Instant gratification … don’t you just love it? Well, one thing is certain: webmasters sure do. In a market where the goal is to attract webmasters and their traffic to promote your sites, there are many obstacles to overcome to stay competitive with your percentage-affiliate program.Instant gratification … don’t you just love it? Well, one thing is certain: webmasters sure do. In a market where the goal is to attract webmasters and their traffic to promote your sites, there are many obstacles to overcome to stay competitive with your percentage-affiliate program.
Before we get into the technical aspects, an often-overlooked priority must be established in your business.
Customer Service:
Webmasters are your partners, so be there for them like you would for any other co-worker. These guys and girls are working their asses off to bring you traffic and sales, so reciprocate by giving a little back to them. Answer emails as quickly as possible and go the extra mile for them with research, tips and tricks. Make them feel appreciated and respected no matter what their size.
Converting sites:
When I chatted with webmasters during my cold calling days, I always would ask them what they are looking for in an affiliate, and what draws them to promote a new site. The answers were always the same: a site that converts, retains and has a good-looking tour. So keep in mind your tour is not only to sell memberships, it’s also there to sell webmasters on wanting to promote your sites.
As with my site, one technique you can use is offering a free password to any of your sites so that webmasters can check out what they are promoting, thus helping them create a better sales pitch.
Retaining members:
Retention is the key to a happy webmaster. It simply boils down to that very important question of “How much money am I going to make?” With industry statistics showing a lower retention per member, this is an even harder task then ever. By choosing a percentage affiliate, the webmaster is putting his faith in your product, and is willing to take a longer payout period for the potential of making more money. Do your part as the website owner to retain the customers you have. Offer plug ins, additional services, frequent updates, unique content and whatever else you can that will retain the recurring member.
Extras:
On top of paying a fair percentage of the sales, having a kick-ass tour, and maintaining a members’ area that retains customers, you still need to do more to compete with instant gratification of a pay-per-sign-up program.
A few of the extras I have added to our program include a monthly newsletter and contest.
Our newsletter includes tips, tricks, news, links, jokes and free advertising spots to members of my site http://www.streetbucks.com. This is a great way to stay in touch with your webmasters and offer them free promotion to their fellow webmasters.
Our monthly contest is one of my favorite extras. I really have a blast thinking up new ideas and prizes for our webmasters. I think the monthly contest helps with a little instant gratification, and also, it show that we really appreciate the webmaster’s support in choosing to work with us.
I like to mix up the type of contests we have so that some are open to anyone to win, and others reward the top producing webmasters. Last month for example, we gave away a guaranteed top spot on thehun.com to the webmaster with the most sales. The month before that, we had a cash prize banner ad contest where webmasters created and submitted banner ads, and other webmasters voted on their favorite ads.
So think outside the box. What methods can you use that will generate more traffic for you and your webmasters? Overall a percentage program will bring you a higher quality of webmaster, those that are in this for the long run and are not as concerned about instant gratification. This is true as long as the bottom line is: You’re making them more money.
In chatting with a very large affiliate program that offers pay per sign up and a percentage program, the owner had mentioned that he would rather have all his webmasters on per-sign-up because his sites retain for a duration of over four months, on average.
Webmasters: there are good percentage programs out there, just waiting to make you money, so check one out today!
