Marketing Pilgrim Published: “Cup of Eggnog: How Big of a Failure Are You?” plus 2 more

Cup of Eggnog: How Big of a Failure Are You?
Commerce Department, Ma’am. Privacy Division
The Top 6 Pitfalls of Affiliate Marketing for Advertisers

Cup of Eggnog: How Big of a Failure Are You?

Posted: 18 Dec 2010 06:23 AM PST

You’re a failure.

Maybe not a complete failure, but you have failed at least once in 2010. I mean let’s face it, nobody is perfect, everyone fails at something every now and then. I know you don’t want to talk about failure. I know that it is hard to admit when you have goofed. Why is failure so hard to talk about? Because each of us fear that we are bound to repeat our failures if we admit they happened. Otherwise we can pretend they don’t exist and move on. But, it is important to face your failures and understand them. Because, failures are like history, if you don’t learn from them, you are bound to repeat them.

So as you are making your new years resolutions for 2011 make a separate list for your 2010 failures. Make it on the same piece of paper so you will always see it. Then add to your list of resolutions, “Don’t repeat failures.” To start things off I will make a small list of my 2010 failures below.

Joe’s 2010 Failures

Celebrated to soon.
Mixed work with pleasure.
Missed several opportunities for engagement with really cool people.
Mismanaged time.
Didn’t eat enough hot dogs.

So that was just a few of my 2010 failures. Now it’s your turn to make your own list. To get things started mention a few of your failures in the comments below. Because there’s no better way to face your failures than doing it publicly online! If you start to get discouraged while making your list, remember the goal is to keep moving forward.

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Commerce Department, Ma’am. Privacy Division

Posted: 17 Dec 2010 01:31 PM PST

I can see it now. The black screen, the ominous ba bum sound and then the words, Law & Order: Privacy Division. They're federal agents who put their lives on the line every day so that you, the internet user, can surf without fear of being molested by targeted Old Navy ads and free lunch coupons on your birthday. Sure they're making it hard for the small business marketer to sell his wares, but hey, that's the way the browser cookie crumbles. Get over it.

So, maybe it won't be on next fall's TV schedule, but it may be coming to a computer near you, if the federal government gets their way. Yesterday, the Commerce Department released the Internet Policy Task Force Privacy Green Paper which is loaded with recommendations "aimed at promoting consumer privacy online while ensuring the Internet remains a platform that spurs innovation, job creation, and economic growth."

The crux of the long report is that it's okay for the industry to self-regulate as long as the government has the power to come in and slap them when they don't do it right. Huh? That's like asking someone to get you a coffee then docking their pay when they bring you a café latte instead of a café mocha.

There's no question that privacy is an issue on the web. As the report points out, global transactions run around $10 trillion annually. More people than ever are working on the internet, many handling sensitive data, and then there are the kids who think nothing of providing personal information to anyone who asks. Yes, rules would be good. But making them voluntary kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?

Here are the key recommendations from the report:

Consider Establishing Fair Information Practice Principles comparable to a "Privacy Bill of Rights" for Online Consumers

They're looking to establish a reasonable set of principles governing how information can be collected and used. They're also advocating more transparency when it comes to informing consumers of their rights. Those read and check privacy pop-ups that everyone checks but doesn't read, aren't cutting it.

Consider Developing Enforceable Privacy Codes of Conduct in Specific Sectors with Stakeholders; Create a Privacy Policy Office in the Department of Commerce

They want to establish a special government office to handle internet privacy. They'll have badges and secret decoder rings and the right to shut down abusive websites in a single bound.

Encourage Global Interoperability to Spur Innovation and Trade

Basically, this is the 'can't we all just get along' section which suggests we find a "practical means of bridging differences in our privacy frameworks." It is a small world, after all.

Consider How to Harmonize Disparate Security Breach Notification Rules

I love the use of the word "harmonize" here. Makes it sound like the groups from The Sing-Off will be employed to go door-to-door to announce whenever Facebook accidentally sells their private data to a game company. Could work.

Review the Electronic Communications Privacy Act for the Cloud Computing Environment

Ah, cloud computing. Like harmonize, it makes it sound all sweet and fluffy. But this section is all about making sure that the laws keep up with the growth in location-based services. This is the one place where they really get tough. "As technology and market conditions change, ECPA continues to appropriately protect individuals' privacy expectations and punish unlawful access and disclosure of consumer data."

Punish! Now we're getting to the heart of this thing. But as harsh as that may sound to you, the marketer, consumer watchdogs say it's a gift.

In a recent press release, John M. Simpson of Consumer Watchdog had this to say;

“The Commerce report starts off on the wrong foot with the title, ‘Commercial Data Privacy…’ We are talking about consumers’ data and their right to privacy, not about a business commodity. This is an early Christmas gift to the data collection industry.”

I wouldn't ever say that government involvement in anything is a "gift" but he does have a point. This lengthy Commerce Department report is all about how the US government wants to protect the people, but the whole thing sounds like a giant game of Mother, May I. Yes, Facebook, you may take two giants steps toward the finish line.

Want to read the whole report. Good for you. Go download a copy at http://www.commerce.gov/node/12471.

The Top 6 Pitfalls of Affiliate Marketing for Advertisers

Posted: 17 Dec 2010 11:15 AM PST

Affiliate marketing can be a very rewarding endeavor for the ambitious online marketer; however, there are several things you should be aware of before you take the plunge. To help you on your journey, I've compiled a list of some of the top 6 pitfalls you may face as you deploy your own affiliate marketing advertising campaigns.

While this list is by no means comprehensive of all the challenges you'll face in your campaigns, it's a good place to start and might help you avoid some headaches along the way.

1. Double Commissions

When you run your campaign you might decide to promote your offer on multiple affiliate platforms (networks, home grown, etc.), but be warned! Affiliates can register for your offer on multiple platforms and with a little cookie stuffing, earn commissions from both platforms for the same order. Yikes!

Use order number tracking in your conversion code so you can cross reference each of your platforms for duplicate orders.

Check with your platform's support group for their policy on cancelling double commission orders, but keep in mind you can always kick the offending affiliate off one of your platforms for a temporary fix. There are more complex methods for tracking and cancelling double commissions that are a bit too involved for this post, but just check with your platform's support for guidance.

2. Cookie Stuffing

Cookie Stuffing refers to the practice of forcing an affiliate cookie into a visitor's browser even if they have not clicked on an affiliate link. Imagine you have a site with a ton of traffic and you force your Amazon affiliate cookie on every visitor to your site. Now, any time your visitors buy something from Amazon you'll get a commission. Pretty nifty huh?

Well, as an advertiser this can be a total nightmare. You're not paying affiliates commissions for sales from people who happened to have visited the affiliate's website. You're paying affiliates to promote your website and refer customers.

Keep an eye out for higher than usual conversion rates and visit your affiliate's website to check to see what cookies are set when you visit. If you see your affiliate cookie and you haven't clicked on the website's affiliate link, it's time to kick this guy out.

3. Branded Search Campaigns

You spent a lot of money on that Super Bowl ad where no one could tell what you do and now tons of people are flocking to Google and searching for your company name. Low and behold there's a paid ad that says "Your Company Name" linking to your website through an affiliate link. Uh….. what?

That's right, if you don't restrict branded terms from your affiliates' search campaigns, you can end up paying someone a commission for traffic generated for your brand via another advertising medium. Make sure to consider restricting branded search terms in your Affiliate Terms and Conditions. Check periodically for violators and make sure to enforce your policy.

Also, you may consider restricting specific keywords if you're worried about your affiliates driving up your own PPC costs.

4. Pay Per Lead (PPL)

From time to time, you may want to pay commissions on leads (insurance quotes, free trials, etc.); however, if you don't monetize those leads until another event happens (purchase) then you need to be extra diligent.

First, make sure you have an excellent handle on your lead to purchase conversion rate for every affiliate. Certain affiliates may fake leads or just naturally have a lower than normal lead to purchase conversion rate. If so, this affiliate is less profitable and may need to have their commissions adjusted. Additionally, if the affiliate offers an incentive to visitors for generating a lead (virtual currency, real currency, etc.) you could have even bigger problems on your hands. Keep an eye on your profitability per affiliate and adjust your PPL rates accordingly.

5. Lazy Affiliate Managers

The key to any good affiliate campaign is relationships, relationships, relationships. Your affiliate managers should be a friend and a resource to your top affiliates. Affiliate managers should frequently visit your affiliates' websites and make sure they're running the right banners in the right location with the most visibility.

Use Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software to keep track of your affiliates. Set reminders to check in on performance and to review the affiliate's website for out of date banners, old pricing and opportunities for improvements. Run activity reports through your CRM to make sure your affiliate managers are staying on top of things.

If an affiliate has to choose between offers, he might just choose the offer from the guy who helps him with his campaign and is a resource he can rely on.

6. Focusing too much on graphic banners

Did you know that many advertisers derive a significant portion of their conversions through text ads, product feeds and coupons? That's right, there's more to affiliate marketing than graphic banners. As you design your ad inventory, make sure to include a wide variety of graphic ads, text ads, product feeds and coupons. A little spaghetti marketing (throw it up and see what sticks) might surprise you.

Also, don't forget to update your ads as your product changes or seasonally if appropriate. There's nothing like a well timed ad to help drive sales.

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So what about you? What pitfalls have you encountered with your affiliate marketing campaigns?

Be sure to check back on Monday for my follow-up post: The Top 7 Pitfalls of Affiliate Marketing for Publishers.

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Sabtu, 18 Desember 2010