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But it can also help a program initiator compare current programs in order to make his better.
A. Does the Program Offer a Strategic Fit to Your Business?
1. PROGRAM PURPOSE - Define in broad terms 2. COMPLEMENTS YOUR PURPOSE - Does it help you better realize your website long-range goals? 3. VISITOR LEARNING - Are your visitors interested and will the program help them learn?
B. Do You Trust the Business Initiating the Program?
4. SUCCESS - Does the business have a history of successes? 5. BELIEVABLE ADVERTISING - Does it promise impossible rewards: get-rich-quick and MLM schemes? Or is it honest and realistic? 6. REPUTATION - What does the business literature tell you about their past operations? 7. WHAT CLIENTS SAY - Contact current clients and ask for their opinions. Would they recommend this business organization? Are they benefiting from it?
C. Is the Program Well Designed?
8. AFFILIATE QUALIFICATIONS - Are they signing up everyone? Or are they being picky? Picky is better. 9. AFFILIATE RESPONSIBILITIES - Better, too, if there are specific responsibilities. Are affiliates asked to do promotion, communication with customers, sales? 10. INITIATOR RESPONSIBILITIES - Does the outfit offer help in promotion, sales and after-sales support? 11. PAYMENT & TERMS - Is there a fee or commission structure? How frequently are payments made? Does affiliate get credit for future sales? 12. TRANSACTION TRANSPARENCY - How frequently are
transaction reports made? Are transactions independently checkable by the affiliate? Is there a third-party audit? 13. CONFLICT RESOLUTION - Is there a SIMPLE method for resolving conflicts? 14. RETURN TO SITE - Is there a simple way for a website visitor to return to the site of the affiliate after a transaction is executed?
D. Will You be Part of a Community?
15. COMMUNICATION MEDIUM - Does the program have a newsletter, a mailing list, a forum, or some other means of communicating among all affiliates? 16. AFFILIATE DECISION-MAKING - Does each affiliate have a voice in making decisions that affect all affiliates? 17. MUTUAL PROBLEM SOLVING - Is there a method whereby affiliates can pose problems and have them solved by the affiliate community? - - - - - - - - - - - -
Be extremely careful when evaluating an affiliate program. Most people dwell on the financial arrangements. These are important, of course. But more important, I believe, are efforts made to achieve community. These efforts may bolster your ability to achieve greater financial goals.
Spend time in evaluation. It will pay off in the long run.
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Paul -the soarING- Siegel is the founder of the Learning Fountain Network (* Excellence * Honesty * Ethics), at http://www.learningfountain.com; and editor of LearningFOUNT, a newsletter focusing on Helpfulness Marketing. To subscribe, send email to: mailto: LearningFOUNT-subscribe@topica.com.
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About the Author:
Paul "the soarING" Siegel, mailto: paul@learningfountain.com Join LearningFOUNT: a FREE Business Newsletter, Send email to mailto: LearningFOUNT-subscribe@topica.com LEARNING FOUNTAIN NETWORK, http://www.learningfountain.com * Excellence * Honesty * Ethics
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