Affiliate marketing involves retailers rewarding affiliates for referrals that result in sales. The retailer only pays affiliates a commission after a sale is made through their referral. This allows affiliates to promote brands for free in the hopes of earning a commission. Setting up an effective affiliate program requires choosing an affiliate platform, providing product data feeds and banners, and dedicating resources to communication and engagement with affiliates to optimize efforts and increase sales over the long term. Regular testing of promotions and recruitment of new affiliates helps improve program performance goals over time.

1. Use Affiliate Marketing to Build Your
Online Business
David Polivy
Tahoe Mountain Sports

2. Use Affiliate Marketing to Build Your
Online Business
AGENDA:
• Who am I and why am I here?
• What is Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) advertising and why do it?
• What is an affiliate and what do they do?
• Tips and tricks to setting up and running an affiliate program
• Long term results, tweaks and performance goals

3. Tahoe Mountain Sports
• In business since 2006,
started as online only
• ~20% growth YOY, 7
FT/YR employees
• Now, 2500s.f. store in
KB, 70% sales
online/30% in store
• Cross Channel traffic
and conversions
growing rapidly

4. CPC, CPM and CPA – Oh My!
CPC – Cost Per Click
• Good lead, maybe a sale
CPM – Cost Per Impression
• Brand awareness,
messaging
CPA – Cost Per Acquisition
• Sale!!!!!

5. What is an Affiliate and what do they do?
Affiliate Marketing is an Internet-based marketing practice in
which a web retailer rewards Affiliates for the sales and/or
customers they refer.
Affiliates drive targeted shopping traffic to web retailers using
different promotional methods including:
 Online Brand Development – They help you build your brand
 Search Engine Optimization – They work hard to get you a sale
 Web Community Building – They build web communities
 Paid Search Engine Marketing (PPC) – They spend money to get
you a sale

6. Affiliate Marketing
Overview & Effectiveness
Affiliate compensation is “performance-based” on a “cost per sale”
model, meaning retailers only pay the contracted commission
after the sale/transaction takes place.
This is why I Love It!
Qualified Affiliates work to promote your brand free of charge with
the understanding that you'll convert their referral to a sale,
which results in a commission earned.

7. Affiliate Marketing
Overview & Effectiveness
Consider a few of the benefits if you're a web retailer:
 Only Pay for Results - You're only charged for the marketing
efforts after the sale is complete.
 Free Branding - Your pre-configured banner ad campaigns
circulate and distribute your brand for free.
 New Customer Acquisition - Affiliates are a real time sales
force in addition to a tool for acquiring new, long-term
customers.

8. Examples of Affiliates
• Magnifeye
• Trailspace
• Teton Gravity Research
• Retail Me Not
• The Find
• Millions and millions more………..

9. Examples of Affiliates

10. Examples of Affiliates

11. Examples of Affiliates

12. Tips and tricks to setting up and running an
affiliate program
Choosing an Affiliate Platform
• Share Similar Goals?
• Right Kind of Space for your business?
• Support Structure?
• Cost?

13. Tips and tricks to setting up and running an
affiliate program

14. Tips and tricks to setting up and running an
affiliate program
Before Affiliate program launch a store/ecommerce system should
be working properly and efficiently from usability to order
fulfillment.
Once that has been accomplished choose a reputable Affiliate
platform and produce program collateral including:
 Quality Product Datafeed
 Array of Banners & Other Ad Units
 Program Terms & Description

15. Examples – Data Feeds
Product/Price Comparisons
Size/Color/Style/Type Options
Accurate, In Stock, Updated Daily

16. Examples – Data Feeds & Blogs

17. Examples – Banners

18. Examples – Blogs/Content
Any type of
content can be
linked and
monetized,
especially
archived content
which is
potentially some
of the most
lucrative due to
its SEO history

19. Examples – Blogs/Content

20. Tips and tricks to setting up and running an
affiliate program
Don’t Set it and Forget It
Find an Affiliate Manager!
Or, do it internally, but dedicate the necessary resources

21. Tips and tricks to setting up and running an
affiliate program
Affiliate Manager Duties
Communication and responsiveness are crucial components of
the Affiliate Manager's role. Other duties include:
 Regularly updating ad campaigns & promotional offers
 Effectively communicating new promotional offers
 Engaging Affiliates to optimize efforts & increase sales
 Manage ongoing initiatives to effectively brand the program

22. Tips and tricks to setting up and running an
affiliate program
To build a successful Affiliate program you should:
 View Affiliates as partners and individuals
 Build relationships based on trust
 Give Affiliates plenty of notice on promotions
 Be responsive and predictable
 Remain engaged with regular communication
 Establish clear program terms and enforce them (includes
trademark or brand PPC bidding)

23. Long term results, tweaks and performance goals
• Develop your long term conversion rate and click
through goals - Adjust and monitor regularly
• Vary your regular vs. seasonal/promotional activity
• Continually recruit new affiliates and build out
existing affiliates

24. Long term results, tweaks and performance goals
Develop your long term conversion rate and click through
goals - Adjust and monitor regularly
It is not uncommon for established Affiliate
programs to generate 10%-25% of a web
retailer's entire sales volume in a year.
***TMS – 1.2% Conversion Rate, 12% of sales, Over 2 million ad
impressions

25. Long term results, tweaks and performance goals
Vary your regular vs. seasonal/promotional activity

26. Long term results, tweaks and performance goals
Continually recruit new affiliates and build out
existing affiliates
• Email introductions, check-ins, anything needed?
• Commission bumps, Incentive levels
• Encourage adoption of all your tools
• Share/Trade content

27. The End!
David Polivy 1)
2)
What does CPA stand for?
Name 1 kind of affiliate marketing
3) Name 1 affiliate network
Tahoe Mountain Sports 4) What is 1 thing you can do to
continually update and improve your
dave@tahoemountainsports.com affiliate marketing?
Preferred Affiliate Network –
Avantlink.com
Questions?