![\"Affiliate](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Affiliate-Marketing-1.jpg\")
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Image source<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n There was a time when marketing was a leap of faith. You\u2019d pay for radio and TV spots, press ads, and billboards. You\u2019d hand out leaflets, send mailshots and press releases. It was time-consuming and expensive.<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019d do all this in the blind hope it would work. But when someone walked through the sliding doors on a Saturday morning, there was no way of knowing which, if any, of your marketing campaigns had paid off. Not without market research. And there was no guarantee of accuracy there either.<\/span><\/p>\n Marketing was like throwing hundred-dollar bills out the window and hoping some of them might blow back in<\/span><\/p>\n Times change, and in our modern digital age, we\u2019re constantly bombarded with information from multiple platforms and channels. We need to be wary of device addiction, and learn <\/span>how to manage email overload<\/span><\/a>. For marketers, scattergun, untargeted marketing is now considered expensive, dated, and even annoying.<\/span><\/p>\n However, there is a modern marketing practice that utilizes all the benefits of our digital age. It combines data analysis, SEO, branding, and networking. It means you pay a small percentage of your profits, but only when you get provable, measurable results. It’s a key strategy for <\/span>eCommerce business growth<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n But how do you partner up? What messages should you communicate? <\/span>What is exploratory testing<\/span><\/a>, and what part can software play?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you give us 10 minutes of your time, we’ll give you some fantastic insights into digital marketing. You scratch our back, we’ll scratch yours, everyone wins. That’s how this works. Welcome to the world of affiliate marketing.<\/span><\/p>\n Image source<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Let’s say you run <\/span>OnlineStoreOne.com<\/span><\/a>. Cool URL, by the way. You have a healthy database of customers on your CRM that you\u2019ve spent many years and many dollars compiling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Now look over at <\/span>OnlineStoreTwo.com<\/span><\/a>. They also have an enviable database that\u2019s taken time and money to accumulate. For minimal expense, you could cross-pollinate your databases and share the wealth of your years of business building.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Affiliate marketing is a similar principle to backlinks in SEO. You include a link to a partner site on your blog, and they do the same in return. You\u2019re effectively pooling your CRM databases. Over time, you build a rich <\/span>affiliate marketing program<\/span><\/a> and pass your customers back and forth like a soccer ball. The benefits of eCommerce are numerous.<\/span><\/p>\n Before you launch your affiliate marketing program, consider what it can do for you to make sure you\u2019re fully capitalizing on opportunities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For a single click-through or conversion, you pay a small percentage of your profit for that sale. But you only pay for the first sale, and it’s a sale you wouldn’t have gotten without the affiliate clickthrough. Plus, that first sale could turn into a valuable and loyal repeat customer. You don’t pay your affiliate any commission for those future sales.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n From a simple dashboard panel, you can see exactly how many new converts you’ve had and where they’ve come from, so you know which of your affiliates are proving successful and which relationships to pursue more closely. You can track your progress with <\/span>eCommerce marketing automation<\/span><\/a> tools.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Because you only pay for successful converts, there’s no waste.<\/span><\/p>\n Affiliate marketing flips ROI on its head. You invest in your returns. You pay a small percentage on successful converts from money that’s already in the bank.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n When someone is a loyal customer of a store, they\u2019re likely to trust the sites and products they link to. This improves <\/span>brand awareness<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Search engines love relevant links to independent content. If they get clickthroughs from your users, all the better. Similarly, if your content is linked on other websites, you’ll shoot up SERPs (search engine results pages). This is a great way of increasing your traffic at little cost.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Investment in affiliate marketing has grown year on year from just below $2 billion in 2010. In 2022, it\u2019s forecast to surpass $8 billion.<\/span><\/p>\n One of the key objectives of affiliate marketing is to raise your visibility. You want to increase traffic to your store from relevant customers so they can buy your products. But if your website isn’t optimized to comply with the latest Google algorithms, you won’t convert as many clickthroughs. A quick search will reveal numerous sites with basic failings.<\/span><\/p>\n Around a quarter of users<\/span><\/a> will abandon a website if it doesn’t load in four seconds. Speed and efficiency are essential in breaking through today\u2019s information overload.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The largest images on your site should be no more than <\/span>2,400 pixels wide<\/span><\/a>, but note that’s only for full-width images. Smaller images for listings don’t need to be that big. They\u2019ll slow down your load time and you\u2019ll lose customers before they’ve even seen your products.<\/span><\/p>\n Today’s shoppers use various devices and screen sizes, often in conjunction. From mobile and tablet to desktop, your website should be 100 percent functional and responsive.<\/span><\/p>\n Could your website be easier to navigate? A responsive menu system is essential for a smooth user experience. It’s also great for Google’s bots so they can easily navigate and index content. That means customers can find what they’re looking for when they search. <\/span>Website personalisation<\/span> can boost user engagement and increase interactivity.<\/span><\/p>\n When users land on your website, how long is their session time? Do you provide articles, blogs, FAQs, and relevant neutral links? Make your website a hub of useful information and engaging content. This will turbo-charge your SERP position.<\/span><\/p>\n Search engines like sites that regularly provide new content. They like sites that continuously update their current content too. That doesn’t mean superficial corrections or minor text edits. It means a wholesale refresh of the content. Google’s bots can differentiate between the two.<\/span><\/p>\n If you address these factors, you will increase traffic and <\/span>reduce shopping cart abandonment<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Image source<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Let’s get to the figures. You need to set a percentage commission for a successful conversion. This will be the figure you offer affiliates and must leave a high enough profit margin<\/a> to be sustainable. It usually ranges from five percent to 15 percent. The higher the commission you offer, the higher the class of affiliates you\u2019ll attract.<\/span><\/p>\n Affiliate marketing offers various benefits. It\u2019s therefore worth setting targets for what you want to achieve for your business. These might include:<\/span><\/p>\n Your affiliate marketing program will be easily scalable. It can grow as you and your affiliate’s businesses grow. Keep an eye on your targets so you know when to push and what is and isn\u2019t working.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As much as a strong affiliate can improve your business, a bad one can harm it. In strategy two, we looked at the optimization of your website. You should conduct the same analysis on your potential affiliate sites. You can use online tools such as <\/span>Ahrefs<\/span><\/a> to gauge their value.<\/span><\/p>\n Aside from the basic functionality of their website, selecting affiliates is a complex strategy based on various criteria.<\/span><\/p>\n Can you and your affiliate offer something meaningful to each other? Would both sets of customers benefit from using your services?<\/span><\/p>\n Ideally, an affiliate should be in a complementary market but not a direct competitor.<\/span><\/p>\n Does your affiliate offer credibility to your brand? Might your customers recognize the name and want to do business with them?<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019re going to align your business and everything you’ve worked for with someone else. When everything is considered, from branding to USP, who do you want to team up with? What’s your gut instinct?<\/span><\/p>\n As well as commercial affiliates, consider partnering up with influencers who are relevant to your industry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Image source<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n An affiliate is essentially a business partner. Treat them as such. Keep abreast of each other’s new products, strategies, and developments. As well as keeping your links program up to date, you might also exchange business tips and hacks. Show a genuine interest in their progress and carefully <\/span>manage affiliates<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n You should negotiate mutually beneficial links. Different products will appeal to different affiliates and their audiences.<\/span><\/p>\n Consider paying for banner ads on your affiliate’s site. The double-hit of a link alongside an animated GIF ad raises credibility and increases traffic. You can split-test this. See how many more clickthroughs you get from a banner-plus-link page compared to a link alone.<\/span><\/p>\n Advertising on a relevant page via a credible affiliate is valuable real estate. Plus, paying for advertising shows commitment to your affiliate. Suggest they advertise on your site and they\u2019ll likely return the favor.<\/span><\/p>\n When an affiliate link is in the form of a GIF or banner ad, there are three essential factors to consider.<\/span><\/p>\n Are your branding and logo strong and distinctive? Do they communicate what you do? Do they set you apart from your competitors? Is your USP clear and consistent? Consider <\/span>how to get brand ambassadors<\/span><\/a> who will work with you on this.<\/span><\/p>\n Is the product you\u2019re advertising relevant to your affiliate’s audience? Is your link on the most appropriate page? Are potentials likely to be interested in your product and convert?<\/span><\/p>\n Is your message succinct and clear? Is it engaging enough to grab attention at a glance? Is there a catchy and decisive call to action (CTA)?<\/span><\/p>\n If your clickthroughs are low, you’ve probably got one or more of the above factors wrong. If your clickthroughs are high but your conversion rate is low, there may be something wrong with your product page or your clickthrough message may be misleading.<\/span><\/p>\n Consider a discount or special offer for new converts. It’s worth taking a minor hit on a single transaction when you consider the lifetime value of a convert.<\/span><\/p>\n Image source<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n In most industries, buying habits change quickly. Links that work in January could be irrelevant by March. Keep an eye on your earnings per link. Automate as many repetitive tasks as possible with <\/span>Google automation tools<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Volume isn’t always the KPI. If a product page has a high average order value, you won’t need as many hits to make it worthwhile.<\/span><\/p>\n Track your affiliates’ statistics and compare them with your own. If they\u2019re consistently outperforming you, you should renegotiate or review your strategies.<\/span><\/p>\n The benefit of managing your affiliate program is you have control. You decide which organizations to align with and where you send your hard-earned customers. You can accelerate the process by utilizing <\/span>automated affiliate marketing<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Another option is outsourcing to a specialist marketer. It will save you a lot of time, and they may get better results than you would alone.<\/span><\/p>\n Amazon Associates<\/span><\/a> is a program that can help manage and improve your affiliate marketing. Rakuten and Shopify also offer alternatives.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Your links on affiliate sites should be constantly under review. The affiliate links on your site are just as important. Make sure they\u2019re all relevant and up to date. Various factors might lead to decisions about your campaigns.<\/span><\/p>\n You can continuously evolve your strategies in the following ways:<\/span><\/p>\n This could be a practical offer in terms of it being a product that\u2019s relevant to the occasion or you could use your message to associate a product with an occasion. You should always strive to make links relevant and topical. This makes them appear time-limited and immediate, which increases clickthroughs. Make your <\/span>sales strategies seasonal<\/span><\/a> or tie them to current apolitical events.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You might want to point potential purchasers toward a product that needs moving. This could be because of seasonal buying trends or because you have stock that\u2019s due to expire. Offer a discount to get it off the shelf.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"How](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/How-Affiliate-Marketing-Works.jpg\")
<\/p>\n1. Identify the Benefits of Affiliate Marketing<\/span><\/h2>\n
It’s cost-effective<\/span><\/h3>\n
It’s measurable<\/span><\/h3>\n
You don’t waste a single dollar<\/span><\/h3>\n
You pay nothing upfront<\/span><\/h3>\n
You benefit from the credibility of your affiliates<\/span><\/h3>\n
It\u2019s great for eCommerce SEO<\/span><\/h3>\n
![\"Affiliate](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Affiliate-Marketing-for-SEO-Marketing.jpg\")
<\/p>\n2. Optimize Your Website<\/span><\/h2>\n
Loading times<\/span><\/h3>\n
Optimization for different screen sizes and browsers<\/span><\/h3>\n
Dynamic user interface<\/span><\/h3>\n
Provide useful content<\/span><\/h3>\n
Regularly update your content<\/span><\/h3>\n
![\"Content](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Content-Update.jpg\")
<\/p>\n3. Set Goals<\/span><\/h2>\n
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4. Select Your Affiliates Carefully<\/span><\/h2>\n
Is your potential affiliate mutually beneficial?<\/span><\/h3>\n
Are they a direct competitor?<\/span><\/h3>\n
Do they have credibility?<\/span><\/h3>\n
Who do you want to work with?<\/span><\/h3>\n
![\"Credibility\"](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Credibility.jpg\")
<\/p>\n5. Develop Close Partnerships<\/span><\/h2>\n
6. Sharpen Your Message<\/span><\/h2>\n
Branding<\/span><\/h3>\n
Relevance<\/span><\/h3>\n
Clarity<\/span><\/h3>\n
![\"Clarity\"](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Clarity.jpg\")
<\/p>\n7. Continuously Analyze Data<\/span><\/h2>\n
Control vs outsourcing<\/span><\/h3>\n
8. Evolve Your Strategies<\/span><\/h2>\n
Tie-ins with cultural and sporting events or holidays<\/span><\/h3>\n
Products with a limited shelf life<\/span><\/h3>\n