Affiliate Marketing Accidents

“Are they really that hard to avoid?”

Affiliate Marketing is a tough racket. Ask around. Many skilled businesspeople have been unceremoniously shoved from the industry because they lacked armor thick enough to withstand the countless pricks. The subtleties around the monetization of data are not only many, they are in a state of constant transformation. Changing laws, improved processes and evolving technologies blend to create an extremely harsh ecosystem in which even the Hulk couldn’t survive.

Complicating matters further, the industry seems to attract a collection of miscreants and misfits that would normally only be found in Mos Eisley cantinas. Unscrupulous villains and epic scumbags clutter an otherwise unclouded landscape. Sure that sounds insulting. But search your feelings; you know it to be true. Affiliate marketers, and the networks they associate with, are not to be taken lightly. Ultimate care and precaution cannot be stressed enough. The industry is rife with stories of non-compliance, non-payment and non-sense. Affiliate marketers wishing to keep their proverbial noses clean and remain above the fray must work very hard to ensure their reputations and business relationships remain undamaged.

Affiliate networks are dropping like flies. Rumors dart about the web like flying monkeys. People cry out “non-payment!” while boys in bad suits ensure us all that there is no need to pay attention to the man behind the curtain. Stability has become the utmost in standards. -The only pertinent variable. Is there nothing stellar to report about your network? That’s okay. As long as your roof isn’t on fire, you’re in the top five, easy — even if you do promote your network with the subtly of a Lady Gaga video.

The only measure worth taking is, and will always be a network’s track record. How long have they been at it? Have they ever been guilty of non-payment? Do they make their partners money? As cliché as it sounds, actions really do speak louder than words. The importance of a stable, consistent network cannot be understated. Ultimately it should come down to the affiliate network with whom you get the best, and more consistent, performance.

The truth is, affiliate marketing doesn’t have to be THAT mistake-prone. It’s all about risk versus reward. If you enjoy taking risks, there are plenty of them to take. A recent study from The Pert Group showed that affiliates fear non-payment and they want their chosen network to be credible and stable. But affiliate marketers don’t have to swim with the sharks. Use your head. Look around. Read the news articles, follow the blogs. If you choose to gamble with your data, eventually, sooner or later, you will lose… Period.

So what do you think? Is Affiliate Marketing mistakes unavoidable? How do you play it? -Safe and sound? -Or fast and loose?