Everyone, at some point in their affiliate career, has had someone tell them no.

 

"No, your offer isn't a good fit for our audience."

 

"No, your offer has too low of a CPA."

 

"No, we don't do reciprocal mailings."

 

"No, we already sell a similar product."

 

We all want to get to yes, but what happens when the other person keeps saying no? How can you negotiate?

 

First, don't stop at the word no. Take a step back and breathe. What is the underlying issue?

 

Is it money? Is it the approval process? Or is it the offer creative/copy?

 

After you determine the underlying reason, it's time to turn it into an opportunity:

If an affiliate is hesitant to mail your product, offer them a guarantee. This is a great way to combat the money excuse or the excuse that the product isn't a good fit to their list.

 

Make a guarantee that you know that you can afford:

-Pre-pay: Affiliates love getting fast payouts. Why not pay them in advance as a good will gesture?

-Pay a flat fee or CPC/CPL deal: What does the affiliate make on average for each dedicated send? Pay them that amount.

-If the offer flops, offer to pay the difference in what the affiliate could have made. For example: If they earn $3,000 on average per send and they earn $2,500 from your send, cut them a $500 check for the difference.

-Bump the CPA by $5 or $10 if they agree to hit an order threshold.

Sometimes affiliates are hesitant to mail your offer because they don't think the product is a good fit to their audience.

 

I always follow up with, "why?" Oftentimes they say it's because the offer is too close to a product they already sell. Or they think the copy is too aggressive.

 

If this is the case I ask them what copy makes them uncomfortable. If it's a few words or phrases, that can easily be changed.

 

You can also have your web developer add a line of copy or short intro video to the top of the VSL or HTML landing page specifically for that affiliate: "Exclusively for friends of XYZ affiliate..."

 

Affiliates know their email list better than you do. You can also suggest having the affiliate write creative that's more in line with the format, voice, and tone that the list is accustomed to reading.

 

This might seem counterintuitive because it's more work for the affiliate. But whales in the industry like BioTrust and Natural Health Sherpa would prefer this because they know it'll perform better.

Affiliates that don't do recips are often ones that don't send outside offers to their email list.

 

This is a big mistake.

 

For these affiliates, paint them a picture of how your offer is complementary to theirs. Explain how you share the same demographic and provide statistics on how the offer has performed to similar lists.

 

Tell them how much money they're losing, rather than how much money they could make.

 

If your offer is comparable to an offer they already have, explain how people tend to buy more of the same...even if it’s a similar product.

 

For example, my division of Agora has a trading service. But it's not the only trading service in our industry. We promote other Agora (and non-Agora) trading services, too. As long as it makes us money, we'll promote it!

 

Finally, if the affiliate is still hesitant, offer to send their offer to your list first. Show them you're willing to promote them - maybe even more than once! - before they promote you.

 

These are a few examples of how to get around the "no." What strategies and tactics have worked well for you? We would love to hear from you! Email us at hello@affiliate-moguls.com.