As you may already know, affiliate market programs have proven to be a great success for many brands and affiliates, as they are a great way to attract customers and boost a brand’s sales. Although, when launching a new affiliate program with affiliates brands must make sure that they have a legally binding contract.
In this week’s episode of Affiliate Drive Time, Lee-Ann discusses affiliate program contracts and what should be included in them. She also discusses some of the key terms and conditions that should be considered when drafting an affiliate program contract. Check out the video and read the blog below to find out more on affiliate program contracts.
So, what should go into an affiliate program contract?
Firstly, you must consult with a lawyer in your region to make sure that you are including any regulatory compliance terms, seeing as a contract is something that is legally binding between you and your affiliate partners and governs the entire relationship that you have with them. By consulting a lawyer, you are making sure that the foundations of your contract are in place and set up correctly, which is key to successfully launching an affiliate program.
You must then make sure that you include the key terms and conditions within your affiliate program contract, which are as follows:
1. The services you expect your affiliates to deliver, which will include any marketing do’s and don’ts, your brand’s guidelines, keyword guidelines, traffic sources and opt ins.
2. A defined set of terms which will allow affiliates to understand exactly what they are earning commissions on. For example, net revenue and gross revenue. You should also clearly mark out what deductions, fees and service charges are included in the commission payments.
3. The time of the contract, which states how affiliates will be paid and for how long. It is important that you define timelines and parameters for payment or deliverables that you off to your affiliates.
4. The location of where and how affiliates will promote your brand online. You should be very specific about this as this will determine how affiliates will represent you online. Therefore, you need to set clear boundaries and guidelines of what is acceptable marketing practices.
5. When and how you will pay your affiliates. You must determine how often you will make commission payments and will they be made through a bank transfer, Ewallet or Paypal for example.
6. The benefits of the contract, for example what will you offer and provide for your affiliates and their audience.
7. The confidentiality, licenses and liability clauses of the contract. This will include your brand’s creatives, promotional duties, business relationships, privacy of the agreement and your affiliates access to your data and information.
8. Conflicts of the contract, for example services, terms and marketing items. You must be clear as to what constitutes as a conflict of your terms and how these need to be remedied once discovered.
9. The dispute resolutions that will be used when problems arise, how issues can be resolved, who to contact and within what time frame to remedy the situation.
Including these terms and conditions within your affiliate program contract will ensure that it is a success. Don’t forget to join us again next week for another episode of Affiliate Drive Time and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel here!
