As a follow up post to Affiliate Marketing History, this article will look at Affiliate Marketing Today.
The best kept secret of the Internet marketing industry is probably that adult and gaming sites really pioneered and pushed the online marketing envelope. Today, many of these effective concepts have been adopted by non-adult websites. I for one, highly respect the leading edge technology and creative marketing strategies that have stemmed from the adult online marketing industry. Ironically, adult sites are also the entities that gave birth to many unacceptable and substandard online practices.
In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, it was very costly to launch and run an Affiliate Program. With the advancement in technology and software development, the cost required to launch a successful Affiliate Program has decreased dramatically. It can still be more expensive if you go through a bigger network-type solution like Commission Junction or Linkshare but there are other solutions available to merchants now. Companies like Kowabunga!, ShareASale and DirectTrack offer affordable affiliate tracking solutions.
Affiliate marketing today is as successful as it has ever been. Merchants now have an option to open a channel that has been proven to potentially lower cost of acquisitions compared to other online marketing drivers such as paid placement and media buys. Out of Affiliate Marketing grows a new group of entrepreneurs called Affiliates. More and more Affiliates are successfully earninging commissions from simply sending their visitor to a merchant’s site. Because there is Affiliate Marketing, outsourced Affiliate Management companies such as PartnerCentric and AMSWO have seen consistent growth in the past few years. From single affiliates to corporations, I believe Affiliate Marketing has truly benefited entrepreneurs everywhere!
This entry is part of a 3 article post:
1. Affiliate Marketing History – A Brief Look
2. Affiliate Marketing Today
3. The Future of Affiliate Marketing
