Breaking through the noise - affiliate communications done well. Stand up and be counted LBi
As an affiliate active in a lot of sectors I get bombarded with literally hundreds of emails from merchants, agencies and networks on a weekly basis. Now I’m not complaining about that one bit as these emails form the basis of content for my offer/discount code site. However a side effect of this is that its very hard for merchants etc. to break through the noise and get my attention. I don’t ignore emails deliberately, its just that I never seem to have enough hours in the day to do everything I want to. As such, some promotions/offers/discount codes just get missed. And yes some merchants suffer and don’t get any exposure - again none of this is deliberate.
Some merchants, for reasons I have never understood go through a “culling” process every few months and decide to kick affiliates off their programmes if they haven’t made any sales. There are loads of terrible examples of this type of behaviour that come to mind. The worst is the “Dear John” termination email which goes like…
Dear Affiliate,
www.reallyshortsightedmerchant.com has terminated their relationship with you.
Regards,
Although the names are made up to protect the guilty, these examples of bad affiliate communication do happen, all too often.
So…when digital agency LBi emailed me the other day with their take of a “Dear John” email done really well I felt compelled to publish it here as a shining example of how to motivate non-performing affiliates. Here’s the email in full:
Dear Affiliate,
I hope that you are well & are keeping busy.
We are in the midst of a review of the affiliate program & noticed that you have not generated many sales, this year. The affiliate team at LBi wanted to provide you with some information that may help you to promote La Redoute on your site.La Redoute are able to offer their affiliates a 6% commission across all ranges, there is also 6 affiliate exclusive voucher codes.
The codes are as follows:
8445 10% off your *’preferred item’ + free delivery on all purchases over £80 (* preferred item refers to first item in the basket)
8452 Free digital camera on all purchases over £30
5787 free cardigan + 20% off Preferred Item from the SS08 season. This order code is available to all type of customers.
5795 £5 off + free delivery with a £50 MOV (Minimum Order Value). This order code is available to new customers only
5815 Free wrap cardigan and necklace set. This order code is available to all type of customers.
5806 £5 off + free trench coat with a £20 MOV. This order code is available to new customers onlyPlease be aware that these codes end on the 31st March 2008.
There is also a range of creative that is regularly changed, available for your Awin interface.
Discover our unique designer collections & everyday essentials, from one of France’s most popular labels. Discover la différence at La Redoute, where there is something for everyone.
If we can help you with anything else or if you have any feedback, please e-mail us at:
LaRedouteAffiliates@lbi.com
Many thanks for you time,
Tash
Natasha Rungassamy
Senior Media Account Executive
What a great email, here’s why
1. Termination: Tash didn’t dump me from the programme for low performance. She could have and lesser merchants still have this ridiculous policy of culling from time to time. Tash chose a different route, so props to her.
2. Tone: The tone of the email is friendly and non-confrontational, there are no demands, threats or ultimatums to generate sales by a certain date for example. Again I’ve seen this happen.
3. Content: Just to give me a kick up the backside, Tash sends me not 1, not 2 but 6 great offers to promote for La Redoute.
4. Feedback: The email details Tash’s email address and phone number (not published here) so I can follow up if I need to. No barriers here.
So the end result? I get off my backside and give La Redoute some exposure on my site. What’s more, I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for further offers and discount codes from La Redoute in the future.
The purpose of this post is twofold, one to give credit where it’s due, and Tash and LBi seem to be doing a great job of managing the La Redoute affiliate programme and communicating with affiliates. And two, to show other affiliate managers/agencies that there is “another way”, so next time you think of culling a none performing affiliate why not take a minute or two first to speak to them and see if you can help them. Yeah sure it’s easy to cull them but you don’t want to take the easy option every time do you?
What I’m listening to right now: Sean Garrett ft Ludacris – “Gripping On The Bed”
Wednesday, March 19th, 2008 at 1:07 am and is filed under Affiliate Marketing, Affiliate Programs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Welcome to my blog. My name is Kieron Donoghue and I run UK Offer Media Ltd. I thought it would be fun to post a daily (well hopefully daily) blog, writing about my experiences in Internet Marketing and more specifically Affiliate Marketing. I'll include some personal stuff too, probably about my other passions, music and cars. Please feel free to post your comments and thoughts too.
March 19th, 2008 at 1:16 am
Seriously, what is the point in the cull? Do the merchants pay their agencies based on the number of affiliates on the programme? Certainly they don’t pay the affiliates if they don’t make a sale so what’s the problem with leaving underperforming affiliates in place? A hundred affiliates who make one or two sales a year is 100-200 sales a year you wouldn’t otherwise have.
March 19th, 2008 at 1:17 am
Well done Tash. That certainly makes a refreshing change.
March 19th, 2008 at 1:31 am
That is an excellent example of an agency motivating their affiliates to be more productive instead of the “We’re a huge brand.. Why the *&æ£ haven’t you made hundreds of sales?” line that some come out with, and as you point out, much better than the “we don’t want hundreds of affiliates who only make a sale or two a year in our program”
Anyone who knowingly turns away sales like this needs taking outside and shooting. It looks like Lbi have some tasty merchants on their books too, so I might have to have a conversation or three with them!
March 19th, 2008 at 9:25 am
I’ve just discovered Vertbaudet is part of the La Redoute programme - fantastic merchant if you have kids - this will just spur me on to make contact and push the programme even more.
March 19th, 2008 at 9:35 am
I’ve had good experiences with LBi, too - friendly, helpful and informative mails and a genuine desire to help me make more sales.
March 19th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
I received that email as well and it had the same effect!
March 19th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Just had the “Dear John” letter from John Lewis. I had signed up to the programme for a particular product niche but not got round to adding them to my site. And you know what? F ‘em. They don’t want me, I don’t want them. I was going to be promoting products with an average value of three grand for them but now someone else will get the links.
March 19th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
One of the downsides of our email/text culture is the ability for humans to interact. I can’t imagine that merchants/networks would talk to people face-to-face in the same way some of the Dear Johns are sent. Its just basic common courtesy that’s required and this is a good example of how to do it well.
March 19th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Both thumbs up for LBi
http://www.stephenpratley.com/the-alternative-to-throwing-out-your-affiliates/
I had the exact opposite approach from John Lewis this morning, it’s a crying shame that emails like this are the exception, not the rule.
March 19th, 2008 at 9:49 pm
Yep, I got the same e-mail from John Lewis this morning too.
Thumbs up to LaRedoute for doing things the right way!
March 20th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
completely agree with what your saying there. imo there is no need to cull affiliates, even if they bring in sale every 2 years, they are still doing the business!
March 25th, 2008 at 10:45 pm
yes, i agree. good example also.