ClickBank has released the latest issue of ‘ClickBank Communications’. The ‘Expert Article’ featured is titled “How to Thrive as an Affiliate During a Recession”. [ClickBank Newsletter]


ClickBank has released the latest issue of ‘ClickBank Communications’.

ClickBank Communications

News of Note

We Want Your Testimonial

Here at ClickBank, we’re always trying to recruit great new publishers and affiliates, since having more products and people to promote them benefits everyone. And there’s no better way to show prospective ClickBank members how successful they can be than for them to hear about the experiences of our existing clients. If you’ve been successful using ClickBank, whether that means making millions, getting your product in front of a wider audience, or just having a little extra money each month, we’d love to hear from you!

Visit our blog and share your thoughts about working with ClickBank, along with your name, location and company name (if you have one). Please note that by leaving a testimonial, you give us your permission to use your name and your testimonial in our marketing materials. If you prefer, we can use your first name and last initial only.

ClickBank’s Powerful New Affiliate Tool: HopAd Builder

ClickBank is excited to announce the ClickBank HopAd Builder, a powerful new way for affiliates to promote ClickBank products. The HopAd Builder allows affiliates who own Web sites or blogs to easily create fully customizable ad boxes. This tool allows affiliates to customize both the look and content of ads to match their site.

The HopAd Builder costs nothing, and HopAds pay out the same affiliate commissions as Hoplinks created through the Marketplace. HopAds use ad text created by ClickBank publishers to appeal directly to consumers, and all ads are screened by ClickBank for content and quality.

To start creating HopAds to display on your site, click here.

ClickBank Changing “Publisher” to “Vendor”

Starting March 9, 2009, we will refer to ClickBank publishers as “vendors.” We are making this change to reflect the wide variety of products sold by ClickBank vendors and to be more in line with industry terminology. This change will be reflected in all ClickBank communications, and we recommend that all ClickBank vendors and affiliates change any references to “publishers” on their communications to avoid potential confusion.

Expert Article

How to Thrive as an Affiliate During a Recession

by Chris Fox

There’s a lot of news these days about our gloomy economy. It seems like every week there’s another company slashing thousands of jobs, warning us about plummeting profits, or begging for an emergency government bailout.

What does this mean for you and affiliate marketing? Well, if you’re willing to learn from the past, you’ll not only ride out this economic downturn, you’ll actually thrive in it.

If you look back at the Great Depression, you’ll find that there weren’t many companies making money. In fact, there were a record number of closures and bankruptcies, and unemployment was at an all time high with 1 in 3 people without a job. Yet there was one particular sector that was generating massive amounts of cash, and that was direct response marketing.

During the Great Depression, advertising budgets were the first things to get cut when sales tanked. Even today, most companies have no idea which ads are making money, or if they’re working at all.
As an affiliate, you know how important it is to track every dollar spent against your sales. So companies that were involved with direct response marketing knew that for every $1 they spent on advertising, they got $2 back. They placed ads everywhere and saw massive profits.

You have an advantage today that they didn’t have, and that’s the Internet. People who buy things on the Internet are generally wealthier and have more disposable income, so they’re less likely to be affected by this economic downturn. Just look at Amazon.com; while retail sales were significantly down this holiday season, Amazon.com saw record sales.

With all the gloom and doom in the news, not many people realize that this is the best time to make more money. Here are some strategies to help you make the most of these tough economic times.

Recession-Proof Affiliate Strategies
#1: Expand Your Virtual Real Estate
We’ve learned from the past that the companies that profited the most were the ones that didn’t cut their advertising budget – they actually raised it. Advertising rates will begin to fall as poor marketers that don’t track conversions leave the market. Also, if you aren’t already doing so, expand your reach with advertising such as blogs, articles, SEO, social networks, forums, etc. To put it simply, if you’re making money with a product, advertise it more.

#2: Review Your ROI
Now is a great time to review the products you’re promoting and calculate your ROI (return on investment). Everyone is limited by time, and there are only so many products you can promote as an affiliate. Look for products that aren’t generating enough profit and refocus your time and energy into promoting products with high ROI, as well as testing highly profitable new niches.

#3: Don’t Forget Backend Sales
You should be building an opt-in, CAN-SPAM compliant mailing list for every site you’re promoting. That way, you can advertise related products at a very low cost. Also, when looking for publishers, look for ones that are actively building a legitimate mailing list and advertising to it. Just make sure they’re giving you credit for those sales. While you’re at it, look for publishers with up-sells that help raise your profits.

#4: Target Recession-Proof Niches
While the economy is slowing, some niches are booming. Focus on products that help people save money and solve important problems. One of the best niches today involves products related to overcoming specific health problems. With an aging population and a failing health care system, people are turning to the Internet to find solutions on their own.

#5: Promote Products With Higher Commissions
In many ClickBank categories there are a number of products competing on the same topic. If you’re promoting a product with less than 75% commission, look for an alternative. If you find that it doesn’t convert as well as the original product, try adding a pre-sale page to help boost an underperforming Web site. The point is, the more you earn per sale, the more profit you’ll make.

Remember, this recession may be a great opportunity to accumulate more wealth, and ClickBank is one of the best places to do so. Virtually all of the products on ClickBank use the direct response model that let companies make huge profits in an economic situation like the one we are in now.

Chris Fox, www.webseeds.com, is the affiliate manager at WebSeeds.com, a leading promoter of recession-proof ClickBank products.

Tech Corner

Decommissioning Installment Payments

For accounting reasons, as well as other issues, starting March 10 ClickBank will no longer offer installment products for sale.

As of that date, the ClickBank order form for installment products will no longer be available to customers. Any outstanding installment payments owed for products already sold will be automatically processed on schedule.

Existing installment products should be changed and sold either as single-payment products or subscription-based products, and any payment links should be changed to direct customers to the new version of these products.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Feedback Loop

What do you think about the ClickBank Newsletter? What would you like to see covered in future issues?

Email general feedback or story ideas to: commfeedback [AT] clickbank [DOT] com.

About ClickBank

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*IMNewswatch would like to thank ClickBank for granting permission to reprint the latest ClickBank Newsletter.

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