Merchant Approval

Pete Turner · Joined: 22 Mar 2006 Posts: 8

I have a chicken and egg type question - how do you get merchants to approve of your website and hence accept you onto their affiliate programs until you have a website with links to merchants who have accepted you onto their affiliate programs? Is it a case of building an interesting site with no merchant links to start with or what? Sorry if this is a dumb question!

Will · Joined: 26 Feb 2006 Posts: 148 Location: UK

If you build a website, it demonstrates that you're at least semi-serious about promoting their products. It also provides them with some indication of what to expect from you.

If your website ranks highly in searches for their particular niche, has lots of great, unique content, lots of signs of life (e.g. active forum etc.) then it probably won't make a difference who you've already signed up with. In fact, they may even give you a special deal to keep you to themselves!

If you approach empty handed, without any means to promote their products then it might make it harder for them to decide whether or not to accept you since they'll have nothing to judge by.

Zoikster · Joined: 23 Mar 2006 Posts: 12 Location: Griffith, IN

I think thats a great question, and one I often thought about. So the question is, if you are just starting out, how do you provide active forums, and signs of life? Do you have to make a content rich site that has tons of visitors BEFORE you apply as affiliate. Thanks

Will · Joined: 26 Feb 2006 Posts: 148 Location: UK

It can be difficult to see what's needed to facilitate a website that will appeal to merchants, but if you put yourself in the shoes of the end users and the merchants then that might help you get a better understanding.

As a merchant, what would you want to see from a prospective affiliate? Would you want to see a website hosted on free hosting with minimal content, poor spelling and grammar, broken links? Would you be happy with no website at all?

If you're trying to build a 'sticky' website that people come back to time and again, as a user, what would you want to see? Would you want great content provided by someone who really knows the niche and can provide really useful, fresh information? Perhaps you'd want to chat with other like-minded folk as we do here?

Perhaps you're less interested in building a community, but want to focus on building a search engine magnet. Again, you have to think about satisfying the search engine's needs before you'll get yours met.

There's nothing to stop you from applying as an affiliate apart from the specific terms set by the merchant and your own ability to turn your ideas into action. If you're really not sure about a specific merchant then you should ask them about any entry criteria. At least, that will stop you from guessing!

If you're starting out then providing active forums will be very tough, if not impossible, unless there's a great, pent-up demand and currently no supply. From a user's point of view, what's going to drive them to stick around an empty forum or one that seems to have died?

Ask yourself this, what made you decide to participate in this forum?

Personally, I'm here because I think Rosalind's products are great, that she's very knowledgeable in an area that I've a keen interest in and I think she can help me a lot (whether directly or indirectly). Very selfish reasons, but then everyone else will have their own reasons for being here.

Zoikster · Joined: 23 Mar 2006 Posts: 12 Location: Griffith, IN

Thanks for the thorough reply. That's exactly the kind of asnwer I was hoping for. I looked at it as something even more complex and complicated then that. I allways make things out to be harder then they are and it puts me in a bind. Thanks Will!

walker22 · Joined: 01 Apr 2006 Posts: 36 Location: Las Vegas

<<how do you get merchants to approve of your website and hence accept you onto their affiliate programs until you have a website with links to merchants who have accepted you onto their affiliate programs? >>

Hi Pete,

I'm a newbie here but maybe this info will help too. I just got accepted as an affiliate at Linkshare and at Clickbank by putting "I promote using Google AdWords" in each location where they asked for a website. Until I get my website built and launched, I'll use that as it will be how I am starting out. But once I have a website, each program says online that you can update or revise your account with them to include additional websites. So, maybe that might be an option for you to try getting an acount established with them and then talk to them about updating your account once you're ready to have them look at your website?

Again, I'm a newbie so maybe a knowledgeable pro here could give the pros and cons of doing it how I am.

Good Luck!

Michael