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ShareASale Pledges and Expectations...

Over the next few weeks I will be posting a series titled the "Pledges and Expectations". The goal of this series is to set out what we pledge to our clients, as well as what we then expect from them. The series will be about 5 posts long and will start with one regarding Outsourced Program Managers or "OPMs". So lets get started! :)


1. We consider OPMs or (Outsourced Program Managers) to be some of our most valued partners in the industry. OPMs provide a valueable service managing affiliate programs hosted on our network, as well as bring us in touch with new partners on both sides of our network. As a result of their expertise in management, we often are able to do things and provide services to OPMs that wouldn't work for individual merchant programs such as landing pages, partnership and events. We pledge to help OPMs grow their businesses in any way where we see is possible. We often

2. ShareASale also provides in-house management services through our Client Services Department. We pledge to any OPM that we will never approach a client that we know to be working with an OPM to market our own management services. On the occasion that a merchant client approaches us with questions about our services we will always discuss the situation with the OPM prior to any services being provided. In any situation such as that we would always prefer that the client stay with their current OPM.


3. We pledge never to share information that we have concerning an OPM firm with another OPM firm. This could include things like pricing information, conference attendance, etc...


4. We expect that OPMs managing programs on ShareASale show due respect for the affiliates of the network and merchant program. We expect that OPMs understand that each individual merchant program is its own entity and that OPMs should not utilize ShareASale tools to recruit an affiliate from one program that they manage to any other program. ShareASale goes to great lengths to protect the privacy of affiliates on our network and thus we expect OPMs to uphold that integrity. When using the ShareASale interface, newsletters and such should be specific to the merchant program and not be utilized to recruit to other programs that are managed by the OPM or general recruitment.



5. We expect that OPMs who utilize the ShareASale interface do not collect information from the interface for any purpose other than to grow that specific program that they are working on. For example, ShareASale offers full transparency into referral URLs of captured sale transactions... This information is provided so that merchants who have accounts on ShareASale can ensure the quality of their program, and to help them if they do find affiliates whom they suspect are linking to their program inappropriately. We expect the OPMs understand the purpose of this type of information and do not use it for any reason.



6. We expect that OPMs understand that they are leaders in the industry in several ways: Knowledge, experience, and public recognition.



Well... it is a start. It is also a two-way conversation...so if you have anything you would like to add from the merchant, affiliate, or OPM perspective...please post it here and I will let you know our position, etc...



Next up: Our pledges and expectations regarding affiliates utilizing PPC (Paid Search) campaigns on search engines.... stay tuned!!

Misleading Ads Abound...

I was reading Scott's post about a misleading ad he found on Google's GMail service... and just wanted to provide a few more examples of things that are easily found on the web if you spend enough time out there without a Popup-blocker.

This post won't really make sense unless you go and read Scott's first....

http://www.jangro.com/a/2008/03/03/talk-about-misleading-users/

Here are some more examples I found... I guess the premise of this I was (and I presume Scott was as well) quite dissapointed to see Google and Reunion that is more often occupied by companies such as the below:























While the ad on GMail may be harmless (I'm sure it is) ... both companies are aware that many of the ads that use deceptive tactics are NOT and can lead to unwanted software installations, etc...

Simple message: Don't betray your visitors.

Marketing with Respect

I just returned from Las Vegas and the Affiliate Summit West (which was phenomenal again - thanks to the founders Shawn and Missy and all of their staff!) - and actually was able to take a couple days vacation directly following in order to wind down and reflect on all the business that occurred during the week...

One of my first priorities was to listen to the keynote speech, as it had generated so much publicity and feedback - and I wanted to hear the complete speech for myself. Even though I am familiar with some speeches that Jason Calacanis had made in the past, I thought it important to listen before making any judgements.

So .... here are some thoughts:

1. Before you judge the speech by the snippets - listen to the whole thing. A lot of quotes have been re-distributed out of context, and posted as standalone lines with new meaning... So I encourage you to listen to the whole presentation before forming an opinion. It is worth the time - go here to listen:

http://blog.affiliatetip.com/archives/jason-calacanis-keynote-at-affiliate-summit/

2. I'd like to add my opinion on what affiliate marketing is into the ring as I don't believe he addressed all facets of this industry - and I believe that most of the negative comments made during the speech aren't applicable to the people with whom I work everyday.

The points he made are definitely spot-on regarding spam, thin sites, etc.... The reality is that we all already knew that. He referred to everyone as "you people", "affiliate people", "thin affiliate site people", etc... but I don't know too many people who were in attendance that fit into his grouping and labels.

As I said - his points regarding those sites are accurate. As Scott Jangro pointed out at http://www.jangro.com/a/2008/02/26/thank-you-jason-calacanis/ - it is certainly true that there are many internet marketers who are out there polluting the web, and making our jobs all much harder.

However, the people that I know who were at Affiliate Summit are building quality sites and communities and hate spam sites just as much as Jason does. He did mention that he was only referring to a smaller portion of the group in attendance - but honestly, I don't know that he realizes how many sites utilize Affiliate Marketing as a true revenue channel - and I don't believe he understands how broad the range of quality is out there. To his credit, Jason did (in my opinion) admit that he knows little about the industry that we have been defending since his speech - and asked for help in identifying what we all considered to be quality sites. His blog asks for sites here if you wish to participate: http://www.calacanis.com/2008/03/03/affiiate-marketing-done-right

Further, there is a significant difference between a site that intentionally "games" the system, and a site that one simply does not care for or like, etc ... There are going to be large volumes of sites on the internet that aren't necessarily the "best" or the "top 20" sites - but this is a POSITIVE product of the internet era. People going out and making sites that fit their eye, or fit their perspective is a key feature of the internet and one that shouldn't be lumped in with "spamming". Listen to this episode of "the show with ze frank" to get an idea of the power of "ugly freedom" - which is similar to what I am referring to here. http://www.zefrank.com/theshow/archives/2006/07/071406.html

(While you are at it ... I highly recommend listening to a few more of "the show" ... it is a really well done series which is both intellectual and entertaining. )

So ... what I am saying is that sure, a spammy site with yellow bolded text that goes on for hours with keyword stuffing is certainly bad for the industry and bad for the internet .... But be careful not to judge every site you come across as "thin affiliate spam" just because you don't like the site. There are going to be a zillion sites out there that are "ugly", but they cannot be considered spam simply because the intent behind their creation is not to take advantage of the system - they are just people expressing themselves on the internet the way that they want to. This isn't all bad - it is the internet - and in some ways it goes back to the basic internet principle of freedom. Unless I am reading Jason wrong, we disagree on this point - as he has mentioned that he only wants the "best" sites listed in his directory ... and that users "don't want diversity". My opinion is different ... I think that one of the reasons the internet has grown as fast as it has is the strong desire for users to see something different - something innovative. The ability to stop reading news from only 3 sources, and suddenly get it from 100, etc ... If he were to ever ask my advice concerning Mahalo, I would urge him not to turn away from sites just because he doesn't see them as "the best" - but to consider this point above.

I do agree with Scott Jangro that Jason's keynote is important because it indicates a point of view and a perception of our industry from the outside. This is our challenge and everyone should be in on it. Scott, Haiko, Carolyn, Shawn, Missy, Wayne, Pat, Jeff, Scott, Lisa, Tim, Todd, Dan, Larry - just a short list of people who know who they are that have talked with me about this ... we all know that there are bad apples out there that are causing our industry to look bad to the outside observer. I thank Jason for pointing this out to us because I think it is beneficial for everyone to know that despite what we see on the inside (positive growth, innovation, quality) ... it is also important how other sectors of the overall internet industry view us. My reason for the list of people above is hopefully to let everyone know that there are definitely people who recognize the problem and have been working to try to correct it ...

3. I disagree with Jason's statement that "affiliate companies" (which we refer to as Networks) don't "police stuff" in his words. Each of the major networks with which I am familiar has numerous folks dedicated to quality issues. SPAM, Adware, Malware ... etc... these are all things that we continually stamp out on a regular basis. Daily. Hourly. We are not ("affiliate companies") all stupid enough to allow our own well to be poisoned without putting up a fight against those who poison. As many people are aware, ShareASale operates in a "no-software" environment which would include things like Adware, Toolbars, Spyware, Malware, etc... We spend an enormous amount in terms of people power and money as well keeping our network clean. However - it isn't just us. I get emails and phone calls from my friends in many of the "affiliate companies" who share info with me or ask for help in some cases because they are all trying to do the same thing. At the end of the day, they might have different definitions of exactly what "clean" is - but the point is that we are all doing much more than was suggested in the keynote speech.

Jason likely doesn't think too much of our "affiliate company", which is fine... but I would guess if the two of us got a chance to talk we would agree on quite a few things regarding the pollution of the internet, the fact that it needs to be cleaned, the power of clean information, and disclosure. Unfortunately, it is my opinion that he didn't do too much research into what Affiliate Marketing is prior to giving his speech. I wish that he had contacted a few people in the industry for some information because the speech could have been even more powerful (and I do believe it was powerful) without being so off-putting if his use of examples was more accurate to the group in attendance.

4. As mentioned above... his points on thin sites and spam are entirely accurate. It is junk and we are all smarter than to get stuck making junk. I wholeheartedly agree with him that everyone should think big and ignore the fear of failure. These portions of his speech I found to be quite inspirational and are worth a listen. I don't think everyone needs to be a Silicon Valley bigwig- nor does everyone want to - but you can all find your own balance while thinking big and setting forward thinking goals.

5. I struggled with the thought of whether or not to bring this up - but since it leads to my next big portion of the blog, I thought I shouldn't leave it out.

I found it ironic that in a speech that was designed to point out internet marketers who were "poisoning the well" there could be such blatant disrespect for certain members of the audience and our industry in general. There is, in this one man's opinion, no need for the language that was used which was off-putting for many people in attendance. I also found it extremely disrespectful that Jason could not even be bothered to learn the terms and titles that we have given ourselves. Referring to people as "you people", "those affiliate companies", "affiliate people" ... these are disrespectful and in my opinion do just as much damage to the "internet well" as somebody creating a thin affiliate spam site. It comes down to respect in my opinion. Respect for the user, respect for the consumer, and respect for the people in the same room in which you were invited to speak. The lack of respect show for everyone in the room was detrimental to the speech and, in my opinion took away from many of the valuable messages that were in it.

That brings me to my overall point of "Marketing with Respect" ... the title of the blog post. This is perhaps the furthest down the page where someone has ever finally gotten to the point.

This Affiliate Summit was unique for me, as it presented me with multiple occasions where I thought to myself ... "Where is the respect in this industry?" Luckily there were dozens of wonderful moments to tide me over ... but I've put together a little mini-list of things that I think we could all do to improve the overall stature of our industry.

1. Respect for the consumer.


I'll echo Jason's comments here and suggest that tricking the consumer is not a good long term plan. Be honest, upfront, and you will benefit not only yourself but everyone in the long run. What is a good example of this that does apply to Affiliate Marketing? Coupon sites that advertise non-existent coupons. Sorry to pick you out of a crowd, but this practice is deceptive, and extremely detrimental to our industry in general. The practice is used to rank highly on search engines for general search terms, and I understand that you can't necessarily control where search engines rank sites - but you should be fully disclosing yourself that you have no actual coupon (if one doesn't exist). Another example? Adware. As most of you know, ShareASale is an Adware free network and we spend a ton of time policing and ensuring quality and cleanliness. Adware is deceptive to the consumer - and the distribution tactics are even worse. Using children to download new "Smiley" packages, only to hide an install of something else is not a long term business strategy. Everyone knows who the major Adware players are out there (note: I am making a distinction between Adware and Loyaltyware) - and I call on all major Affiliate Networks, as well as each CPA network out there to start stepping up to the plate and stamping this stuff out. Thank you to Dan and Larry for being with me on this and sharing the info that they have. Also - if you have a strong desire to clean up your individual network but don't know where to start, visit http://www.affiliatefairplay.com or contact me and I will get you in touch with the right people who can help you.

2. Respect for your industry

Competition is great - and welcomed in this industry because it signifies the growth that we all see. That being said, there is a respectful way to compete, and a disrespectful way to compete.

Example: Stop copying other user's content and claiming it as your own. One of the best moments of Jason's speech was when I heard a sentence that I know I have said myself nearly word for word. The internet is full of folks who believe that just because they can technically do something, that means that they can or should. Jason was spot on on this point. Just because you can write a spider that goes out and grabs content from somewhere else and aggregates it on your site for your own benefit is not an excuse to do it. Do you have users who post content on your site that belongs to someone else? Own up to it - those users are your responsibility. Creating a site that simply aggregates other people's work (without their permission) is not a long term business plan and it is harmful to the industry.

While we are on the subject, robots.txt is not an excuse. If you run a spider, that spider is your responsibility. Be respectful. Be reasonable. Be ethical. Again, as Jason pointed out ... just because you can technically do it doesn't mean it is right.

3. Respect for individuals.

Going over any example here is just going to make this sound like a sermon - which is not my goal .... So I will keep this really simple and suggest that everyone simply think before they speak or act. Our industry it small - and news travels fast. Don't put yourself behind the 8-ball or use message board anonymity to hide personal attacks or disrespectful comments. It doesn't make our industry look good and can't possibly help you in the long term. When at an event such as Affiliate Summit ... think about your actions! Every one of the companies and individuals in attendance are making an investment with their involvement - be respectful of that and your long term success in this industry will be much easier to achieve.


A few "thank yous" to round out the post - I'd like to thank Shawn and Missy for putting on another wonderful conference, and for introducing our industry to an outsider's perspective which has led to a wonderful discussion on where we should go. I'd also like to thank Jason Calacanis for putting himself out there and being a target because sometimes it is the only way to get others to think. I realize I've been critical of Jason at times on this blog but I certainly respect his work and his accomplishments and would welcome any chance I got to convince him that Affiliate Marketing is not entirely a big ugly spam world - but can instead add enormous value to a consumer experience.

If you missed the Affiliate Summit this time round, I think the amount of conversation going on afterwards should convince you that you shouldn't miss the next one. See http://www.affiliatesummit.com and register for Boston in the Summer.

Places you can find ShareASale at the Affiliate Summit

In case you are looking for us - here is a brief rundown of where we will be for the week of the upcoming Affiliate Summit....

Attending will be:

Brian Littleton, President/CEO
Carolyn Tang, Director of Client Services
David Zelken, Director of Sales
Sarah Beeskow, Affiliate Manager
Nate Beal, Marketing Coordinator

Sunday (Day 1)

12PM to 6PM - at our Meet Market Table in the "ShareASale Square" ... table #54

7PM to 11PM - the ShareASale "Under the Stars" party at the Palms Casino and Resort


Monday (Day 2)

10AM to 5PM at our ShareASale booth - #132 in the Exhibit Hall. If you would like to meet with us just come by anytime and we will schedule a meeting or go off for coffee/snack/etc...

5PM to 6:30PM the Affiliate Summit Pinnacle Awards Gala

Tuesday (Day 3)

10AM to 4PM at our ShareASale booth - #132 in the Exhibit Hall.

We hope to see a lot of you there! Safe travels.

ShareASale Network Newsletter

FEBRUARY 2008 FEBRUARY 2008 Welcome to the inaugural edition of the ShareASale monthly newsletter! In each issue, we'll introduce you to premier merchants within our network, take you through the trials and tribulations of both merchants and affiliates, and keep you informed of upcoming developments. We'd love to hear what you think! Feel free to contact us via any of the routes below: - ShareASale Online Forum on ABestWeb.com - ShareASale Blog - ShareASale on Facebook Industry Observation According to the National Retail Federation, consumers spent $16.9 billion on Valentine's Day last year. The survey indicated that 63.4% of consumers planned to celebrate the holiday, with the average male spending $156.22 on his loved ones, and the average female spending $85.08. Popular gifts included cards, candy and flowers. Merchant Spotlight Company: OverstockJeweler.com Commission Rate: 12% Return Days: 90 Hightlights: PowerRank 100, affiliate podcast, datafeed, widgets, coupons, keywords Join the OverstockJeweler.com Affiliate Program Based in the heart of New York’s Jewelry District, OverstockJeweler.com is constantly in tune with all the latest designs, trends, and celebrity hot lists. Not only that, but because of the outstanding vendor relationships this company has, they are able to offer stunning designer inspired jewelry well below list price. We sat down with affiliate manager Allen Miller of AMWSO to gain some insight into the company: Q: What is your key demographic? Allen: OverstockJeweler’s key demographic are men and women aged 20-35 that are interested in fabulous looking, heavily discounted, silver, gold, and diamond jewelry inspired by celebrity fashion and designer styles. Q: What are your peak seasons or holidays? Allen: Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. And for those of you that are ready to jump on the ball, here are some hot hot products we expect to fly off the shelves. (If you would like to promote the products below, simply ensure that you are part of the OverstockJeweler.com affiliate program, then copy and paste the code provided onto your own site.) Judith Leiber Inspired Black & Gold Austrian Crystal Diamond Goddess Evening Minaudiere Bag List Price: $1949.99 Our Price: $649.99 Van Cleef & Arpel Alhambra -Esque Inspired White Pearl & Yellow Gold Plated Clover Long 40" Necklace List Price: $349.99 Our Price: $129.99 David Yurman Noblesse Inspired Emerald-Cut Colored CZ Cable Ring MORE COLORS! List Price: $119.99 Our Price: $39.99 Tiffany -esque Inspired Alphabet Sterling Silver Pendants List Price: $69.99 Our Price: $24.99 <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?u=!!USERID!!&b=38722&m=8243&afftrack=&urllink=overstockjeweler%2Ecom%2Fpx%2Df843%2Ehtml"><img src="http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/overstockjeweler_1986_225355882" border="0"><br>Judith Leiber Inspired Black & Gold Austrian Crystal Diamond Goddess Evening Minaudiere Bag</a><br>List Price: $1949.99<br> Our Price: $649.99 <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?u=!!USERID!!&b=38722&m=8243&afftrack=&urllink=overstockjeweler%2Ecom%2Fvanclarinjew%2Ehtml"><img src="http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/overstockjeweler_1986_31656972" border="0"><br>Van Cleef & Arpel Alhambra -Esque Inspired White Pearl & Yellow Gold Plated Clover Long 40" Necklace</a><br>List Price: $349.99<br>Our Price: $129.99 <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?u=!!USERID!!&b=38722&m=8243&afftrack=&urllink=overstockjeweler%2Ecom%2Fdayucoemcocz%2Ehtml"><img src="http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/overstockjeweler_1982_167195118" border="0"><br>David Yurman Noblesse Inspired Emerald-Cut Colored CZ Cable Ring MORE COLORS!</a></br>List Price: $119.99<br>Our Price: $39.99 <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?u=!!USERID!!&b=38722&m=8243&afftrack=&urllink=overstockjeweler%2Ecom%2Fticoalpestsi%2Ehtml"><img src="http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/overstockjeweler_1986_31866569" border="0"><br>Tiffany -esque Inspired Alphabet Sterling Silver Pendants</a><br>List Price: $69.99<br>Our Price: $24.99 Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world with JUST your favorite affiliate, where would you go and why? Allen: We would be delighted to travel with just our favorite affiliate to Honolulu, Hawaii for a week of rest and relaxation. We would choose to travel to Hawaii because it’s an ideal place to thank our favorite affiliate partner for promoting Overstock Jeweler merchandise all year-round. Got your own questions for Allen? Contact him at: allen@amwso.com. Network News We've added a new feature to the merchant directory, the Top 100 PowerRank. This is a dynamically ranked list of active programs based on a combination of volume, conversion, and EPC. If you are an affiliate looking for new ideas or programs to work on, this is a great place to start! Do keep in mind that rankings can be affected by seasonal fluctuations, so always bring your own judgement into play when deciding whether or not to partner with a listed merchant. To access the PowerRank, log in to your affiliate account, select "View and Search Merchant List," then click the link to "Top 100 PowerRank" located in the bottom left corner of the page.   Upcoming Events The ShareASale team will be attending the following events. If you're in the area, please let us know. We'd love to meet you in person! eTail 2008 Palm Desert, CA February 11-14, 2008 Affiliate Dinner Las Vegas, NV February 23, 2008 Affiliate Summit West 2008 Las Vegas, NV February 24-26, 2008 Affiliate Promotions Here are a few affiliate promotions going on right now: BLACK & DECKER HOME: INFRAWAVE SPEED OVEN Earn a bonus $25 in addition to your commission for every 5 ovens you sell from February 1-29, 2008. join CLARINS Drive $150 or more in sales from February 1-29, 2008, earn a bonus $25. join HOCKS.COM Bonus $10 for every $150 in sales you drive to Hocks.com during the entire month of February. join LAND OF NOD Earn a bonus $10 for making your first sale between now and February 28, 2008. join To view more affiliate promotions, check out our monthly thread at ABestWeb.com!

1099 Tax Forms

US Tax 1099-MISC forms will be mailed out today so depending on delivery you should have them in the next few days to a week. Please let us know if you feel there are any errors - so that we can correct them prior to sending the information to the IRS later in March.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Just a quick note to let everyone know that we will be closed on Monday in celebration of MLK Jr. Day.... Payments will be processed and paid on Teusday Jan 22.

ShareASale "Under the Stars" Party - Feb 24

ShareASale will be hosting a cocktail party Sunday night February 24th in Las Vegas, in celebration of the Affiliate Summit (www.affiliatesummit.com) which is being held in Las Vegas Feb 24-26.

If you are coming to the Affiliate Summit, and would like to join us - please stop by our table at the Meet Market on Sunday afternoon, or contact Carolyn Tang at ctang@shareasale.com to get all the good details. :)

The party will be held in the 2-story Sky Villas on the top floors of the Palms Hotel "Fantasy Tower" - www.palms.com - and will include food, drink, prizes, maybe a piano, and definitely a pool.

See ya in Vegas!

Pinnacle Award Finalists

I want to take a second to congratulate everyone who was named as a finalist this week for the Pinnacle Awards which are given out at the Affiliate Summit coming up in February...

The finalist list is located at http://blog.affiliatetip.com/archives/affiliate-summit-pinnacle-award-finalists/

I am sending a special "congrats" out to Carolyn Tang, our Director of Client Services at ShareASale who is a finalist for the Affiliate Manager of the Year!

I'm also sending out a special congratulations to Brent Elias and team at CSN Stores who are finalists for Exceptional Merchant !! Well done Brent! For those who haven't already checked out the CSN Stores program on ShareASale, this is just another reason that you should.

Also, a big thank you to everyone who nominated me as well, as I've been named a finalist (with some very steep competition) for the Legend Award.