KaloVast - 5:17 pm on Apr 8, 2009 (gmt 0)

We have a very robust affiliate program and we are offering a 30% commission on products ranging from $139 to several thousand dollars. The vast majority of affiliates are worthless and haven't brought in any sales in MONTHS or even years. I don't fret about those affiliates because they still have worth in that they are linking to my website which gives me more inbound links, which generally helps boost my rankings in search engines.

In the month of March, affiliate referrals accounted for approximately 15% of our total revenue and in this kind of economy where people are scared to spend, i'm very reluctant to give that up. So, i'm not going to. I'm going to let my affiliates continue to #*$! my products and send visitors my way. Those visitors tend to come back because we are a good company with good solutions and great customer service/support.

If these affiliates are ranking higher than you, it's not really a problem so long as they're referring visitors over to your site. But then it's up to you to convert those visitors into buyers, isn't it?

I would suggest offering a month-long incentive, maybe jack up your commission 5-10% for one month. Your affiliates should scramble to #*$! your product higher if they see they'll be getting a higher return, but you have to convert those visitors. After that month, you lower your commission back to the normal. I bet you dollars to donuts that the majority of your affiliates aren't going to go back to their old ways as far as not #*$!ing your products or your site. So you should see an ongoing benefit as a result of a temporary incentive. Know what i mean?