Advice on dealing with a bad AM? (14)
So right now I am working with this network (big network) and my AM is pretty unresponsive.
I used to have a great AM on this network that I talked to pretty much daily, but he ended up leaving the network to just travel the world or something lol.
So long story short I got a new AM and this person is pretty unresponsive.
Like I'll ask him to do quality checks and paybumps for offers I'm running and often he'll just never get back to me. When I message him on IM sometimes it takes days to get back to me.
Id say requests wise Im probably average/below average in inquiries, it's not like Im constantly bothering this AM for stuff. Just your standard "hey can I get a quality check" or "hey can you recommend some offers" etc.
I run about $5-7k/week on this network too, not the largest affiliate, but not an insignificant one in my opinion. I've also probably ran like $200k or so in revenue last year on this network.
Part of me just wants to move my traffic elsewhere, but at the same time this is a pretty big network with a lot of decent offers.
Any thoughts on what to do in a situation like this?
Tbh Im leaning heavily on just moving my traffic elsewhere. Im trying to build a business relationship, not just run up revenue for some network.
Edit: Afflilate Network reps please don't blow up my inbox about your great customer service lol
Does this network offer something special that others don't in terms of offers?
If they do and you really want to keep working with them, I would just be honest with the rep and express your frustrations like you've laid out here, get them on the phone etc.
If that goes nowhere and they're still being evasive then at point I'd reach out to one of their other reps on skype and see if they can take over or open a new account with them (if that's an option).
I've been in the same situation a few times, I hate it when I lose a great AM... but it does happen all the time, there is quite a bit of fluctuation in this field.
It might make sense to wait a few weeks, if you can, the new AM might be less experienced or there is a lot of work to take over, chances are it will all settle down and improve over time.
But if it doesnt, you can always reach out to someone higher on the ladder, since it's a big network (as you mentioned) they must have a lot of AMs working for them and request a new AM. 5-7k a week is definitely a nice sum, it's not like you're some newbie bothering them with stupid requests.
Just tell them you and your new AM are not a good fit and you'd like to get a new one, after all its business and all parties have to be compatible in order for the $$ to keep flowing. I'm pretty sure they are dealing with similar requests from time to time. Just don't act like an ass and present it in a polite manner 
Lol in my case when this happened, the AM was fired by the network. And I got a better AM soon.
It is hard man. Just don't be an ass but politely ask the AM to be more responsive so that you can hit even bigger numbers.
If he does not cooperate, say the same thing to another AM in the company and ask if he can recommend someone to takeover your account.
A bad AM can result in really bad performance for you. I ran traffic to offers without knowing I am banned or had a pay decrease and ended up losing a lot of money. It sucks for sure.
I was going to tell you to suck it up and stick with the network as long as the offer is converting and you are profiting however I understand what you are going through (have been there before) and it does suck when response times are slow or non-existent. My advice to you would be the following;
1. Stick with the network if the offer is converting well and you are profiting
2. Increase your daily revenue to the point where you are too big to ignore
3. Politely air your views to the AM (could be that he is stretched, capacity wise, and focusing on higher performing publishers) and make it clear you want an improved communcation channel with him
4. If the situation doesnt improve and you cant get the offer (the one you are currently running) from another network, sign up to the same network with a different email and request for a different AM
Having a friendly and highly responsive AM is great and sometimes you do get the excellent ones that can take your business to the next level however they are few and far between. Start hitting 6 figures per week and you will be the one ignoring his mesages!
Originally Posted by jabong82
But if we'd lose an account because of poor customer service we would beat ourselves. Could be a new account manager with no experience to identify potential, or just a bad AM, anyhow, you have to change
This. And if it get's worse move elsewhere, doesn't matter how big they are there are always an alternative
This has happened to me quite a few times over the years as well – the normal thing to always do is to just go in and request a new AM ASAP. It's completely within your rights to do so and it's OK. Any network owner's going to tell you the same thing.
There's not much to think about or even discuss nor should you worry about hurting your current AM's feelings - they're gonna be OK, it's business and they're perfectly aware of this fact.
Just go in, contact somebody else from the network – whether that's another AM, a sales rep etc., or shoot them an email via the contact form or whomever you can get a hold of and explain the situation in a professional, polite and direct manner. Or what's even better is to just give the network a call and get this sorted out quickly.
It's your money on the line plus if you've done $200k in revenue you shouldn't even be considering keeping the current one.
Try shooting an email to head of affiliates ? or someone from the senior managment of the team and ask them to assign you a responsive AM? I wouldnt worry about hopw that AM feels becvause if they were doing their job properly you wouldnt have to do that in first place .. It happens with all of us all you have to do is to ask the network .. Business is business you gotta put your own intrests first ...
Happens all the time. The steps I'd recommend:
1. Explain in a nice but not too long message that these delays make you unable to scale.
2. Ask if he or she is overworked and say you'd be fine with switching to another AM.
3. If they say they will do better great, otherwise you work with them on switching to another AM.
4. If they say but don't deliver, ask them to switch.
5. If they say they can't/won't switch, go to a higher up and explain the situation.
Basically, your current AM should either help you switch or do better. If they don't do either, it's fine to talk to complain to their boss about it.
Through all this, don't make it personal, keep it focused on facts (your revenue, delays, opportunities, etc.).
Thanks for the responses guys I really appreciate the input!
The offers aren't necessarily unique on this network, but I feel like since I have an established history with them it's easier for me (well at least before) to negotiate better payouts etc.
Im gonna see how it goes over the next couple of weeks to see if things improve, but if not I will ask for a new AM.
Thanks again!
Amusive situation. Absolutely agree with the advice from Manu and other guys.
Be honest and straightforward to your AM regarding this. Once u inform him, that u r still on the same place and the way u cooperate is not efficient,
he might be ashamed (me and my colleagues would). After that u are supposed to become a high priority affiliate with the chance to show what was lost for the period of silence or u get other AM.
P.S. Today cooperation with u, guys, is not only about having good/exclusive offers. It is also about the service provided. No one should forget that affiliates are exactly those people, who bring u money and promote your products. U owe them.
But all the vision is nothing in case the employers take care of AMs in a bad way
Originally Posted by manu_adefy
The squeaky wheel gets the grease. No need to suffer in silence.
It is worth escalating the issues with the person's manager or even higher and also looking to see what other networks can provide.
Originally Posted by jabong82
I would say if they don't value your long time business and the effort as well as money you put behind over the years it's worth considering a move.
After all a network is only as valuable as their clients and if they can't reply to their clients in time and leave them hanging that's a bit of a shame.
I can somewhat understand it if you we're only wasting their time and not adding any value to them but as you described it seems like you're just trying to do your job.
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