At Least Give a Disclosure, LinkShare

You’d think there would be … I don’t know … a disclosure near and/or at the top of a post on a blog such as MarketingLand clarifying the author’s intended purpose (or at least job) here:

Managing The Migration To A New Affiliate Network: “The topic of affiliate network migration is at the top of the agenda for a lot of advertisers these days. Whether a transition is driven by the urgency around the closing of the Google Affiliate Network, or you’ve bandied about the idea of switching networks for some time, moving to a new network requires thoughtful, strategic planning. Otherwise, you may find yourself hopping across different networks while you disrupt your brand, sales and publisher relationships.”

Kinda scummy, Scott.

GeekCast 22: Won’t Get Fooled Again

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We (Shawn Collins, Lisa Picarille, Jim Kukral and myself) recorded GeekCast this afternoon and it’s a great show…

GeekCast 22: iPhone 2.0 and It’s Still Useless : GeekCast.fm: “The show kicked off with talk of the iPhone 2.0, and the virtues like 3G speed, as well as the negatives, such as the keyboard, lack of copy/paste, etc.

The rumored ability to capture video didn’t pan out (did RIM start that rumor?), which was a letdown for your loyal GeekCasters.”

This is one of my favorite episodes yet because Jim and I basically come to blows over Zobzee and mandles.

Linkshare Teams with the DMA on NY Affiliate Tax

Affiliate networks are beginning to get more active (or at least more vocal) on the New York state affiliate tax issue.

CJ has weighed in with a general call for due diligence, ShareASale has been more proactive and involved with the issue both on their blog and in the ABW forum. Then during the GeekCast podcast yesterday, Shawn Collins discussed Linkshare’s partnership with the DMA over the issue.

Here is the email Linkshare is sending out to publishers today:

LinkShare has issued the following invitation to a teleconference on the New York State sales tax change and affiliate marketing:

On April 9, 2008, New York State passed a law mandating that any retailer that (1) meets a certain sales volume from sales to New York customers and (2) has an affiliate program with New York based publishers that refer customers to the retailer and are paid on a commission basis must charge and collect New York sales tax on all sales shipped to New York.

We have been actively working with, and providing support to, the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) to clarify this law. The Direct Marketing Association is the leading global trade association for businesses that use direct marketing tools and techniques. LinkShare is proud to be their partner. As this issue continues to develop, we are committed to making available the insights of authoritative partners like the DMA to help inform and guide you.

To this end, we are pleased to invite you to be LinkShare’s guest for the DMA’s conference call on this issue, featuring DMA Tax Counsel George Isaacson this Thursday, May 22, 11AM to 12Noon Eastern. He will provide an overview of the bill and the DMA’s interpretation of it. There will also be an opportunity for Q&A.

To join the call (Thursday, May 22, 11AM to 12Noon Eastern), email government@the-dma.org to receive personalized dial in information. Please let them know you are a member of the LinkShare Network.

Of course, while the DMA provides an authoritative source for information, since every business has a unique situation, we urge all our partners to seek out individual independent tax and legal advice. The New York Department of Taxation and Revenue‘s Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) and DMA’s analysis of it are available on our site at http://www.linkshare.com/advertisers/ny_state_tax/

For details, please contact:

Mark Kirschner
LinkShare
646-943-8359
mkirschner@linkshare.com

Dan Dent
Blanc & Otus Public Relations for LinkShare
617.451.7351
ddent@blancandotus.com

I’ll be on the call (from a hammock on Hilton Head Island, SC while my monkey butler brings me drinks…) and will share my thoughts here tomorrow afternoon.

Denton Resigns from Linkshare

Big news out of Linkshare today.

LinkShare Announces Executive Management Team Changes: “NEW YORK, March 18 /PRNewswire/ — LinkShare, a leading pay-per-action
marketing network, announced the resignation of Stephen R. Denton as
President of the company and two promotions in its executive management
team.”

While a search for Denton’s replacement gets underway, his duties will
be assumed by John J-H Kim, who will become Interim President in addition
to his role as CEO of LinkShare’s parent company, Rakuten USA.

(As a side note, it’s always heartening to find this sort of thing on press release outlets instead of from a phone call… don’t you hire out very expensive PR firms? Thanks, networks).

CostPerNews Special: Are CJ and Linkshare Worth Their Salt?

If you have attended any of the adtech’s or Affiliate Summit or the DMA’s over the past four years, you have certainly witnessed the proliferation and explosion of CPA networks in the online marketing industry.

Where did they come from? Why are they here? Should you as a merchant, affiliate manager or program director be working with them? These are important and serious questions with long reaching implications for your company’s bottom line and the future of your service, program or even job.

In hopes of shedding some light on the relationship of CPA Networks to more traditional large affiliate networks from a different point of view, I asked Thoughtshapers.com’s Jeff Molander to do an interview with an industry veteran who has worked inside of a merchant affiliate program, with CJ, Linkshare, BeFree, DirectTrack and with various CPA affiliate networks. What results in this ten minute podcast is full of value and a must listen.

In this special edition podcast, Jeff interviews Ms. X, a veteran affiliate manager who suggests that traditional affiliate networks are under fire by “CPA (cost per action) networks” that are more nimble, flexible and offer what advertisers really want — leads or sales without the work. Jeff decided to protect her identity due to her current work situation and place within the industry. It would be preferable to have someone able to speak without the voice mod or hidden identity, but in this situation, the content more than makes up for the identity protection. Plus, the insights she provides is worth the protection.

In effect, the main question addressed is: “Are affiliate networks like Linkshare and Valueclick’s Commission Junction worth their salt?”

[EDIT 7:00pm Wed Nov 15]:

Upon the suggestion of Jim Kukral, I’ve installed a plugin whereby you can be notified of followup comments via email. You can also subscribe to the comment thread without commenting, but don’t lurk too long (please).

If you’ve already posted, you have to logout and then log back in to Wordress to see the subscribe option (below the comment box). This works for all comments in the past and going forward.

Happy commenting and email me with any questions.

[/EDIT]

Listen to hear raw perspectives from a veteran voice (approx 10 minutes)…

COSTPERNEWS PODCAST: ARE CJ AND LINKSHARE WORTH THEIR SALT? (mp3)

http://www.hipcast.com/playweb?audioid=P7014bf789a5011610c79b41947311fcdZVB5RVREYmV8&buffer=5&fc=FFFFFF&pc=CCFF33&kc=FFCC33&bc=FFFFFF&brand=1&player=ap21