This presentation is from Performance Marketing Summit 2014 in Salt Lake City. Session Description: Merchants work hard to develop their brand, so they need to be clear in affiliate communication. Consistent feedback from merchants allows affiliates to excel within brand standards.

1. Working With Your Affiliates to
Protect Brand Standards
Andrew McCaffrey
Performance Marketing Summit
2014

2. Overview
• Brand Development/Creation
• Affiliate & Merchant Conversation
• Keys to Maintaining Brand Standards
1. Brand Association
2. Prohibited Content
3. Product Description
4. Product Benefits
5. Staying Current

3. Brand Development
• Brands take time to develop and require ongoing maintenance
1. Merchant needs to understand what the brand stands for and
wants to project to consumers
2. Clearly articulate brand standards throughout the organization
3. Affiliates, partners and all other parties associated with brand must
also believe and see the same mission
4. Consistently engage consumers with experiences that are
authentic to the brand at every touch point

4. Conversation, Transparency and Feedback
• Discussion between affiliate and merchant
• Clear rules can ensure all parties are held accountable
• Trust, honesty and respect between merchant and
affiliate
• Regular feedback and consistent encouragement
• Get to know publishers!

5. 1 – Brand Association
• Market the brand to the correct audience
• Accurate Targeting
• Correct Messaging
• Content on affiliate site needs to accurately represent
brand
• Premium vs. Discount Brand
• Coupons Available?

6. 2 – Prohibited Content
• Understanding target audience and brand image.
• Offensive language and adult oriented material are great
examples of content typically restricted by brands
• Merchant must disclose any authorities that supervise
their brand and explain the associated risks
• CFPB, FTC and SEC
• Protected words/phrases
• Varies depending on brand and industry, but basic words like
“Free” or “Guarantee” can scare merchants and create
headaches for customer service

7. 3 – Product Description
• Review product description on partners sites for
accuracy.
• Common product details to watch closely:
• Interest Rates
• APR
• Proper disclosures
• Misspellings or grammatical errors
• Create regular review process for all sites and have an
additional spot check to review detailed and complex offers
• Accurate description of products will support consumer
experience, limit customer service complaints and
support experience on affiliate sites

8. 4 – Product Benefits
• Merchant clearly explains intended use of product and how the
product can help customer.
• Affiliates can take merchant explanation and provide their review
without changing the message of product.
Source: George from Flickr
• Don’t promote
Vibram
FiveFingers as a
shoe that can
prevent foot
injuries!

9. 5 – Keep Offers Current!
• Keep offers up to
date
• Logo and images
current
• Better customer
experience and more
engagement by
visitors
Image taken from retailmenot.com

10. Questions?
Follow up for more information
Andrew@brandverity.com