HER ROYAL MAJESTY, QUEEN ELIZABETH II PROCLAIMS OASIS ADS THE

#1 AFFILIATE NETWORK  

Between buying Facebook likes and Twitter followers we’ve been pretty busy here the last few weeks  But seriously, some networks actually do that.

I’d like to kick this post off with a shout out to a good affiliate of ours (and a good guy in general) whom I’ll simply call, “The Mexican” for finally joining the masses and giving us his bank wire information.  I’m 100% certain that Canada Post, USPS and all banks involved will benefit from not having to decipher my chicken scratch going forward. So, thank you Mexican!

The purpose of this post is actually to talk a little bit about some of the bullshit that AMs and networks have to deal with.  We have a solid base of affiliates on our network, many of whom we’ve known for years, and have come to trust as affiliates and friends.  I think that most affiliates in the space are genuinely good people, and for the most part open and honest about their traffic. It’s really the only way to keep things working long term for advertisers, affiliates and networks.

Having said that, there are still a bunch of renegades in existence whose sole purpose in life, I guess, is to go from network to network guaranteeing huge volume in exchange for massive payouts, with little or no regard for quality of leads, sales and trials, etc. This basically creates unnecessary bidding wars between competing networks, and ultimately forces networks to ask advertisers for more money, whom in turn have to charge the customers more money (on rebills for example), which eventually leads to angry consumers forcing higher cancellation rates/more charge-backs and in the end kills offers.  I’ve always been pretty patient, so to me taking slightly smaller margins (networks and affiliates) knowing that those offers will last 2 years instead of 2 months is a no-brainer.   I think that most affiliates and 95% of advertisers would agree with this.  However it’s also pretty clear that some people are only out for a quick buck wherever they can find it, and have no problem steamrolling through campaigns like fat guys at Vegas buffets.  This shit happens though.  The key is to try to see it coming in advance and brace yourself for the imminent carnage.

As much as we hate the above scenario, we do acknowledge that it’s all a part of the game and we deal with it.  The next point, although I guess also a part of the game, is one that really makes our industry look like it’s been overrun by a rambling heard of donkeys.  I’m talking about the pointless, often clueless and almost always fact-less shit-talking.  I’m not going to get into a who-said-what here, but we’ve come to know of at least three separate instances where affiliates that were more than ready to work with us at one point suddenly stopped responding, and in two cases actually took shots at us because their AM at another network said that we were not to be trusted, and were so-called “bottom-feeders”.

For the record, we have never talked trash about any of our competitors – little jabs here and there are normal, but nothing that could potentially harm competitors’ businesses.  Ripping networks like Oasis Ads that have never missed a single payment to any affiliates, that send gifts to affiliates just because, and that bring on exclusive new offers every week not only shows a complete lack of business acumen and intelligence, but frankly makes the shit-talking AM look weak and insecure.  In that respect, we just smile at the obvious threat we pose to some, and simply wish them the best of luck not only with their business, but also in their lives, which have clearly seen a tremendous amount of heartbreak and setbacks.

As for those affiliates that take anything their AM may say about a competitor at face value – you’re probably just as insecure as your AM, and gullible to boot.  Don’t be spineless – think for yourself.  Better yet, find out for yourself.  Because there will come a time (and it’s already happened on numerous occasions) when we’ll have an exclusive offer that everyone wants, and you’ll be left in the background kicking yourself for being such a dick bag.

Now understand, I don’t want any of these people to fail.  I just want to see them all grow as individuals and realize what I learned many years ago; you’ll always get a lot more business, and gain more respect by being honest with people.  If you don’t know the deal, you don’t need to make shit up.  If an affiliate asks you about a competitor that you know is solid, tell the affiliate the truth. There’s nothing to be gained from lying, and more times than not the affiliate will stick with you anyway.  But if you do lie about competitors, how will the affiliate ever know if you’re being honest about how your own offers perform…or anything else for that matter?

Anyway, those are a couple of issues that really grind my gears.

If you have any comments or questions you know where to find me.

Luke

*Disclaimer – Queen Elizabeth II may not have actually proclaimed Oasis Ads the #1 affiliate network