An attractive affiliate offer and commissions are a must, no doubt, but it’s equally important to appreciate what’s most important to your affiliate partners, the sales engine behind the affiliate program. As you might expect, the better you anticipate and cater to the needs of these vital people, the more traffic you’re likely to get, and the bigger your paycheck (and theirs) will ultimately be.

How to anticipate and cater to those needs so you can all start making real money even while you sleep? Here are some ways to ensure mutual success between you and your all-important affiliate partners.

Managing Affiliate Partners: 9 Practical Pointers

1. Make Sure Your Offer Is Killer, And It Converts

No one wants to promote a product or service that doesn’t work! If your offer doesn’t easily convert into sales, it will be tough for you to recruit affiliate partners. When a product or offer isn’t easily understood or has a high price point, often more time is spent answering questions than selling anything, which is no fun for anyone. Your conversion rate is critical to your success as an affiliate marketer and should be monitored closely.

Learn more on split testing your offer and get actionable tools on how to dial in your copy in our Optimize To Win Every Promotion lesson module.

2. Fine-Tune That Funnel

Your funnel is another area that you should be constantly monitoring and fine-tuning. A higher cart value means more money in everyone’s pockets, so position the customer experience, including your website, to highlight the more exclusive products and services that they may want. Bundling products and offering cross-sell opportunities are more ways to refine your funnel, build better customer relationships, and make more sales. Never forget that your affiliates can and should expect to be well-compensated for the lucrative opportunities they are driving right to your doorstep. 

If you need a professional eye to review your funnel and give you insight into how your funnel compares to the other competitors in the industry – consider doing a Single Funnel Audit with East 5th Avenue. You are certain to walk away with actionable advice and introductions to our preferred vendors to help you fill in the gaps.

3. Pay Well, And Pay Fast 

Building relationships with your affiliates is pivotal to your success, so paying them promptly is absolutely essential. You should also pay them well—do your research to make sure you’re offering competitive commissions and bonus structures. If your affiliate partners are not being rewarded for their work, they will be less likely to promote your offer. 

Make sure your payment process is as quick and easy as possible for your affiliates. Keep them updated about when and how payments will be made, and respond quickly to their inquiries. Your affiliate partners are your external sales team; don’t be shy about rewarding them for their efforts. Pay them well, and pay them fast.

4. Keep Your Promises 

Do what you say you’re going to do! Your affiliate partners need to be able to trust that when they refer customers to you, you will provide them with the products or services they expect. This means your supply chain is solid, you provide excellent customer support, and your pricing is competitive. 

If your affiliate partners are not confident in your ability to deliver on your promises, then they won’t want to work with you. Ensuring that you live up to your promises helps make certain that your affiliate partners remain engaged and loyal.

When affiliates make a recommendation to their audiences, they are putting their own reputations on the line for that product or service. Recommending products with a high return rate is not something that any affiliate partner would want to do, so keep your finger on the pulse of quality control, and make sure your product or service lives up to the hype.

5. Communication Is Key 

Build trust by communicating with your affiliate partners regularly. Inform them of any changes in the terms of their agreement and any new promotions or offers that could benefit them. This continual conversation will keep your team personally engaged, in the loop, and help ensure that they’re motivated to continue working with you.

6. Stay Updated And Compliant

Ensuring that your affiliate partners have all the resources necessary to successfully promote your product, such as marketing materials, tutorials, and training sessions, is the best way to guarantee everyone’s success. Learn more about the types of assets affiliate partners will need in our Winning Affiliate Centers lesson.

Give your affiliate partners the peace of mind that they are working with the right person, and that the products or services they promote are accurately represented. 

One more note on compliance: Be certain that images, social ads, and other branded materials used in marketing efforts are compliant with the rules and regulations of the media platforms they are designed for. 

7. Be Freakishly Fast

A strong technology stack is a crucial factor in building relationships with your affiliate partners. A slow-loading website not only leads to a poor user experience but is also a deterrent to potential affiliate partners. 

It’s not just your website that’s important. Fast, personal attention is 100% essential to maintaining strong relationships with your affiliate partners. 

8. Inspire Trust With Truthful Tracking

Having a reliable tracking system is essential to a strong relationship with your affiliate partners. Whether they are using pixels to track or more advanced affiliate software, it’s crucial to ensure that everything is consistently working correctly. If your affiliates can’t trust the data they are getting from you, it will jeopardize the partnership. Reports need to be easy to access and understand so your partners don’t have to dig for answers. 

9. Happy Customers Are Returning Customers

As an affiliate partner, taking care of customers is essential. The trust and loyalty of your customers are the foundation of any successful business, so be diligent in providing exceptional customer service. Process orders efficiently, respond to inquiries in a timely manner, offer helpful advice, and resolve issues quickly.

Take excellent care of the customers sent to you by your affiliate partners, and you’ll build a strong and mutually beneficial relationship that lasts.

Successful affiliate partnerships are key to the success of any business. Understanding what is most important to your affiliate partners is critical to building a successful relationship. By offering competitive offers that convert, paying affiliates promptly and reliably, and delivering on the promises you make to your customers, you’ll keep your affiliate partners engaged and drive new customers to your business!

Need Support Creating and Scaling Your Affiliate Program?

Supercharge Your Affiliate Revenue with everything you need to know to grow your partnership marketing channel in a free mini-course Everflow of Partner Connections.

You’ll get 15 lessons and 7 actionable tools designed to meet you at any level (beginner, intermediate and advanced) and help you build a steady affiliate revenue coming month after month, year after year! 

TAKE IT – ABSOLUTELY FREE… 

Sources:

VIP Membership Lesson 1195: What is Most Important to Affiliate Partners When Working With You?

VIP Membership Lesson 1196: What Leverage Points Are The Most Important To Affiliate Partners?

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