Below you will find some beginners affiliate marketing tips that are
often over looked or unknown altogether.
1. Test URL's - Never assume you have put your URL's in your ads
correctly. I have been advertising affiliate programs for years and still
make mistakes with this. Always copy the URL from your ad and paste it in a
browser and hit enter to make sure the URL goes to the site you intended for
it to.
2. URL's Capitalized - if you are using a URL and typing it out such as
this: YourAffiliateProgram.com instead of this youraffiliateprogram.com then
you need to know that some browsers will not parse this correctly from an
email ad or even a web page link. I.E. included. As an advertising agent for
many customers over 10+ years, I have seen this happen over and over. Don't
risk it. Always use lower case letters.
There is one exception to this and that is if a file name has been named
with upper case letters or you have signed up with a username with upper
case letters in it. Examples such as:
youraffiliateprogram.com/FileName.html, .php, .asp etc. or
youraffiliateprogram.com/?YourAffiliateUsername or ID then it must be used
just as named and cannot be altered. This warning is pertaining to the main
domain name part only.
3. Using Direct Affiliate Links or URL's - using direct affiliate links
in your advertising can mean less click through's, to your web site, because
of a possible block on the link. There are many major ISP's that keep up
with URL's that have complaints on them. If there are so many complaints
then this URL will quickly go on a block list. Then what happens is when you
use this straight affiliate URL in your advertising as the advertisers send
your ad out, many bounces come back with the warning that this message could
not be sent due to a URL in the message being on a blocked list. It is
always best to use your own web site to either forward to your affiliate URL
or a quality tracking or cloaking system of some type. Again I highly
recommend setting this up on your own site as well with something like Covert Affiliate Links or
Protrack
Manager.
One side note for tracking and/or cloaking software. Avoid having to use
a ? in the tracking URL. This is a major problem with many free advertising
sites and numerous other reasons I don't have room to list here. A URL
without a ? in it is always better.
4. Cloaking - also be aware that cloaking your URL can keep your
affiliate id from being passed to the visitor. Cloaking is different then
simply tracking a URL. Cloaking usually sets up a frame set itself making
the site it lands on look as if it is from your own web site or the site of
the cloaking software. Test any cloaker or tracking system you use before
advertising with the URL. Because if your cloaking software or the site your
are advertising on is using frames it can prevent your affiliate ID from
passing on to the visitors that land on your site.
Check this by clearing your cookies and temporary Internet files, then
use a URL frame breaker tester such as you find on many traffic exchanges
and safe list sites. While your affiliate site is in the frame, go to the
join page and make sure you are the referrer being credited. This will let
you know if your cloaking software is doing more harm then good.
A good rule of thumb on the above is not to use the cloaking option on a
URL that will be used in any framed environment, such as a traffic exchange
or a credit based safe list. Ask any one you are paying to place ads for
you, about this, if you are unsure. Any good tracking software will give you
the option to cloak or not cloak a URL.
Use these beginners affiliate marketing tips to quickly become a pro
affiliate marketer without worries of missing commissions due to you.
Debbie Ducker
About the Author:
Debbie Ducker is owner of Ducker Promotion. Learn more about beginners
affiliate marketing by visiting:
http://bgomsp.duckerpromotion.com/
