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Red Letter Day was famously saved from administration by Dragon Peter Jones and Theo Paphitis in August 2005 - Since then the company placed a major focus on growing affiliates sales from Q3 2007. As a result affiliate sales value increased 60% from 2007 to 2008 and by 101% from January to June 2008 to June 2009. In this session Angela and Joshna identify the strategies that have driven this rapid uplift and resulted in their highly commended award at the a4uAwards earlier in the year. Topics for discussion include how to effectively create noise for your programme and grab affiliates attention, developing a flexible and workable commission structure, affiliate communication strategy, running programmes on multiple networks, effective de-duping policy, tailoring strategy based on the affiliate demographic and new angles such as the barriers to video content.
Citation preview
‘From Zero to Hero’
Joshna PatelAffiliate Manager
Angela GreenwoodOnline Marketing Manager
How Red Letter Days fast-tracked a successful affiliate programme
Our affiliate programme
Incentives
Recruitment
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
• Affiliate sales value increased by 105% from Jan-Sep 2008 to the same period this year
• Highly Commended for Best Retail Affiliate Programme at the 2009 a4u Awards
• Affiliate sales have gone from 13% of our total web sales in 2008 to 30% today
Introduction
Getting started
Red Letter Days affiliate growth
Red Letter Days Affiliate Sales
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2008
2009
2009 forecast
Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Getting started
• A successful programme needs buy-in from all areas of the business
Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Getting started• Choosing a network:
Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Getting started
• Set clear policies and guidelines
– Deduping against other channels?
– In what cases will commission be declined?
– What is your PPC policy?
– Any types of domain names off-limits?
– Notice periods for programme changes
IAB ethical merchant charter can help you
Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Getting started
• Make your site affiliate-friendly and minimise leakage:
Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Setting commission levels
• Know your margin & return rate
• What are competitors offering?
• Keep it simple
• Different commissions for different products
• Commission on VAT and delivery?
• Incentive budget
• Bespoke rates
Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Voucher code affiliate commissions
• Flexible approach: affiliate choice of discount plus commission within parameters:
– Discount + commission = maximum of 13%
– Discount code no more than 10% (unless short-term exclusive deal)Incentives
Day-to-day
Communication
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
The day-to-day
• A day in the life of Joshna!
– Validating commissions
– Finding new affiliates• Who’s working with your competitors• a4u forum• High ranking on desirable search terms• Convert paid advertising pitches
– Responding promptly to enquiries
– New creative and maintaining product feed
– Communication
– Keeping up with industry developments
Incentives
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Day-to-day
The real day-to-day!
Incentives
Communication
Commissions
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Day-to-day
Listen!
• Listen to ideas from your affiliates – they are most likely working with your competitors!
• Read key affiliate blogs to keep updated on industry news
• Get an affiliate account and see what they see
• The better the relationship, the more likely they are to promote you
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
a4u forum
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Network communication
Email• Weekly top offers
• Seasonal or special promotions
• Segment your list and target
• Include deeplinks for cutting and pasting
• Give expiry dates for any offers
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Programme changes
• Communicate well in advance
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Red Letter Days affiliate blog
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Making yourself known
• Interact with your affiliates wherever they may be – a4u forum, Messenger, email, phone, events, Twitter, pub!
• Consider supporting an affiliate event e.g. contribute prizes, money towards bar tab
• Use your photo when posting on a4u ForumIncentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Creative & tools
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
PPC affiliates
• Potential to drive big sales volumes & fill gaps in your own search marketing campaign
• Clearly outline your PPC policy
• Regular updates on top sellers, seasonal campaigns and special offers
• Ensure robust and up-to-date datafeedIncentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Voucher code affiliates
• Issue bespoke codes so you can monitor success/misuse
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Cashback affiliates
• Leverage community loyalty to build brand awareness and sales
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Content affiliates
• Innovative use of customer reviews and Flickr photostream
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Email affiliates
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Video content
• Suitable for your product?
• Barriers to uptake
• Consider incentivising use of video
• Provide a generic video that doesn’t need regular updating
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Product feed
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Banners• Offer a good range of
variations and sizes
• Overwrite existing seasonal banners/special offers
• Keep your banner and link area tidy and simple
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Co-branded landing pages
Incentives
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative & tools
Incentives
• Team building events to strengthen relationships
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative
Incentives
Incentives
• Quarterly incentive scheme treats affiliates as individuals rather than ‘one size fits all’
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative
Incentives
Incentives
• Christmas 2009 incentive:
– Holiday prizes that all affiliates have a chance to win
– Guaranteed prizes for hitting various sales tiers
– Hampers delivered in time for Christmas
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative
Incentives
Incentives
• Good incentives are talked about …
Day-to-day
Summary
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative
Incentives
Summary
• Building a successful affiliate programme is like building successful long-term relationships!
– Find like-minded partners
– Communicate, communicate, communicate
– Listen, understand and fulfil their needs
– Reward the good stuff
– Show them LOVE
Day-to-day
Introduction
Getting started
Commissions
Communication
Creative
Incentives
Summary
