Over the past two decades, Lee-Ann Johnstone has managed a huge variety of affiliate programs. During this time, she has learnt a lot about what makes a program work and what doesn’t. Without proper management, programs can start to fall behind others, and this is something that you’ll want to avoid. There are a lot of similarities across verticals when it comes to affiliate management.
In this week’s episode of Affiliate Drive Time, Lee-Ann offers some tips based on the top three things that she has learnt while managing and growing affiliate programs. Check out the video below to hear what she has to say.
There’s no such thing as a bad partner
As an affiliate manager, it can be easy to blame your affiliates if things aren’t going right but this is not usually the issue. Lee-Ann believes that there is no such thing as a bad partner as problems are usually down to poor management. With a lack of direction, affiliates can focus on the wrong things and this can lead to a decline in revenue.
As an affiliate manager, you must improve your leadership skills and nurture affiliates rather than blame them for not doing their job correctly.
No program is ever too big to grow
For any new affiliate program, it can be difficult to get the ball rolling and grow to the same size as your competitors. How do you attract new affiliates and drive traffic when your competitors have been doing this for years? Over the years, Lee-Ann has always been able to find commercial growth in programs she has managed, regardless of the size.
Growth isn’t always easy, but it is possible. By creating partnerships and giving your affiliates the resources that they need to thrive, you can grow a program of any size.
You should always invest in building partner relationships
Finally, you should always do what you can to invest in building relationships with your partners. If you don’t do this, they can lose interest and move to another program that will offer them more support. Keeping partnerships active should be a key focus if you want to keep your business moving forward.
You should invest in affiliate recruitment to keep new affiliates coming in to build the brand over time. Additionally, you must have some form of marketing automation in place to keep affiliates learning and improving. Without investment, you won’t manage your program effectively.
Learn as you go..
Over the years, Lee-Ann has learnt some valuable skills and now has the experience to pass on tips for affiliate program managers who aren’t quite hitting their targets. If you want to learn more about how to effectively manage your affiliate program, you should sign up for our upcoming string of free webinars. When you do, you can learn about some of the things that Lee-Ann has learnt and how she puts these into practice with clients.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel to never miss an episode of Affiliate Drive Time!
