The Credit Crunch, An Opportunity for Affiliate Marketing to Shine by Matthew Wood

Posted in Affiliate Marketing on 30/06/2008 at 9:54am

Last week I read with interest in NMA that many media agencies must cut budgets on the request of their clients, in-fact it was all a bit gloomy if you dug deep.

So why is the credit crunch potetially good news for Affiliate Marketing? Well, in difficult times display advertising will be the first to get the chop, followed by other branding channels and mostly untested channels such as Mobile.

Media agencies and advertisers will move to more accountable for instant ROI such as Search and Affiliate Marketing.

As the credit crunch looms, it no surprise that consumers will firstly turn more to the web to seek out lower prices, voucher codes, exclusive deals and offers.

This consumer led thought process in challenging times gives affiliate marketers a huge opportunity to capitalise on the shift in the buying process.

Although there are common recession proof verticals, the credit crunch potentially gives all affiliates an advantage if not with sales, with added interest from advertisers and agencies

Any thoughts?

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8 Comments

Comment added by loquax on 30/06/2008 10:26:36
Is "credit crunch" the right terminology or is just a "coverall" for the current economic climate. Is increased fuel prices, increased transportation costs and increased food prices due to the "credit crunch" or due to global factors like climate effects and subsidies?
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Comment added by befuddle on 30/06/2008 11:00:03
I'm really looking forward to capitalising on even more consumer discounts but not quite sure the 'credit crunch' is here yet. Just one of my sales this morning was for someone spending £180 on perfume.
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Comment added by Matthew Wood on 30/06/2008 12:07:21
Credit Crunch, Recession, Downturn - all have implications - I guess the story also came from reading the weekend's Sunday Times, makes depressing reading!
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Comment added by TheRedHotShop on 30/06/2008 14:01:12
Most marketing directors would use ROI to determine where to cut budgets (although interestingly many spend more on their marketing in a downturn in order to grab a larger market share!). Still for many retailers the yardstick is ROI and given that in a downturn the average order value goes down at the same time as the need for price-based promotions increases, I think many will be looking very closely at the best performing affiliate programs, affiliates and other online marketing activities. So not sure if this is good news all around!
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Comment added by KevinEdwards on 01/07/2008 07:14:19
I wrote a piece for Revolution Magazine in June about the very same topic - there are also some quotes from individuals working client/agency side on their thoughts. You can read if on page 53 of the digital copy:

http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1Y48369183b6774012.cde
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Comment added by Mogga on 01/07/2008 10:03:55
I think times will get harder as there are more affiliates chasing a smaller pot of money. Shows on TV are pushing high street shops as a way of negotiating discounts and the face to face aspect of bargaining can't be done online. Yet.
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Comment added by Stenning on 01/07/2008 10:19:55
I find the comment “this morning was for someone spending £180 on perfume” very interesting.
With an economic slowdown we have to keep our eye on trends, not the movements of niche areas or individuals.
In a downturn people will still buy Ferraris and Rolex watches, but how many will they buy? Companies still make millions of pounds profit, but compared to last year it will be down.
Perhaps a reminder to keep an eye on the overall trends and not to micro analyse certain individual niche events or occurrences.
Also trends can sometimes lead events in niche areas, are you ready or prepared and well diversified to cope?
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Comment added by choc-chip on 01/07/2008 16:35:37
I'm more concerned about the opportunity for more competitors. Every day another new site pops and takes a slice of the pie. As long as the pie gets bigger there is no problem.
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