What are the Benefits of an Affiliate Program?
Developing an affiliate program is no small task. It
requires a dedicated program manager, financial
investment, a solid strategy, and a focus on finding and
keeping the best affiliates. Done right, it can bring a
number of benefits.
Win-Win Situation
You do not pay the affiliate until he/she has delivered
the desired outcome and the affiliate makes money
without having to worry about orders, inventory,
shipping, or customer service.
Lower Customer Acquisition Costs
According to McKinsey and Company, average customer
acquisition costs for television advertising can be
approximately $230 CDN; for a specialty magazine the
cost is around $125 CDN. Affiliate customer acquisition
costs average approximately $70 CDN.
Improved Exposure and Brand Awareness
Affiliates have access to a large pool of clientele in
markets that you may not be able to effectively reach
through traditional marketing methods. If you have a
large base of affiliates your exposure is increased
more.
Reduced Marketing Costs
Gaining access to new markets is an expensive
undertaking. Affiliates provide access to potential
clients. You simply find the affiliates that have access
to the markets you are interested in.
Better Reach
Affiliates can sell your products and services through
various means including banner ads, text links, rich
media, or through a newsletter. Utilizing these various
marketing methods is important since some forms of
online marketing, such as banner ads, are easily
filtered by software or immune to potential customers.
Business Focus
While affiliates do the pre-selling, you can concentrate
on other aspects of your business such as product
research and development.
Measurable Results
Since you pay for performance it is much easier to
measure and predict customer acquisition costs.
Affiliate marketing management software also enables you
to identify trends in your program and provide you with
data that can be used to improve your strategies.