marketers in 2013 – 2014?

Hunter Boyle: There’s a surge happening these days around content marketing. If that’s not the buzzword of the year, I don’t know what is. But aside from the hype, there’s enormous value in the ability to consistently create and deliver exceptional content. Particularly as a marketing tool for affiliates.

The best affiliate marketers are those who use trust, authenticity and authority to build up their networks. They succeed because their recommendations carry real weight online. Can affiliates cultivate those circles with an endless cycle of overt sales pitches? Only in rare instances, such as deals sites, does that work.  And that’s a whole separate topic.

That’s why, all the buzz aside, an effective content marketing strategy is essential for affiliate marketers. Same goes for affiliate managers. Developing the messaging, goals, process, tools, metrics, a testing plan and training affiliates to succeed with them is a major opportunity for affiliate managers.

Question: What do you believe to be the top 3 present day challenges that online oriented small businesses should be aware of? And where can solutions be found?

Hunter Boyle:  Judging by the small businesses I know and work with, the top three challenges don’t really change that much:

• Time
• Budget
• Expertise

That’s the trifecta that most small businesses struggle with in marketing and beyond. In most cases, they’re very passionate about their work and business. They have clear goals in mind. Where it gets tricky is trying to keep up with the pace of change in marketing.  Often because they’ve got a small team or are doing most of it themselves without the bandwidth to become experts in content, email, social, SEO (search engine optimization), PPC (pay per click), affiliate marketing and so on.

I wish I could say that’s likely to change. But the “small” part of small businesses is why it rarely does. Small business leaders really need to focus on what’s legitimately going to drive business growth and minimize the distractions, latest fads and initiatives that don’t support the growth goals.

How do you determine where to draw those lines?

I think the best place to find solutions is right from your prospects and customers themselves. That means putting some real thought into assessing your marketing analytics (site, email, social) and test results. Supplementing that with qualitative data such as customer polls, email queries and responses, blog comments and good old-fashioned jawboning, like phone calls, site visits, live events or online chats like Google Hangouts.

This approach reflects the customer first mentality behind the lean product development model, usability design, listening with social media, and so on. And rightly so because these days, customers and prospects play a critical role in your business development process. That’s especially true of small and independent businesses.

Question: As an email marketing expert, what do you view as the number one overlooked component of a healthy email marketing campaign?

Hunter Boyle:  The welcome series. Hands down. I like to compare it to first impressions when you meet someone in real life. Even though the website and email sign-up form are technically first impressions, let’s be honest, that first email or two that we get when subscribing really sets the tone for the entire lifecycle, right?

I dread signing up for yet another email. I work in the industry. We all do these days. We all get too much of it and we decry our overflowing email inboxes. So think of what the emails you actually love to get have in common: They often “wow” you. Whether it’s because the content is funny or personable or makes you think or helps you discover cool sites and ideas or offers great deals. We want to be impressed by that diamond in the rough of dozens of subject lines.

Welcome messages can do that. An unexpected 15% coupon or a high quality ebook or video bonus – these are pretty standard. But a welcome series, spread out over the first few weeks, that’s designed to familiarize readers with actually using your product or service, isn’t as common.

Content that delivers awesome value and an engaging experience, is coordinated with social channels and is timed to get an optimal response rather than annoy readers? That’s mighty rare. Testing a series like this should be a priority for all digital marketers this year.

Question: Can you give us one piece of advice regarding how to increase email open rates and two tips on how we can improve click through rates?

Hunter Boyle:  You can increase open rates with subject line and timing tests. But those tend to be incremental, one-off gains that are hard to replicate or maintain. That said, we ran a timing experiment, not a test by the purist definition, and doubled our click through rate with a send to our affiliates on Saturday morning.

One tip would be to keep experimenting. Even if it doesn’t fit all of the official testing criteria. I know that makes some of my optimization friends cringe. But we’re not robots. People send emails and people receive emails. I’m not suggesting anyone replace serious testing with experiments like the one above. In fact, doubling the clicks absolutely made us want to set up a formal test to explore further.

That’s the benefit of experimenting: It can lead you to new ideas and surprises and help you formulate more exacting tests.

Another tip for click through is ensuring your emails and links in particular, are mobile-friendly. Video is getting more and more popular. If you’re using the standard screen capture with play button image, with alt text (alternative text), that’s going to render nicely in mobile and could be a click magnet.

Whereas, if you’re using embedded text links and just one or two words are linked or it’s not clear that an image is a live link or you have way too many links – you’re going to see lower response rates from the growing smartphone population.

So make sure you’re testing mobile compatibility and usability before you hit send. And keep checking your analytics.

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The upcoming Affiliate Management Days conference takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter. When registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass. Early bird rates are valid through March 1, 2013.

The rest of the interview series from #AMDays may be found here.

The post Hunter Boyle: Affiliate Management, Challenges and Email Marketing #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: It isn’t unusual to hear one describe affiliate marketing as a “risk-free channel?” Looking at it as a lawyer, wouldn’t you say that it should be called a “high-risk” industry? 

David Adler: As a lawyer, I consider affiliate marketing to be fairly “high risk,” if not done properly. This is due to several factors related to ease of setup, creation and use of marketing content, marketing tactics and lack of oversight.

First, it is relatively easy and inexpensive to get into affiliate marketing. Therefore, it can attract unsophisticated, misinformed and unscrupulous people looking to make a fast buck. The speed and ease with which websites and landing pages can be launched, taken down, and relaunched elsewhere leads to a never ending game of “whack-a-mole” for companies trying to protect their products and brand from illegitimate or unscrupulous marketers.

Second, the purpose of affiliate marketing is to drive traffic to a sales channel. This works best when marketers use compelling, eye catching content that attracts visitors. This means using trademarks, keywords and content that people are seeking.

Affiliates frequently use a network of landing pages with content customized for different audiences. The risk is that, often, the responsibility for creation and use of such content lies with the affiliate. Unscrupulous affiliate marketers have been known to use text, photos and videos of others and even “celebrity endorsements” without permission.  The most notable case involves the unauthorized use of Dr. Oz in connection with efforts to market acai berry health products.

Third, marketing channels such as email and social networking pose risks as well. Again, since the goal of affiliate marketing is to drive Web traffic, it only makes sense to go where the users are. However, many affiliate marketers are unfamiliar with state and federal laws that regulate the use of email for marketing purposes. Likewise, many social networking platforms have terms of service that directly address not only marketing, but affiliate marketing specifically. In addition, marketers must stay within the bounds of truth-in-advertising laws, privacy disclosure requirements and tax laws.

Lastly, Affiliate Marketing depends on thin, almost anonymous relationships with third parties. Because companies often have no direct relationship with the affiliate marketers who are promoting their products and brands, it is difficult to police these marketers activities to ensure that they are not creating an unreasonable risk of liability by using unauthorized content or improper methods.

Question: What steps can an online advertiser take today to avoid some of the key problem areas, minimizing risk and liability?

David Adler:  The first step that anyone in the affiliate marketing ecosystem should take is to do “due diligence.” This means checking out the publisher network and the products being offered to make sure they are established and reputable.

For brands, this means doing “background” checks on the proposed marketing partners and making sure the legal risks outline above, such as intellectual property rights and approved marketing methods, are addressed in the parties contracts.

Question: What do you see as the main challenges for affiliate managers and advertisers with affiliate programs?

David Adler:  The biggest challenges that I see facing the industry are two-fold. First, the rapid adoption of mobile technologies means that marketers must address this platform. In addition to traditional laws and regulations, the mobile platform faces additional hurdles from industry groups issuing their own guidelines in an effort to preempt ever more government regulation.

Second, privacy and security of information gathered and shared on and across mobile devices has heightened concerns among consumers and lawmakers alike. The challenge to marketers is connecting with mobile consumers using content optimized for a smaller screen and driving consumers to make purchases. Marketers now have access to a wide range of personal information never before available. How they choose to access, store and share that info will affect both individual marketers and the industry as a whole.

The upside, of course, is that unlike desktop computers which are stationary, consumers with smartphones are able to make purchases any time, any where. Even with the increased challenges, there are increased opportunities.

Question: What do you think 2013 holds in store for us abd how do you expect the legal landscape to change in relation to e-commerce and online advertising?

David Adler:  As the mobile platform continues to mature, the risks and uncertainties will continue to shift. For e-commerce and online advertising, I see new developments in two fronts, privacy and consumer protection.

First, state and federal government agencies are keenly aware of the privacy concerns raised through use of mobile platforms, such as location data and access to information like contact lists and photos.  This year will continue to see FTC and state enforcement of privacy policies, and violations of those policies, by all parties in the mobile advertising and commerce area.

Second, be on the lookout for more actions in the name of consumer protection that are aimed at unfair or deceptive business practices, particularly with respect to how marketers gather, cross reference and share consumer information for more targeted advertising or behavioral advertising.

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The Affiliate Management Days conference, where David Adler will be speaking on managing risk in affiliate marketing, takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter. Early bird registration runs until February 22, 2013. When registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass.

The rest of the interview series from #AMDays may be found here.

The post David Adler: Legal Risks Facing Affiliate Marketers Today #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important issue that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Mike Allen: One size does not fit all. In many cases, affiliate managers would benefit by being more creative and flexible in how they evaluate and interact with affiliates.

For instance, the 80/20 or 90/10 (or perhaps even 98/2) rule suggests that the vast majority of affiliate channel sales will be attributed to a small minority of the total affiliate pool. On the surface it looks like only a few affiliates are success stories while most are either absent or weak performers.

However, a clever affiliate manager will drill down into the numbers for all affiliates and find some jewels. It could be, for example, that a majority of new customers are coming from small affiliates while the top 3 performing affiliates, due to great search engine rankings, are mostly intercepting previous customers.

Other variables to consider when evaluating the individual impact of affiliates are average order size, click/sale conversion rate, and the commission rate paid to each affiliate. Once these values are known and evaluated in light of the program’s internal numbers, an affiliate manager is better able to reach out with incentives and customized offers to maximize the effectiveness and growth potential for each affiliate within their program.

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for online (and affiliate) marketers in 2013 – 2014?

Mike Allen:  This is a difficult question to answer without first noting a major challenge certain affiliate channels (especially coupon and deal affiliates) are facing today.

In many ways, I feel the Google Panda update of 2 years ago made things much more difficult for most small and medium-sized affiliate marketers. As I understand things, this update was different from a routine algorithm change because it is a filter that excludes specific websites that the algorithm would have otherwise allowed within the results.

Put in economic terms, the “middle class” of affiliate marketing was severely impacted as many medium affiliates saw their search engine rankings evaporate. The resulting shakeout left only a relatively few, larger affiliates, within the field who were then rewarded with even greater search rankings and, therefore, traffic. Because Google only has room for 10 “free” spots on their first page. The rich get richer as premium placements translate into enhanced exposure and sales. Regarding any keyword, if an affiliate doesn’t rank on the first page – then for all practical purposes they don’t exist.

What does this mean for affiliate marketers?

I believe it means everyone else not found on this coveted real estate must work differently than they did a few years ago. As one who lives in a small town, this post-Panda environment reminds me of the typical small town grocery store’s response to Walmart’s arrival within their market. How the small grocer responds determines whether or not they survive. They can either fold or nimbly innovate by offering quality and services that are outside the scope of what Walmart can offer.

In light of these changing circumstances, what’s an affiliate to do?

I think there are even more options now as search engines are not the only gatekeepers in 2013. Social media and mobile channels provide amazing potential for niche and smaller affiliate marketers and here is why: Most smaller affiliates have the ability to touch and interact with their customers on multiple levels.

These affiliates are often the face of their company and trusted as an expert. As such, they provide credible information in the form of opinions, comparisons, commentary, photos, product reviews, how-to articles and more via videos, blogs and curated data. They fill in the blanks and answer the questions that customers often have. They serve the more difficult and picky customers. They provide information that is often missing from “big box” retailers and even the manufacturer.

In short, they provide solutions – which is always welcomed by buyers and, I feel, remains affiliate marketing’s strongest opportunity.

Question: If you could go back 3 years, what would you do differently in your approach to online marketing?

Mike Allen:  It’s too bad that experience is something we get after we need it. If I had the ability to go back, I would make sure we diversified our traffic streams instead of relying primarily on organic keywords in Google.

What Google (or Bing) gives they can take away. If we build a good email list or forum or a loyal Facebook or Pinterest following, then we have largely Google-proofed our endeavors. Therefore, if I could go back, I would make sure we were well invested in social media and other eyeball-rich environments.

I would also blog more. It’s a very effective and interactive way to share our expertise and provide solutions to customer needs.

Question: Running an affiliate website that targets frugal consumers, what have been some of the more interesting observations of online buying behavior?

Mike Allen:  In December 2012, during a local television interview I said that based on the unusual volume of 40% off coupon codes that remained beyond the Black Friday/Cyber Monday period, I suspected that many retailers were not hitting the internal numbers they needed. I also noticed that average order sizes for many retailers were not as strong as seen in a typical Q4.

This made me fear that our economy was not nearly as strong as the government wanted us to believe.

Sadly, about a week ago the government’s own numbers showed my suspicions were accurate as the economy actually shrank. Over the years, I’ve found it surprising how closely trends I’m seeing in affiliate marketing correlate with macro trends in the economy. It makes me wonder if real time affiliate marketing data could be used to accurately predict macro economic activity months before government reports are published.

Question: We often hear that coupon affiliates are seldomly adding value. What do you say in response to such statements? And if an affiliate website that’s distributing coupons and discounts can indeed add value, can you give us 3 ways how an affiliate manager can enhance this arrangement?

Mike Allen:  Just like we can eat well or badly, a retailer can coupon well or poorly. Certain foods, like eggs and butter, often get a bad rap while the real problem is likely an out-of-balance lifestyle.  The same can be true for coupons. Coupons can encourage higher order sizes or shrink them. Coupons can erode profits or expand them.

So what’s a retailer to do?

There are many options but here are three things that can make a significant difference:

Instead of banning coupon affiliates, I suggest retailers embrace them when possible: As long as coupons exist, coupon sites are not going away. If a retailer does not affiliate with a coupon site, that doesn’t mean their coupons won’t end up being posted there. Instead, it means that coupon site is not governed by any affiliate agreement so they can post anything – including unauthorized coupons and even bogus ones.

So, my suggestion is to embrace as many reputable coupon sites as possible to control or manage the space. A merchant’s affiliate agreement should clearly lay out the terms for coupon posting and, if they want to work with you and earn commission, the coupon site will have to follow your rules. It’s win-win that way.

Carefully plan your coupon strategy:   Plan it just as customers carefully plan their shopping cart size to maximize coupon discounts and free shipping thresholds. You know your average order size so don’t coupon any minimum below that.

For example, if your average order size is $80 you might consider a $10 off $100 coupon. That means you and your customer both give up $10, but bottom line, you grow your average order size by $10, which, now $90, represents a 12.5% improvement. If you had discounted just $5 off $75 then you would likely end up with a lower order size than before. That would cannibalize your sales numbers and would be a poor coupon strategy. That would be a lose-lose strategy for you and your affiliates.

Make sure you can control the coupon box in your shopping cart: If possible, auto-populate the coupon code there and automate the discount displayed in the shopping cart when an affiliate link is clicked from a coupon site. If a coupon link wasn’t clicked, consider suppressing the coupon box altogether. If you cannot do that, then create a generic “placeholder” coupon and message it as your everyday low price or similar.

The goal is to discourage your customer from leaving the shopping cart to search for a coupon - you don’t even want them to think of that option. You also don’t want them to have any doubt in the back of their mind that they are getting a good buy or your best price.

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The upcoming Affiliate Management Days conference takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter. Early bird registration runs until February 22, 2013. When registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass.

You can read other interviews from the interview series here.

The post Take a Peek Inside the Mind of Super Affiliate Mike Allen #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Question: If you were to emphasize one important area/issue that every affiliate manager should be paying more attention to, what would it be and why?

Chris: Affiliate managers are still under-emphasizing conversion optimization.

A recent study of online retailers revealed that, for every $92 spent driving traffic, still only $1 spent on conversion. With under-investment like this, there’s no wonder why affiliate websites and landing pages are still under performing.

But, many are coming to their senses. The same study showed that the top challenge for retailers this year is improving conversions. They’re taking the first step; at least they admit they have a problem.

The rationale for conversion optimization is well known. It is much easier to boost your profit by improving your web conversion rates than it is to drive more affiliate traffic. What if you could get 10%, 20% or 50% more conversions from the same traffic? Would that be worth your time?

Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for online (and especially affiliate) marketers in 2013 and 2014?

Chris: Social media is still in its growth stage but its activity will have to pay off directly this year, especially for affiliate managers. Affiliates are well positioned to take advantage of their action oriented approach to the web by looking for opportunities that arise from Twitter’s launch of Vine and the inevitable scramble that platforms are going to make to secure a place in social video.

Content marketing is still growing, but business leaders are starting to hold it with a shorter leash. They’re realizing that content without conversion is just free publishing. The effort has to pay off more directly. Your social campaigns need to be optimized for conversions.

Question: Last month your first book, You Should Test That, came out. How is this book different from other tomes on conversion rate optimization out there?

Chris: I take a very different approach than previous books. I’m less concerned with showing technical details of how to use analytics tools or in promoting untested theories. I want to show how to get real results. And these are not the same old tips you can find in a Google blog search.

The book takes a balanced approach with proven strategic frameworks for elevating the discussion above tips and tactics as well as hands-on advice and tested discoveries. It also includes 15 full case studies from real companies, showing exactly how they got results.

I think Neil Patel, co-founder of KISSmetrics, and Crazy Egg, said it best when he said:

“If you want to create massive advancements in your business and drive more sales, you have to read You Should Test That!“

I support his recommendation.

Question: I know it isn’t going to be easy to fit it into a paragraph or two, but can you give people a few quick tips on how they can improve the performance/conversion of their online landing pages today?

The most important finding from the thousands of test results we’ve studied is this: principles and frameworks are more effective than tips and tactics. Marketers who are still looking for “silver bullet” ideas on the latest blog post are missing out on much bigger wins. If, instead, you start with a proven scientific process that includes strong conversion analysis frameworks, you’ll develop a consistent stream of ideas and improvements.

That’s what we’ve been developing since 2007 – reliable conversion optimization frameworks.

A great place to start is the LIFT landing page analysis framework, which you can use to identify and categorize conversion problems. Our strategists still use it every day with WiderFunnel’s clients. Using a framework like the LIFT Model will focus your attention on meeting the prospect’s needs rather than just trying random tactics.

Question: At AM Days SF 2013, you’ll be speaking on proven conversion optimization techniques for affiliate programs. As a sneak peak, can you let us know which words always lift conversion rates when used in a copy or on a banner?

Chris: I’ll tell you exactly which words will work best. They’re the words that:

• Encapsulate your most important value proposition points.
• Are relevant to the prospect’s needs.
• Clarify their meaning and purpose.
• Do not distract with secondary messages.
• Minimize anxiety.
• Use a tone that creates a sense of urgency.

The specific words that meet those criteria will depend on each context, target audience, incoming media source and product.

In my session at AM Days, I show specific case study examples. You see how companies with successful affiliate programs have boosted their conversion rates by finding the words, images, designs and value proposition that works best.

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The Affiliate Management Days conference takes place April 16-17, 2013. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter. Early bird registration runs until February 22, 2013. When registering, make sure to use the code SBTAM250 to receive an additional $250.00 off your two-day (or combo) pass.

The rest of the interview series from #AMDays may be found here.

The post Chris Goward: Affiliate Programs and Conversion Optimization #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

• Solo presentations (with one speaker handling everything).
• Panels (with multiple participants – either just answering the attendees’ questions, or doing introductory mini-presentations on the topic after which the Q&A part takes place).

Having just returned from Affiliate Summit, the conference at which, over the years, I have been able to try myself in each of the below-described capacities, I have decided to look back and analyze the lessons I’ve learned from being placed into each of these different roles:

1. Solo Presenter

This is, by far, the most challenging of all speaking opportunities. Do not overestimate yourself here. Prepare your presentation well in advance – to allow yourself plenty of time to practice.  Some of the best solo presentations out of the ones I have delivered were practiced for twenty of more times prior to coming up on that stage.

To prepare a quality solo presentation you must mobilize all of your research skills, imagination, discipline, and fearlessness. If you’re lacking any one of these, start by participating on panels or co-presenting instead. If you’re lacking any two of these, cultivate them in yourself prior to proposing to speak in any capacity.

2. Co-Presenter

When a conference has more than one worthy expert apply to speak on the same topic, in reply to your speaking proposal, you may be asked to co-present with somebody. Over the past six years, I have done this once, and really enjoyed it. You get to plan together (who covers what), yet remain very flexible in how you deliver your content.

Also, co-presenting always comes with a covert but important “who will shine brighter” challenge. Turn it into an opportunity.

3. Panelist

The best panels that I have listened to (and/or participated in) gave every panelist a chance to make their points, and only after that – went into the Q&A time. And it is the collaborative effort (on putting the content together, and making the final product coherent and digestible) that I find most useful in participating on panels.

It teaches you such important skills as listening, thinking, flexibility, and team-working.

4. Panel Moderator

I have seen moderators that introduce the panelists, and then almost immediately remove themselves from it, jumping in (with questions) only when the audience does not participate (i.e. no questions are being asked), and the panel is at risk of failing. As anything passive, I believe this approach to be detrimental to the actual quality of the final product.

As a moderator, you want to contribute both your leadership skills, and your expertise in the field. Give your panelists sufficient room to participate (ensuring that no one participant takes over), but make sure you participate as well.

5. Expert/Roundtable Discussion Leader

This type of breakout sessions can be tremendously effective, but requires significantly more patience than any one of the above-mentioned speaker roles. Ask-the-expert types of discussions are, generally, much livelier than stage presentations or panels.

As a speaker, you want to combine the above-mentioned panel moderator skills with active listening, and keeping your audience engaged at all times. Don’t just come to the these without any questions, examples or case studies of your own. Lead the discussion in a way that is beneficial to all listeners/participants.

In conclusion, regardless of the capacity in which you will present at a conference, the benefits are always tremendous. Whether you have an hour all for yourself, or have to share the time and stage with other co-speakers, it is always worth participating.

Keep in mind, too, that this comes from a speaker who strongly prefers delivering solo presentations.

Woman Speaker Photo via Shutterstock

The post 5 Types of Conference Speaking Opportunities and the Value of Each appeared first on Small Business Trends.