Marketing Pilgrim

When Google decided to buy DoubleClick, it sent some shock through the search marketing industry. DoubleClick has owned Performics, the third largest affiliate network, since 2004. Performics not only provided affiliate marketing services, but also search-engine marketing (SEM) and search-engine optimization (SEO) services.

Suddenly it looked like agencies would be competing against Google - a serious conflict of interest. Agencies were suddenly worried that Google would give away the services that they sold to clients. And Performics may get unfair advantages, such as insight into Google’s algorithms (more details from InfoWorld).

Click here to continue reading...

I don’t know if this had anything to do with Shoemoney’s cajoling but eBay is going solo and bringing their affiliate program in-house. They’re calling it the eBay Partner Network and launched a new blog about it.

As of April 1, 2008 the program will be dropped from the largest affiliate network - Commission Junction. They handle the reporting and pay affiliates in behalf of customers like Yahoo!, Home Depot, and Buy.com. Commission Junction is owned by ValueClick (which recently had some bad news of its own).

Click here to continue reading...

Affiliate Summit, a conference for affiliate marketers and affiliate managers, just ended in Las Vegas. I usually attend but I didn’t go this year. Gary Marcoccia at AvantLink told me about a new affiliate tool that debuted at the Summit, that I wish every affiliate network had. AvantLink is a smaller network of affiliate programs.

The tool is called the Affiliate Link Encoder (ALE) and it makes the process of adding affiliate links automatic. Any time you link to a product or service with a merchant in Avant Link’s network, a piece of javascript automatically changes the links redirects it to an affiliate link. As an affiliate this would make my job much easier, because it’s so tedious to change your links one by one.

Click here to continue reading...

Microsoft has launched a new affiliate program for paid search ads (Microsoft adCenter) and their security and PC backup service Windows Live OneCare.

There are two ways Affiliates can earn cash.
1. Each time someone signs up for a free trial of Windows Live OneCare.
2. The Microsoft adCenter program - which I can’t find details about - but you can earn cash each time someone you refer from your site signs up for paid search ads.

They are launching Microsoft adCenter with a $50 ad credit for your visitors (Andy ought to sign up Marketing Pilgrim!).

Click here to continue reading...

Internet advertising as a whole is steadily rising. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) announced in early October that Internet advertising has reached a new record of $4.9 billion for the first quarter of 2007. Last year first quarter revenues were at $3.8 billion - a 26 percent increase.

I recently read a MarketingSherpa article on one type of online advertising that is making a small comeback. Some call them banner ads some call them online display ads, but according to MarketingSherpa, they are back in vogue. Why? They are lower cost other online advertising methods. MarketingSherpa published a helpful introduction to this advertising medium.

Click here to continue reading...

iTunes is sweetening the deal for affiliates who promote their online gift certificates with 50% more commission. You can email, or buy and print a gift certificate in amounts from $10.00 to $200.00. They’re also throwing in a free iPod nano for the top performing affiliate.

That puts commissions at 7.5% for all sales generated until 12/31/07. But the catch is that affiliates must opt in to Offer 54.1 to earn higher commissions. This is good news for music affiliates, but it’s not for individual downloads, just electronic gift certificates. iTunes is run through LinkShare’s affiliate network.

Click here to continue reading...

At last, neuroscience is applying itself to understanding how that extremely artificial endeavor — advertising — engages our basic biological instincts.

Two pieces of science news will interest marketers. First, the more we can anthropomorphize products, the better we like them. Second, advertising can take the place of real memory in our beliefs about a product.

It seems that dancing raisins, talking cars and the Geico gekko — but probably not subservient chickens — can actually change consumers’ perceptions and attitudes, according to Pankaj Aggarwal (University of Toronto) and Ann L. McGill (University of Chicago).

Click here to continue reading...

Here’s one way to eliminate spam – corporal punishment. We all hate spam, especially the ones that advertise Viagra, and pills for penis enlargement (and as I write this I’m thinking of the related ads I might trigger just by writing this). You can rest easy knowing that the man responsible for around 30% of those ads won’t be spamming you anymore. He’s dead. Or at least that’s what everyone thought. Now it appears the story is a scam.

Click here to continue reading...

Amazon.com is offering affiliates a higher payout on Amazon MP3 music downloads to compete with Apple’s iTunes. At Amazon they call affiliates associates and typically their payouts aren’t very high - around 6%. But to boost adoption of their music downloads they are offering 20% commissions until January 2008.

Compare that to Apple that offers 5% commissions on iTunes. They also priced the downloads slightly lower - some are 98 cents at Amazon while iTunes are at 99 cents. Beginning on January 1st, commissions will drop to 10%, still double that of iTunes.

Click here to continue reading...

By Janet Meiners.

According to a report by E-consultancy retailers in the UK are seeing positive results from affiliate marketing. The research group surveyed 239 merchants this year and most of them have both online an offline presence.

A full 95% of brands said that affiliate marketing is ‘very cost-effective’ or ‘quite cost effective.’ The next most effective ways to acquire a new customer is paid search and then email marketing. On average the retailers spend 18% of their online marketing budget on affiliate marketing.

Click here to continue reading...

By Janet Meiners

Advertisers who want to keep their costs down must keep the quality of their landing pages up. Nothing new. But Google recently reiterated their policies on the Inside AdWords blog.

What does Google reward? In both natural and paid search the answer is quality - from a customer point of view. Google rewards landing pages that are easy to navigate and transparent. I will add trust and credibility. Create landing pages and sites that provide a good experience (quality content) for searchers and customers and Google will be happy.

Click here to continue reading...

By Ryan Douglas

ShareASale, a growing affiliate management company, released a widget creation tool early last month for merchants. With the ability for merchants to put together a customized widget, a large burden is relieved from the affiliates themselves. No longer does an affiliate have to constantly update their web site to reflect a merchant’s special offers which may include discount promotions, coupons and limited time offers. The unique ability of the merchant providing the content in the widget on an ongoing basis lets the retailer (merchant) have greater control over the desired outcome of their promotion. The merchant picks and chooses the items and offers being pushed to their affiliates. There exists a great opportunity for the affiliate manager to interact and customize offers, display colors and commission rates for specific affiliates.

Click here to continue reading...