Category: Affiliates

I stumbled into the affiliate marketing world years ago.

I’m walking out of it today.

My experiences in the affiliate marketing world have been incredibly positive when it comes to interpersonal relationships. However, it’s time for me to move on. I’m not happy.

Why am I not happy?

Mainly because I don’t like the way online marketing continues to debase the human factor of interaction in attempts to “monetize” and find cracks in the sidewalks to plant sour seeds.

It’s not you, it’s me.

I’m just not interested in the day-to-day minutia of being a marketing professional anymore. I’m sure I’ll always keep up with the main trends and I’ll certainly keep up with the space in terms of how it affects social media, etc.

But these questions just don’t turn me on anymore…

“Why doesn’t tinyurl allow for better cookie tracking so that I can make affiliate sales from Twitter links?”

“Why does Google punish me for selling links when TechCrunch does the same thing?”

“How much should I invest in my StumbleUpon account in order to drive 1,000 pageviews a day?”

“Can you help me tweak my Twitter account so that I can drive sales thru my landing page?”

“How can I get more fans to join my (self-created) Facebook page?”

“Who do I need to pay to add outbound links to the affiliate marketing page on Wikipedia?”

“Is FriendFeed worth it? Yeah, I know you say it’s neat for finding out information and learning about new things, but will it make me money?”

And It is these sorts of things that have slowly driven a wedge between my own idealism and (what I see as) the current trajectory of online marketing. Beyond a growing distaste around such issues, I generally find myself on the wrong side of the fence for effective marketing. And I’ve been on all sides of that online marketing fence… publisher, affiliate, CPA network, email marketer, agency, vendor, OPM, and God knows whatever else… I’m coming to grips with my own realization that it’s not for me.

For me, the expectations have never met the promises. These days, I’m only feeling more alienated. As a result, I’m choosing to opt-out rather than becoming a constant nay-sayer or voice of doom and gloom.

To quote Lennon, “I don’t want to spoil the party, so I’ll go.”

On top of all that, I just don’t see myself as an “online” or even “affiliate” marketer anymore. I’m not saying I’ve grown beyond those labels. I just don’t feel that those pairs of socks go with my outfits now.

PLEASE do not get me wrong. I respect, admire and love so many people in the affiliate and online marketing space (and will continue to do so, of course). This is not a personal affront to anyone in the space or the space itself, but more of a realization that I have to move on.

As a result, I’ll be shutting down CostPerNews (or (fire) selling it if someone is interested) and doing my posting over on my personal site.

I’m also going to be working on the podcast network I’m developing (Thinking.fm) around issues I am excited about these days (science, religion, Nascar, parenting, tech, politics… the site is still being developed, so excuse the mess… will be up and going by February). I’m really excited about those sites.

And hopefully, the gang will still allow me to take part in GeekCast even though I’m turning in my affiliate hard card. I hope so (check out the site redesign, btw).

I’m also doing more work in the non-profit world (Hunger Initiative) and continuing my journey towards whatever end awaits me at seminary.

Yes, of course it is my hyperbole than anything to say I’m “quitting” marketing since we are all marketers in whatever we do. I should rephrase that and say “I’m quitting the professional guise of being an online marketer.” There, that feels better.

—

Two and a half years ago, I wrote this and my career only exploded afterwards:

So, with these realizations and my own skewed since of lefty politics and social views I’m embarking on a mission to do better… to make things good… to connect people to good things they might not have known about… to form community… and to use my skills to leave the internet a better place than it was when I found it (way back in the Prodigy Bulletin Board days).

Lofty goals often mean periods of worry, anxiety and joblessness in terms of “career” but sticking to my flower-guns has got to be a better policy than being miserable knowing that I’m not using my full potential.

So, who knows what’s next, but it will be shiny, rusty, exciting, boring, profitable, unprofitable and creative. I will make this work (whatever in the hell this is).

So, who knows what’s next? I will make it work. I will make it worthwhile.

Thank you all so much for the incredible dedication of readership as well as the inspiration you’ve provided me in the comments and emails.

Here’s to a new beginning and learning from the past.

Yes, some of this is uber-geeky.

However, if you’re an online marketer, it’s in your best interest to keep an eye on the horizon.

What is quickly coming towards us is the “real-time” web that includes our laptops, mobiles, netbooks, iPhones, TV’s and just about anything with a chip in it.

Why is this so valuable?

One word: Track. If you don’t know what Track is or why it’s important, you missed a good part of 2008. Welcome to the web.

Track will be the grease that keeps online marketers on the tracks in the coming years. Twitter might not be the service to provide it, but somehow and someway, a real-time firehose of specified keywords and info will be available to you.

Track will make our current marketing paradigm of Google keyword buying based on passive searches look like print advertising from the 60’s.

FriendFeed takes us a big step towards the real-time web with the beginning of SUP implementation…

FriendFeed Blog: Simple Update Protocol: Update: “Several months back, we announced SUP (Simple Update Protocol), a proposal for making RSS and Atom feed updates faster and more efficient. Since then, a number of services have added SUP support, we’ve SUP-enabled our feed fetcher, and there are now thousands of SUP enabled feeds being imported into FriendFeed. Among the services that now support SUP are Disqus, Brightkite, Identi.ca (and other Laconica-powered micro-blogs), BackType, and 12seconds.tv. Whenever one of these feeds is updated, the new entry appears on FriendFeed within seconds (non-SUP feeds typically take 15-30 minutes to update). Check out the public feed of Brightkite updates to see this in action. “

I’m not kidding when I tell you to watch this space if you want to be doing online marketing five to ten years from now.

According to Shawn Collins and Lisa Picarille, I hate Top 10 Lists.

So, to get out of my shell a little, I’ve spent a great deal of time and effort putting together the most meaningful things I’ve read over the past year (thanks, Delicious!) to help you stay on top of the coming trends facing online marketing.

See, I pride myself on catching things early. Jeff Molander called me a futurist once. That was the biggest honor I’ve ever received from an online marketer.

I throw a lot of play-doh at the wall to see what’ll stick, but occasionally I get things right. I called Twitter early and my marketer pals thought I was ridiculous when I tried to explain myself here or at the Affiliate Summit in early ’07. Tumblr has been a decent success. RSS is still developing but I’m still pushing it hard. The semantic web is quickly catching up to web2.0, so I’ve got my eyes on a few things there.

All of that said, here are the things I’m keeping my eye on in 2009 and beyond. It’s a little glimpse into my mind… if you will.

I sincerely hope you learn something and that you enjoy!

1. Joseph Priestley (uber marketer): This guys is (was?) a brilliant marketer. You’ll love him. Just read the whole thing. Trust me.

2. Marketing Vision: John Updike nails the marketing theory of discovery and changing landscapes.

3. Philosophy of Marketing: Insight, relevance and connections…what all good great marketers strive for in their campaigns.

4. Social Media Marketing Defined and Refined: Yes, social media marketing is the new hotness. But do you know how to turn it into reality?

5. The Possibilities of Marketing: Process Marketing will be huge in 2010. Know what it is? You should. Read this.

6. Viral Marketing 2.0: Forget that old-skool viral marketing mumbo jumbo. Pathogen marketing is going to be hot in the twenty-teens. Get your prescription for success now!

7. The Goal of All Marketers: At the end of the day, this is why I do what I do.

8. Marketing Yourself at Conferences: You must have these skills for conferences.

9. Advanced Twitter Usage for the Advanced Marketer: Do you use Twitter? Are you a marketer? Know all the basics? Then read this.

and last (or first if you’re starting with 10, which is cool) but not least:

10. Putting it All Together for the Future: Marketing is rapidly evolving. This guide will help you plan out your next moves to keep you relevant in the coming decade of media upheaval.

Anything I missed?

Here’s to a successful 2009 and beyond!

Speaking of Joel Comm, he recently launched a url shortening/vanity service focused on Twitter called TwitPwr (to accompany his book, Twitter Power).

Jim Kukral and I went back and forth over the service on last week’s GeekCast. Basically, my point is that Joel’s service doesn’t add much for users besides the vanity factor. I argued that bit.ly is a much much better product, has an API, and is more robust for serious users who don’t need the ego stroking.

But this morning, after trying to blog about Joel’s Twitter study in the previous post, I realized something else that is a deal-breaker for me when it comes to TwitPwr:

Once someone uses TwitPwr to link to a post or site from Twitter, you can’t get the original URL of the site. The TwitPwr wrap or frame stays on top of the site. And the TwitPwr wrap or frame stays with you whereever you go past that point (until you close that Tab or Window). So, whether you’re blogging or passing on the link, you’re stuck with the TwitPwr shortened URL if you’re clicking around. Not cool.

That might be kosher for a few of you, but for most affiliate marketers, that could be a big deal since the URL has a great deal to do with conversions in terms of link names.

On the other hand, bit.ly immediately drops off after it does its original job… shortening the linked URL from Twitter or an email or a post, etc.

Not to mention, bit.ly has a very nice API. That’s a big difference.

If Joel is going to keep pushing TwitPwr and if influential people in the affiliate marketing space are going to use the service, I hope they are aware of this pretty serious flaw in the service. Otherwise, this is more MLM than affiliate marketing.

Don’t get me wrong, I like Joel. He’s a nice guy and I consider him a pal. However, I also have a big place in my heart for Twitter and have to speak up when I see goofy things like this happening.

The TwitPwr “How It Works” page includes this language:

WHAT IS TRUE TWITTER POWER?

Is it really the number of followers you have, or is the ability to get your followers to Take Action?

When you use the TwitPwr short url service, we track the number of clicks that you drive via the Twitter API, and give your account a Power Rating.

Your Power Rating is not only the unique traffic that you generate, but it’s also based on how many Twitter users you refer to our service.

Those referrals you generate will also play apart in driving even more traffic to your site.. Stay Tuned!

If that is Twitter Power, then blessed are the meek.

I’m sticking with bit.ly for my url shortening and spreading needs.