Hugh Durkin, Irish Internet Guy

Recession means a surge of affiliate merchants in the UK

I check in with most affiliate networks i’m a member of probably once a day - to view earnings, see whats selling (and from that, know what to keep pushing), and also to join new programs that might be of interest to me.  Over the last week or two i’ve been amazed at the level of new program launches, and on one of the larger networks, a dozen new campaigns have kicked off in the last week and a half.  Am I totally surprised though?  Not really.

During times of recession, brands re-evaluate everything that they do, and part of what they re-evaluate is the very thing that they are - a brand.  Display advertising - be it print, tv, or online - will always be an incredibly important tool towards the end goal of brand development.  It’s important for manufacturers to align themselves with various consumer groups, create a buzz about their products and, at the very end of the chain, sell products.

Brand development, though, is a medium to long term strategy for most businesses.  During a recession, brand benefits won’t be seen for quite some time so, depending on the product or service they provide, brands turn to direct marketing.  And online is the perfect medium for that.

Looking through the list of affiliate programs that have launched over the last few weeks, one trend sticks out more than most - retail.  High street retailers have stepped back, had a look at their most important goal - selling product - and have quite rightly elected online direct marketing as the answer to their prayers.

It’s not just affiliate marketing though.  Pay Per Click advertising has surged too.  I know Christmas will account for much of this, but i’ve seen a massive surge in both search volume and earnings per click over the last number of weeks.  Google Adwords relaxing their rules about brand bidding has only served to fuel the demand for Pay Per Click advertising, with competitors not just bidding on generic key terms, but competitors’ brand names too.

The sum total of all of this?  It’s never been a better time to be a publisher online.  We’re providing the widest range of the best performing formats for retailers - so even in times of recession, online will continue to boom and outperform other channels.  Happy days.