Editorial Articles

Peter Rowe, managing director of affilinet UK, discusses the preferences of UK online publishers, analysing the way they monetise their sites through online advertising. 

Many affiliates have been grappling with both challenges and opportunities over the past few years. One of the major challenges is keeping engagement with their site as successful as consumer attention becomes increasingly fragmented between web, social and mobile channels. However, there also is an opportunity to capitalise on these channels.

We recently conducted a study into the ways that affiliates are monetising their site, with some interesting findings. The results don’t just give useful insight into the way in which UK online publishers are engaging with the online community, but also offer brands and networks valuable information on which campaigns are likely to resonate and convert from leads to sales.

Travel, retail and FS favoured verticals
The research we ran revealed that publishers are most interested in promoting advertisers from the travel industry, with 73 per cent citing this as one of the most important sectors for their online advertising. The trend follows the travel industry’s long established relationship with the affiliate marketing industry, at the forefront of developing offers that attract real traction with consumers. Skyscanner are adding value to the consumer experience, for example, by offering deals of the day that are handpicked, making the affiliate more than just a comparison site, but also an additional online arena for consumers to find the best value for money. Travel companies were followed by retail brands, which were favoured by 60 per cent of publishers and then finance brands, which 44 per cent of publishers were interested in featuring.

Content sites still king – mobile and social emerging
Content sites remain the most effective way for publishers to monetise their presence, with more than two thirds (67 per cent) of publishers citing them as major contributors to the revenues generated from affiliate marketing. This was followed by search engine marketing (32 per cent) and voucher code sites (18 per cent). Despite the current hype around smartphones and tablets, mobile is still far from being affiliates primary revenue generator.

At the moment only 2 per cent of publishers said mobile marketing models contribute most to their affiliate marketing revenue. That said, there is plenty of room for the mobile channel to grow. 37 per cent of publishers are expecting site views on mobile devices to increase by up to 20 per cent. The UK online publisher base was also optimistic about growth in social media marketing, with 85 per cent planning to expand these activities this year .The results reveal that 38 per cent of publishers plan to expand their social media engagement by up to 20 per cent.

What publishers want from commercial relationships with advertisers
Today there is a real risk of information overload for any consumer buying on the net, so it makes sense that affiliates want to ensure that their sites offer the most up-to-date promotions. For this very reason, it makes sense that our findings reveal that the most important factor is ensuring creatives are kept up to date, an issue cited by 53 per cent of publishers. The next biggest factor is around ‘earnings per click’, a payment model which demonstrates how well an advertiser is performing by measuring the average amount of commission earned per click generated for the brand. 45 per cent of publishers cited this as one of the key considerations when working with advertisers.

Knowing the audience
With so many channels available to brands for online advertising, it becomes very important that they carefully consider how they engage with a network of publishers. Building tailored campaigns for different publishers that accurately reflect their audiences should prove a key way to generate the most traction. This not only helps to create a better relationship between the two parties, but also positions both to make better return on investment from their activities.

Peter Rowe
Managing Director, affilinet UK