Free service versus £2000 to start

[canard]

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Hi, we're new to affliate schemes and haven't set one up yet.

I'm interested to know the pros and cons of going with:

a) An expensive well known network (cj/td/affwindow) and having to shell out a couple of thousand to start and a monthly fee

versus

b) A free set-up and no monthly fee (such as Clixgalore - or the new clash-media one which was recently announced on the front page of this site).

Any thoughts?

Thanks

[3wdl]

Whats your website address?

[canard]

oops - good question:

www.wilkinet.co.uk

We currently sell a baby carrier and clothes (own brand) and are planning on developing our range or products (all for baby and parents) - but keeping it own brand.

We do a lot of offline advertising (press etc) so would hope our affiliate work would compliment that (generate demand through the offiline and word of mouth) and use the affiliate as a presence/activation technique.

[Mike_M]

My advice would be to go elsewhere. I remember asking 2 of the 3 you mentioned exactly what the setup & monthly fees were actually for, and they both just squirmed and regurgitated some sales c*** that didn't mean anything, very reminiscent of Syed in the boardroom on the Apprentice when asked why he bought 100 chickens for 100 pizzas.

Go and find a network that doesn't charge you money for doing nothing (well, at least not so blatantly) - I did!

[HomerJ]

Talk to the guys at Affiliate future. The fees are more affordable and the service is second to none. I have both merchant and affiliate accounts with them and their support has been good.

TD and AW are a bit too expensive for smaller businesses. Buy.at are good but they may not want you unless you are a big name.

[moogie]

Hi Canard

I have have a lot of experience launching different sized companies affiliate programs on most of the major networks. If were a big company with a huge marketing budget then paying a couple of grand wouldn't hurt the pocket too much.

Past experience has taught me that paying a huge joining fee doesn't always mean you get better service. From a networks point of view there is a lot of behind the scenes work to get a program up and running and they have to cover costs. A free sign-up often means they are loosing money by not charging you, but eventually they will have to recoup that money in management and overide fees. They are in a very competitive market and in many ways they are gambling on your site doing well if they don't charge you for an initial set-up.

The most important thing to do once you are live is to make sure your program is proactive and treat your affiliates as a sales team. The more you respect your affiliates the more they will promote you ahead of your rivals and the more sales you will get.

Personally I would go for Paid on Results as the best network. Second would be Wegains and a close 3rd would be Affiliate Future.

[Soho Rocks]

Or you can talk to me!

Soho Rocks works as an independent online broker and find the right network for you depending on your circumstances and needs. We don't charge fees, and because we put a lot of clients through different networks we make our money through negotiating with them. So instead of sounding out all the different networks, why not let us do the donkey work for you. We'll manage all the programs and monitor the progress of your campaigns, and we'll also help you implement any SEA, CPM or other aspects of Affiliate Marketing that will complement your business and increase your sales. Its just like having an in-house Affiliate Manager, but based out of house (if you see what I mean!)

Call me on 0781 529 3507 or e-mail me at neil.mitchell@sohorocks.co.uk.

Look forward to speaking to you - even if its just to give you some advice!

Neil

[pistol101]

Hi Canard,

We've done a lot of work with the guys behind Baby Pouch. If you drop me an email i can give you an idea of volumes for that area through affiliates.

Cheers

Pete

[Jenny]

Have a look at Webgains as well. They have some very complimentary products on board already + I'm about to launch a very exciting merchant with them in this area, although not competition. The bonus there is that you get numerous affiliates within the network targeted for this market when there are a few good merchants.
Jenny