How to Find, Recruit and Work with European Affiliates

Andra Ioana, Affiliate Network Manager

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European Affiliate Marketing Landscape

How to Recruit European Affiliates

Case studies – working with European affiliates

5 tips to sell in Europe through affiliates

Agenda for todayLeveraging the European Affiliates Channel

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European Affiliate Marketing Landscape

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European Affiliate Marketing Landscape1. European Online Retail Sales will grow more than the US

Online retail sales in Europe will grow 11% CAGR while on the US side the growth will be of 9%.

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European Affiliate Marketing Landscape2. Europe Is A Fragmented Market comprising both mature and emerging e- economies

Mature Markets: UK, Germany, France, Benelux, Nordic Countries, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain

New Markets: Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria

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United KingdomFrance

GermanyNetherlands

ItalySwitzerland

SpainDenmarkBelgiumSweden

Czech RepublicNorwayTurkeyAustriaPoland

Top European countries where affili-ates sell digital goods & cloud services

Avangate Affiliate Network, Affiliates Stats, 2013

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Language barriers

Multiple currencies, apart from the Euro there are other national currencies

Differing tax and VAT regimes

EU E-Privacy Directive

Cultural differences

European Affiliate Marketing LandscapePotential Barriers

Selling through affiliates is a quasi- risk free investment. Due to the performance based model and their market knowledge , the affiliate channel can represent a key entry step for your international expansion

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European Affiliate Marketing Landscape4. Europe Is A Fragmented Market comprising both mature and emerging e- economies

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European Affiliate Marketing Landscape5. Web-savvy shoppers in a fragmented market give rise to certain type of affiliates

Content, Vouchers and Comparison websites are still among the most popular types of European affiliates to work with

European Affiliate Marketing Landscape Report, 2012

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Commission is king both in Europe and US but discrepancies still exist in the affiliates preferences

European Affiliate Marketing Landscape6. TOP 5 factors that affiliates look at when working with a merchant

European Landscape Performance Report 2012 vs AffStat2012

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European Affiliate Marketing LandscapeRevenue model preferences

European Affiliate Marketing Landscape Report, 2012

1/3 of EU Affiliates are still requiring a tenancy fee in order to be part of an affiliate program. The revenue model is usually hybrid : Tenancy fee + CPS

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European Affiliate Marketing LandscapeEuropean affiliates prefer the Wire transfer as payment method in detriment of PayPal or Check

Avangate Mastercard

Check

PayPal

Wire Transfer

0% 5% 10%15%20%25%30%35%40%45%50%

5%

2%

44%

49%

Europe

Avangate Mastercard

Check

PayPal

Wire Transfer

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

3%

11%

55%

32%

North America

Avangate Affiliate Network, Affiliates Stats, 2013

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How to Recruit European affiliates: Two Approaches

DIY(Do It Yourself)

DIFM(Do It For Me)

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How to Recruit European affiliates1. Do it yourself - Create a multichannel strategy

Online screening

• Search online & Identify keywords, competitors and local affiliates

• Create your local affiliates database and start recruiting

Advertising

• Search Engine Marketing campaigns

• Cooperate with local directories, publishers, bloggers, influencers to review your affiliate program

Affiliate Networks

• Work with your current affiliate network to do a geo-targeted approach of affiliates

• Enroll your program in a niche network

Events

• Attend European events at a regional, country or niche level

Tip: According to the 2012 European Affiliate Marketing Landscape Report, 65.5% of the affiliates prefer to work with advertisers through affiliate networks.Pre-requirements before launching the affiliate program: Localized affiliate signup pages, products, documentations, landing pages and banners

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How to Recruit European affiliatesChinese merchant DVD Fab has set up a dedicated Affiliate Sign Up page for French affiliates

While offering Support services in French

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How to Recruit European affiliatesThe Russian merchant Kaspersky is offering localized banners and landing pages to the Turkish affiliates

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How to Recruit European affiliatesDIY - Online Screening

Start by searching on the Google local page to find out which are the similar products/services against which you are competing and which are the affiliates already promoting similar services

Don’t ignore the PPC ads! They will show you which competitors are actively investing in you target

market.

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Use a backlink checker tool in order to discover which websites are sending traffic to you local competitors

How to Recruit European affiliatesDIY - Check the websites for backlinks

Back link tools that you can use:

• www.backlinkwatch.com• www.majesticseo.com • www.opensiteexplorer.org

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You’ve just found your 1st Danish affiliate

How to Recruit European affiliatesDIY - Create the affiliates database

Don’t hesitate to use an online translation tool in order to understand

the website’s profile and avoid confusions

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How to Recruit European affiliatesDIY - Working with the Affiliate Network

Target • Define the European market you wish to enter via affiliates

Differentiate • Set up a separate program for the country of interest –

remember that localized banners are a pre-requirement while

dedicates landing pages would be an asset

Communicate • Work with your Affiliate Network on an e-mail marketing

campaign targeted towards the target country affiliates

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How to Recruit European affiliates The marketing and communication

calendar & content should be aligned with the local cultural habits

Work with your Affiliate Network in order to reach the market with customized e-mail marketing campaigns.

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Advertise the affiliate program in the affiliate/ e-business directories, portals & forums from your target markets

• www.performancein.com/forums -> UK• www.100partnerprogramme.de ->Germany• www.afiliado.com -> Spain & Spanish Speaking• www.webfrance.com/actu-affiliation -> France• www.affiliatewereld.nl -> Netherlands

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How to Recruit European affiliatesDIY - 2013 Affiliate Marketing Conferences & Trade Shows in Europe

02/07-02/10 – London Affiliate Conference (London, UK)

03/19-03/20 – Affiliate TactixX (Munich, Germany)

04/24 – LinkShare Symposium UK (London, UK)

05/15-05/16 – Affiliate Management Days (London, UK)

05/30 – Affiliate Dag 2013 (Amsterdam, the Netherlands)

06/11-06/14 – Amsterdam Affiliate Conference (Amsterdam, the Netherlands)

07/02-07/03 – a4u Expo Europe (Amsterdam, the Netherlands)

07/05 – Affiliate Marketing Master Class (Athens, Greece)

10/11-10/14 – Barcelona Affiliate Conference (Barcelona, Spain)

10/29-10/30 – a4u expo London (London, UK)

11/06 – Performance Marketing Day (Madrid, Spain)

11/27 – Performance Marketing Day (Barcelona, Spain)

Source Geno Prusakov, CEO & Co-founder of AM Navigator

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How to Recruit European affiliatesDIFM - Working through local partners

Enrollment with one or several major European Networks (Affiliate Window, Zanox, Tradedoubler)

Local Agencies/ Outsourced Program Managers

Why work with a local partner?

A local partner has the advantage of knowing the culture and the mentality of the affiliate

Working with a local partner can add extra value to your program – They can usually offer additional marketing services such as localized PPC campaigns, media buying, PR, etc.

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How to Recruit European affiliates

If you have the resources, consider enrolling with several affiliate networks, European affiliates have different preference when it comes to choosing their affiliate network

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Case Studies: Bitdefender has 4 European affiliate programs

Security software market leader Bitdefender has opened 4 different EU affiliate programs, for each of their target country offering their affiliates a localized experience.For the major target countries – Germany, Spain, Italy they work with dedicated in-house Affiliate Managers while the UK program is managed by an outsourced agency.

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The media Group 01net running several technology websites and portals strongly recommends to the merchants that want to enter the French market to be capable of offering a localized experience. • Product fully translated (Software + website + shopping cart)• Support in French• Localized Rich media, especially videos that explain the website visitors how to use the product or

service European networks are preferred to the US ones due to the ease of payout: no need to fill the W8BEN form and the direct payments in EURO

Case studies: The French Affiliate 01Net – Telecharger.com

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Conclusions

1. If you’re not sure about which market you want to enter or you still have doubts about going to Europe, the Do it Yourself approach is recommended

2. If you are sure about your market, goals and budget go to Europe through local partners: OPMs and agencies

3. In any of the two cases, be prepared to offer the affiliates and the customers they will refer a localized experience – marketing creative, product, product documentation & usage guide, support, payment options.

4. Work with your affiliate network to communicate with the affiliates via geo-targeted email marketing campaigns

5. Check that your e-commerce provider can cover local tax requirements, payment methods, payout options for affiliates and international support

5 tips to sell in Europe through affiliates

Avangate B.V.Amsterdam, The NetherlandsTel: +31 20 890 8080

Avangate Inc.Redwood Shores CA., USATel: (650) 249 - 5280

info@avangate.com www.avangate.com

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