“Superiority of numbers is the most common element of victory.”

– Military historian Carl von Clausewitz

Clauzwitz’s words apply to online performance marketing as well. Today the successful brand needs to generate traffic and convert it to sales quickly. Deriving branding and leads from advertising is critical. And testing is a sure path to top results.

There is a continuing shift in online advertising. Gone are the days of blanket institutional “big splash” campaigns. Advertisers want guaranteed results, and to that end, web publishers need to provide click-favorable real estate. But it’s a two-way street; advertisers have the responsibility of understanding their product and target audience thoroughly, working closely with their creative and publishing partners to prevent exorbitant customer acquisition costs.

The web is an interactive medium; a direct response channel used to offer and take action immediately. And every transaction a web visitor makes is a learning opportunity for a savvy marketer. Your site loyalists (repeat visitors, your primary revenue base) will tell you what they like…just ask them. Capturing the traffic from partner sites is the key to dominant market share. Do you have a viable sales process in place to tap into this traffic? If you can’t sell your offer on your own site…and show good conversion rates…. partner publishers will have a tough time promoting you to their visitors.

 Two steps in the right direction:

Step 1: Study behavior. Implement a tracking system to chart all visitor metrics on your site. And analyze the findings. What messaging elicits the most response? What pages or sections garner the majority of eyeballs? A/B test via email, display, etc. to increase your visitor knowledge base. And of course, add offers from co-marketing partners to extract additional dollars from your Web site audience.

Step 2: Plug your tested offer(s) into other web sites via ads based on performance, i.e., pay the publisher on completed actions (cost-per-action or cost-per-sale), not impressions. Your rate model can reflect per lead, per click or per sale, or a hybrid version of the three.

Effective affiliate network managers deliver ROI instantly, and collaboratively give a positive experience to existing and potential buyers. Progressive performance marketers realize affiliate networks strengthen brand identity by acting as media buyers, creative consultants, researchers and 24/7 virtual sales teams.

The Performance marketing landscape is a changing dynamic place and if you’re not arming your self with the leading tools, trust me, your competitors are!

-Erik Keller, Affiliate Manager, Advaliant

(ekeller@advaliant.com) tel:646 209-9339