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We are upgrading our platform and want to buy an off-the-shelf affiliate solution with comprehensive reporting and accounting functionality. 'My Affiliate Program' seems to be the leading contender out there.
Anyone got experience of this or any recommendations for me?
Thanks in advance...
Companies like CJ offer instant exposure to thousands of affiliates, but their service is usually more expensive.
On the other end of the spectrum, you can use scripts on your site yourself, and manage it all. However, this can be quite a task, and it may take a while to build affiliates' trust.
The last time I took a look (months ago), myaffiliateprogram was a decent mid-range solution. There are lots of different options for running an affiliate program, you just have to look into each service to see if it suits your needs.
G.
How much do you consider to be a fortune for monthly fees? I have been using MyAP for a year - after using Be Free two years previously - and I am very happy with the technology and the price.
If you put the price of MyAP next to AffiliateTrends.com, then it's going to look expensive. And it seems like you get some good, basic stuff with AffiliateTrends.com - but the big question is... what don't you get?
- They help with implementation, but if there is a technical glitch two months later, who do you call? And will there be a charge? I did not see information about ongoing tech support on their site.
- Will there be updates, and will they be free? What is good today may be obsolete tomorrow. Are they regularly working on improvements and advancements?
- Can their system track sub IDs? This is a requirement of many super affiliates.
- Does their system allow for sending HTML e-mail? What fields are available to customize e-mail?
- What sort of creative can you offer to your affiliates? Is it possible to give your affiliates entire HTML documents (articles, storefronts, etc.) with their affiliate links embedded?
There are plenty more questions to consider - these are just off the top of my head. Anyhow, if you are planning to build your affiliate program into an important channel within your company, you should keep in mind that you get what you pay for.
In my opinion, MyAP offers a great ROI - I've been consistantly pleased with their product and service. And the tech support is great - I'm fairly demanding, and they never fail to take care of me quickly.
Shawn Collins
[edited by: Drastic at 4:51 pm (utc) on Dec. 12, 2002]
[edit reason] no sig files please [/edit]
They help with implementation, but if there is a technical glitch two months later, who do you call? And will there be a charge? I did not see information about ongoing tech support on their site.
Yes, they offer support and install and test the software. You can also call and speak with representatives
- Will there be updates, and will they be free? What is good today may be obsolete tomorrow. Are they regularly working on improvements and advancements?
Yes, they offer free upgrades, have got one. They even added a feauture for me
- Can their system track sub IDs? This is a requirement of many super affiliates.
Yes, they track sub ids
- Does their system allow for sending HTML e-mail? What fields are available to customize e-mail?
Yes, they have an autmoated email messaging center
- What sort of creative can you offer to your affiliates? Is it possible to give your affiliates entire HTML documents (articles, storefronts, etc.) with their affiliate links embedded?
Thye offer html, pop ups, replicating pages, etc
There are plenty more questions to consider - these are just off the top of my head. Anyhow, if you are planning to build your affiliate program into an important channel within your company, you should keep in mind that you get what you pay for.
BTW, they also offer:
recurring commission structure
lifetime commissions
sliding scale commissions
subdomain tracking
and many others that MYAP calls modules and charges for...
Anyway, Affiliate Trends sells the software for the client to own, so it is really comparing apples to oranges. So, if you are looking for an ASP solution, check out MYAP, although DirectTrack has a much neater interface IMHO. If you are looking for software to buy and run on your own servers check out Affiliate Trends
Do the research yourself and demo the software. Any good software company will offer you a demo with no hassles
I have been using software from affiliatetracking.net for a couple of months. I only have a (very) small number of affiliates at present so I guess I haven't tested it to the limit, but so far so good.
I pay $39.95 a month and it does everything I need. There was a startup fee which they waived when I asked for free trial.
The best tip I found is to email some of the websites listed as using the program and see what they think of it.
Good Luck
Peter
