Best Affiliate Network Reward/Trip? (21)
Saw Neverblue (now GW MEDIA) just started their contest for top publishers / Out of Bounds Boracay http://outofboundscontest.com/
Has anyone been on something similar or received any rewards that have actually worked in getting you to send more traffic?
Networks that offer big rewards/trips are taking too much margin! Its better to work with a network that gives you a very high payout, that will make you the most money at the end of the day.
@bobliu, publisher contests are really a way for networks like glispa to thank our top publishers for their contribution and hard work. You can take a look around at all the networks with such contests, and most of the time you would find that these networks tend to be bigger and have the capabilities to organize contests without disadvantaging publishers. You can check out the details of glispa's last publisher contest on mobyaffiliates!
From our experience, the publisher contests have been very successful and have definitely increased the traffic sent our way. However, we also understand that whether the publisher contest motivates a publisher or not is entirely dependent on the goals of the publisher.
Originally Posted by cbrughmans
This is like when advertisers visit Google's offices and come back raving about how amazing Google's premises are ... without realising that they are the ones who paid for all of the funky furniture and 75 inch 4k monitors there.
There's no such thing as a free lunch.
I'll take higher payouts over trips, parties, private meetups, fancy offices, etc.
100% right about that. A trip is a trojan horse, the real deal is a high payout!
I think many people underestimate the networking potential of these trips, which typically include private dinners etc with other top affiliates.
Being flown to prague etc was good fun. Not really sure what the real value is, but as a newbie it was certainly an easy way to access the big boys table.
Payouts always king though, but if you have a good feel for what margins your offers and other networks run at then you can calculate out if it's worth it
Would the Chinese affiliate being shafted in recent threads face the same issues if he had been out partying with the team? Probably not...
Higher payouts never beat a good relationship between pub/network. On short term high payouts are nice to have yes, but for the long term it's not all about payouts. It's about trust, optimize on both sites for best ROI and award pubs with exclusive campaigns (pub only).
Inviting pubs for trips/parties etc is a way to build a relationship, and not only talk about clicks.
That is worth much more than some cents extra on a payout.
Parties and trips are great, but a pub will still shift his/her traffic if you offer a higher payout and better payment terms.
If campaign X pays 10% more on another network and you get paid weekly instead of monthly, its really an easy choice.
Of course trust, exclusive campaigns and campaign optimization are very important as well. That's crystal clear.
Question is more if, all things being equal amongst two networks, a pub prefers a trip/party over a higher payout.
The big majority of pubs will choose the higher payout.
Depends on the person/character ofcourse too. As a pub/network at the same time we experience even the opposite;
pub gets higher payout at another network - see we offer it too with lower payout - moves traffic to us.
And not only because we drench our pubs in champaign on a monthly base ;-).
But yeah, I think it's a matter of knowing your pub too and have a feeling what he/she will drive to make more money together.
Gadgets, trips, higher payouts, faster payments, exclusive campaigns... laten we ze niet allemaal over 1 kam scheren he
Don't know about the other networks but GWM trips are legit & have nothing to do with margins and such. They have a specific offer/company sponsor a large portion of the trip (used to be instant checkmate, now dunno) - purely because of how much volume they run there. In turn they actually have higher payouts than most other networks.
There isn't a right or wrong answer here. If every network was the same then what's the point, we'd all be more boring for it.
These trips in one network might be considered an avoidable expense, but for another network can be viewed as a valid client retention and advocacy exercise. Used in the right way, these trips can also be an excellent marketing tool. You can't argue that a network is making too much margin if they are putting money back into their own marketing! This in turn helps the pub when the network does more volume, for higher quality leads that the advertiser in turn gives HIGHER PAYOUTS for.
My own opinion, not speaking for F5, is that there is a nice blend of all things mentioned in this thread for the majority of affiliates. Some big affiliates can go on a far better trip that they plan out of their own time and wallet! For the majority of these guys; trips, parties etc. simply won't appeal the same way they would to an intermediate guy. One thing that cannot be argued, is that more social and human interaction between Networks and their publishers is always going to be a positive thing. 
For those who are in for a great trip (Ibiza baby!); http://www.vipresponse.nl/en/contest
You can refer to me or add me on skype to discuss this.
Tim Konijn - tim.vipresponse
All these gifts are paid from the % they shave off your conversions 
But what if i can tell you that the rates are the same and on top of that you can win cool prizes !?!
and also be able to chose either to get the Prize or get equivalent amount of Cash $$$
now that will make you switch the traffic ?
also i believe that its really depend on the Prize, winning a Trip like "Out of Bounds" is amazing and i know several persons who did win this few years ago but how many can actually win this ?
and how many can even think they are able to win this competition is a big question?
at the end if the payout remain the same with or without the prize, its all come to Conversion rates and how much you are earning.
getting high payouts can sometimes mean lots of scrubs,
so at the end each affiliate will have its own decision based on results his goals and his capabilities.
I believe that instead of handing out stuff, creating valuable networking opportunities is much better for everyone involved.
Originally Posted by cmdeal
so you will have a very strong networking opportunities .
now when we are talking about other competitions like winning prizes such as Xbox for example
its a way for the network to stand out and attract affiliates that will come and run the offer to win the prize.this will allow the affiliate eventually to look for other offers and that a win win.
as long as you aren't "losing" money by going on the lowest rate i don't see any harm with winning prizes
especially if you have a chance to chose to receive Cash prize
Most of the tech in my house (and the house itself?) has been the result of rewards from various networks, so far I've managed to claim -
iPhone 4 (yeah going back a few years!)
2 x iPad
Karcher Pressure Washer
Food Processor
Macbook Pro 15"
High-end SLR Camera
Apple TV (Affiliaxe)
And.. today.. Xbox One from Affiliaxe!
Thanks to Guy for that one!
Why not get a great rate and also be rewarded? Getting gifts or rewards to countries (http://www.maxbounty.com/rewards.cfm ) is all about building relationships. As we all see at trade shows across the world meeting face to face is what really builds business. I can't tell you how many affiliates truly do like the contest where they can all meet up, talk about ideas, and grow their businesses together. For smaller networks I would assume that they would have to compromise margin to be able to give out things like trips or gifts but for established networks there is so much traffic that they are able to offer the best rates as well as reward you with things as simple as an "Xbox" or a trip to some destination to meet other super affiliates and discuss other business opportunities. I am only speaking from my own network but going to something like Affiliate Rewards is not based on how much we make off of you ( margin) it is based on how much you do as an affiliate so if anything the more you make the better the chance you have at going to on our destination trip.
Its two different point of views and two different business models. Some affiliates will like the rewards a lot, others prefer to have the value of this reward to be incorporated into their rate
So its a choice between a great rate + reward vs. a very great rate
Originally Posted by cbrughmans
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