Do Affiliate Banners Ever Work?
Initially, I envisioned the title of this entry as a rhetorical question. I've never had any success with generic affiliate program banners -- even if they're stylish and current and interesting (which they usually aren't). But then I figured I'd throw open the doors and pose this question to the wider Web populace: Has anyone ever found success with a generic banner? Have you seen sales skyrocket with the inclusion of a simple ad?And here's a question for the consumers out there: Has a banner ever enticed you to buy a product or bid on an auction?
The only affiliate conversions I've had -- and after a year-plus of doing this stuff seriously I've had a bunch -- have come from direct product links with big pictures and clear text. Even then, I need to go the extra mile and manually contextualize my product links (see one of the movie reviews at filmfodder for an example -- the right-hand column features my hand-coded affiliate links).
I'm often sorely disappointed with affiliate program materials. Buttons and banners have never worked for me and I find that the product information is lacking -- text isn't descriptive enough and images are so small they're barely discernible. I often tweak affiliate images and text to make products more appealing.
And another thing: Please, please show me the products purchased through my site. If I'm going to optimize my site for conversions, I need to what worked in the past! (This paragraph added 9/17/05).
So affiliate managers, hear my cry: Go the extra mile. Give us more image options, better text, better links and more of your marketing guidance. This is a rare situation where diligent grunt work will lead to a major return on investment for all involved. -- Mac Slocum
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