We have all heard of Value Added Reseller – resellers who buy products, add their unique value, and resell that product. But, in affiliate marketing, and with the direct to consumer model that is so prevalent on the web – there are no resellers. Direct to consumer and reseller don’t play together. But direct to consumer and affiliate do indeed play together. So what about Value Added Affiliate? Actually, I think it fits our industry perfectly and represents the essence of what affiliates do every day.

Experts in Search add value through their working knowledge of Google and other Search Engine platforms. Ad groups, Quality scores, Display and Destination URLs, Click Through Rate – these are important value added areas of expertise, required to succeed as a PPC affiliate.

Experts in the Coupon vertical are aware of the nuances that go into using discounts to generate sales. Premium and Exclusive Offers – Coupon Codes – direct to cart discounts – these are value added elements used by affiliates to drive sales in the coupon vertical.

Review affiliates use unique and expert content to transform information gathering ’shoppers’, into decision making buyers. Solo reviews, head to head comparison charts, expert reviews – all add value and help customers make informed buying decisions.

Email affiliates, a vertical that has probably been around the longest, are always testing new methods to monetize their lists. List segmentation, A/B testing – these are value added methods used by EMAIL affiliates to convert email lists into customers.

VARs – Value Added Resellers – many of whom are computer OEMs, resellers, service providers, or some combination of all 3. Affiliates in this vertical are embracing the affiliate channel as a suitable alternative to promote many of the products they traditionally used to buy and resell – especially software. Their knowledge of computers – and the services they provide are crucial value added elements to this vertical.

As you can see, at oneNetworkDirect we work with many different affiliates across a wide variety of verticals, with each of you adding your own unique value – Value Added Affiliates.

As a network, we are in a unique position within the Affiliate Marketing Industry – we see all sides of the business… Affiliate, Merchant, and Network. It is from this unique position that I have developed the idea of Value Added Affiliate, and why it is an idea that I think is here to stay.

Why do I think it is an idea that is here to stay? Let’s look at the signs:

Merchant
Value Added Affiliates are at the core of what merchants are looking for (even if they don’t know it). Merchants need affiliates that can compliment their business. They need affiliates that apply their expertise to market their products. And they are placing more emphasis on this every day.

Google
Google – and the inevitable Google slap that comes every 6 months, are driving affiliates to add value. No direct linking, no jump pages, destination/display URLS must match. All these are signs of needing to add value – Value Added Affiliate is a must to rank well with Google.

Affiliates
Look at your competition – what are they doing? I can bet (along with you) that they are working to add value to their businesses every day. We can look around and see investment in the Web everywhere. Notice what they are doing and how they are trying to add value and I bet you will see opportunities for yourself as well.

Networks
What are the networks doing to help you add value? Tools – there are more, and better, tools for affiliates today than there ever have been. (Tools to help automate your business. Earlier this year we launched the oneNetworkDirect Data Feeds – we had 350 affiliates pick up oND data feeds in the first 45 days.) Many of these tools are designed to help you deploy content – or to further monetize the content you have. Services are another area where networks are working to help Value Added Affiliates – especially in the area of affiliate management. Networks will continue to work with top Value Added Affiliates. Other affiliates – they will remain on remote control – void of the dedicated affiliate manager. (I am sure each of you know the value of a dedicated manager – and I suspect you would not want to go without one)

So what are Qualities of Value Added Affiliate

Work Hard
We all work hard every day – but this is a must. Take your work seriously as this is the cost of success.

Chose a topic that you know
Focus on what you know – not what you think you can sell. Expand cautiously and use your judgment. Focus on areas you can add value, and use it to gain competitive advantage wherever possible.

Select several merchants in your area of focus
Spread your efforts across multiple categories and/or merchants. This will help you diversify and reduce dependency upon any 1 merchant. Expand into peripheral areas that compliment your current business.

Think Like a Merchant
What do merchants want? Merchants want Value Added Affiliates. Quality Search partners that play by the rules. Unique content that compliments their products. Affiliates that can help break into new verticals – such as blogs and social media networks. Merchants want solid performers that are committed to supporting their products and brands.

Develop Unique Content
Content is at a premium today and you need to be investing in it. Plan for the future by building out your sites around unique content that you can leverage as part of your value add. In my world – banners are dead. Blogs are alive and flourishing. Use web 2.0 techniques to distinguish your site and give yourself the competitive advantage of rich, dynamic, content.

Think like a buyer
Step out of the role of marketer/webmaster for a moment and think like a customer. One easy way to increase sales quickly is to embed buy links in descriptive text within your site. If you are not including links within the descriptions of your products, then simply adding these can increase sales significantly. We have seen sites where up to 69% of the total purchases came from the links embedded within the text/body of the ad copy.

Make your Site Want Me to Buy and Make Buying Easy
Make it so I can easily find a product – time is critical – and I think this is true for many people today, and one reason people purchase online. Compliment your landing pages by using “buy now” links that go direct to cart. Add search capabilities within your site. Google has a site search engine and there are dozens of other services available such as PicoSearch.

Digital River has a developer resource center. The Developer Resource Center can be found at http://www.developer-resource.com. Many of the articles are merchant focused, but much of the information can also be used by affiliates.

So what about oneNetworkDirect’s role in Adding Value

oneNetwork Direct – Value Added Network
Adding value is not something that starts and stops with affiliates. At oneNetworkDirect we are working to add value as a network at every turn as well. Because we are a Digital River Business we bring value added services already built in.

Commerce
We are the only major affiliate network that also hosts commerce. Not just commerce – but global commerce- we host commerce in over 20 different languages and currencies around the world – 24/7/365.

At oND we have the power of Digital River working behind us
Corporate Search, Site optimization, Multivariate testing, Dynamic personalization are all elements of the Digital River engine that is working to convert the clicks that you drive into customers – and in turn – into commissions for you.

Our Value Add extends into:
Program Management, Strategic Planning, Affiliate Prospecting, Affiliate Activation, Affiliate Management & Optimization, Creative Development, Marketing Development Funds, Global Commerce – International Program Offers

We truly are working to add value to the affiliate/merchant relationship through oneNetworkDirect and I encourage each of you to take advantage of what we are doing in these areas wherever possible.

Our Team
The biggest (and best) part of our value add is our team. Many of our team members have been with oneNetworkDirect since the beginning. Our knowledge and expertise distinguish our team as one of the best in the industry. So next time you are talking to a merchant, someone from an affiliate network, or industry colleague, I encourage you to describe yourself as a Value Added Affiliate. Hopefully it will spark a great conversation about your business and how you are working to add value as an affiliate.

George Hansen