by Jeannine Cook, Mike Allen & John loBrutto

1. Knock It Out of the Park:
11 Pro Tips to Improve Your Game

2. The Coaches
John LoBrutto
@JPL65
Jeannine Crooks
@Jeannine_Crooks
Mike Allen
@mta1

3. Tip #1
Get the ball rolling:
Start with the right
program source
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

4. Tip #1 – The Right Program Source
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Network vs. In-House – Which should I choose?
• Interface
• Technology
• Minimum payout threshold
• Program management
Which Network to choose?
• Support
• Tracking
• Interface
• Features
Don’t just choose Amazon!
• Lowest commissions/shortest cookie
• Weaker technologies

5. Tip #2
Next man up:
Improve your
traffic & ROI
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

6. Tip #2 – Traffic & ROI
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Traffic = People
• Readers, shoppers, clients, etc. – they are investments!
• Make sure you own the source(s)
• Pay attention to their CR (conversion rate) – it’s like a “satisfaction rate”
• Win with stellar customer support
• Build your brand for the long game
ROI = Return on Investment
• Reality: Negative returns (losses) are unsustainable
• Look for opportunities but “fail fast”
• The direction things go might surprise you (embrace it if you can)
• Predetermine “your number” for success
• Application / Analogy: Goose & Golden Egg…

7. The direction things go might surprise you!
Image credit: Namecheap
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

8. Tip #3
Hit a home run:
Recruit the
right partners
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

9. Tip #3 – The Right Partners
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
How to Choose the Right Merchant
• Product selection
• Product promotions
• Buying process
• Technology
• Publisher communication
• Publisher support

10. Tip #4
Game of inches:
Deploy effective
site optimization
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

11. Tip #4 – Site Optimization (Part 1)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Spring Training: Learn to Optimize
• Establish what value your website provides to your audience
• Define your website. Topic based, Promotion based, Product based?
• Understand why your target audience will click to your website and what makes them
do it more.
• Understand the market and competition. Look for similar websites and identify best
practices.
• Add merchants that fit your business. Excites you? How can I promote?
• Best way to find and drive the right traffic to my merchants? (Price, reviews, unique
offers?)

12. Tip #4 – Site Optimization (Part 2)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
The Fundamentals
Traffic
• Does the traffic convert & is it a match to the campaign?
• Are you using SEM or SEO and is it profitable?
• Use Social Media, Email or other non-traditional methods?
Content
• Add value to the user experience and promotes the advertiser
• Is it creating SEO relevance and improves organic search results
• Does it provide the user with a unique benefit and create loyalty?
Review
• Review the metrics and determine if your traffic is converting
• Compare your site’s conversion rate to the Advertiser's overall CR
• Work with Advertiser for the best practices
• A-B Test different links, products and promos. Develop new ideas.

13. Tip #5
Par for the course:
Enhance your toolset (use
best practices)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

14. Tip #5 – Tools & Best Practices
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Affiliate Tech
• Ultimately about relationships… but technology can help!
• Marketing calendar
• Coupon tracking
• Premium Tools: FMTC, datafeedr, Skimlinks (alternatives), Affluent
• FTC disclosure (it’s required!)
• Site: Email newsletter, SSL, uptime, hosting, contact info, about/privacy pages
WordPress Tech
• Be careful what plugins and theme you use
• Pretty Links (or Switchy.io or RocketLink.io)
• SEO (Yoast, SEOPress, Rank Math)
• WordPress-optimized hosting (staging, backups, updates, support)
• Global blocks and calls to action

15. Tip #6
Full court press:
Maximize your
conversions
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

16. Tip #6 – Maximize Conversions (Part 1)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Watch the Replay
• How much am I making and who are the top partners?
• What products or services are selling the most?
• What is not selling at all or has a high cancelation rate?
• Understanding where traffic is coming from and where it is going.
• Is the Product or Service accurately described on my site and frequently updated?

17. Tip #6 – Maximize Conversions (Part 2)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Move the Ball: Why clicking to co-branded pages/promos are
important
• Validates you as a referral source for the Merchant
• They are usually the Merchants' highest converting pages
• It creates SEO relevance and improves organic search results
• Provides the user with a unique benefit and creates loyalty
• Custom pages have competitive pricing and unique offers
• Builds a closer relationship with the Merchant

18. Tip #7
The ball is in their court:
Negotiate commission
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

19. Tip #7 – Negotiate Commission (Part 1)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
How do you get paid?
• CPS/Rev Share – Cost per sale. Paid a portion of sale amount
• CPL – Cost per lead. Usually paid a fixed amount
• CPI – Cost per install. Paid when an app is successfully installed.
What is the EPC (Earning Per Click)?
• What products or services are selling the most & not selling at all?
• Do I get paid on gross or net sale and what is the validation period?
• How do cancelations & return rates effect my commission?
• Am I getting paid on gross or net sale and what is the validation period?
Do you understand how Click-Through, Conversions and
Cancelations effect commissions and revenue?

20. Tip #7 – Negotiate Commission (Part 2)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Impressions 25,000 Results
CTR - Click Through
Rate
4% 1000
CR - Conversion Rate 3% 30
CX - Cancelation Rate 10% -3
CPA - Cost Per Action $200 27 x 200
Publisher Revenue $5,400
Impressions 25,000 Results
CTR - Click Through
Rate
4% 1000
CR - Conversion Rate 1% 10
CX - Cancelation Rate 20% -2
CPA - Cost Per Action $200 8 x 200
Publisher Revenue $1,600
Example A: EPC $5.40
High Volume (Optimized)
Example B: EPC $1.60
Low Volume
Performance dramatically effects Publisher’s Revenue

21. Tip #7 – Negotiate Commission (Part 3)
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
What is the current EPC for each Merchant?
• Is the reversal rate (cancelation/ fraud) low or high?
• Are you seeing higher value orders and only paid a flat fee?
• What is the current & historical click through rate?
• What is the current & historical conversion rate?
• What is the Average Order Value?
Create a compelling reason to increase commission:
• Develop ideas for a win-win joint venture
• Established a relationship with the Merchant and discuss their model
• Share the competitive landscape with your Merchants
• Explain how more commission can be turned into increased sales volumes
• Create an opportunity for an exclusive or premium placement
• Participate and excel in Merchant Commission Boost Programs & Contents
• Identify commission attribution model and discuss how it impacts you

22. Tip #8
Monday morning quarterback:
Use vital metrics
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

23. Tip #8 – Vital Metrics
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Affiliate Metrics
• Simple vs. Complex? (KISS wins!)
• Key indicators: Clicks, Pageviews, CR, EPC
• Affluent – tracks across multiple affiliate networks & programs
Site Metrics
• Your visitors: Google Analytics, Clicky, Visitor Analytics
• Server load at web host
• Page load testing (recommend GTMetrix)
Financial Metrics
• You have a business!
• Bookkeeping: QuickBooks, Wave Accounting, Kashoo
• Tax time – hire an accountant

24. Tip #9
Don’t drop the ball:
Communicate and
participate
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

25. Tip #9 – Communicate & Participate
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
Read merchant emails
• Specials
• Contests
• New products
Reach out to the affiliate manager or program manager
• Seasonality
• Most popular products
• Special opportunities
Raise your profile
• Special deals
• Commission bumps
• Tester

26. Tip #10
Hail Mary:
Take some chances
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27. Tip #10 – Take Some Chances
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
• Always watch new merchant announcements for hot new opportunities
• Quickly build a website about the “new hot thing”
• Try out new technologies
• Work with Merchants that you may not usually engage
• Accept a lower CPA and work with a lower ROI at first
• Invest in campaigns that look interesting or unique
• Share ideas/collaborate/create something new (get NDAs signed first)
• Get noticed by Top Merchants in your vertical
• Walk away if not working even if you need it (free up resources)
• Spend money on great ideas. Try to share costs when possible.
• Look for co-branded opportunities to cross-promote
• Is it time to hire help?

28. Tip #11
Slam dunk:
Enjoy profitable
campaigns
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20

29. Tip #11 – Profitable Campaigns
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20
• Pay attention to seasonality
• Consistent Testing and Optimization of your site and business model will yield the
best possible results for your campaigns.
• Publishers & Advertisers must work closely together to find out what works and
what doesn’t.
• Each campaign is unique and sometimes you need to walk away and try again
with another partner or partners.
• Once a working model is developed, duplicate, duplicate, duplicate.
• Look for ways to scale (without adding more of your labor)

30. The Coaches
John LoBrutto
@JPL65
Jeannine Crooks
@Jeannine_Crooks
Mike Allen
@mta1
Slides at go.affgeek.com/asw20