Newton’s Third Law of Motion & Affiliate Marketing

If Sir Isaac Newton was alive today and instead of taking up Physics decided that affiliate marketing was a better vocation he may well of still discovered one of his laws of motion. He’d have then emailed his discovery to every single affiliate manager with a suggestion that they make a print out of this law and paste it on their desk somewhere to remind them of it’s utmost importance in affiliate marketing!

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction!

That is probably ok for Physics, but for AM it needs a slight adjustment, so here is Newton’s 3rd Law for Affilate Marketing:

Every affiliate manager action will result in an affiliate reaction!

In simpler terms, if you make a good or bad decision about your affiliate program then your affiliates will react accordingly.

Let’s take a current example:

Hotel Chocolat are running an incentive for affiliates in exchange for free easter eggs and chocolate (A4UForum). The reaction is that affiliates are getting up to date and seasonal content on their sites and blogs in the hope they get some chocolate BUT it should also mean increased sales for both affiliate and merchant. A good incentive bringing about a positive reaction for all concerned!

Not only is is positive in terms of getting affiliate’s to be proactive and promoting Hotel Chocolat, it also means the brand gets a positive vibe from the affiliate community too.

So What’s The Lesson Then?

The lesson is simple, if you want a positive reactions to your program and a positive vibe from your affiliates, do something positive with your program. Encourage your affiliates, nurture them, work with them and treat them like partners.

Of course there will be times when you have to deliver bad news, but do it transparently and with explanations and you should be able to steer through rocky times together.

Conversely, treat your affiliates with nothing but contempt and they will respond in kind to your actions!

If as an affiliate manager you are concerned about your brand (A4UForum), be concerned at the action stage, not afterwards - and please don’t blame the affiliate for any reaction your action causes. The cause for affiliate apathy towards you, your program and brand is often nearer than you think.