On a previous post, we listed the pros and cons of two different ways of going about affiliate marketing: joining an existing network, or building your own. Both sides have their merits, but there is one approach we’d like to expand upon, which is a sort of “hybrid” version combining the best of both worlds.
The idea is to build your network with the strengths of both approaches, with as few of the weaknesses as possible. Our answer to this is The Marketplace.
The Peanut Butter
You might already know that we provide an easy-to-use platform for any business to build their own internal affiliate marketing program. But as we wrote in the previous blog post linked above, one of the tough parts of starting your own network is finding and vetting affiliates.
Not all the bloggers in your vertical are looking to work as an affiliate partner. And some might be so new to the idea, it may be more of a hassle than a benefit to bring them on board. We’ve heard of small businesses giving up before they’ve even started because of the legwork required to find the right individuals to work with.
So we thought, “how can we better serve these entrepreneurs who are taking the initiative to launch their own program?”
The Jelly
Enter The Marketplace. We wanted to do the hard work for Refersion customers and gather the influencers, ambassadors, and affiliates who are ready and willing to connect with merchants. The Marketplace is a rapidly growing (over 4,000 affiliate as of this posting) directory where your business can connect with these fine people.
Once you opt-in to list your affiliate incentives on The Marketplace, you’ll show up in searches when potential affiliates are looking. For example, here’s a sample of what comes up when they search for “watches”:
Remember, the biggest con to starting up an in-house program is finding the right affiliates. We’re doing that for you by making it easy to connect to people who already understand affiliate marketing and know the Refersion platform.
A Good PB&J
So basically, we want companies to get the benefits of starting up a program on their own, with as few hurdles as possible. The Marketplace is another way we’re trying to lower the effort (and squash the excuses!) for doing it all in-house.
And the best part? It’s completely free to use if you’re already a Refersion customer. It’s the whole sandwich, and it’s a good one.
If you want to learn more about The Marketplace, click here to see how easy it is to get started. And if you’re not already a Refersion user…
