Rule of Thumb - SaS vs CJ

[mangotude]

Hi,

I appreciate that such generality isn't a good idea, and every program will vary etc etc....and quantity of affiliates doesn't equate to quality...accepting this caveats...

Is there a general rule of thumb for the number of affiliates you will get at Sharesale vs CJ...e.g if i was to launch a program with SaS and a month later 10 affiliates had signed, and then i went in a time machine and launched with CJ instead, how many affiliates would I get?

I thought i'd time travel to avoid the overlap of affiliates who check out multiple networks.

any ideas?

[DaveBKK]

You'll get more affiliates signing up for your program over on CJ, however that really isn't important. What's important is getting those affiliates activated and promoting your site/product. More often than not, serious affiliate marketers are signed up on both. That being said, a lot of affiliates really dislike CJ.

It seems that people either really like CJ or really really hate CJ. There's been a lot of negative buzz around CJ recently. SAS generally has very good/positive buzz.

SAS is a great place to start out and grow. They have a lot of tools available to the affiliates to promote programs, and they are a great deal less costly that CJ.

Dave

[mangotude]

Thanks for the feedback.

I'm aware there is an issue of quality etc between the two, but i'm more interested at this point with what the relative difference in amounts would be.

I've had a program in SaS, and know the numbers from that, which is why I'm asking what level of magnitude CJ would bring.

For all it's faults, CJ still has a huge number of aff's that you can reach very quickly.

[Marcia]

Have you done anything further to publicize your SAS program to reach active affiliates, or is the program just "there" at SAS?

[mangotude]

Hi Marcia,

It was a featured program a couple of times, which did increase affs somewhat.

It's got a very good EPC, a decent conversion rate - it's just there simply isnt that many people signed up, and we currently can't have someone promoting it full-time. so my question about the metrics is also a way of answering is my site too 'niche' or does it simply need a bigger audience that it can be plugged into.

[markwelch]

As others note, CJ may bring you more "enrolled affiliates" but probably not enough extra sales to justify the high cost.

Instead, put that money into "affiliate management," including active recruitment of appropriate affiliates and inspiring inactive affiliates to become active. Nearly all merchants with "very successful" affiliate programs have one or more full-time staff managing the affiliate program.

But there are a number of "outsourced program managers" (OPMs) who will work as your "affiliate manager" on an independent-contractor basis (in fact, ShareASale offers this service for a fee, as do a number of outside companies). When hiring an OPM, try to identify 3-5 past clients of the OPM to get feedback (don't just rely on the OPM's current reference list).

Or you might hire an internet marketing consultant to just run through your current strategies and identify opportunities, so you can then make a more educated decision about what to do next.