Affiliate Marketing for Entrepreneurs

Selling and marketing of both the products and services have undergone sea changes, in the last decade or so, with greater focus on internet marketing Expanding coverage of internet allows spreading of products without involving huge additional investments in distribution system. The internet technology has existed for more than 40 years now, yet it was the introduction of the World Wide Web (WWW) that caused its fast market penetration (Chaffey, 2003). In only four years, the internet reached an audience of 50 million users in the USA. It took the television over 13 years and the telephone over 75 years to reach this number (Angeli & Kundler, 2008). Considering that, the internet can said to be the fastest spreading information media in today's world. The strength of the WWW was the power to provide easy access to information using a network of web sites (Chaffey, 2003). Of course, many people realized the huge possibilities of this media. Companies saw big marketing opportunities as internet user numbers increased (Zeff, 1999). The chapter will try to seek the performance and effectiveness of current techniques of internet marketing and at the same time to identify the potential of new and emerging techniques for further strengthening the internet marketing with special emphasis on Affiliate Marketing.

Affiliate Marketing Empowers Entrepreneurs

The earliest forms of the more recently coined term “Affiliate Marketing” came into being with the advent of Tupperware and Amway. Tupperware, a home products line that includes preparation, storage, containment, and serving products for kitchen as also household plastic containers used to store goods and / or foods, was launched by Earl Silas Tupper of Orlando, Florida, in 1948. He developed his first bell shaped container in 1942, and branded it later. Amway, short for The American Way, is a company that uses a multi-level marketing model to sell a variety of products primarily in the health, beauty and home care markets. It was founded by Jay Van Andel and Richard Devos of Ada Township, Michigan, in 1959. The core concept of both Tupperware and Amway is “revenue sharing” – paying commission for referred business, which is also the idea of Affiliate Marketing.

Affiliate Marketing Strategy of Amazon India

Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest forms of marketing in which one refers someone to any online product (Open Topic, n.d.). When the consumer buys this product on the basis of the given recommendation, then the person who has referred him receives a commission. This commission could vary from $1 to $10000, on the basis of the type of product which has been referred (Open Topic, n.d.). The rapid development of the term “Affiliate marketing” which is a performance based internet marketing practice, has made the online selling market even more competitive. Many companies are now venturing into the forming or improving their affiliate programs and giving higher incentives to keep the affiliates loyal. This study is a qualitative study about the Affiliate program presently run by Amazon Company.

Affiliate Marketing

The emergence of internet as a strong medium of communication has led to the emergence of numerous marketing avenues with many companies realizing its potential towards promotion of their products (Liang & Huang, 1998). Online marketing platforms offer various opportunities for directing costumers towards the products through online advertising, affiliate marketing, search engine optimization, direct mailers etc. Affiliate marketing is a performance based marketing and known for its cost effectiveness. we have suggested a framework MECHULUP indicating Mobile Friendliness, E-Commerce, Content Quality, Honesty, Audio/Video, Link Building, Social Media, and Persistence.

Investigating the Mechanics of Affiliate Marketing Through Digital Content Marketing

The domain of online marketing and internet advertising is going through radical changes. In context to Indian online market, according to Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), the digital commerce market has seen a growth by 33% reaching to a figure of 62,967 Crore in the year 2015 which is predicted to touch $50 to $70 Billion by the year 2020 owing to the increasing popularity of online shopping and increase in internet penetration. Affiliate marketing is referred as performance marketing and associate marketing (IAMAI Research Report, 2014). Affiliate marketing is a type of online marketing technique where an affiliate/promotes a business through an advertisement on their web site and in return that business rewards the affiliate with commission each time a visitor, customer generates sales. The objective is to analyze by conceptualizing the mechanics of affiliate marketing through judicious and optimum use of digital content marketing by e-tailers so as to engage customers and create boundless business opportunities for growth, expansion and profitability.

Driving Traffic and Customer Activity Through Affiliate Marketing

This chapter aims to contribute to the extant literature on Affiliate Marketing through promoting a better understanding of how differences in cultures and environments can be mitigated – as well as facilitating the awareness of how best practices within Europe and the United States could be achieved. Should influential and wealthy corporations be compelled to pay back taxes after having entered into agreements and investment with a foreign corporation? Whilst many applauded the recent European Commission's ruling with Apple, in the sense that sovereignty (from the European perspective) had prevailed in the ruling, many would also claim that interference with a national sovereignty – and a jurisdiction's already existing agreement with an investing partner also amounts to an infringement of national sovereignty. Clearly, greater clarity is required in reconciling jurisdictional differences – given lack of clarity - as demonstrated in the recent Commission ruling, which also serves as a deterrent for potential investors who are uncertain or have fear of the investing climate.

Amazon Associates

Affiliate marketing, without a doubt, is the quickest and easiest way to make some profit on the World Wide Web. Aside from this, affiliate marketing brings many benefits like minimum to zero financial investment to start out with this earning stream, a variety of programs to choose from, unlimited number of programs to join, extravagant commission schemes ranging from 20% to 90% of the selling price, get paid as you produce results. You're not handcuffed by time, you can work at your own pace; No limit as to how much you can earn. Because of these amazing benefits, millions of online users have tried their hands in affiliate marketing. The affiliate marketing space has matured quite a bit since 1994, when the Olim brothers began their first affiliate program at CDnow. The “buy web” program revolutionized advertising and marketing on. The Internet by shifting the “burden of response” from advertisers to content producers.

Affiliate Marketing and Customer Satisfaction

The different tools used in digital marketing are meant to increase the web traffic. One of the important components is Affiliate Marketing. This chapter will bring huge transitions in industry of digital marketing. The affiliate marketing has benefits of increasing customer satisfaction and value driven efficiency in any organization. The study of affiliate programs need to be activated in organizations in order to exploit the potential of same. The companies like Amazon, snapdeal, and flipkart are running affiliate programs and the brand of these companies remain unbeatable. The purpose behind affiliate marketing is to use publisher or affiliate website for promotion of merchant's own products. The underlying benefit is its low customer acquisition cost and marketing expenses.

Student's Perception Towards Digital Learning for Skill Enhancement Programs

Integrating digital activities into the broader strategy can be challenging for institutions providing online education they don't have yet strong digital capabilities. Indian educational institutes and universities lack in digital strategy skills to conceive a comprehensive plan for responding quickly to customer queries. Digital activities are an increasingly important part of any marketing and sales strategy. The ability to harness the power of digital platforms in delivery of educational courses cannot be denied. The organization should no longer be only concerned with simple act of providing digital course, but also with the innovative strategies through which they interact with students and create learning environment that is innovative, active, and challenging. Digital learning plays a vital role in the skills landscape.