Interesting article on Affiliate Marketing

[getvisible]

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Affiliate Programs: Moneymakers or Brandbusters?

Search engine affiliate programs offer the promise of greatly increasing your online exposure and sales, but be careful: They can also displace your firm in search engine results and dilute your brand image.

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I take issue with this bit:

"or turning all traffic generation over to affiliate marketers."

I think we'd all agree that AM is only one ingredient in the marketing mix and the "add to taste" advice added to most cookery programes should be reflected in marketing planning.

also

"Up the ante for keywords you must bid on, including your own brand name."

obviously this becoming less prevelent in cpc - haven't they heard of interflora?

What are your views as to the general understanding of what affiliate marketing is in the marketing arena?

[watcher]

Personally, I can't see the point of merchants doing their own PPC and having an affiliate scheme. Merchants who end up bidding against their affiliates need to rethink why they have an affiliate scheme. Affiliates who find they are competing with the merchant need to think about their continued involvement with that merchant.

Paying a direct wage, or management fee, to someone to do your PPC almost guarantees underperformance - there is no financial pressure on the PPC manager to do well. Offer an affiliate scheme with proper commission structure and you will get the most efficient PPC managers available.

As for (skilled) PPC affiliates who move to another merchant there are three main reasons, all of which are directly controlled by the merchant:

The merchant's site is poor and doesn't convert efficiently

The merchant's products are below the market standard

The merchant's commission structure doesn't reflect the market value of the products sold

Of course buying traffic isn't the only way of attracting traffic - but if a merchant plans on getting some business that way then a properly constructed affiliate scheme will be the most efficient way to do it.

Added:

Fourth obvious reason why an affiliate will move, also under the merchants control:

Merchant doesn't pay on time !

[PitBoss]

Q: what is the biggest threat to the success of Adware in the online world?

A: Affiliates

It wouldn't suprise me if all this recent negative publicity against affiliates was being funded by Adware companies who are feeling sore about being kicked off various affiliate networks. And also being rejected by ethical merchants.

They are picking on PPC because they know it will get a strong reaction from the industry. (Because marketing departments understand PPC but not affiliate marketing). They are using the opportunity to convince the uneducated.

[Luke]

It should say:

"This is a great opportunity to get your brand all over these affiliate sites, and the monkeys don't even realise that being paid 3 pence a click is bad - just think you have to pay 20p to 50p on average on Adwords and Overture, 20p on Dealtime or Kelkoo, but these joeys will take anything if you make them some pretty banners to put on their site and you are nice to them"