Gap in the market?

[DuaneJackson]

Are there any firms that act as managers for indepentent affiliate programs?

I can't seem to find any, it's certainly a service I'd use.

Is this a gap in the market?

[SillyJokes]

surely it's called an affiliate network?

Seriously though, you might be able to sell a service like this.

[DuaneJackson]

You mean like the OMG, CJ and so on?

These aren't for independent schemes - you need to use their system to do this and it's promoted to their entire affiliate base.

I have an indepent scheme and I just don't have the time to promote it and manage the affiliates ( I know, I should have went with one of the networks in the first place)

[dcraigdc]

Don't Clickbank do that?

[DuaneJackson]

I'll have a look see.

[Mwebb]

Duane,
what software do you use to manage you affiliate scheme?

I am weighing up using OMG/DGM or my own software.( cj is expensive to set up) The best i have found so far is assoctrac from www.marketingtips.com

Also i think click bank is not a good idea. It is full of " not very good" home business related products....it is a conotation thing!!! They also use there own software to track the sales.

[dcraigdc]

Aha hadn't used it myself but had heard of it. Funnily enough I looked into it just now, found someone on there saying "Make £5000 a month drinking beer!". Whilst the prospect appealed to me I find it highly unlikely :D

[DuaneJackson]

We have software we've developed in house - http://affiliates.kashflow.co.uk

This is the problem - if I was using OMG/DGM, etc then they'd have their own system and their own affiliate base to market it to.

The software we have is perfectly good - in fact it's perfect for the job as it was written specifically for it and if I want to add anything to it, I can. That's the up-side of an independent system.

If I were in the position you are in now I think I'd opt for OMG or similar - anything but an independently developed/managed solution - unless ofcourse you have a person dedictaed to promoting and managing it.

[Mwebb]

OMG seem ok. Would be great if the guy i spoke with about a month ago would email me back!!!

The issue i have is that until the site is ready i cannot even apply to these programs.
Which is annoying as CJ.com have accepted me already...ebay aswell. Along with glasses guide who run their own program.

I want to join as both a publisher ( affiliate) and a merchant ( affiliate program owner)

They are quite hard to get accepted by i have been told. Mostly they seem to go towards the real big high street merchants.

Is your software multi level? IE to promote others to get more affiliates for you.
Do you sell the software....i would consider it!!!

You may want to weigh up recruiting a part time employee to run your scheme against the costs of the fees from OMG for the year. You only need a customer service manager really. Part time, minimum wage etc???

[DuaneJackson]

It's not multilevel/tiered, atleast not at the moment.

What do you mean about do we sell the software? Our product is a software poduct that's sold on a subscription basis.

I've been thinking about having someone part titme to do that, or using one of the staff I have here. The problem is that to do the promoting, etc they need some level of skill so I don't think it's a minimum wage job.

Perhaps I should consider getting someone experienced in for all of the marketting including the affiliate system. But I don't have the budget for that at the moment. I'm sure my investor wouldn't be happy if his money was put into salary rather than actual marketting costs

[Mwebb]

By software i meant the individual affiliate software you have developed. I understand that you have KashFlow which is your acounting software.

but you can also sell you affiliate software. On a rental basis the same as your accounting oftware, or just a one off purchase.

I am sure you already have your first sales from this forum!! And from yor prospects that use kashflow.

check out www.marketingtips.com assoctrac for an idea of what they do!!

Michael

[DuaneJackson]

Ahh, I see. No - the affiliate software is totally integrated with our main product so would be of no use to anyone else.

We've had hundreds of sales already, a few from this forum.

The marketing site looks interesting if a bit spammy, I'll give it a proper read later.

[Mwebb]

Ahh, I see. No - the affiliate software is totally integrated with our main product so would be of no use to anyone else.

We've had hundreds of sales already, a few from this forum.

The marketing site looks interesting if a bit spammy, I'll give it a proper read later.

yes it is a bit spammy, but they have made over $52M in sales since the late nineties. They are huge within the internet marketing community. But mainly within the home business sector, they have a lot of courses to teach you how to setup online......these are over priced to accomodate high commisions for their affiliates, but they still sell. Their software products are good though. " i like are desktop marketer. No need for email, send newsletters direct to the desktop of your prospects. And assoctrac come recommended from my developers, who do a lot of work for them.

Also i meant sales of your affiliate software....you would get loads of enquiry on here, as you seem a trusted member, with an already successful business....i bet you have had hundreds of Kashflow sales already, it is a really innovative product.

Michael

PS if you decide to develop your affiliate program for resale....don't forget the person who gave you the idea.!! :D

Can you download your accounts to back them up????

[DuaneJackson]

Thanks for the kind words : )

You can export most of your accounts to CSV, failry soon you'll be able to export all data in a Sage friendly format,