Archive for September 2007
Introducing another new AvantLink merchant:
This program, a sister site/store to Massey’s Professional Outfitters (and their other Affiliate programs announced today), rounds out the latest killer additions to our Outdoor/Recreation category. We’re very excited about this opportunity for Affiliates. I will say sincerely that I’ve known the guys behind these four programs for a while, and they are all business. They know the Affiliate industry, and they will support you on every level.
We don’t bring Affiliate programs on board unless they are ready for prime time, and these guys certainly are ready to rock!
Oh by the way, WeGotYourPack.com is a site that targets the backpacking, trekking and travel crowd. As with all their sites they bring you world-class brand names to promote including The North Face, Patagonia, Osprey and Eagle Creek.
And remember the Massey’s programs will NOT reverse your commissions on return orders, only fraud. There is also a 365-day cookie, so don’t procrastinate adding the Massey’s programs this right away. The 4th quarter officially begins in four days!
From their program description:
For Spring 2008, we will expand the selection to include more packs, more luggage, more accessories, plus…everything that goes in the pack or bag. That means, tents, sleeping bags, hostel sheets, and on and on.
Read the program launch announcement on ABestWeb.
Let us know what we can do to help you get started promoting WeGotYourPack.com. Contact anyone at AvantLink or the program manager Brent Carey, bcarey/at/coloradowebsolutions.com.
Gary & AvantLink
Introducing another new AvantLink merchant:
Here it is…program number three of four that went live today in AvantLink from Masseys Professional Outfitters: The Flip Flopper! The product line is different, but the site and Affiliate program support (and terms) are just as impressive. This is specialty, surf-inspired lifestyle site popular with a younger demographic. Sandal and beach footwear brands include Billabong, Quiksilver, Keen, Chaco and Roxy. All large recognizable brands that will convert for you year round.
Just a reminder that ALL the Massey’s programs will not be reversing sales on returns. These guys acknowledge that you’ve done your job as an Affiliate by sending the paying customer. If they return a product you sold, they’re still going to pay you! Reversal transactions will be processed on fraud orders only.
And remember like the others, TheFlipFlopper.com offers a 365-day cookie life on each click!
From their program description:
The crowd shopping here wants to identify with where they spend their money. TheFlipFlopper.com is a very clickable name and is backed up with tongue in cheek banners and custom graphics. Our specialty is creating logos that mimic big corporate brands.
Read the program launch announcement on ABestWeb.
Let us know what we can do to help you get started promoting TheFlipFlopper.com. Contact anyone at AvantLink or the program manager Brent Carey, bcarey/at/coloradowebsolutions.com.
Gary & AvantLink
Introducing another new AvantLink merchant:
As we mentioned earlier today in the new program post for Masseys Professional Outfitters, there are three other stores that went live with this launch. The second I would like to draw attention to is 800-Ski-Shop.com. This is Massey’s alpine-only specialty site featuring world-class ski and snowboard brands like Volkl/Tecnica, K2 and Burton. Perfect timing for the mad winter sports gear buying frenzy, and of course the holiday spending season.
Just a reminder that ALL the Massey’s programs will not be reversing sales on returns. You’ve done your job by sending the paying customer, and this company acknowledges that. From our perspective at AvantLink, we agree fully with that line of thought. If an Affiliate-referred customer returns an item, it’s likely the fault of the merchant (wrong size, color variant, etc.) and not the Affiliate. Plus, it’s probable the store just acquired a long-term customer from the referral. Eating a return is a small price to pay for that acquisition.
Oh yeah and don’t forget, 800-Ski-Shop.com offers a 365-day cookie life on each click!
From their program description:
This separate site allows us to craft a different look and feel that may be more attractive to alpine enthusiasts. We also feel that 800-SKI-SHOP is MUCH more likely to be clicked by someone looking for a new pair of skis or boots then MasseysOutfitters.com.
Read the program launch announcement on ABestWeb.
Let us know what we can do to help you get started promoting 800-Ski-Shop.com. Contact anyone at AvantLink or the program manager Brent Carey, bcarey/at/coloradowebsolutions.com.
Gary & AvantLink
Introducing another new AvantLink merchant:
We’re thrilled to bring you the Masseys Affiliate program, in addition to three other niche stores that are part of the Masseys’ family. MasseysOutfitters.com is the adventure specialist with multiple stores and multiple websites dedicated to outfitting people for whatever outdoor activity they enjoy. They carry over 200 outdoor brands from high-converting manufacturers like Patagonia, The North Face and Chaco.
There’s some BIG news to share about these programs, and I’ll get to that in a second. But for now, note that this is yet another killer merchant in the Outdoor/Recreation category at AvantLink. We’re the leaders in this category, so if you have outdoor-oriented traffic come on board and start using our advanced and dynamic Affiliate technology to drive traffic for high-dollar oudoor gear and apparel.
Now for that BIG news. With their Affiliate-centric approach to their programs, Masseys and their sister stores will reverse your sales on fraud orders only! Let me say it again in another way, Masseys will not reverse sales on returns, only on fraud orders. They feel that you’ve done your job by sending a paying customer, and it’s up to them to hold the sale. Period. We’re absolutely on board with that line of thought, so we appluad this decision.
Oh yeah, and one more thing that will peak your interest: Their programs offer a 365-day cookie life on each click!
From their program detail page at AvantLink:
On the technology and conversion side, we’ve invested heavily in new technologies such as Scene 7, Dotomi, Celbros Search, and Channel Advisor to create a solid site that converts for our affiliates. Our goal is to offer you a great performing site with all the latest features and functionality available today and tomorrow.
Read the program launch announcement on ABestWeb.
Let us know what we can do to help you get started promoting MasseysOutfitters.com. Contact anyone at AvantLink or the program manager Brent Carey, bcarey/at/coloradowebsolutions.com.
Gary & AvantLink
A lot has been happening with the Altrec Affiliate program lately. Big changes are taking place, and they are all positive developments for an already healthy program at the top of our Outdoor/Recreation category. This program has come a long way since they came on board with AvantLink a year and a half ago! We posted the new program announcement for Altrec in early Spring of 2006 at ABW, but perhaps the best news came a couple months later: Altrec is now PARASITE FREE …from that point on the program has continued to improve every month!
One thing I would also like to do is welcome Sharon Page as their new Affiliate Manager. As you may or may not know, Greg Toledo moved on to focus on his graduate work. We’ll miss him that’s for sure, but we’re excited to work with Sharon to keep things pushing ahead.
Below is a summary of the upgrades to the program that were recently announced. Oh BTW, drop in on the new Altrec Affiliate Forum at AbestWeb. We’re happy to be lined up with them on the best Affiliate marketing community online! Sharon will be sure to keep everyone informed on important announcements there. She’s off to a great start with it already.
Improvements to the Altrec.com Outdoors Affiliate Program (September 2007):
- Higher Baseline Payout - Effective October 1, 2007, Altrec will be raising the base level commission percentage for ALL AFFILIATES by 2 percent.
- Seasonal Commission Bump - Get an additional 1 percent commission from October 1st until the end of February ON TOP OF the permanent 2 percent improvement.
- Datafeed Improvements - On September 13th Altrec released a major upgrade to its AvantLink datafeed with new content and functionality focused on SEO and increasing conversion. Here are a few of these feed enhancements:
- Dynamic and static cross links of similar products
- Rotating user reviews for fresh and unique content
- Fit tip guides will help reduce return rates
Sharon and team have also communicated through this upgrade that more promotions will be moving through the channel, effective immediately. On behalf of everyone at AvantLink, nice work guys! Great job with the feed and new commission structure.
For more information, read Altrec’s recent news release on PRWeb.com. Here’s a quote from Sharon and link to the full article:
“First I would like to say how excited I am to be taking what has been a very stable and solid affiliate program and group of partners and take both it and our partners in new and exciting directions,” Page said. “Everything we do at Altrec will be highly affiliate-centric and focused on delivering market leading tools to maximize the SEO, conversion, and ultimately, sales for our partners. With that in mind, I am thrilled to announce several major upgrades to our program…”
Gary & AvantLink
In addition to the Product Display Builder upgrades we announced on 7/24/07, we have rolled out a couple new advanced options to the Product Display Builder that adds some great new functionality and flexibility to the tool.
- Affiliates now have the ability to easily configure contextually relevant product displays. You’ll notice a new checkbox option that reads “Use contextual analysis to scan the calling page for relevant keywords/phrases. These results will then be used as the main keyword filters for selecting products.” This option should make it easier for you to monetize your website content pages with relevant product displays.
- We have added “Advanced List” and “Advanced Grid” layout options. These options allow you to create your own list or grid layout HTML templates, define your own CSS styles and use product tag variable placeholders in your templates that will be replaced dynamically with the product information before displaying.
Scott & AvantLink
Introducing a new exclusive AvantLink merchant:
This is an outstanding addition to our Outdoor/Recreation category! OutdoorCooking.com is the premier source online for all outdoor cooking equipment needs. From Grills and Fire Pits, to Dutch Ovens and Camp Stoves, these guys have it covered. They carry the following major brands of outdoor cooking equipment: Camp Chef, JetBoil, Brunton, Optimus, Trangia and many more.
This program is ideal for your outdoor category, site or blog. The niche product line from OutdoorCooking.com has proven to be incredibly effective. We’re very excited about the potential with this program. For one, we were thrilled to see their reported average site conversion of 5.67%! Now that should make you feel good about getting this merchant added asap.
The OutdoorCooking Affiliate program has dedicated program support, a very professional site, focused product line and the best Affiliate tools in the business through AvantLink!
From their program description:
Originally founded in 2000, OutdoorCooking.com has continued to increase range of products while at the same time providing a fun and friendly shopping environment for our online customers. No matter what your outdoor cooking interests are we have it covered from backcountry camping, day hiking, road tripping, RV’ing and Tailgating to a simple home backyard barbecues we’ve got the right equipment for you.
Read the program launch announcement on ABestWeb.
Let us know what we can do to help you get started promoting OutdoorCooking.com. Contact anyone at AvantLink or the program manager Kris Kofoed, krisk/at/campchef.com.
Gary & AvantLink
Affiliates periodically get the news from merchants that they will not pay commission on gift certificate sales. I am not sure where that logic comes from, but not to worry in this case, the GourmetStation Affiliate program just made up for it and big time! Here are the details on this gift certificate sale promotion:
All 4 course certificates, including anniversary, birthday, congratulations, “thank you” and “thinking of you” are now offered at 30% off. Basic 4 course dinner certificate is $79.99 plus $19.99 shipping. Occasions certificates are $89.99 plus $19.99 shipping. The 30% applies to product only.
Affiliates, use this important call to action when listing this promo: Coupon Code GC07 must be applied at time of checkout to redeem the 30% discount on the gift certificate. These GourmetStation certificates will never expire. The offer will run through the end of September 2007.
There is a landing page available. You can send your traffic to the following URL by grabbing the text link in AvantLink or by creating your own link with the Custom Link Builder. If you’re using the Dynamic Coupon Feed for GourmetStation not to worry, this offer is already flagged in the system and included on your site.
Landing page: http://gourmetstation.com/cgi-bin/gourmet/cat_gc.html
Again, these gift certificates will never expire. Affiliates get full 10% commission on all GourmetStation’s gift certificate sales the moment the gift certificate is purchased, not redeemed.
Remember, if you have any questions on promoting GourmetStation and their fine dining gift certificate, food gifts or complete product line contact Geno Prussakov from AM Navigator, the Affiliate program manager for this fine merchant. BTW if you’re not opt in to receive emails from GourmetStation and Geno please do so. He just sent out his first newsletter and it was excellent!
See the announcement for this promo at AM Navigator’s ABestWeb category.
Gary & AvantLink
Introducing a new exclusive AvantLink merchant:
This is an excellent addition to our Pet Supplies category! Dogologie is not only a quality online retailer with a great products for dogs and dog owners, but they also maintain a very popular social network for dog people at their site. This environment enhances customer loyalty and retention, and of course will help convert the traffic you send their way.
This is a good program to add to your pet-related sites or site categories. They payout a baseline 7% commission. There are also performance incentives available, great regular promotions and coupons, and a current sitewide conversion rate of 3%.
A launch coupon to promote is available! Customers can get 5% off all orders of $75 or more. This coupon and code is available as a text link in the interface, and it’s also on flagged for the Dogologie coupon feed.
From their program description:
The Dogologie Story: It all began in 2003 with the opening of a simple dog store and has since become about the dog community. At Dogologie we believe Dog-People enjoy a bond that transcends routine barriers like age, culture or economic status.
Read the program launch announcement on ABestWeb.
Let us know what we can do to help you get started promoting the Dogologie Affiliate program. Contact anyone at AvantLink or the program manager Laura Rice, laura[at]dogologie.com.
Gary & AvantLink
We’re happy to bring your attention to program upgrades and a powerful Affiliate promo from The House Boardshop and their sibling store ProBoardShop.com. These Affiliate-specific specials are in place to help celebrate their 25th anniversary, and they both warrant your attention! These programs have been with AvantLink since the very early days of our network and they are compelling merchants to consider. With great payouts, performance incentives, regular coupons and promos, dedicated management from Michael Schaeffer and all the top brand names in board sports…don’t hesitate to step it up with them.
If you aren’t yet promoting these programs now is the time to start. With the upcoming 4th quarter holiday crunch, you won’t regret it.
If you’re not familiar with these programs, here are snippets respectively from The House Affiliate program and ProBoardShop Affiliate program detail pages on AvantLink:
The House carries all the major board brands in stock. Our 80,000 square foot warehouse contains hundreds of thousands of items, i.e. 38,000 boards, 36,000 pairs of boots, and much more, all ready to be shipped within 24 hours!
ProBoardShop.com is the premiere online store for serious boarders. Whether you ride on snow, pavement or water, we offer you the best brands in the business including Roxy, Rome, Nitro, Ride.
Details of the 25th Anniversary Specials for Affiliates are as follows:
- Both programs now offer a 365 day cookie life! This should get your attention as this is the only outdoor/recreation retailer online to offer a one year cookie. This is an ongoing upgrade to both programs that will not expire.
- 10% storewide coupon codes for both programs!* From 9/5 through 9/11 customers who enter coupon code “House25” or “PBS25” in the respective cart of The-House.com and ProBoardShop.com will receive an extra 10% store wide discount. This can mean up to a 70% savings on snowboard gear, apparel and skate shoes, including most 2008 products!
Mike Schaeffer and team also posted a press release to PRWeb.com highlighting these 25th Anniversary Affiliate Offers:
St. Paul, MN (PRWEB) September 2, 2007 — The-House.com and its sibling ProBoardShop.com are saying thank you to their affiliates and customers. “We are so thankful for our partnership with our many affiliates that we wanted to give a little something back for our 25th anniversary” said Michael Schaeffer, Affiliate Manager. Affiliates of The-House.com and Proboardshop.com in the Avantlink network will now be able to refer sales on a 365 day cookie- the longest cookie available to affiliates of any outdoor and sports companies. “We want our affiliates to take advantage of this deal before our busy season starts.”
Let us know if you have any questions or need help getting started with these two programs. Happy converting with The House and ProBoardShop.com!
* 10% discount coupon excludes 2008 Burton gear.
Gary & AvantLink
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