Affiliate network

The term affiliate network comes from online advertising. Affiliate networks are the Internet as the platform for a special online marketing ( affiliate marketing ) are available.

They are the intermediaries between registered advertisers ( suppliers of products and services, also called Merchants ) and registered publishers ( online sales partner or website owners, known as affiliates). The latter can be downloaded from the Web platform specific code to advertising campaigns, the campaign code that advertisers and include these codes on their websites.

The affiliate networks provide both parties the necessary infrastructure. That is, they provide them with the technical requirements for the management of the campaign codes for tracking the website visitor and the commission for investigation ( compensation models ). This means that affiliate networks service providers in the online advertising.

Features and Services

An affiliate network works as follows: As a technology platform, it acts as an interface for affiliates and merchants. The affiliate network provides affiliates with promotional material ( such as banners ) for the promotion of products / services of the Merchants available. The Affiliates integrate these advertisements in their websites and direct so users eg on the online store or respective product website of the advertiser. The user buys there, the affiliate receives a success-oriented purely a corresponding commission from the Merchant. The network does it involve not only the provision and management of technology but also the financial settlement. In addition, both Merchants and Affiliates are cared for at the particular network of skilled specialists. These so-called affiliate manager (or in general, account managers ) to establish a contact between Affiliates and Merchants interesting for them and help with the development and expansion of their cooperation. They also look after their affiliate campaigns ( in the jargon " (partner ) programs').

The most important reason to work with an affiliate network, is the infinite mass of potential affiliate partners who wish to register in hundreds rather reluctantly individual affiliate campaigns themselves. Affiliate networks enable the bundling of many campaigns and the possibility all through a few platforms or to be able to handle.

• Find and Transfer of matching affiliate partners: affiliate networks help their members, on the one hand through personal contact and by the expertise of account managers, on the other hand, by automation in the underlying technical system, to find the optimally matching affiliate partner. So there are affiliates who to specific industries, products, or even to specific marketing activities (eg, search engine marketing, short SEM) are specialized. The product offered to the merchant or its industry are then crucial for finding the right affiliates. If the Merchant, a provider of package holidays, so come owners of travel comparison and booking portals for him as a fitting Affiliates in question.
• Support and care of affiliate partners: Affiliate marketing is quite complex. For this reason, the participants of affiliate networks are often personally supervised to work smoothly with the platform and be able to create their campaigns and perform quickly, as well as to overcome any technical hurdles quickly.
• Overview and management of campaigns, advertising campaigns (eg vouchers): The Merchants shows which campaigns they have just switched and deliver what their advertising means the affiliates on their websites. They also see how successful the individual Affiliates achieve ( eg, as was often viewed or clicked the ad or how many sales have been achieved ) and how high the respective commissions until now. Affiliates see which campaigns are new and which advertising media of the Merchants offered and what would it particularly fit their web offering. Furthermore, they will achieve what success running campaigns with them straight. Similarly, both parties see what actions are currently being offered (eg special commissions for affiliates and discounts for merchants, vouchers ) to which promotions they happen to participate or they just are available which coupon codes.
• Reporting / Reporting on the progress of switched campaigns and resulting commissions: affiliate networks provide their members with constantly updated statistics and reports are available which show the progress and success of ongoing campaigns. Merchants received reports of mediated transactions and Affiliates will be informed about which commissions they receive from "their" Merchants.
• Billing: The height of the individual commissions payable is determined precisely by the system, notified the merchant and settled automatically in most cases. The correctness of commissions paid will be checked and in case of disagreement makes the automatic system 's attention. In addition, most of the affiliate managers are available to fix discrepancies in payments personal with the affiliate partners.
• Security against fraud: affiliate networks ensure, for example, that really Merchants pay commissions due a campaign only to the affiliates who have actually posted on their websites, thus generating conversions this campaign. The same applies to the use of exclusive coupon codes ( ie those which may be included as a kind of special offer, only from certain affiliates in their websites ). All commissions are paid by using an exclusive coupon codes are only getting this attributed to an exclusive affiliate, even if, for example, the clicks were generated on the website of another policy that has the respective coupon code to unauthorized use.

The advantage of the numerous services such as centralized management and ease of handling is, however, compared to the cost factor. Merchants typically pay especially for the larger networks, a setup fee, which can currently be approximately between 500 € and 5000 €. In addition, monthly fixed charges may apply and almost all affiliate networks require a revenue-based commission, which accounts for 30 percent of the generally distributed to the affiliate commission.

Formation

Since the emergence of the Internet, marketing has changed considerably in recent years. This also applies to the advertising. Use of online services is growing even in times of crisis advertising. To market products and services on the Internet has the advantage of placing advertising accurately, without great wastage for many companies. Condition models such as "pay -per-click " in which only causes the click on an advertising link costs, but not its representation, ensuring that advertising can be more tailored to the target audience and scattering losses are always better avoided.

Affiliate Marketing: In the context of online advertising activities are another important field developed. This work Merchants ( provider of products and services) with Affiliates ( operate web deals, such as Web sites and bind the ads of affiliates on a ) a partnership based on success together. The result: The affiliate endeavors, the advertising materials at relevant points / in optimal matching environments to show online and make the advertising so successful. He receives any promotional success (Click, Buy, address data, etc.) a commission from the Merchant. This may in turn reduce its advertising spending and at the same time reach its optimum target group, as he pays only for success for the delivery of advertising material.

Normally, merchants and affiliates would find it and vote in person. The market for affiliate marketing grew considerably in recent years and was always confusing.

Moreover, it is, especially for the Merchants, very expensive to operate a affiliate campaign. For advertising media commission payments and cancellation must be kept up to date, be made, Affiliates have cared, statistics are compiled and of course one has to make his campaign well known among the affiliates. For medium and small companies the expense would be too great.

Affiliate networks have emerged since the late nineties to equalize this situation. You have created the framework for simultaneously for hundreds of affiliate partners handle campaigns ( see upper point functions and service) and affiliate partners to be able to convey, so as to facilitate the work in affiliate marketing for everyone involved.