Recruiting the Right Affiliates

Affiliate recruitment is one of the most important aspects that will contribute to the growth and success of a Merchant Program. Success comes not with how many Affiliates you can recruit, but with how many quality Affiliates you build a relationship with.

When a program is just starting out, the prospect of taking on recruitment can seem daunting since Affiliate recruitment comes in so many forms. Some tactics can be employed on and off the ShareASale network. Within ShareASale, there are strategies that are free of charge as well as some paid options. We’ve highlighted some tips below that fit every category.

On the Network – FREE

Auto Deposit

Many affiliates only work with programs that have set up auto deposit because it serves as a safety net to ensure the merchant will always have the funds to pay the affiliate commissions. Without sufficient funds, a merchant will go offline and their links will break, another reason why affiliates prefer their partners to enable Auto Deposit.

Search Keywords

In your account settings, you will see a section for Search Keywords (below the link for program agreement). Be sure to utilize all the available 255 characters. These are the terms your program will be associated with when an affiliates searches by keyword to find a new program to join. To learn more about the keyword search, click HERE.

Recruitment Tool

The Recruitment Tool provides Merchants the opportunity to send targeted invitations to specific Affiliates based on website match, niche, relevance, and performance criteria. Our tool can help streamline your outreach efforts when pitching your new high-earning prospects. (Certain features within ShareASale do require a longer commitment period, so please do make sure to contact our Client Services or Sales team for more details.)

On Network – Additional Fees Apply

Featured Placements

Merchants can take out ad space on the ShareASale affiliate interface. This is a great way to advertise your program to all affiliates that are part of the network. The location, price, and duration of placements vary. See the “Program Boosts” page for full details.

Going Beyond the Interface

ShareASale Program Boosts

While not on the network, ShareASale offers several additional placements that utilize email marketing, social media platforms, and our blog to promote your program. We will work with you to create a compelling campaign, encouraging new affiliates to apply.

Merchant Discovery Box

This box is a favorite among our bloggers! Merchants can join in our version of a subscription box, introducing bloggers to new brands by sending them a box filled with Merchant products, hand-picked Merchant recommendations, and a FREE $50 gift for the recipient. This opportunity provides a unique way to partner with quality content Affiliates based on niche.

On-Site

Don’t miss an opportunity to capitalize on your own site visitors. Be sure to have an Affiliate page on your site which describes your program and includes a link to join. Additionally, consider a link to the program on the sales confirmation page. Your costumer clearly loves your product enough to purchase, so there’s a good chance they may want to earn money telling their friends about it too!

Your join link is:

http://www.shareasale.com/shareasale.cfm?merchantID=YOURMERCHANTID

Swap the YOURMERCHANTID with your ShareASale Merchant ID number.

Niche Searches

Put yourself in the shoes of your consumers – where would your demographic be visiting? This is where your potential Affiliates are. Use the power of the internet to search for new partnerships and do keyword searches to seek out the Affiliates who have built content sites, PPC campaigns, or blogs.

Industry Involvement

Create a presence for your program. Get involved with industry events and the community in general. Affiliate marketing is a relatively small space. If you start being involved, you can give your program some grass roots growth. Face-to-face networking is a great way to boast recruitment and build solid relationship with your affiliates.

• Affiliate Summit
• Affiliate Management Days
• ShareASale ThinkTank (ThinkTank 2018 TBA)
• Look into sponsoring or speaking at smaller niche blogger conferences

General Recruitment Tips

Consider Timing

• Affiliate recruitment is traditionally slower during the fourth quarter and there may be fewer affiliates looking to join new programs during this time.
• If you have a high sales season, be sure to put extra emphasis on recruitment several months before to allow affiliates enough time to set up their site with your links and maximize on the sales potential.

When Contacting an Affiliate

• Don’t spam!
• Do research the affiliate’s site before contacting them.
• Craft a message that is concise and to the point using legitimate stats and minimal sales jargon.
• Personalize! Reverence exactly why you think they’d be a great partner.
• Be sure to include your co-branded recruitment link (swap the YOURMERCHANTID with your ShareASale Merchant ID number): http://www.shareasale.com/shareasale.cfm?merchantID=YOURMERCHANTID

Think Outside the Box

• Think of related marketers who may not already be in Affiliate Marketing but might be a good fit. For example, do you sell hair products? Consider reaching out to salons. Sell pet products? Contact some local dog-walkers.
• Consider adding an Affiliate bonus to recruitment communications. For example, you could offer VIP commission for a year, a cash bonus for signing up, double commission on the first ten sales and more.
• Keep a log of Affiliate prospects you’ve already contacted, as well as a target list that you will be following up with.
• Track which recruitment tactics are working and converting best for you.
• Carve out time on a regular basis that is dedicated solely to recruitment efforts.

Plan, plan, plan!

• Keep a log of affiliate prospects you’ve already contacted as well as a target list and remember to follow-up.
• Track which recruitment tactics are working and converting best for you.
• Carve out time on a regular basis that is dedicated solely on recruitment efforts.

Program Integrity

Keep the focus on the quality of Affiliates rather than the quantity. It can be easy to get wrapped up in the number of Affiliates in a program when the attention and effort should be on finding quality Affiliates who will help your program grow. A program could have 1,000 low-quality Affiliates with 1% driving sales, or 50 solid high-quality Affiliates with 30% driving sales. Concentrate your resources on Affiliates who are motivated and well-matched to market your products or service.