This is a question that has been hotly debated in past, but what do you think?

I ran across a site today that is clearly an online retailer, with their own affiliate program, and yet, they have a page with about 15 Affiliate links.  Not only that, but they have masked their links to funnel sites that re-direct to the merchant’s site.  And on top of everything else, the Affiliate sites aren’t even remotely related to the retailer’s website. They make it possible for other Affiliate marketers to lose sales because they are wildly promoting other sites under false pretenses.

I won’t reveal this retailer, as I personally won’t stoop down to their level, but the fact is that this retailer seemingly makes plenty of money off of sales and advertising, and the fact they hide Affiliate links sickens me.

So I ask you, do you think it is ethical for retailers with Affiliate programs to promote someone else’s Affiliate program?

Affiliate Summit is the premier Affiliate Marketing conference and was founded in 2003 by Shawn Collins and Missy Ward. The conference has grown enormously over the years and it is now the place to be for Affiliate Marketers. Affiliate Summit West 2008 in Las Vegas will be taking place from February 24-26 at the Rio Hotel. Not much info is available yet, but as more is released the more you will know.
On an important note, tickets are now on sale for Affiliate Summit West 2008 in Las Vegas, and if you don’t register soon ticket prices will rise significantly. For a full conference pass you pay $949 for a savings of $500. For an exhibit pass you pay $99, a savings of $100. Group discounts are also available. Register now for Affiliate Summit West 2008 in Las Vegas.

In this month’s issue of Internet Retailer, they dive into a common Affiliate Marketing issue. Can an Affiliate Program have too many affiliates?

While presenting both sides of this issue, they show how some affiliate programs and networks say it isn’t worth working with Affiliates who have been inactive for over 6 months. It is wise to cut these affiliates from your program and bring your program down to a size your company can manage.

They also took a look at the Affiliate managers and companies who believe that it is foolish to cut Affiliates from your program just because they have been inactive. The sentiment being, you never know when one of your affiliates, active or inactive, may become the next Super Affiliate.

I agree with the second group of people in saying that Affiliates shouldn’t be cut from a program because of inactivity. Rather, segment your affiliates into different groups, and manage each group accordingly. Three possible groups could be “Super Affiliates”, “Active Affiliates”, and “Inactive Affiliates”. Try and appeal to all three groups and continue to grow your program. In my opinion, there is no such thing as an unmanageable program. Even if you are a small company, there is no reason that your Affiliate manager can’t spend the time to separate your Affiliates into groups and reach out and market and support them.

E-consultancy is an online publisher of best practice internet marketing reports, research and how-to guides. E-consultancy, named Publisher of the Year at the 2006 AOP Awards, also publishes buyer’s guides and has a directory of 100,000+ third party internet marketing white papers. More than 700 E-consultancy users responded to the research email.

The merchants that responded to the email came from a wide variety of industries, including financial, retail, and travel. The findings of this survey address Affiliate Marketing conditions in the UK, and while there may be some differences between Affiliate Marketing in the U.S. and the UK, but this report does give a picture of the Affiliate Marketing industry in the US and the UK. But do keep in mind these numbers portrayed are in respect to the UK.

• 67% of responding merchants have increased sales from 2 years ago.
• 78% of responding merchants are spending more money on their Affiliate Marketing campaigns then they were 2 years ago.
• 78% of responding merchants also said they will spend more money on Affiliate Marketing in the future.
• 50% of responding merchants will add to their Affiliate management team
• 95% of Merchants say that Affiliate Marketing is the most cost-effective way to attract new customers … Email marketing and Paid Search Marketing trailed in this respect. (more…)

In my opinion this is a very easy topic to deal with.  Affiliate marketers who bid on a company’s trademark are in the wrong unless specified in the Affiliate program’s Affiliate guidelines.  If it is identified in the Affiliate program’s terms of service, then the Affiliate Marketer (Publisher) is in the wrong.

However, if the Affiliate program isn’t managed, and the Affiliate marketer gets away with it over a period of time, then I don’t feel past sales should be stricken from the Affiliate marketer.  The advertiser is responsible for managing their program, and if they aren’t then they deserve the foul practices that will occur from a poorly managed Affiliate program.

If the Affiliate program is managed well and the Affiliate uses PPC and bids on the trademark name, which is clearly forbidden in the program’s rules, then I feel the Affiliate should get one warning, and the second time they do it they need to get the boot.  It is stupid in my opinion to ever let the Affiliate bid on a company’s trademark, but you need to make mistakes as a business to succeed.

Affiliate Marketing is a very simple concept, however, setting up a successful Affiliate site can be difficult for people who have never designed a website.  Where are the best places and what are the best resources for learning more about Affiliate Marketing?

The Internet of course.

There is a wealth of knowledge just a few keywords away and it won’t cost you a dime.  Affiliate Marketing forums, such as ABestWeb and 5 Star Affiliate Programs, offer a wealth of knowledge, much of it straight from industry leader’s mouths.  Blogs, such as this one, offer opinions and many other thoughts on Affiliate Marketing.  Go out and participate, read as much as you can and practice what you have learned.

I stay away from E-Books because the information contained within can generally be found for free on the Internet.  Most E-Books offer regurgitated information, rarely with an original thought offered by the author.  Two of the few exceptions I have found are E-Books for Affiliate Manager.  One is by Shawn Collins and the other by Geno Prusakov.

Companies oftentimes find it difficult to design, implement and maintain their Affiliate Programs.  There are many instances where you will see companies outsourcing their Affiliate Program to consultants and Outsourced Project Managers (OPM’s).

This is an area of Affiliate Marketing and Affiliate Management that interests me greatly.  Many of Outsourced Project Managers work remotely and take on a number of Affiliate Programs acting as their Affiliate Manager.  OPM’s don’t always design programs from the ground up, in many cases the Affiliate Program has already been started by a company, but for one reason or another they can’t handle the program and they hire consultants or Outsourced Program Managers.

I think it would be a lot of fun and very rewarding to start my own Outsourced Project Management firm and to have it grow and be successful.  Not only do I think it would be fun, but I know I would do a good job managing other programs.   If your company has an Affiliate Program and you feel it is not operating as well as it should, let me know and I will give you a free consultation.  If you like what I have to say and have to offer than we could work out an arrangement where I would become your Affiliate Manager.  You can find more information on Consulting and OPM’s here.

Affiliate Managers generally don’t have too many problems with their Affiliates as long as their Affiliate program’s rules and regulations are spelled out clearly. The exception to this rule is when an Affiliate program is registered through two or more networks, causing double Affiliate commissions. In my opinion it is not advisable for an Affiliate Program to join more than one network unless they need to extend their reach and they can handle the conflicts that arise from this action.

For most Affiliate Managers, chances of conflict are reduced greatly if you provide Affiliates with your Program rules, regulations and restrictions. In my experience the main problems that Affiliate Managers have to deal with is different forms of fraud. Whether it be an Affiliate spamming or an Affiliate bidding on restricted keywords or trademarks. The best way to handle it is to contact the Affiliate directly, give them a warning and a second chance. If they continue to operate in a false manner, then they should be dropped like a rock. Terminate the Affiliate from your Program and contact the Affiliate Network and let them know what happened. By contacting the Affiliate Network you are giving them a head’s up on the Affiliate with unsavory practices and if any other programs have the same troubles with that Affiliate, then the network can ban them permanently.