What is an affiliate? How long does it take to get started? Does it cost anything to be an affiliate? What technical skills do Affiliates need to use LinkConnector? Do I need software to run my Affiliate Program? Can I choose any Merchant to promote on my site? How often do affiliates get paid commission? How do affiliates get paid commissions? What services does LinkConnector offer Affiliates? What kinds of reports are available to Affiliates? Can I track ad placement within my site? What types of transactions do Affiliates get paid for? What link types does LinkConnector support? Do I have to use Naked Link Technology®, and exactly what is it? What are product feeds? How should I use product feeds? Are your Merchants working exclusively with LinkConnector? What is an affiliate?An affiliate (or publisher) is a person or company which sends visitors to a merchant's website in exchange for commissions. An affiliate teams up with a merchant, or group of merchants, through an affiliate marketing program to help them promote their products or services. An affiliate may earn commissions through Pay Per Click, Pay Per Lead, and Pay Per Sale campaigns (or with LinkConnector, also through Pay Per Call and Pay Per Go campaigns). In a standard campaign, an affiliate is given unique link code to paste into his or her website allowing LinkConnector to track which affiliate is responsible for generating a desired merchant action which then earns the affiliate commissions. In a Naked Link campaign, the affiliate simply links to a merchant landing page in an approved campaign and LinkConnector tracks the affiliate responsible for generating a desired merchant action and subsequent commission owed to the affiliate. How long does it take to get started?You may sign up for a LinkConnector Affiliate Account at any time. The account is submitted against stringent fraud criteria. The account information will also be reviewed for accuracy and adherence to the LinkConnector Affiliate Agreement. When the account is ready for approval, email verification by the affiliate applicant is required. If you sign up through a merchant co-branded sign up page, you will be presented the campaign application for the merchant's campaigns on initial login to your account. As part of our FraudFREE™ Protection, no campaign applications are processed automatically during the sign up process. Once inside your new affiliate account, you can find merchant campaigns that best suit your needs, apply to campaigns, and upon approval, view the links and get the code to place on your website. Then you are on your way to earning commission for your approved website traffic! The overall length of time it takes to complete this entire process depends on the technical prowess of the affiliate, the speed at which LinkConnector is able to approve their application and the time the affiliate has available to get things moving forward. Does it cost anything to be an affiliate?No. An affiliate account with LinkConnector is absolutely FREE. There are no set up costs and no maintenance fees. However, to be approved, you will need an active website. What technical skills do Affiliates need to use LinkConnector?There are no special skills required. Affiliates need to be able to copy and paste HTML code and place it accurately within the code of a Web page or within an email. Do I need software to run my Affiliate Program?No. LinkConnector has a built-in infrastructure that does not require any software to be installed. The merchant and affiliate web-based interface can be accessed with one username and password. When features are added, they are seamlessly integrated and LinkConnector members will have instant access to all the latest features. Can I choose any Merchant to promote on my site?Affiliates may apply to any campaign made available to them through the Affiliate Manager interface. However, the merchant has the control to approve (or disapprove) an affiliate. The Merchant also has the ability to approve affiliates for all campaigns or limit the affiliate to specific campaigns. Approval is granted for specific websites and campaigns run by the merchant. An affiliate may not use merchant links on sites that are not approved by the merchant. If the affiliate has not been approved for the merchant campaign or the website has not been approved, the affiliate will not be paid for any events. How often do affiliates get paid commission?LinkConnector combines all earned commissions from all merchants for each affiliate. LinkConnector then issues checks for the previous month's events on the 20th of the month for affiliates where the account balance exceeds US$100. Until an affiliate's account balance reaches US$100, the balance rolls over into the following month. How do affiliates get paid commissions?Affiliates receive payment by check, PayPal and, soon, direct deposit. What services does LinkConnector offer Affiliates?The LinkConnector Network provides all affiliates with an Affiliate Manager account. This account allows access to extensive tracking and reporting functionality as well as link serving. In addition, LinkConnector collects all commissions due from the merchant on an ongoing basis to protect the affiliate's earnings. LinkConnector then forwards payments to the affiliate, monthly, once $100.00 has been earned. Affiliates will receive automated email alerts, assistance with LinkConnector tracking code questions or issues, and notification of expired links. A dedicated Affiliate Representative, with direct email and telephone support, will be assigned to hard-working, top-performing accounts. What kinds of reports are available to Affiliates?The following Affiliate Reports are available in the Affiliate Manager:
Can I track ad placement within my site?LinkConnector provides an Affiliate Tracking Identifier (ATID) which you have the option of using on every click. By allowing affiliates to integrate custom identifiers, they can better utilize the power of LinkConnector reporting to optimize their own Affiliate Marketing efforts. To view your statistics broken down by ATID, see your Affiliate Tracking Report within the LinkConnector interface. What types of transactions do Affiliates get paid for?Within each campaign a merchant may offer the opportunity for affiliates to earn revenue via Pay Per Click, Pay Per Lead, Pay Per Sale, Pay Per Call, or Pay Per Go events, or a combination of these events.
What link types does LinkConnector support?Currently LinkConnector supports five link types:
Do I have to use Naked Link Technology, and exactly what is it?No, you do not have to use Naked Link Technology. The vast majority (over 99%) of our merchants that run a Naked Link campaign also run a Standard campaign with LinkConnector. In fact, 87% of our merchants run Standard campaigns only in our network (at the time this was written). This gives our Affiliates the ability to try Naked Links, or to run a traditional program with LinkConnector. Naked Link Technology offers merchants and affiliates the ability to transparently run an affiliate program. Naked Link Technology uses direct links from the affiliate site to the merchant site, using hyperlinks that are devoid of any parameters or query strings. A Naked Link campaign benefits affiliates by allowing affiliate websites to seem more editorial in nature to users and search engines, thereby improving their standing as an authority site. What are product feeds?A product feed is a file containing information about the products listed on a merchant's site. Product feeds are used to provide information about products, such as pricing and product descriptions. By using product feeds regularly, affiliates can ensure their sites are up to date with the latest pricing or promotional merchant information for that product. How should I use product feeds?Product feeds greatly enhance a user's experience. Affiliates can use this powerful tool to drive users directly to highly qualifying landing pages. LinkConnector offers affiliates a Product Feeds Export menu. Affiliates may use the Product Feeds Export which allows affiliates to download multiple product feed records for use on their web sites. A list of approved Merchants that provide product feeds will be displayed. Affiliates will then select the feeds they are interested in and press Download Feed to download feeds records in csv format. Are your Merchants working exclusively with LinkConnector?While there are many merchants that use LinkConnector exclusively, not all do. However, LinkConnector works closely with merchants to ensure the highest payout in the industry. |
