A Practical Guide to Affiliate Recruiting

Transcription

1 A Practical Guide to Affiliate Recruiting

2 Why Recruit? 2 To be proactive about the growth of your program Network most likely doesn t have all the affiliates you need to really grow a program to it s optimum level. Maybe you re not on a network? If you re looking to grow your program with non incentive (coupon/cashback/loyalty) sites, you will need to recruit, especially if your products are niche. You can grow your brand and revenue through trusted publishing brands promoting your brand. To build the right blend of affiliates well balanced programs are healthy programs

3 Before you start reaching out. 3 Analysis of existing producers What types of affiliates are you working with? What are your KPI s and how do these look for different types of affiliates (blog/social, coupon, deal, loyalty, etc.) Before you burn time reaching out, know what these types of affiliates will bring in terms of value to guide your efforts. What does it cost to activate each type of affiliate and maintain the relationship? Does the network or platform you run through provide the tools that will be needed to work with the type of affiliates you re targeting?

4 Load up your toolbox 4 Decide on your approach Get your messaging together ( , social, phone) What onboarding resources will be required? Can you automate? What will your process be like? Have your approaches tailored to the in-network vs out of network recruiting, and by affiliate type for best results. It s not a one size fits all thing.

5 Internal Recruiting In Network 5 Low Hanging Fruit Already familiar with affiliate marketing Signed up for your network already and through the initial onboarding process (no delays) Theoretically know the network tools, so should be quick to ramp Some networks may require an incentive to be offered to use the tool to cut down on spamming (SAS) while other allow open contact. (AL, CJ) but may limit number of touches in a time period. Take advantage of any rankings if offered, but try to look at the full picture.

6 Internal Recruiting In Network (continued) 6 Can message a little differently than out of network affiliates Respect people s time, put together a message that speaks the language of the network and focuses on the metrics they will find important. Play up the tools in the network that work well for your program for that type of affiliate ex/ coupon and deal sites should hear about how often you put promo s out, internal coupon/deal tools or 3 rd parties like FMTC or Coupilia that you work with that will help them. For content affiliates, you would want to point out store builder tools, bookmarklet tools, etc. Know the network restrictions some limit contact count through their tools, some require an incentive. If you re limited, make the contact count.

7 Internal Recruiting In Network (continued) 7 If the network makes the contact info available, you definitely will want to grab this and plug into CRM for follow ups. Follow up I rarely get pick up on the first outreach - I generally see response on the 2 nd or 3 rd follow and sign up after that. Once you get a response, be clear about what you re looking for to save the affiliates time and manage expectations. Do all you can to put them in the best position to succeed right away by sharing what works for that type of affiliate. Success is addictive

8 Internal Recruiting Network Rep Assisted 8 Network reps have one main goal grow revenue for the network and they tend to have A LOT of client programs. This might not lend itself to growing a program the way you want to. Set very clear expectations on what you are looking for (and what you re not) and make sure that the network rep respects this. They do have access to data you don t so can be very valuable in terms of building prospect lists and handling contacts. Have them build lists based on your needs, and run them by you to make sure that your needs are addressed and policies are respected

9 Internal Recruiting Network Rep Assisted (continued) 9 If you do the outreach on your own, use segmented messaging as appropriate. If you re having your rep reach out make sure they do the same. Network reps can be a great resource. Just make sure they are working WITH you and FOR you as there can be temptations to drive numbers in ways you may not like.

10 External Recruiting Out of network 10 Get out your lunch pail it s time to go to work! Out of network recruiting can be really rewarding, but can definitely take a bit of time and effort as you might be introducing the concept of affiliate marketing to content producers who aren t currently working with affiliates Can be really productive for you if you do it in a smart and efficient way. Be willing to think outside the box

11 External Recruiting Types of affiliates 11 Blogs Social sites (FB, Instagram, Twitter) Forums Media sites (newspapers, radio stations, tv stations) Fundraising (sports teams, schools, churches, other activity groups) Podcasters

12 Who to target? 12 Who are your shoppers? Do you know the demo profile? Who s got the TRAFFIC? Who s got the TRUST How is ENGAGEMENT? Do they speak AFFILIATE? (if not, you ll need to teach them)

13 Recruiting Tools 13 5IQ GroupHigh Blogrolls on influential blogs Google Facebook, Twitter search

14 Bloggers 14 One of my favorite types of affiliates -

15 Bloggers 15 Your mileage may vary depending on niche Types of blogs personal,niche interest (shoes, fashion, sports), deals/savings Evaluate the blog for potential impact take a look at web stats, social following and engagement. Some of my biggest home runs have come with targeted team bloggers Are they trusted? Does their audience care?

16 Bloggers The Approach 16 Check their sites to see if they speak affiliate do they show disclosure messages, do they link to other programs (use 5IQ plugin), do they write content for offers, do they use any shop and support messaging. Do they at least work with Amazon? When you reach out the first time, definitely personalize. Let them know you d like to see if you can make them some money for their efforts. Don t overwhelm with your pitch and a bunch of data. When they come back, have a response ready letting them know exactly what you re looking for (text links and product ads in posts, reviews, disclosure) and what s in it for them Have a response ready that either links them to a whitepaper or a video or other content like a blog post that reinforces what you re looking for them to do.

17 Bloggers Objections 17 I ve tried affiliate marketing with banners before..didn t work I don t wanna post your banners I don t have time My readers might think I am spammy I ve never done this before, don t know how to start I get sponsorship money for banner ads Can you give me something to giveaway? All of these objections can be pretty easily handled with either a call, an FAQ, training videos or other training materials and using some success stories (anonymous of course)

18 Bloggers What works 18 It s not about the banners dummy Product Links and/or text links in content Shop and Support Navigation Links Storefronts or widgets Reviews (if appropriate and if they properly disclose) Let affiliates buy through links for their own use.. You want them experienced with your site and products. It s about content and about getting the products in front of the shopper with credibility lent from the trusted blogger to your brand.

19 Bloggers Caveats 19 Not all niches are equal some are tougher rows to hoe than others. mom blogger (they hate that) niche can be pretty tough as there is definitely a preference for sponsored posting Lots of angling for product for review so if you can t do that, you may have issues. Pushing for giveaways to build their list can hamper sell through if not handled right Might require a lot of training/handholding if they are new to the affiliate world can be a time suck if you re not prepared Many bloggers in cleaner niches are writers first, marketers distant second. Meet them where they are, focus on connecting with tools that meet them in their natural environments (WP or Browser)

20 Social Media 20 Look for engagement + size of following

21 Social Media Reaching Out 21 Reaching out on FB is pretty easy Message button I use a 2 minute video when I reach out that works to both recruit and onboard as it shows them the process I m looking for then to put into play. Explain what you re looking for and empower them to try it. I ve bonused affiliates up front to get them to boost a timely post. Engagement is more important than the follower count- watch for volume of discussion driven by members

22 Social Media What works 22 Make sure you provide the tools needed (custom link builder, SnapLinker, Product Discovery Bookmarklet, ) Allow them to Boost if your social media advertising policy allows it, at least to their own followers. Provide custom images to your top players like product collages We ve seen way better success from posting than from shop buttons or storefronts loaded up on shop tabs in FB pages.

23 Social Media (continued) 23 I ve yet to have great luck with Twitter as a standalone platform, most people just don t seem to be looking to be transactional there, but I do value a healthy Twitter following as a part of the marketing mix to push people to their site and more effective presentation of the offer. Instagram has paid off in smaller wins for us, we haven t tested any of the new tools that make it easier to tag shared images with affiliate links, so that likely impacts efficiency. In all social media promotion, look for promotion with transparency and in an organic style so you re not blowing audience trust with the social media site

24 Forums and Message Boards 24 They aren t dead and can be great partners.

25 Forums Reaching Out 25 Can be tricky a lot are missing Contact us info Use domain tools or sign up for an account to get access to admin. Ideas to suggest include a sticky post with Featured Product or Shop and Support messaging Can be amazing for special event opportunities Some might be engaged through third party tools like VigLink or Prosperent. AvantLink has a cool tool for this in the ALE

26 Fundraising Opportunities 26 Everyone is trying to raise money for their cause Opportunity for huge exposure to new shoppers Huge viral opportunity Creating demand in off peak seasons A well executed fundraising campaign can be awesome PR You re doing good

27 Fundraising Example 27

28 Fundraising Challenges 28 Does your network or platform offer them? In house solutions will require some dev/design resources to deploy. If you take this route, make sure it scales. Getting the word out look for opportunities to push from the top down by pushing through organizations

29 Fundraising Tools 29 SAS Storefronts good option if you re on that network. You design, they implement and manage the sign up/approval process and the fundraiser is locked to your program. In-house solutions 3 rd Parties like FlipGive

30 Podcasters Opportunities 30 Have a great connection with shoppers There are podcasts on pretty much every topic Podcasters like to make money for their efforts I m hearing major podcasts using affiliate marketing Amazon affiliates on PodCastOne network, etc.

31 Podcasters Challenges 31 Most podcast content isn t consumed while looking at web page or blog, even if they have one. Drive traffic to redirected page address? Who s going to remember that. Brand issues make sure you listen to the podcast for any content that could be brand offensive. Brand recognition on your end will make a difference, well known consumer brands have a better chance of getting in the door. The solution looks to be a vanity promo code with a shop and support message as a live read or produced spot.

32 My info: 32 Wade Tonkin Affiliate Manager Fanatics,