Starting an affiliate program is a fantastic way to expand your business and reach a wider audience. However, recruiting quality new affiliates into your program can be a challenging task.
The prospect of cold calling and selling your program to a potential partner can make any affiliate manager a little nervous, but in this industry business relationships matter, and as part of the affiliate manager role, establishing new business connections – is a vital part of the job!
In this guide, we will explore the common pitfalls we can fall into when crafting our program sales outreach and offer strategies to ensure your emails grab the attention of potential affiliates and keep them engaged wanting more! We will also discuss some worthy tools and alternative contact methods to engage and attract affiliates who might have ignored your initial outreach emails.
Crafting the Initial Outreach Email
Before we delve into strategies for improving your outreach efforts, let’s revisit the importance of crafting an engaging initial outreach email and setting up a strategy for your outreach campaigns. We covered this in detail in this article.
A well-crafted email should be:
- Personalized: Address the affiliate by their name, and if possible, reference their website or content.
- Clear: Keep the message you want to convey clear and concise. Explain the benefits of your affiliate program and why they should consider joining it today.
- Engaging: Create an enticing subject line that encourages them to open the email. Make the content engaging and compelling for that partner to read.
- Professional: Ensure your email is well-written, free from typos, and displays business professionalism.
- Relevant / Timely: Customize your message to align with the affiliate’s niche and interests and industry insights right now.
Example: Let’s say you have a casino related affiliate program. Your email might start with, “Hi [Affiliate’s Name], I noticed your impressive casino blog, and I believe our affiliate program, focused on high-quality VIP players, would be a perfect fit for your audience because ……”
No Responses? What to do?
Stay Calm and Get Persistent . It’s not uncommon for outreach emails to go unnoticed. The reasons for this can vary, such as your target partner may just have a crowded inbox, your email landed in the spam folder, or simply the affiliate missing the urgency of your message. When you encounter no response, don’t panic and don’t get emotional..
Follow this structured approach:
- Follow Up – often
Timing is essential when sending follow-up emails. You want to be persistent without becoming annoying. Consider sending a follow-up email once a week. Adjust this frequency based on your specific needs and the urgency of your recruitment.
- Get Timely about your sends.
The timing of your follow-up emails matters. The best days to send follow-ups are usually mid-week, particularly on Tuesday or Wednesday, and during the early morning. The early bitd catches the worm and the same is said for Affiliates. They are entrepreneurs and get up early and if you’re in their inbox before the day gets busy – they may respond to you. Avoid weekends and Mondays when inboxes are often overwhelmed.
Example: If your initial outreach email was sent on a Monday, your follow-up email might be scheduled for the following Wednesday morning.
- Adjust Your Follow-Up Messaging
If your initial outreach email didn’t yield a response, it’s time to adjust your strategy in your follow-up emails. There is no point sending the same message over and over if it’s not getting a response.
Consider the following approaches:
- Send a Polite Reminder: Reiterate the benefits of your program and politely remind them of your initial message.
- Offer More Information about your program , offer, and USP: Share success stories or case studies related to your affiliate program to pique their interest.
- Offer Time-Sensitive Offers: Create a sense of urgency by offering limited-time promotions or bonuses for early joiners.
- Try a Different Angle: Highlight a unique selling point of your program that you didn’t mention in the initial email and that the affiliate may not be aware of.
- Request Feedback: Ask for their input or suggestions, showing that you value their opinion about your program and give them a chance to engage with you.
Example: In a follow-up email, you could say, “I wanted to remind you about our casino affiliate program. Since we last connected, we’ve had several affiliates boost their income by 10% with this exclusive offer…. Would you be interested in learning more?”
- Using Tools to Find Affiliate / Website Owner Information
To enhance your outreach strategy, consider using tools to find affiliate information. If the contact you’re speaking to isn’t answering try and see if there is someone else in the business who is perhaps a better target.
Here are some helpful tools:
- Affiliate Networks: Many affiliates list their contact information on popular affiliate networks try and see if you can find them in the network directory or chat groups
- Social channels like Facebook / X/ LinkedIn: Search for potential affiliates on LinkedIn, connect with them, and send personalized messages about your program.
- Hunter.io or Snov.io (contact hunting tools): This tool can help you find email addresses associated with a specific website or company.
Example: Let’s say you want to connect with a casino streamer and blogger. You can use LinkedIn to search for the brand, YouTube to search for contact information and even messenger on Instagram or Tik Tok to connect to influencers in your target region and send connection requests with personalized messages.
- Exploring Alternative Contact Methods
If email outreach isn’t generating responses you need, it’s time to explore alternative contact methods and avenues to build out your program interest.
Here are some effective mass marketing and advertising approaches to consider:
- Social Media: Follow potential affiliates on social platforms and send direct messages. Engage with their content to build rapport.
- Contact Forms: Visit the affiliate’s website and look for contact forms where you can submit your partnership proposal.
- Phone Calls: If phone numbers are available, consider making a polite and brief phone call to introduce yourself and your program.
- In-Person Networking: Attend industry events, conferences, or webinars to meet potential affiliates face to face.
- Advertising your program in industry publications where affiliates are reading insights and want to explore new directories
- Join networking groups on slack, facebook and linkedin to talk with other affiliate managers and get introductions to partners that are delivering great value
Example: Suppose you find a fitness influencer who has ignored your emails. Try engaging with their social media posts, leaving insightful comments, and sending them a direct message expressing your interest in collaborating. Visit industry events and build your network by meeting new partners using event apps to reach out and set up meetings.
- Remember – Be Persistent, but Respectful
Persistence can be the key to success in this stage of your program launch and scale process, but it’s also crucial to maintain a respectful approach throughout the outreach process. If an affiliate explicitly asks you to stop contacting them, respect their wishes.
Building positive, mutually beneficial relationships is always the ultimate goal.
Conclusion
Affiliate outreach can be a challenging endeavor, but with the right strategies and tools, you can significantly improve your chances of getting a response. Remember, successful affiliate recruitment requires patience and persistence. Don’t be discouraged by initial non-responses. Stay committed, be respectful, and continuously refine your outreach strategy. The right affiliates will recognize the value of your program and may eventually join your team, contributing to the growth and success of your business.
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