Hello - Should We Start Affiliate Program?

[armysurplus]

hello everybody,

i could use some help/advice on the affiliate topic. We own a small online biz, have been doing it for a few years now, family owned, retail of clothing and military surplus, mostly footwear. Ive given some thought to using some type of affiliate program but dont really know where to start. We use oscommerce as our cart/site and it has some settings that can be customized for affiliate settings, but it seems everywhere I turn, most affiliate programs are scam/hype type products or digital in nature. Is there even a place for our boots in the affiliate world? We sure do have plenty to sell at a very low cost, and feel like exposure is the only thing holding us back. I really dont like the idea of a pay per click and would rather see performance based. What types of percentages can I expect to have to pay for my type of products ? Or maybe just organic SEO and other methods are better for our lines? Thanks

 

[Linda Buquet]

Hi armysurplus,

Welcome to 5 Star. Thanks for joining us.

I moved your post to the merchant forum where you hopefully will get more help than you would in the intro forum.

I understand what you are saying and there are a lot of scammy or ebook type affiliate programs out there. However many of us in the industry focus on the retail side of the business, where the legitimate affiliate programs are. Almost every major retailer like Macy's, Walmart, Sears and others have affiliate programs. Zappos has one of the most successful affiliate programs out there. They sell shoes and did so well they were purchased by Amazon.

So yes, an affiliate program would be appropriate for your type of products and could even do well if done right.

You need to check to see what other affiliate programs in your space pay. Find retailers that are similar to your company and see what commission they are paying. My guess is it's in the 8-12% range.

If you read this section of the forum you'll find a lot of information about starting an affiliate program. Hope this helps and feel free to ask more specific questions as you have them.

 

[Linda Buquet]

Here are some related affiliate programs and what they pay.

US Cavalry - 6%
U.S. Cavalry - Affiliate Program

Soldiercity 5 - 10%
SoldierCity Affiliate Program

Zappos 5-15%
Zappos Associates Program

 

[armysurplus]

That would be great signing up affiliates at 6-10% I could keep my pricing very competitive as Im used to giving away that much or more to online auctions. So is this something that is normally done on my own as a merchant or part of some affiliate "organizer" service or something? Where can I go to find dependable affiliates?

 

[Ron Bechdolt]

One of the best ways to find affiliates is to join a network such as Shareasale, Linkshare, Commission Junction, Google, Avantlink (there are more but those are the top ones out there). They already have thousands of affiliates and affiliates have the ability in most to search for certain products or merchants.

However, that said it really helps to have an experienced person running your affiliate program that knows how to set up the banners and links affiliates might use, setting up a datafeed of products, and just the day to day communication with the affiliates. Otherwise, if you just simply put your program up at a affiliate network, it's kind of hit and miss if you will get any affiliates. A good affiliate manager can recruit affiliates as well as running your program.

Now, you can hire a dedicated affiliate manager (might not be the best option just starting off), you can hire a outsourced affiliate manager (like myself and others that run several affiliate programs for different merchants) or some networks even have staff inhouse that can promote your program for you through their network.

It is great to see you doing your homework and investigating things as you are. Some merchants simply think affiliate programs are just part of their advertising budget and don't realize the entire scope of how it all works. Your work up front will really help you and your program as it takes off and grows.

Oh, final note - regarding commissions listed above, realize that you pay the affiliate a commission, the network makes a small commission and if you hire an affiliate manager they get a portion as well. It is good to look at the overall cost of the program (including any bonuses you give affiliates) when determining your final affiliate commission.