Affiliate programs - Should Newbies Join Networks?

[desgensd]

Hello,

I was just wondering if joining an affiliate network was more effective for a newbie than just subscribing individually to affiliate programs ?

I aslo read that Commission Junction or any other Affiliate networks cost 100's and for some even 1000's to join but I haven't seen any indication relating to costs on the sites.

Can anyone give me some feedback on the usge of these networks ?

Thanks for the help !

Cheers !

[Linda Buquet]

Hi desgensd,

If you are an affiliate, all networks are free to join. It costs the merchant
(the one that sells and ships the product) sometimes thousands to get set up.
But for you the affiliate, there is never any cost to join.

Starting off with a network in the beginning does make things easier.
You can check stats for all the programs you join within the network admin panel,
you can search for other programs to join and grab banners and links.
You also get one consolidated check (with most networks).

[fitnfree]

Networks can be great! You get a large choice of offers to choose from and like Linda said, if one only makes a few dollars, they just lump it all into one check.

From personal experience - -and this could be in part to the field I'm in - - I wouldn't count on them as a GREAT source of income (sometimes it's hit-or-miss) but they can definitely add some nice pocket change! Good luck! Let us know what you decide to join, okay? I'm always interested in learning about Affiliate networks. It seems I find a new one every week and get tempted to join, so some feedback on any that are tried would be greatly appreciated.

[Linda Buquet]

Yes agree that networks are mainly a good starting point.
After you learn the ropes you will find some Indy's (in-house programs, not on networks) that you may want to work with and can see what works best for you.

[Julia]

Well my opinion may be biased because I'm an affiliate manager in a network, but...........

I also agree that networks are a good starting point because you can always ask your affiliate managers for suggestions on multiple merchants to promote.

For example you may join a network because they have a good fashion merchant that you like, and then your affiliate manager can also recommend some great shoe, jewellery, lingerie, cosmetics, etc merchants that would also convert well with your traffic. When you are first starting out, the extra guidance can be helpful and save you a bit of time.

[desgensd]

Thanks averyone for your help. I'm convinced this forum will be extremely helpful !

following my last question, I have looked at some affiliate network and to my surprise most of them did not mention or provide a list of merchants they had aggreements with. They only mentionned a few programs to get our attention. I think it does not help us choose the network we want to join. Is there a way to obtain a list of merchants per networks ?

Cheers !

Daniel

[Linda Buquet]

With some networks if you dig you can find a complete merchant list.

With some, like ShareResults, you can even see all the merchants and all the payouts before joining. Here is their affiliate program directory with complete details of each program. Share Results Merchants (If you click a program you're interested in it will take to to a full detail page.)

With others you need to join to see a complete list. CJ just shows a handfull
Commission Junction - Featured advertisers. But CJ and Linkshare both have over 1,000 affiliate programs (I think) so you really do need to join and take advantage of all the search and category capability to find the programs that may be good for you.

WARNING - some networks are not very ethical, especially some CPA networks, so at least in the beginning, stick with one of the well known networks until you learn the ropes.

[fitnfree]

Originally Posted by desgensd

Thanks averyone for your help. I'm convinced this forum will be extremely helpful !

following my last question, I have looked at some affiliate network and to my surprise most of them did not mention or provide a list of merchants they had aggreements with. They only mentionned a few programs to get our attention. I think it does not help us choose the network we want to join. Is there a way to obtain a list of merchants per networks ?

Cheers !

Daniel

That's always an issue with me, too. I prefer to see what merchants a network has before joining but more often than not you can't view the merchants until you've already submitted all your personal information. That's happened to me so many times and then I wound up being an affiliate with so many sites I did't even recognize half of them after a while and it was humanely impossible to keep track of it all!

What I do now is contact a network and request more information if they don't show their merchants. Sometimes they don't even bother to respond, then I know they're probably not that great. That helps, but I agree it's much nicer when they show the programs they offer. It saves everyone a bit of time and hassle.