I have to agree with Elaine, I'm really saddened that so much criticism has been levelled at Matt and the team whose only crime is trying to organise a prestigious event to reward innovation and creativity in the Affiliate Marketing sector as well as raising the profile of the industry as a whole.
There seems to be a few key issues that are causing debate, here's my take:
Location
First of all, I don't particularly like coming to London, its full of rude southern softies who like their beer warm. When a network/agency from London asks me when I'm coming to London next so we can arrange a meeting my standard reply is "when are you coming to Sunderland next?" In fairness the forward thinking merchants/agencies/networks etc. make the effort and come and see me. So let me be clear, I do not like making trips to London.
Having said that I think that Matt has 100% absolutely made the right decision in hosting the event in our capital for lots of reasons. Firstly, like it or lump it, its a fact that I would say 70% of networks/agencies etc. are based there, even if my figures are wrong and its as low as 50% then you can't argue that having the ceremony where a good deal of attendees already live/work makes sense.
The fact is by having this event in London there will be a much higher attendance from networks/agencies etc. Having it in London means that the manager of a network can easily afford to buy a full table for 10 people as there will be no time needed out of work and overnight costs. If it was held elsewhere then the attendance will be lower due to exactly those 2 factors.
Also, if the event is going to get media exposure then again it needs to be London, as it simply won't get the exposure it deserves if it was held elsewhere. The press will be reluctant to travel out of the capital for what is to them an unknown event/industry.
Now yes I know the awards is about affiliates too, but wherever the event is held there will always be affiliates who have to travel. As far as I'm aware there are no published reports on the exact location of affiliates in the UK. As far as I
am aware they aren't in any clusters, and are scattered about all over the country.
Finally, as London is our capital it has the best travel network for getting there. For example I can get 1 bus, 1 train or 1 flight straight to London from where I live in the North East. The same can't be said for other major cities. And because London is a popular destination there is a lot of competition for customers and I can get a BA flight for as cheap as £40.
Lets not forget that A4U also operate regional get2gethers as do at least 2 of the affiliate networks that I know of. So its not a case of "London or Bust."
Price
Matt has reduced the price for A4U members who are affiliates to only £95 and that price is subsidised. I think this is a great deal. Where else can you get a 3 course meal, drinks, networking (invaluable) and entertainment in a top hotel for those prices? You can't. And yes I know there will be travelling and hotel costs but thats just unavoidable as mentioned above. You would have those costs wherever the event was. And its not too difficult to get really good deals on hotels and travel if you look for them.
Judging
I've known Matt long enough to know that he will put together a totally fair impartial panel who will put 200% into the judging process and I have no issue with this.
Remember that whoever is on the panel will have to commit to meetings etc to discuss and review the entries before the event. Its a voluntary position so the panel members will be giving up their own time and paying their own travelling expenses in order to participate.
There are now 4 awards to be voted by for the A4U community and again I think this is fine. If you look at most award ceremonies from the Oscars down to the NMA awards they are all judged by panels.
I also think that by putting a panel together that as Matt says above there will be much closer analysis. Last year people complained vocally about the merits of a couple of the award winners and there were cries of foul play. This will put a stop to that.
I really hope that as members of the biggest Affiliate Marketing community in the UK we can come together and provide a united front in support of this venture. If you have constructive criticism then by all means lets open a debate, but lets not stoop to cynacism and negativity that does our industry no good whatsoever. We often complain that our industry is seen in a negative light (Grubbygate) so why don't we all embrace the opportunity to show everyone how brilliant, professional, talented and sexy we are?
