Newbie Question

[mmry72]

I am starting up a new website and I am wondering if what I am venturing to do is actually an affiliate situation. Allow me to give an example:

I would have a website let's say for Home and Garden supplies.
I have a search engine on my website which allows the consumer to search for all his home and garden supplies.
He types 'rakes' into search engine. Search results give him several options of rakes. These rakes are from various retail stores (Home Depot-Lowes etc) from here he buys his rake of choice from whatever retailer and goes on his merry way.
For me to use these retailers on my website, in this fashion, would that be consider usage of an affiliate program or would it be something else?
Any help would be eternally appreciated!
Thank you

 

[Linda Buquet]

Yes what you are describing is exactly what affiliate marketing is. You attract the visitors but when they see something they want to buy on your site, they go to the merchant to buy it and the merchant pays you a commission.

However the search engine idea on your site, while doable would take some very advanced programming and is not the standard way it's done. EXCEPT if the merchant offered a search box you could put on your site - a few do.

Typically if you had a home a garden site you'd have all the products on your site so the visitors could browse products, see pictures and prices. This would be possible via the use of what's called a datafeed. Then after he found the product he was interested in, he would click and be taken to the merchant site to complete the purchase.

The other way it's done, you could have text links and/or banners leading to the merchant OR you could have links or banners leading to the merchants main category pages. So you'd have a page with buttons for rakes, shovels, seeds, plants and each button would take visitors to that category page at the merchant site so they could shop around there and find the product they want.

Hope I didn't make things more confusing. If any of the above sounds like what you want to do and you have other questions, just ask. We're here to help.

 

[mmry72]

Thanks so much for getting back so quick. Let's see....

Im looking to create an easy one stop shopping situation.
Consumer buys items through me from 'them' without having separate search engines from separate retailers. Not possible, or huge undertaking, or super easy ?

My search engine 'tapping into' all retail store search engines that I am affiliated with, would be a huge undertaking from a programming perspective? Can you quantify that for me so I can understand better? major money? major time?
Iam Grateful for your help.

 

[Linda Buquet]

Im looking to create an easy one stop shopping situation.
Consumer buys items through me from 'them' without having separate search engines from separate retailers. Not possible, or huge undertaking, or super easy ?

My search engine 'tapping into' all retail store search engines that I am affiliated with, would be a huge undertaking from a programming perspective? Can you quantify that for me so I can understand better? major money? major time?

I'm not sure it's possible and/or advisible.

1) It would be a major programming feat. You need to understand how affiliate tracking works. You'd have to pull complete product datafeeds from each merchant THROUGH each different affiliate network, because each product needs a special link in order to track and give you credit. That's just the tip of the ice burg.

2) Not sure it's advisable or would work on a practical level either. Why would anyone go to your site if all it had was a search box? It?s the product data and descriptions that give the search engines and the visitors a reason to visit your site. If someone searches Google for extra long handle rake or blue shovel your site has no chance of being found in the search engines if you don't have those product descriptions on your site and all you have is an empty search box.

These are just a couple very basic things and my carpal is bothering me so it's all I can type right now. but there is a lot more that makes this a challenge and not worth the effort because it's not a good model IMHO.