The first Affiliate Summit Central was an excellent event and it was great to catch up with some old friend, while learning a few new tricks or two from new friends. It was a smaller event which provided the opportunity to have more face time with affiliates and business partners. Hats off to the organizers!
During my round table speaking engagement, I met some noob and also a few advance skill individuals, but I was glad to help everybody.
Here are some tips that I summarized based on “What to look for in a CPL” session. What I would suggest is to go back to the core of affiliate marketing with these four steps.
- Step 1 – Identify your strength
Identify your strength and what you do best? Are you a PPC expert, or Matt Cutt’s twin, or do you have an opt-in customer database where you are able to market to them. What are you passionate about and have the skills to execute it flawlessly.
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In the ongoing state-by-state battle over tax collection on affiliate website sales, companies like Amazon to Overstock.com have been in the lime light of affiliate marketing as they threatened to terminate affiliate relationships, or make a stand against those proposed legisligation. eCommerce affiliate programs are critical for any affiliate/publisher, but if you are not doing any Cost-Per-Lead (CPL) program, they are leaving money on the table by not taking advantage of CPL affiliate programs.
If you are an affiliate marketer, and will be at Affiliate Summit Central -Austin; swing by the Round Table sessions to learn about more about CPL and expand your earning potential.
When: Tuesday, May 15
Location: Salon C
Time: 4:00pm-5:30pm
For those who have questions you would like to address, you can reach me @ericewe or email me.
Update 5/18/2012: You can find a recap of what I presented at Affiliate Summit Central here.
Hackers Stuff Amazon Associates Affiliate Program's Cookies
The core of an affiliate program is the ability to have an accurate tracking and reporting system that compensate publishers (affiliates) accordingly. Behind the scene of the tracking system are cookies and scripts that help with the tracking. Large companies like Amazon.com to the small eTailers often utilize cookies for thier affiliate programs.
Apparently, hackers are using a sophisticated JavaScript exploit hidden on dozens of online forum sites to drop cookies onto the computers of millions of unsuspecting visitors. Ben Edelman mentioned that hackers targeted at Amazon Affiliate program on such a large scale that the hackers have utilized over 200 different Amazon Associates IDs in order to prevent Amazon from noticing just how much traffic is being generated from just one source. Their excercise examined over 500,000 websites and some of the websites identified were searchenginewatch.com (Alexa traffic rank #2045), webdeveloper.com (#2822) and redflagdeals.com (#3188).
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If you don’t have a Mobile website, you might want to put in on your 2012 marketing plan. Here are some facts that Google published:
More kids know how to use a smartphone than tie their shoes!
More Americans own a mobile phone than have a passport.
20 million U.S. households no longer have a landline.
2/3 of mobile users use their phone’s backlight as a flashlight.
The most commonly texted “word” is simply the letter “R”.
Here are six basic fundementals on developing a successful mobile website on a shoe string budget.
Checklist for creating a mobile website
1. KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid
You don’t need to have neon blinking animations, or flying pigs on your mobile site. Present the mobile users with what they are looking for in as little clicks, or touches as possible. You don’t need an eleborate website,but plan on using icons/text wisely. Ensure that your mobile site will work on all major mobile OS (Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android, BlackBerry’s OS).
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