I was hoping to get some real feedback on the feelings some of you Super Affiliates have on joining an Independant Merchants program over an affiliate network like CJ or Pepperjam. My opinion, is when an affiliate joins an affiliate network, it is a benefit that you can search through and choose programs very easily... But at what cost? When these networks are sucking 20%+ out of the commissions, especially for big ticket items, you the affiliate lose money because the Merchant has to pay the network that fee. For example. I am running a $100 CPA program. We are not using CJ, Pepperjam, or any of the major networks. Contacting individual websites has been very effective, and half of our affiliates fall in the top 100k sites of Alexa. Plus, my affiliates earn ALL $100 out of the commission, AND our company pays out weekly with no minimums. If I was to list this program under CJ, it would be a $75-$80 commission for my affiliates. So that's a $20 loss per deal. If an affiliate averages 1 Sale per day, you're taking about losing $7300 for the year in CJ fees! What do Super Affiliates look for in Independant Merchants running their own affiliate program? I want to make sure all of the tools are provided for in what we are offering. Any comments would be welcome!
First of, as a merchant, you need to stop thinking that you are the only merchant around that the affiliate deals with. there can be thousands of merchants that the affiliate wanna try out and if he needs to sign up to each one of them it will be a nightmare, not to mention a bunch of emails he will get into his mailbox. Maybe on Cj they will find a merchant that converts much more easier with a $80 payout instead of yours at $100 and that way they can earn much more by trying different merchants. Now i ain't saying private affiliate programs are bad, they are good for large companies in scale who put their mark on the affiliates choice whether they want it or not, programs like eBay that run even multiple private and non private affiliate programs, now if i were an affiliate that was a deal for me. Another aspect you need to look at is the fact that merchants can disappear leads, while at network, it is being monitored by 3rd party, so that's additional plus. add guaranteed payments to that and you have a winner. Multiple merchants + Security and trust + guaranteed payments + reputation among the network (more affiliates use it for different merchants bring more reputation to it) = success for the affiliate While you are thinking you need to give away much bigger cut, first make sure it will convert and that means expanding your reputation. even eBay didn't had an affiliate program at first, on cj at the other hand they gained many affiliates and they moved with it to a private affiliate program now.
Are you able to have your own affiliate program, while posting on a network at the same time? Can I run the independant at $100/ while at the same time having an $80/ campaign running on a CJ? Or is it part of their terms not to overbid them? Or is that a way to draw new affiliates to convert them to signup directly?
I've had my biggest success with direct relationships (rather than affiliate networks.) What do I look for when working with an independent? High payouts and high conversion rates of course! And an easy to use interface with tracking available. Nice looking banners and other promotion materials are a definite asset as well.
Foe me, the big plus of going through networks is les people to deal with! I really don't have time to go and check 300+ individual reports!
Of curse they allow both having your own affiliate program and network program as well. That's shouldn't be none of their business.
Yes CJ allow you to work with merchants directly. You have to approach those merchants to see if they have an inhouse program. Inhouse programs can be a good option, you can get a higher payout and more help from the affiliate managers (if they are any good).
Yes, I have the inhouse program, but also am considering listing it on the CJ network. If I listed my affiliate program through CJ, can you contact the affiliates themseleves directly is the question.
Yes you can contact them directly once they have joined your program. You can also send direct emails to recruit affiliates into your program for a fee per email, this you can target by category.