2011 AffiliateBenchmarks Survey Now Open

Summer is in full swing, as is the 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks Research Study! On July 1st, 2011,the Netx and AffiliateBenchmarks team proudly launched a new and improved affiliate research survey, with plans to make the largest global research effort in affiliate marketing history better than ever. We can only make it happen with the help of publishers, advertisers, agencies, etc., and there’s only 1 month left to participate!

Here are some key reasons to participate in this affiliate research effort.

  • Convenience. We know you’re busy, and don’t have time to click answer bubbles for 30minutes. Not to worry, because participating in this year’s study only takes 5 minutes.Seriously. Participants can finish the survey in less time than it takes to boil pasta. Convenient!
  • New Topics. The 2011 survey touches on the topic of tax nexus, which has had an enormous effect on the affiliate industry this year and thus a vital subject to study.
  • Get $3000!…worth of affiliate knowledge! Once the data is gathered, we’ll put together analysis in webinar format, available to purchase for $3,000. However, participants that answer every survey questions will get a free copy of the analysis. That’s right- we think 5 minutes of your time is worth $3k! Isn’t that nice? Participants who only answer the required questions will receive a copy of the raw data, as a token of our gratitude. All participants will receive their results within 2 weeks after the survey closes.
  • Everyone is doing it! Check out these big names in the affiliate industry that support our research efforts. We greatly appreciate the support of these networks and advertisers and hope you join in, too.
    • eBay
    • Amazon.com
    • Commission Junction
    • LinkShare
    • Google
    • Pepperjam
    • Revenews
    • Affiliate Summit
    • Media Trust
    • Share A Sale
    • Performance Marketing Association.
  • Internationally-friendly. Publishers, advertisers and agencies based outside the US are strongly encouraged to participate. We’ll be releasing 2 reports–one for US and one for International – in order to provide you with the most relevant data possible.
  • 360° Perspective. Even though publishers, advertisers and agencies will answer different surveys, the data from all three will be merged in the end. This way, the results will provide awell-rounded look into the affiliate industry.
  • Improve your business. Last year, over 10,000 participants used our research data to guide and strengthen their affiliate marketing strategies. The secret’s out that our research is a vitalbusiness tool in this industry. Reap the benefits yourself by taking our survey today!

So, to my friends in the affiliate world reading this blog post: this is a call to action! Do the right thing for your business and your industry. Click here and spend just a few more minutes online sharing your thoughts. I promise you won’t regret it.

Don’t Miss The Latest Headlines From This Week’s Netx Industry News Update!

Google dethrones Yahoo as the most visited web property while California affiliates make progress in their fight against the nexus tax.  All of this and plenty more in the Netx industry news update!

Netx Selected by Red Roof to Launch and Manage Affiliate Marketing Program
Red Roof, a leader in the economy hotel segment, has selected Netx to create and manage their new affiliate marketing program.  Red Roof opened their first hotel in Columbus, Ohio in 1973 and was founded on the philosophy of providing guests the greatest value without giving up quality.  They are at the top of the economy hotel segment and Netx looks forward to helping them achieve this distinction in the affiliate space as well.

Vayama Selects Netx to Manage Affiliate Program
Netx has been selected by the international travel site Vayama.com to manage their affiliate program.  Vayama.com is a first-of-its kind travel web site that gives travelers a whole new world of choice in international air travel. Using the latest in web technologies, Vayama offers a massive selection of airlines, flights and fares, many of which were never previously available online.

Legislative Progress for Affiliates in California and Minnesota
PerformanceMarketingAssociation.com
The referendum to reverse the affiliate nexus tax in California has been approved by the Attorney General and Secretary of State.  The campaign to gather 504,000 signatures by September 27th can now begin!  In addition, Minnesota’s Special Session Tax bill has been released and the Affiliate Nexus Tax is not in it nor can it be added now.

Top 50 U.S. Web Properties for June 2011
comScore.com
According to comScore, Yahoo yielded the No. 1 spot to Google in June for the first time in eight months. The search giant drew 182.5 million unique visitors last month, compared to 178.3 million for Yahoo, whose traffic slipped about 6% from May. Google’s audience increased slightly from 180 million.  An all-time high of 116 million people visited the Travel category in June while 32 million people visited sports/outdoor retail sites.

Ad Effectiveness: Above-the-Fold, Repetition Clicks with Users
MediaPost.com
According to Casale Media, above-the-fold ad placements displayed within the first screen of a user’s browser window were found to be the most effective. In fact, they are almost seven times more effective at generating a click-through than ads delivered below the fold.  Casale also found that users were three to four time more likely to act on an ad if it was the first or second one they saw during their session.  From there, ad effectiveness plummeted as the user progressed through their online viewing.

Will Mobile Ad Spend Overtake TV?
AdWeek.com
There’s no question TV is beating digital in the fight for ad dollars but digital ad execs don’t expect that to last long.  According to Paul Gelb, Mobile Practice Lead of Razorfish, mobile is the first true form of mass media noting that there is over three times the number of mobile subscribers as there are TV subscribers.  With higher engagement rates and unmatched inventory Gelb believes the shift may not take as long as most expect.

Web Users Uneasy with Behavioral Targeting
TRUSTe.com
New research from privacy company TRUSTe indicates that a sizable proportion of U.S. Web users are uncomfortable with online tracking by advertisers.  For the report researchers asked 1,004 Web users whether they would voluntarily consent to share their online browsing behavior with advertisers in order to receive targeted ads. Only 15% said they would “definitely” or “probably” consent.  When asked in a separate question whether they were comfortable with online behavioral advertising, just 11% said they were.

Email Marketers Expect 2011 Holiday Season to Top Last Year
DMNews.com
With this year’s email click and open rates outperforming 2010′s numbers by 23% and 11%, respectively, marketers should prepare for a stronger holiday season than last year, said Chad White, research director at email service provider Responsys. Given those expectations, brands should begin to plan their holiday email campaigns now.

Catch the Latest Headlines in the Netx Industry News Update!

Taking the headlines in this week’s Netx industry news update are back-to-school shoppers eager for savings and Google’s improved AdWords reporting!

More Back-To-School Shoppers are Looking for Bargains Online
InternetRetailer.com
Nearly 70% of shoppers say they will use online comparison shopping sites for back-to-school shopping, a major jump from 2010 when only 23% of consumers said the same.  Additionally, 41% of shoppers said they will seek out back-to-school coupons from retailer web sites, up 33% from last year.

Participate in the 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks Survey!
The 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks survey is underway so don’t miss your opportunity to participate in the industry’s largest research study of affiliate marketing trends and best practices! Everyone who participates in the survey will get the full study sent to them for free (a $3,000 value) within two weeks of the results being published.  Please note that all surveys must be submitted by September 1st.

AdWords Adds Top vs. Side Reporting
SearchEngineWatch.com
To help AdWords users get more accurate feedback on how their ads are performing, Google is adding a new data table option that contrasts the statistics for ads appearing on the top of search with those appearing on the side.  Previously there was no way to tell how top and side reporting impacted the success of an ad but the new reporting feature will now allow users to view the figures separately.

U.S. Mobile Advertising to Hit $1.2 Billion in 2011
MediaPost.com
A new report by J.P. Morgan predicts U.S. mobile ad spending to grow to $1.2 billion this year.  Despite rapid mobile growth, the report points out that global penetration will only approach 30% this year, indicating there is still plenty of room for expansion.

Brand Campaigns on Facebook Up 104%
Clickz.com
According to research released by TBG Digital, the number of paid brand advertising campaigns on Facebook rose 104% in Q2 when compared to Q1.  The Q2 study found retailers to be the fastest-growing marketing sector in Facebook advertising, accumulating 36% of all impressions.

Subject Line Personalization Doesn’t Impact Click Rates
DMNews.com
Emails that are not personalized with a consumer’s name in the subject line generate a 3% click rate, equal to that of personalized emails, according to a study released by email service provider MailerMailer.  Non-personalized emails outperformed messages with personalized subject lines with an open rate of 11% compared to the latter’s 4%, while emails with personalized body content generated a 13% open rate.

The Weekly Netx Industry News Update!

Amazon prepares to take on the state of California while the IAB releases a set of best practices for online ad research.  These headlines and more in this week’s Netx industry news update!

Amazon’s Sales Tax Counter-Attack
InternetRetailer.com
Amazon says it will ask California voters to overturn the state’s new affiliate tax law in a February referendum.  In order for Amazon to get the appeal on the ballot, they will have to submit 504,760 signatures by September 29th.

Participate in the 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks Survey!
Don’t miss your opportunity to participate in the industry’s largest research study of affiliate marketing trends and best practices.  The 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks survey has officially begun and we hope you’ll join us in making it the biggest one yet!  Everyone who participates in the survey will get the full study sent to them for free (a $3,000 value) within two weeks of the results being published.  Please note that all surveys must be submitted by September 1st.

IAB Sets Rules for Online Ad Research
AdWeek.com
The Interactive Advertising Bureau has introduced a set of best practices for conducting online ad effectiveness research.  The guidelines are intended to provide the online ad market with a practical set of recommendations for standard operating procedures with respect to using ad effectiveness studies.

June 2011 U.S. Search Engine Rankings
comScore.com
Google Sites remained atop the U.S. search engine rankings in June with 65.5% market share.  Yahoo! Sites and Microsoft Sites rounded out the top three with 15.9% and 14.4% market share, respectively.  In total, there were over 16.7 billion explicit core searches conducted in June.

Smartphone Adoption and Usage
PewInternet.org
In its first standalone measure of smartphone ownership, the Pew Internet Project found that one third of American adults – 35% – own smartphones. The Project’s May survey found that 83% of US adults have a cell phone of some kind, and that 42% of them own a smartphone.  Approximately 87% of smartphone owners access the internet or email on their handheld, including two-thirds who do so on a typical day.

Paid Search Budgets Rise, Gain Efficiencies at Lower Costs
MediaPost.com
Advertisers spent 20% more on paid search campaigns in Q2 2011, compared with the year-ago quarter, but also increased efficiencies.  Click-through rates rose 12%, while overall cost per click remained the same.  The Paid Search Quarterly Benchmarking Report by Marin Software also found that despite a 15% drop in impressions, the average marketer saw an 8% increase in click volume.

The Latest Netx Industry News Update!

Google and Twitter’s search agreement expires while the Android operating system is continuously challenged by Apple, where else but the Netx industry news update!

May 2011 U.S. Mobile Subscriber Market Share
comScore.com
According to comScore, the Google Android ranked as the top mobile operating system over the last three months with 38.1% of U.S. smartphone subscribers.  Apple strengthened its #2 position with 26.6% of the smarthphone market while RIM ranked third with 24.5%.  The study also found that 39.8% of mobile subscribers used their devices to browse the web while 28.6% of users accessed a social networking site or blog.

Why Marketers Must Care About Site Speed
SearchEngineWatch.com
The speed of a website is commonly one of the most overlooked factors in online marketing.  A slow website can quickly begin building the impression that your site may not be easy to buy from or interact with.  Slow sites can also create frustration or establish a lack of trust in your messaging.  In addition, a 2010 study conducted by Forrester Research found that users remember slow sites and consciously remember not to return to them.

Google, Twitter Search Agreement Expires
Engadget.com
While the implications remain unclear, Google and Twitter appear to have let their real-time search agreement expire.  Google has said that it needs time to integrate Google+ within its social network-based search tool but has not offered a time frame for doing so.  Google Real Time Search started with Twitter search results and has quickly expanded to Yahoo Answers, news articles, MySpace updates and public Facebook Page updates.

Amazon.com, O.co Terminate Affiliate Ad Contracts In California
DMNews.com
Amazon.com and O.co have officially canceled their California affiliate advertising contracts as a direct result of the state’s recently enacted affiliate nexus law.  Both sites acted quickly as they terminated their partnerships on the same day that Governor Jerry Brown signed the state’s budget.

Dialing For Dollars: iPhone Leads Mobile Ad Results
MediaPost.com
A recent study by MediaMind has found that devices based on Apple’s iOS operating system achieved twice the performance of phones based on Google’s Android operating system, and five times the performance of BlackBerry phones.  In addition, mobile ads achieved a click-through rate of 0.61%, while standard display banners for PCs recorded at CTR of just 0.07%.  The study also found that while PC browsing peaks during business hours, mobile browsing soars during the evenings and maintains a higher CTR than PCs do at any time of the day.

Participate In The 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks Survey!
Don’t miss your opportunity to participate in the industry’s largest research study of affiliate marketing trends and best practices.  The 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks survey has officially begun and we hope you’ll join us in making it the biggest one yet!  Everyone who participates in the survey will get the full study sent to them for free (a $3,000 value) within two weeks of the results being published.  Please note that all surveys must be submitted by September 1st.

This Week’s Industry News Update!

As the summer heats up so does the industry!  With California passing an affiliate nexus tax and Google +1 going global you’ll want to grab this week’s Netx industry news update while it’s hot off the press.

California Passes Affiliate Nexus Tax – Effective Immediately
MediaPost.com
Governor Brown of California has officially signed the state budget that includes an Affiliate Nexus Tax and 2 related nexus bills.  The law will go into effect immediately and has already caused major online retailers such as Amazon to remove California affiliates from their program.

Participate In The 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks Survey!
Join thousands of advertisers, affiliates, and agencies in participating in the industry’s largest research study of affiliate marketing trends and best practices.  The 2011 AffiliateBenchmarks survey officially begins on July 1st and we hope you’ll join us in making it the biggest one yet!  Please note that all surveys must be submitted by September 1st.

Paid Search Spending Increases 12% In Q2
InternetRetailer.com
According to IgnitionOne, spending on paid search ads by U.S. retailers grew 12% year over year in the second quarter.  The study also found that Google accounted for 80% of all U.S. search advertising spend while MSN/Yahoo! captured 19% of spend.  Facebook ad spend saw a 22% year over year increase while impressions grew by 11%.

Google +1 Goes Global
Mashable.com
Google’s +1 button, the search giant’s challenger to the Facebook Like button, has made its worldwide debut appearing on Google search pages around the globe.  In addition to an international rollout on search result pages, Google is expanding its rollout of the +1 button on websites across the world.

Google Analytics Gets Social Engagement Reporting
SearchEngineLand.com
Google Analytics has just announced a new set of reports and functionality that will enable websites to track social interaction with their content.  The new reporting functions will allow marketers to determine whether there is a difference in behavior between visitors that share and visitors that do not share.  In addition, there will be a new report that shows which pages are driving the highest number of social actions, allowing marketers to understand what content has gone viral.

Feds To Launch Probe Of Google
WSJ.com
Federal regulators are poised to hit Google Inc. with subpoenas, launching a broad, formal investigation into whether the internet giant has abused its dominance of web-search advertising.  According to accusations, Google has been unfairly manipulating search results to draw clicks away from competitors and to its own services.  There have also been complaints that Google has unfairly demoted companies that compete with its own products and services in its search rankings.

Groupon Cedes Share Of Daily Deals
Businessweek.com
Groupon’s share of online daily deals has slipped from 52% in April to 48% in May.  Their rival, LivingSocial, has managed to grow their share of the market from 20% in April to 24% in May.  Closely competing to be the third-largest daily deal provider is Travelzoo Inc., BuyWithMe.com, and Gilt City.

The Weekly Netx Industry News Update!

Google continues to lead the search engine rankings while users continue to turn to online coupons for increased savings.  You’ll find all of this and much more in the Netx Industry News Update!

Online Coupons Reach Nearly Half of Web Users
eMarketer.com
eMarketer estimates that by the end of 2011 nearly half of the US adult internet users, or 88.2 million people, will have redeemed an online coupon or code for use either online or offline.  Experian Simmons also reported that the usage of digital coupons in US households will nearly double from 12% in 2005 to an expected 22% in 2011.  eMarketer principal analyst Jeffrey Grau notes that although consumer brands are accustomed to promoting their products in stores and in newspaper inserts, as more shoppers make purchase decisions online before taking a shopping trip, brands are following them onto the internet.

Only 30% of YouTube Users Skip Pre-Roll Ads
BrandRepublic.com
Many advertisers were not thrilled in December 2010 when YouTube announced that they will give users the option to skip past pre-roll ads on videos.  Although advertisers would only pay when someone watched the full ad or the first 30 seconds (whichever was shorter), many believed most users would skip right past the ads leading to less overall exposure.  Well according to Bruce Daisley, sales director at YouTube and Google, only 30% of YouTube ads are being skipped.  Daisley also reported that users who choose to watch the ads were 75% more engaged than an average user on the video streaming site.

May 2011 Search Engine Rankings
comScore.com
As expected, Google sites lead the U.S. search engine rankings with 65.4% of the market while Yahoo! Sites came in second with 15.9% of the market and Microsoft Sites rounded out the top 3 with 14.1%.  Americans conducted over 19 billion total core search queries in May which marked an increase of 7% from April.

Google Ups Ad Support, New Performance Pack Aids Metrics
MediaPost.com
Google has just released the performance pack, a real-time and auction-based set of tools that enables advertisers to gain meaningful metrics on their ad campaigns across sites in the Google Display Network.  Relative CTR, impression share, the Content Ads diagnostic tool, and the Unseen Impressions filter are the first in a series the company plans to develop in an effort to support advertisers.  According to Google some of the new tools and metrics will give advertisers insight into how their ads perform relative to other companies running ads in the same unit across the display network.  The tools will also tell advertisers where their ads are running as well as where their ads aren’t running and why.

Tennessee’s Netflix Law Makes Sharing Logins Illegal
Slate.com
This week, Tennessee lawmakers passed a new bill that will make it illegal to us someone else’s subscription to online entertainment services such as Netflix or Rhapsody.  The bill, which is aimed at computer hackers who sell passwords in bulk, will make the sharing of login information a crime that can result in jail time for anyone who violates it.



The Latest Industry News From Netx!

Hot off the presses!  Google rolls out their +1 button to the entire web, online video ads beat TV ads in viewer recall, Netx’s Managing Partners to speak at OMS events and more in this week’s industry news update!

Netx Partners to Speak at Online Marketing Summit Events
Over the upcoming months, Netx‘s Co-Managing Partners Peter Figueredo and David Herscott will be speaking at Online Marketing Summit events throughout the country.  David will be speaking in Los Angeles from June 13th-15th, in Denver from June 28th-30th, in Chicago from July 25th-27th, in Houston from September 12th-14th and in San Diego in February 2012 while Peter will be speaking in Boston from July 14th–16th. Netx has a limited number of free passes to each event so please contact us soon if you are interested in attending!

Google Adds +1 Button for Websites: Recommend Content Across the Web
Google.blogspot.com
As of Wednesday, Google has begun rolling out its +1 feature to the entire web.  Users will now be able to recommend content from any site that features the +1 button.  With a single click, anyone can suggest a restaurant, news article or movie to friends, contacts and the rest of the world.  Google has already partnered with several sites to include the new +1 feature; those sites include Best Buy, Nordstrom and The Huffington Post among many others.

Online Video Ads Beat TV Ads in Viewer Recall
MediaPost.com
In a study conducted by the Media Lab and YuMe, researchers found that on average, online viewers pay more attention to the screen than traditional TV viewers.  Researchers also found that online video ads received 18.3% more viewer attention than traditional TV commercials and when transitioning from program content to ads, the attention of TV viewers dropped off three times faster than that of online viewers.

FTC to Update Online Advertising Guidelines
Clickz.com
The Federal Trade Commission announced that it plans on revamping the 11-year-old Online Advertising Guidelines to reflect the changes that have taken place in the market since they were first published.  The new guidelines will address social media, mobile devices and other new platforms that have really emerged over the recent years.  The update is designed to ensure online ads comply with the same consumer protection laws that apply to traditional media and advertising.

Google is Much More Important Than Facebook for Purchasing Decisions
BusinessInsider.com
According to Bank Of America Merrill Lynch, when consumers want to research buying something, Google is still the primary option.  Only 1% of 418 people surveyed say they ask friends on Facebook about a product.  In addition, the study found that only 3% of Facebook users say they use Google less thanks to Facebook.

Nielsen: Android’s Lead Over iOS May Have Stopped Growing
Fortune.com
According to Nielsen, a three-way stalemate in the battle for dominance of the U.S. smartphone market has been reached between Apple, Google, and Research In Motion.  After attaining the number one spot in less than a year, Google has held steady with 36% of the market during the last three month.  Over the same time period, Apple has held approximately 26% of the market while RIM has settled around 22% after a long period of decline.

Google Unveils Mobile Payments and Daily Deals
DMNews.com
Over this summer, Google will be rolling out a mobile payment system as well as a national daily deals service.  Google Offers will deliver a daily promotion to a consumer’s email that can be printed out or saved to the Google Wallet app.  Together consumers will be able to make purchases and redeem offers from their mobile phones at participating merchant locations.  The Google Wallet mobile app which is undergoing field-testing in San Francisco and New York will allow consumers to load multiple credit cards, as well as merchant-generated cards, onto their mobile phones.  Google will then use near-field communication technology to transmit data via contact between NFC-enabled devices, similar to how MasterCard’s PayPass system works.

Advanced Affiliate Marketing for Subscription & Retail Marketers

I was lucky enough to speak with Vinny Lingham of  Yola.com at AdTech San Fransisco last week. Our session was part of the performance marketing track and focused on advanced affiliate marketing techniques for subscription and retail marketers. Netx has a long history of building successful affiliate marketing programs for retail companies like Dick’s Sporting Goods, Hot Topic, Ice.com, etc but we also have a long history of building successful programs for subscription marketers such as Audible.com, Conde Nast, Yola.com, and many more. In this presentation I explained some of the different challenges facing each segment and then shared how affiliates can help. Check out the presentation below to see what was presented. Tweet any questions to @figueredo or @netxagency.

Here is the official session description from AdTech

Advanced Affiliate Optimization
Techniques for Retail & Subscription Marketers

wednesday, april 13 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM | Performance

Affiliate marketing best practices are not “one size fits all.” Optimization tactics that work for online retailers could prove disastrous for subscription marketers (and vice versa). This session examines popular affiliate strategies from both the retail and subscription marketing perspectives to identify how both types of marketers can grow sales/subs, manage quality, protect their brand and ultimately get the most from this channel. Learn from Peter Figueredo’s, Co-Founder and Brainstorm Chaser of Netx, 11 years of experience running successful affiliate and search campaigns for large retail and subscription advertisers.

Key Takeaways:

  • Learn how to create a cooperative search and affiliate strategy
  • Hear best tactics for retailers using coupon sites and consumer promotions and growing order size and lifetime value
  • Gain insights into how subscription marketers can manage lead and trial quality, maximize retention rates and manage affiliate promotions

 

Response Magazine Celebrates the Success of our Client

One of direct marketing’s leading trade publications, Response Magazine, recently did a cover story on American Telecast.

The smart folks at American Telecast are the marketing brains behind such successful products as the Total Gym, Richard Simmons Deal a Meal, and Lori Davis Hair Care. I am proud to say that they have also been a happy NETexponent client for a few years. (and a fantastic company to work with)The story is a great read for anyone dealing with direct marketing, product marketing, or customer acquisition. American Telecast has had a long history of success building large consumer demand for a few select products. While they are not the inventors of the products they are the folks who run TV, Print, and Online media to drive sales.

They are most well known for their work marketing the Total Gym home gym product. This is also the area where our two companies team up, a fact noted in the article. We were honored that the good folks at Total Gym chose to share their spotlight with NETexponent. Here is a quote from the article.

“We began working with NETexponent several years ago to help us in expanding our affiliate marketing presence.” (says Joe Crowley their VP of Marketing) “we were so pleased with the results that we asked them to assist with growing our paid search marketing program. The NETexponent team has proven they can deliver measurable and profitable results.”

Wow! A huge compliment from a great company. The team and I are deeply touched by their thoughtfulness and look forward to many more years of a successful partnership.