The affiliate channel does not have the best reputation when it comes to transparency and the way we work. Nevertheless, we are convinced that it is an important channel in the marketing mix and can make a significant contribution. However, this does require a thorough effort on the part of the advertiser. You can read all about it in this blog.
The affiliate channel is often unfairly underrated, which means that advertisers (unfairly) pay relatively little attention to it. The channel is often regarded as “Plug and Play”, where publishers are provided with all the basic necessities such as a banner set and a product feed, but without the essential, in-depth layer in the form of relationship management. As a result, an affiliate campaign can degenerate relatively quickly into a so-called Black Box that, although it results in performance, lacks the desired transparency. It is therefore not without reason that the affiliate channel has acquired a sometimes somewhat dubious reputation over the years. This is a shame, because a well-tailored affiliate program can play a significant role in all aspects of the Customer Journey. In addition, relevant affiliates can often make a significantly larger contribution than what a standard partnership on an affiliate basis involves.
In order to use the full potential of the affiliate channel while creating transparency, it is first and foremost necessary to reserve sufficient time and attention for the channel. The success of an affiliate campaign depends on the efforts of the various affiliates. In order to strive for maximum results, it is therefore very important for advertisers to put themselves in the position of affiliates and to critically analyze their own campaign from a publisher perspective.
The latter is relatively easy to achieve by creating a publisher account with the affiliate network to which the campaign is affiliated. From the publisher interface, the set up campaign can easily be compared with that of the competition based on the general terms and conditions, the commission model and the quality of the available promotional materials. If your own campaign differs negatively from competing programs in one or more aspects, this may be a reason for affiliates to prefer to promote competing campaigns. It is therefore wise to periodically compare the campaign with the other range of campaigns in the market segment based on the aspects mentioned and to consider them critically. An important question here is: as a publisher, would I want to promote my own campaign? But also: as an advertiser, am I satisfied with the publishers that are active for my program? Applying market conditions, an attractive commission model and providing high-quality promotional materials are a basic requirement to achieve the maximum result from collaborations with publishers.
In addition to the various basic requirements, it is also relevant to work on the relationship with the various publishers. The regular sharing of offers and a quick, good response to questions from publishers is a good starting point.
Now, it is not necessarily the case that this means that the advertiser must build a warm relationship with each of the affiliated affiliates. After all, there is often a select group of publishers who are responsible for the majority of the campaign's performance. It is therefore important to build a good relationship with this group of publishers in particular. By entering into strategic collaborations that are interesting for both parties, it is possible to significantly increase the overall level of the affiliate campaign. We have mentioned it before, but here the focus is shifting, as it were. from affiliate marketing to partner marketing. This is a development that has been going on for some time and is therefore the fresh, innovative wind that the canal needed so much. A development that secures the future of the affiliate channel.
It is good to mention that such strategic partnerships are not limited to cooperation based on a standard Cost Per Sale fee. In fact, strategic partnerships offer space to coordinate other compensation models and different forms of promotion. This includes, for example, coordinating the promotion of the most important moments for the advertiser throughout the year and scheduling evaluation moments, giving both advertiser and publisher the opportunity to have their say.
Through strategic partnerships, the advertiser therefore gets more control and clarity about how the publisher promotes. Opting for strategic cooperation with a selection of partners instead of taking a more general, quantitative approach therefore contributes significantly to the transparency of the affiliate channel.
To be able to use the full potential of the affiliate channel, it is not just a matter of providing all possible tools in the form of promotional materials, an attractive commission model and clear conditions. Relationship management plays a role that should not be ignored. By focusing on a strong relationship with the publisher, the advertiser not only gets the favor factor, but can work transparently towards the best possible results so that the affiliate channel can ultimately play a significant (er) role within the entire marketing mix and thus receive the recognition it deserves.
