Securing top talent in the ever-changing, innovative and diverse affiliate marketing sector can be somewhat of a challenge. With the industry moving at a steady pace, comes the need for top-notch affiliates with a sound and compliant understanding of the model. The array of effective methods to recruit new affiliates is much wider than what most affiliate managers use. Grounding our foundation in statistics and practical experience, this session looks at affiliate recruitment types, methods and nearly 100 tools and platforms to employ. Expect to come away equipped with a rich arsenal of hands-on methods and tools to recruit quality affiliates.

1. 90+ Tips, Tricks,
Tools, and Techniques for
Effective Affiliate Recruitment
Geno Prussakov
CEO & President, AM Navigator LLC
www.amnavigator.com
Founder & Chair, Affiliate Management Days
www.amdays.com
(+1) 888-588-8866
geno@amnavigator.com
@ePrussakov
.

2. The 5 Pillars
≈80% of time

3. 2 Kinds of Affiliate Recruitment
Active Passive
You reach out to them They find you

4. ǝsɹǝʌǝɹ

5. Recruitment Through Their Eyes
Source: 2013 Affiliate Summit AffStat Report
Active:
Direct contact: 42.4%
Conferences: 8.9%
Print publications: 4.4%

6. Recruitment Through Their Eyes
Source: AffiliateBenchmarks 2013 Global Affiliate Questionnaire
Active:
Network emails: 36.3%
Blogs: 29.6%
Online ads: 17.8%
Aff. manager emails: 13.9%

7. Active
Affiliate Recruitment

8. Active Recruitment
“S” Ways to Find Affiliates:
o Software/tools
o Social media
o Search engines
o Summits & symposiums
o Symbiotic recruitment
o Structure-based recruitment
o Snail mail
o Specific publications
o Satisfied customers

9. Software / Tools
Free Paid

10. Free & Inexpensive Tools
1. Internet Success Spider (free)
2. SEO Quake (free)
3. Backlink Watch (free)
4. Citation Labs (~$20 per 500-1000)
5. BuzzStream ($29/mo - $249/mo)
6. Raven SEO Tools ($99-$249/mo)
7. iBusinessPromoter ($250-$500)

11. Paid Tools
8. AffiliateRecruitment.com
9. Linkdex
10. Syntryx

12. Linkdex (screenshot #1)
Dashboard (shows relative number of links and domain
backlinks; yields new mid to long-tail prospects)

13. Linkdex (screenshot #2)
Publisher Discovery (interrogating affiliate network- or
program-specific tracking domain(s), showing affiliate
sites linking in)

14. Recruitment Email
 Subject line
 Introduce
yourself/company
 Explain why you’re emailing
 Personalize
 Include concrete data on
your affiliate program (don’t
do the math for them!)
 Underscore competitive
advantages (tools, co-
branding, policies)
 Primary & secondary CTA

15. Social Media
The media that they use
11. Blogs (the ones they read)
12. Forums (ABestWeb, PerformanceIN,
5StarAffiliatePrograms, AssociatePrograms)
13. Groups (on LinkedIn, Facebook, etc)
Play by the rules!

16. 14. Search Engines
Or reaching out to websites that
rank high for relevant keywords.

17. 15. Summits, Conferences
2014 Affiliate Marketing Conferences (worldwide)
 01/12-01/14 – Affiliate Summit West (Las Vegas, NV, USA)
 01/15 – ClickBank Exchange (Las Vegas, NV, USA)
 01/29-01/30 – LinkShare Symposium West (San Francisco, CA, USA)
 02/06-02/09 – London Affiliate Conference (London, UK)
 02/21 – LinkShare Symposium Japan (Tokyo, Japan)
 02/25-02/26 – Affiliate TactixX (Munich, Germany)
 03/19-03/20 – Affiliate Management Days (San Francisco, CA, USA)
 03/25-03/26 – LeadsCon Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV, USA)
 04/01 – CPA Day (Kiev, Ukraine)
 04/03 – LinkShare Symposium UK (London, UK)
 04/16 – CPA Life (St. Petersburg, Russia)
 05/13-05/14 – Affiliate Management Days (London, UK)
 05/15 – Affiliate Konference (Prague, Czech Republic)
 05/22 – Affiliate Dag 2014 (Amsterdam, the Netherlands)
 05/29-05/31 – Afiliados Brasil (São Paulo, Brazil)
 06/24-06/25 – Performance Marketing Insights Europe (Berlin, Germany)
 06/24-06/27 – Amsterdam Affiliate Conference (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
 06/25-06/26 – LinkShare Symposium East (New York, NY, USA)
 TBA – Affiliate Marketing Master Class (Athens, Greece)
 08/03-08/05 – AvantExpo 2014 (Park City, UT, USA)
 08/14-08/15 – LeadsCon East (New York, NY, USA)
 08/10-08/12 – Affiliate Summit East (New York, NY, USA)
 TBA – LinkShare Symposium Australia (Sydney, Australia)
 09/09-09/11 – Commission Junction University (Santa Barbara, CA, USA)
 10/03-10/04 – Russian Affiliate Congress & Expo (Moscow, Russia)
 10/19-10/21 – ShareASale ThinkTank 2014 (Charlotte, NC, USA)
 10/28-10/29 – Performance Marketing Insights: London (London, UK)
 TBA – Russian Affiliate Days (Moscow, Russia)
 TBA – Barcelona Affiliate Conference (Barcelona, Spain)
 TBA – China International Affiliate Conference (Tianjin, China)
 TBA – LeadConf (Moscow, Russia)
 TBA – LinkShare Symposium Canada (Toronto, Canada)

18. 15. Summits, Conferences
Consider also niche- and
audience-specific conferences

19. 16. Symbiotic Recruitment
Symbiosis – a cooperative relationship (as between
two persons or groups).
Source: Webster’s Dictionary
Promote your affiliate program on a cross-
program basis.
Form short- or long-term cross-program
recruitment relationships with affiliate
programs run by merchants that sell related
products or services.

20. Structure-Based Recruitment
17. Network-based 18. External tools
 Newsletter inclusion
 Directory listing
 Internal recruitment opps
 Forums
 Other platforms

21. 19. Snail Mail
Experiment with postcards!
(they do catch attention)
Especially, when they come with
a gift card, or contain a
"private" offer.

22. Specific Publications (Ads)
20. Revenue Performance
21. FeedFront
22. Conference programs/guides
23. Electronic Retailer
24. Internet Retailer
25. Visibility
26. Website Magazine
27. Target Marketing

23. 28. Satisfied Customers
Invite them to become affiliates on:
 Order confirmation page
 Newsletters
 Social media

24. Passive
Affiliate Recruitment

25. Recruitment Through Their Eyes
Source: 2013 Affiliate Summit AffStat Report
Passive:
Merchant site: 51.3%
Search engines: 38.6%
Directories: 38%
Word of mouth: 20.3%
Support efforts: 14.6%

26. Recruitment Through Their Eyes
Source: AffiliateBenchmarks 2013 Global Affiliate Questionnaire
Passive:
Support pages: 47%
Network sites: 44.7%
Search engines: 33.1%
Forums & directories: 17.6%
Word of mouth: 17.5%

27. Passive Recruitment
Ways to Get Found by Affiliates:
o Program description (with visible link)
o Program FAQ and/or support site/blog
o Affiliate directories
o Social media
o Second-tier affiliates
o “Subscribe to affiliate news” link
o Press releases

28.  Merchant description + link
 Commission structure
 Info on cookie life
 Availability of data feed
 Information on competitive advantages (e.g.:
anti-parasite policy, phone tracking, conversion
rates, EPC)
 Underscore tools (widgets, deep linking, co-
branding opps, custom creatives/LPs)
 Any restrictions and/or special terms that
affiliates should know about
29. Program Description

29. Avoid Clichés!
Cliché – a trite expression,
often a figure of speech whose
effectiveness has been worn out
through overuse and excessive
familiarity.
Source: http://grammar.about.com/od/c/g/clicheterm.htm
Top 10:
1. “instantly”
2. “ultimate”
3. “easy”
4. “unparalleled”
5. “perfect match”
6. earn/get/make “$X in X days/months”
7. “highest payouts”
8. “impressive conversion rate(s)”
9. “best affiliate program”
10. “number one” merchant/offer/program

30. Minimum
• Program Details (with sign-up link/form)
• Program Agreement
• Blog
Ideally
1. Program Details
2. Program Agreement
3. FAQ Section
4. Tips & Ideas
5. Creatives
6. Blog
7. Contact Us
.
30. Affiliate Program Support Site

31. 30. Affiliate Program Support Site

32. Affiliate Directories
Nearly 1/5th of affiliates use them
Directories to Submit Your Program To:
31. AffiliatesDirectory.com
32. AffiliateFirst.com
33. AffiliatePrograms.com
34. AffiliateRanker.com
35. AffiliateScout.com
36. AffiliateSeeking.com
37. AllAffiliatePrograms.com
38. AssociatePrograms.com
39. JamAffiliates.com
40. Top-Affiliate.com

33. 41. Social Media (forums)

34. 42. Social Media (networks)

35. Social Media
Whatever the media, design conversions
This is the key to succeeding with social
(not only for affiliate recruitment purposes)

36. One-time bounty Recurring payouts
43. Second-Tier Affiliates

37. 44. Affiliate News Subscription

38. 45. Press Releases
• Branding benefits
• SEO benefits
• Visibility/exposure
• Spread of news

39. Other Methods of
Affiliate Recruitment

40. Other Methods
Delve In & Dissect:
o Reach out to influencers
o Analyze similar sites
o Explore related verticals
o Target seasonal (holiday-oriented) affiliates
o Study competitors’ backlinks
o Monitor keywords and niches

41. Influencer Outreach
Tools to Employ
46. BlogDash (bloggers)
47. BloggerLinkUp (bloggers)
48. Business 2 Blogger (bloggers)
49. BuzzStream (all sorts of content websites)
50. eCairn.com (bloggers and communities)
51. FindPeopleOnPlus.com (Google+ influencers)
52. Followerwonk (Twitter influencers)
53. Google Blog Search (bloggers)
54. GroupHigh.com (bloggers)
55. Klout (an array of social media)
56. Kred (social media | check out Communities)
57. Listorious (Twitter)
58. Outreachr (all sorts of content websites)
59. Pitch It To Me (bloggers)
60. Simply Measured (analytics tool for Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google+)
61. SocialBro (Twitter)
62. Sulia (Facebook and Twitter)
63. Topsy (Twitter | check their Experts section)
64. Twellow (Twitter)
65. Twitter Search (Twitter influencers)

42. 66. Similar Websites
• Similar sites
• Site topics (more
key influencers!)
• Key phrases &
categories
• "Similar search"
(SEO & SEM
rivals)
• "HeatMap"

43. 67. Related Verticals
Travel Websites Fashion Sites
Consider also sites catering to:
 Pilots
 Anglers
 Golfers
 Cyclists
 Snow sports fans
 Gamblers
 Women

44. 68. Seasonal Affiliates
January-September: 13,000 UVs/mo
October: 95,000 UVs
November: 2,000,000 UVs

45. Competitors’ Backlinks
Tools to Consider
69. Google (link:www.competor.com)
70. Open Site Explorer (by SEOmoz)
71. Majestic SEO
72. Raven Backlink Explorer
73. Link Diagnosis
74. Ahrefs
75. Advanced Link Manager
76. Bing Webmaster Tools Link Explorer
77. Backlink Watch
78. MonitorBacklinks.com

46. Ongoing Monitoring
Free Online Tools
79. Google Alerts
80. Marketing Grader
81. Pipes (aka Social Media Firehose by Yahoo)
82. Omgili
83. TweetBeep
84. BuzzMonitor
85. Collecta.com
86. BackType
87. BoardReader
88. WhosTalkin.com
89. SocialMention
90. BlogPulse

47. 3 Points in Conclusion

48. “…the chief distinction of a diplomat is that he can
say no in such a way that it sounds like a yes.”
– Lester B. Pearson

49. #1. Do Not Burn Bridges!
We are sorry, but the website(s) and/or promotional
methods listed on your affiliate profile do(es) not
meet our approval criteria. We have therefore
declined your application.
If, however, you feel that we have overlooked your
potential, we would like to hear from you. Just email
us a brief explanation of how you were planning on
marketing our product/service, and we will gladly
reconsider your application.

50. #2. Remember to Follow Up
Effectiveness:
 Initial email: max. 4% sign up
 Follow-ups: ≈12% more join
Frequency:
1. A week from original email
2. 1 more week down the road
3. 2-3 months
4. Half a year
5. A year

51. #3…
persistence is key!