Episode #27 – Building an International Affiliate Program

Chaos Makes Sense | Affiliate Marketing / Affiliate Programs / Internet / Social Media Marketing – Matt Frary

Are you looking to grow your business by entering the international market? Do you want to recruit affiliates from foreign markets? Expanding the reach of your brand to include affiliates in other countries can increase your reach and improve revenue.

If you are looking for those secrets on how to get the most out of your affiliate links then invest 20 minutes to listen to this edition of Chaos Makes Sense where your host Kimberly Henrie interviews Matt Frary, CEO of SmarterChaos and Rick Ahuja the Founder / Advisor to Affiliate Venture Group – now known as Affiliate Crossing. In this edition they talk about how to build an international affiliate program.

This is the perfect introduction for anyone looking to expand their business’ reach beyond the North American borders.

Rick’s History In Affiliate Marketing

Matt begins the episode by stating it is good to catch up with Rick and talk to him about the international affiliate market. Often those in the US forget how big the international market is because they concentrate on just the US market.

Rick started his affiliate marketing career during 1998 when he was part of one of the very early affiliate programs with his business, Ethnic Grocer. They had four divisions each handling a different type of food from the US mainstream to Chinese. The company launched through Commission Junction and performed fairly well considering they was using a new marketing industry.

More recently Rick, with a business partner, bought Affiliate Venture Group. This was originally launched as a network for the sub-prime space. Then, about a year ago, the company went through a period of massive international growth. Due to this, they decided a rebranding of the company was necessary and so the company became Affiliate Crossing.

The company doesn’t only control affiliate marketing programs and it is very similar to the way Smarter Chaos operates – only in the Indian market.

Problems With An International Affiliate Market

Rick admits that operating in a foreign market does have its’ challenges. For example, he highlights the three biggest as the culture, language and time differences. He recalls a time when he went for a meeting in India that was scheduled for 9:30am and the other party didn’t arrive until after lunch. He was later informed this is common for business meetings in the country; but he didn’t know this at the time.

Despite the difficulties, the Indian market is worth the investment. The market is very large with a population of over one billion. Rick also states that many of the major players coming online in India have been educated in the US.

He also points out that once you get past the three main challenges; business is pretty much the same anywhere, with the main task being to determine what the goals and aspirations are for all the parties involved.

Building An International Affiliate Program

During the episode, Rick and Matt talk about many aspects of building an affiliate network in a foreign country. Some of the questions they will answer include:

• How technologically prepared are foreign markets?
• How important is it to find a partner that is already in the market you wish to enter?
• What are Rick’s experiences of using Facebook adverts for the Indian market?
• Currently, what are the hottest foreign markets?
• What is attractive about entering a foreign market?

Also during the show, Matt and Rick discuss the sale of Commission Junction and Conversant for $2.3 billion. Matt was at Impact Radius when the news was announced and he states it created a buzz around the office.

Are You Looking To Enter the International Affiliate Market?

Are you looking to expand the reach of your affiliate network? Do you want to earn sales in foreign markets? Then listen to Matt and Rick in this episode of Chaos Makes Sense and come back and let us know your thoughts!

SmarterChaos manages multi-channel ad campaigns and handles all aspects of performance marketing relationships to drive your sales. Contact them to learn how you can get the best possible ROI for your affiliate marketing budget.

The post Episode #27 – Building an International Affiliate Program appeared first on SmarterChaos.