Affiliates And Their Rose-Tinted Glasses

I was going to call this "You don't need a brain cell to be an affiliate, but it helps".

I constantly see affiliates moaning about drops in commissions or when merchants stop them brand bidding, ppc'ing direct to merchant, removing the use of discount codes or paying less commission for them.

Fine, they're unhappy when they're earning less - that's natural.

But what amazes is me is when other affiliates think they're immune to the usual scrutiny that other marketing channels face.

If a merchant is PPC'ing and the agency aren't meeting targets then they're pulled up on it. They may have to close it down or tweak it.

If SEO isn't working, the agency will expect to brought to task and get their backside in gear.

Just because an affiliate is driving sales - it doesn't mean that it is in the merchant's best interest to keep that relationship going in the same context.

Many affiliates will think WTF! This is because affiliates don't think like merchants. They don't really care to be honest - as long as they're getting their nice BACS payment at the end of the month all is good in the world of affiliate marketing.

From a merchant's point of view they'll tweak and modify their marketing channels until they obtain the desired return on their marketing spend. This may entail reducing commissions, stopping direct to merchant ppc'ing, changing how discount codes are used, or whatever they feel will achieve it.

It amazes me that affiliates that drive sales by creating certain types of discount code sites unwaveringly feel they're adding value when the first time their site or cookie enters the consumers world when they're sat in at the merchant's checkout with their credit card in hand, knowing exactly what they're buying and why, after spending a fair while on the internet researching the merchant and product, then spending more time (may be half an hour) in the merchant's site - oh then they see this box when they're 95% through the whole research and buying process that says "Enter Discount Code".

The user searches "merchant name discount code" and is met with a voucher code site that may or may not have any live/usable codes and a cookie is dropped.

You don't have to be a fecking genius to work out that in this instance the affiliate hasn't added any value what-so-ever to the whole research and buying process.

In my mind the user had already been "marketed to". In the next 30 seconds no more external marketing should affect the deal. The customer is sold to, they're there, they've got their plastic out, they're putting their numbers in!! HELLO BIG WAVING HAND!!!

I'm not saying there's only one way of being an affiliate. That's patently untrue. What I am saying is that affiliates shouldn't criticise merchants for wanting to make this channel work for them.

Just like affiliates measure and gauge the performance of PPC, SEO, link building, content creation etc. Just because affiliates analyse their EPC from different merchants and select which to work with, IT DOES NOT MEAN that merchants should not also analyse what works for them!

If merchants are happy for affiliates to take commission in the last 30 seconds of the sales process then that's fine for them. But for affiliates to say "we're getting you sales - so shut up" those merchants should ask "at what cost?"

Update: At least Ray is trying to add value/earn his commissions!!!