Affiliate Marketing Terminology

Affiliate Marketing is a large business piece on the Internet. The (online) retail customer often does not know that he/she made the recent online purchase through an affiliate link. He/She sees a product of interest on a certain website, clicks on the link and completes the purchase wherever the link takes the customer. Every day people get introduced to affiliate marketing and want to make money from it. In many cases these new affiliates do not fully understand the affiliate world and make costly mistakes.

The following terms are important and every affiliate should know what they mean:

1) The Merchant: The merchant is any web site owner that wants to take advantage of performance based marketing. The merchant maintains and operates the affiliate program. The merchant decides how much he is willing to pay for each sale/lead that results from a visitor sent from an affiliate. Sometimes the merchant uses a 3rd party provider to operate the affiliate program.

2) The Affiliate network: An affiliate network acts as a 3rd party between the merchant and the associated affiliates. The affiliate network provides the technology to deliver the merchant's campaigns and offers. The affiliate network collects commission fees from the merchant and pays the affiliates that are part of the program. Well known affiliate networks are Commission Junction, AzoogleAds and Linkshare.

3) The Affiliate: An affiliate is a web site owner that promotes one or more merchants and their affiliate programs. The affiliate gets paid a commission if he/she can generate a sale/qualified lead for the merchant.

4) In most cases affiliate programs pay a commission per sale. This can be a fixed percentage or it can be a fixed dollar amount. Commission fees based on a certain percentage level per sale can be more rewarding for the affiliate if he/she is dealing with high priced items. Low priced items do not generate high income from affiliate sales. The following technical terms do exist:

Cost per sale(action) - CPA
Cost per click - CPC
Cost per lead - CPL
Cost per 1,000 -CPM

Overall - affiliate marketing can generate a full-time income for the affiliate. This is no easy task to accomplish though. One of the best known affiliate programs is the program operated by Amazon.com.

About The Author

Christoph Puetz is a successful Entrepreneur and international book author.

Websites operated by Christoph Puetz are The Web Hosting Resource Kit and Highlands Ranch Colorado and Affordable Vitamin Resources.

This article can be published by anyone as long as the resource box (About the Author) is posted on the website including the links. These links must be clickable.

In The News:
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table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS92168%2B05-Jan-2009%2BBW20090105cid=1287209878ei=1iVjSc7aA5vKMKal6ckDusg=AFQjCNHUUiMTPLOEDd8ABgy5tTtjjqscXQNavistar Provides Guidance on 2009 Net Income; Expected to Be b.../b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fReutersnbsp;-/font nobr21 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Another baffiliate/b offers financing services. Additional information is available at www.Navistar.com/newsroom. Forward-Looking Statement Information b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
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table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.m-travel.com/news/2009/01/understanding-the-value-and-future-of-apis-in-the-travel-industry.htmlcid=0ei=1iVjSc7aA5vKMKal6ckDusg=AFQjCNHlWMp9dkDX11mCpNH_k_zf9A-QBgUnderstanding the value and future of APIs in the travel industry/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fm-Travel.comnbsp;-/font nobr1 hour ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1bAffiliate/b programs have long been a useful means of drawing prospective customers to a website. But as they grow they become challenging to manage, b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/010609dnbuskdc.3fe982b4.htmlcid=1287319283ei=1iVjSc7aA5vKMKal6ckDusg=AFQjCNGAw40mazSteUYEXIBcyLTbLLl2jAKoll Development changes name, shifts focus 3:39 PM CT/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fDallas Morning News,nbsp;TXnbsp;-/font nobr11 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The company was originally an baffiliate/b of California-based Koll Cos., but has been independent since 2004. Mr. Van Amburgh said not to look for KDC to make b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-rigby/tax-credits-vs-spending-w_b_155389.htmlcid=1286762397ei=1iVjSc7aA5vKMKal6ckDusg=AFQjCNHMghoC1VFmxvK9IPapvnX3BJfNmgTax Credits vs. Spending: Why Progressives Should Care How the b.../b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fHuffington Post,nbsp;NYnbsp;-/font nobr11 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Elizabeth Rigby, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Houston and a Research bAffiliate/b at the National Center for b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2009/01/05/daily13.htmlcid=1287295413ei=1iVjSc7aA5vKMKal6ckDusg=AFQjCNE8LlIWMg1Kb-3da8c427qOiJ02oARetro programming joins WFLA’s digital offerings/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBizjournals.com,nbsp;NCnbsp;-/font nobr13 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The new digital channel will help generate brevenue/b through standard television advertising and infomercials, WFLA vice president and general manager Mike b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.tvweek.com/news/2009/01/high_stakes_in_time_warner_cab.phpcid=1286953670ei=1iVjSc7aA5vKMKal6ckDusg=AFQjCNG3Q5mgf0D5PD-IVQHXnJHZ4wXm3wHigh Stakes in Time Warner Cable-Viacom Standoff/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fTelevision Week,nbsp;MInbsp;-/font nobrJan 4, 2009/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1“Either they pay higher baffiliate/b fees to Viacom, or they don’t and they lose subscribers.” Harold Vogel, a veteran media analyst and CEO of Vogel Capital, b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
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