Affiliate Moguls Blog
About Affiliate Moguls
Founded by Meghan Damico and Ryan Alarid, Affiliate Moguls is a consulting business that specializes in hiring, training, and optimizing affiliate and email media buying programs.
With over 15 years of direct response marketing experience, they bring a wealth of experience and connections to each partnership.
Back to Basics: What Affiliate Marketers Can Learn From Kobe Bryant
Written by Meghan Damico on August 27, 2020
Last Sunday would have been Kobe Bryant’s 42nd birthday.
As flurries of odes and commemorations for the legendary Laker came rolling in, I got to thinking about what makes Kobe’s legacy so special and how it relates to affiliate marketing.
Not only was Kobe a brutal force on the basketball court, but he preyed on every opportunity to get better. Every single practice, drill, and shot was important to him…
...no matter the skill level.
Kobe knew that to be the best in his field he had to recognize the process of mastering the basics.
Author Alan Stein Jr. tells a story about the late, great Kobe Bryant in his book “Raise the Game:"
In 2007, Nike flew me to Los Angeles to work at the first ever Kobe Bryant Skills Academy.
Since I was staff and might never again get the chance, I asked Kobe if I could watch him work out. “Sure,” Kobe said. “I’m going tomorrow at four.”
For forty-five minutes I was shocked. For forty-five minutes I watched the best player in the world do the most basic drills. I watched the best player on the planet do basic ball-handling drills.
“You’re the best player in the world, why do such basic stuff?” I asked.
He flashed that gleaming smile of his. “Why do you think I’m the best player in the game?” he asked. “Because I never get bored with the basics.
Not only did Kobe master the basics but he never stopped practicing them!
Advanced basketball players are only advanced because they’ve practiced the progression of basic skills to a higher level.
The same goes for affiliate marketing. Mastering affiliate marketing is only a creative combination of the most basic skills.
Below is a short list of basic skills and processes you should have in your affiliate marketer toolbox. I also added three different “twists” to take that skill/process to the next level:
Onboarding Procedure
1. Make a two to three minute Loom video on how to navigate your affiliate portal. Visually show how to find an offer, generate a unique link, pull the best performing creative, and review performance. Then, make another Loom video for all FAQs (like how to append a SUB ID, how to download a suppression file, etc.).
2. Ask for all payment information (W9/W8, ACH info) up front so you have it handy come accounting time.
3. Confirm what a “good” mailing is and what a “bad” mailing is before the first drop. This way, when an affiliate mails, you already know whether the send hit their KPIs. Take it one step further and ask what metrics your drop needs to hit in order to be included in their autoresponder series or on their thank you page.
Promoting offers
1. Make it as easy as possible for an affiliate to send by not only attaching the creative/link in an email but also providing it in the text of the email. Also provide their unique link with the SUB ID section highlighted. This is so the affiliate knows exactly where a SUB ID should go. Send the above to them via their preferred method of communication (Skype, email, text). If you don’t know what that is, ask and write it down somewhere for future reference.
2. Use Gmail? Set automatic reminders and draft email follow ups using the Boomerang tool.
3. Instead of boring emails, create a launch video that grabs attention like this one (kudos Eric Raum!). Don’t have the time to create a video? Take a fun picture of yourself and Photoshop it to include all the offer details. Images and videos receive higher engagement rates on social media than text.
Follow up
1. Again, reach out to the affiliate via their preferred method of communication 4-7 days after an email drop. Follow up with clicks, orders, conversion rate, EPC, and total commissions.
2. Get them to drive more traffic by sending again - with a different subject line - to un-opens. Also ask if they'd be open to promoting on other channels like social, SMS, push, or native ads.
3. If your drop was a media buy and it exceeded your goals, see if the list owner would send again on CPA. Don't just tell them but show them the money they could have made if they had sent on CPA.
Make it Personal
1. How many times have you gotten a boilerplate email telling you about an upcoming launch with the typical hype “New Product Launch with $100k in Prizes?" If you want to make an impact on your bottom line, reach out to them directly. It takes three minutes to make it personal - send a card, a small gift, or a funny meme!
2. Don’t always reach out to your affiliate partners for an “ask”. This will teach them NOT to open your email/Skype/text. If you only reach out to your affiliates (especially your TOP affiliates) when you want them to promote, you're teaching them that it’s a one way business deal.
3. Instead, ask what you can do to support them. This will do wonders for your bottom line and/or your next launch. Make it a point to simply give.
All of these are important basic analytical and communication skills. But a few tweaks here and there can level up your “game” and take you to the top 1% of AM’s in our space!
