Working With Your Affiliates to Protect Brand Standards

Working With Your Affiliates to Protect Brand Standards

Andrew McCaffreyPerformance Marketing Summit

2014

OverviewOverview

• Brand Development/Creation

• Affiliate & Merchant Conversation

• Keys to Maintaining Brand Standards

1. Brand Association

2. Prohibited Content

3. Product Description

4. Product Benefits

5. Staying Current

• Brands take time to develop and require ongoing maintenance

1. Merchant needs to understand what the brand stands for and

wants to project to consumers

2. Clearly articulate brand standards throughout the organization

3. Affiliates, partners and all other parties associated with brand must

also believe and see the same mission

4. Consistently engage consumers with experiences that are

authentic to the brand at every touch point

Brand Development

Conversation, Transparency and FeedbackConversation, Transparency and Feedback• Discussion between affiliate and merchant

• Clear rules can ensure all parties are held accountable

• Trust, honesty and respect between merchant and

affiliate

• Regular feedback and consistent encouragement

• Get to know publishers!

1 – Brand Association1 – Brand Association

• Market the brand to the correct audience

• Accurate Targeting

• Correct Messaging

• Content on affiliate site needs to accurately represent

brand

• Premium vs. Discount Brand

• Coupons Available?

2 – Prohibited Content2 – Prohibited Content

• Understanding target audience and brand image.

• Offensive language and adult oriented material are great

examples of content typically restricted by brands

• Merchant must disclose any authorities that supervise

their brand and explain the associated risks

• CFPB, FTC and SEC

• Protected words/phrases

• Varies depending on brand and industry, but basic words like

“Free” or “Guarantee” can scare merchants and create

headaches for customer service

3 – Product Description3 – Product Description

• Review product description on partners sites for accuracy.

• Common product details to watch closely:• Interest Rates• APR• Proper disclosures• Misspellings or grammatical errors

• Create regular review process for all sites and have an additional spot check to review detailed and complex offers

• Accurate description of products will support consumer experience, limit customer service complaints and support experience on affiliate sites

4 – Product Benefits4 – Product Benefits• Merchant clearly explains intended use of product and how the

product can help customer.• Affiliates can take merchant explanation and provide their review

without changing the message of product.

Source: George from Flickr

• Don’t promote Vibram FiveFingers as a shoe that can prevent foot injuries!

5 – Keep Offers Current!5 – Keep Offers Current!

• Keep offers up to

date

• Logo and images

current

• Better customer

experience and more

engagement by

visitors

Image taken from retailmenot.com

Questions?Questions?

Follow up for more informationAndrew@brandverity.com

Follow up for more informationAndrew@brandverity.com