Archive for October, 2008

CAMBlog Podcast - Justin Palmer from C28 on Canvas project and Christmas rush

Oct 30, 2008 Christian Affiliate Programs

I had the chance to spend some time with Justin Palmer of C28.com today on the Podcast and he had some cool stuff to talk about.   Recently, C28 launched a project called “Canvas” that encourages Christian artists to submit their designs for inclusion in new limited edition t shirt print runs, and lets visitors vote on the designs they like most.   The 20 most popular designs in the initial round just went to print and the contest continues.

We also talked about a new special offer for non profit ministries and churches to earn higher commissions working with C28.  We’re offering a 20% commission on all sales to churches and ministries with non profit status.

Justin also spoke to the fact that fully 60% of C28’s sales occur between November 1 and December 31.

If you are a Christian affiliate looking for an awesome apparel and accessories merchant that appeals to young Christians, you should be working with C28 for sure.

The C28 Affiliate Program is hosted on the Avant Link network and offers a 15% commission on all sales.   A variety of banners and text links are provided as well as a product feed that is updated daily.

My company GTO Management provides management services for the program.



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Under Review - PPC Classroom

Oct 22, 2008 Product Reviews

Another product in the review qeue here is the PPC Classroom from Super-Affiliate Amit Mehta and the gang at AffiliateClassroom.com.

I actually paid the money to sign up for the service and see what they are selling and I am curious to dive in to see what Amit delivers as I have seen him speak before and he does some impressive numbers as a paid search affiliate.   I passed on the numerous “up-sells” that are available as I wanted to see what kind of value is delivered in the base product.

I’m skeptical of products that are sold like this with the “Internet Marketing” style  of heavy hype in the launch period.  I totally sat out the “hype phase”  and will spend some time over the next few weeks to see what they bring to the table in terms of nuts and bolts advice, methodology and strategy and even put their teachings into play on a limited bases on promoting some products or services from a Christian merchant.

Keep your eyes peeled - because if I end up aggressively promoting this, it will be despite the fact that I HATE their marketing style ;)

God Bless,

Wade

Womensuits.com to offer “Bonus Month” in November

Oct 22, 2008 Christian Affiliate Deals and Promotions

I’m really stoked to announce that my client WomenSuits.com will be offering a “Bonus Month” promotion for Affiliates in November.  During the promotion, Affiliates in both the Womensuits affiliate programs (Shareasale and CJ) will earn an additional $2 per sale.

Earning the bonus commissions is simple and it all starts with a link.  If you don’t have one up, grab one that works with your site.   I’d also consider writing or doing a video that promotes the Womensuits offer to get it a little added emphasis.

Womensuits has also released a coupon that you can use to promote their products on your site -  your site visitors can save 10% on orders of $275 or more by using the code “ WSSAVE10“  when they check out.

If you aren’t promoting Womensuits.com yet, check them out in Shareasale or CJ.

God Bless,

Wade

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Review to come - Web Video University

Oct 22, 2008 Video Marketing Online

The next product that I’ll be reviewing is Web Video University from Dave Kaminski.

The course is touted as one that really focuses on teaching marketers how to easily create effective commercial videos and I’m really interested in looking at this in detail so I can share the wealth a bit with my client’s and their affiliates and help to generate more clicks and of course, revenue through effective use of video.

I currently recommend Jim Kukral’s OnlineVideoToolkit.com and will continue to do so.  Jim provides a really easy course that is very nuts and bolts in it’s approach to taking a newbie from “zero to online video on their blog”  and I think this course will be a bit more focused on the aspects of creating commercial video.

We’ll see - in the meantime, feel free to check out Dave Kaminski’s Web Video University

If I like what I see, I’ve negotiated a great deal for my audience.

God Bless,

Wade

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Christian Video Game Fundraiser for churches and ministries

Oct 22, 2008 Church Fundraising

I did a podcast today with my friend Jerome Mikulich from Inspired Media to chat about a really awesome church/ministry fundraising project that they have just released.

Inspired Media is the company behind the multi million dollar Left Behind video game series - they have also recently launched the Charlie the Church Mouse series for preschool through elementary school kids and the Keys to the Kingdom logic video game for all ages - all in all they provide video game titles for people of all ages that either introduce or reinforce Biblical teaching and actively work to bring players to Christ through the interaction.

Screenshot from Left Behind 2: Tribulation Forces Video Game

Screenshot from Left Behind 2: Tribulation Forces Video Game

We discussed a new project that Jerome has undertaken to help churches and ministries raise funds through sale of Inspired Media games at amazing prices ($10 per game cost to buyers/$5 profit to churches and ministries)  with a 50% revenue share to the churches that are working with them.   Best of all - no initial outlay by the churches is required.  Churches simply sign up, are sent a Point of Sale Display Kit and order forms,  take orders and collect payment, then send payment to Inspired for the company share of sales.  The game orders would then be filled within 3 weeks or so - in time for Christmas.

It sounds like an awesome deal and I will be participating with my church and I invite you to as well.  For more information, please visit http://www.inspiredmedia.com/churches.html

The sale will run through late November, so you should get in touch ASAP if you are interested as the number of starter kits and games are limited. Enjoy the Podcast:

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CAM Blog Podcast: Bill Tyler of Bubble Planner

Oct 16, 2008 CAM Blog Podcast

I love it when I get the chance to spend some time chatting with a Christian person about their business that they operate as both a business and a ministry.   I had that opportunity this morning when I was joined by Bill Tyler - the owner/founder of BubblePlanner.com

Bill’s product really hit home for me as it is an alternative to your traditional weekly planner that contains maybe a few varieties of calendars - maybe weekly and monthly.  The Bubble Planner is a planner designed for people like me with Attention Deficit issues and takes a completely different approach to helping to plan projects, complete takes and organize the mind of people who don’t think in a linear way.

The Bubble Planner Time Management System

The Bubble Planner Time Management System

Bill sent me a Bubble Planner a while back to test drive and I am finally getting to putting it into play in my life.  I have to say it’s a help because, as I mentioned, I am the ADDHD poster boy and I have a lot on my plate now with this blog, CAMA and my business at GTO Management…. at this point, I’ll take all the organizational help I can get.

Bill and I chatted for about 17 minutes and we talked about how he got went into business with the Bubble Planner product initially coming from the traditional business world.   He talked about how after he became Saved, he was feeling awkward in his corporate position about sharing and living his life as a ministry and an act of worship, which led him to go out on his own.   Bill now operates BubblePlanner.com as well as a ministry site.

BubblePlanner.com Affiliate Program Details:

Enjoy the podcast!

PS: I’m excited to announce that BubblePlanner.com will soon be launching their affiliate program in Shareasale - stay tuned.

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God Bless,
Wade

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Tip for Merchants - Personalize your affiliate communications

Oct 15, 2008 Tips for Merchants

I have been looking at a lot of affiliate program pages and various action generated emails from those programs over the last week as I compile my Christian Affiliate Program Directory eBook.   I see one mistake happening quite a  bit and I wanted to address it.

Time and time again, I see emails signed by “The XXXX.com Affiliate Team”  or “XXXXX Affiliate Manager”  and I think these guys are making a mistake.   Affiliate Marketing is a RELATIONSHIP BUSINESS - bigger than life.   I don’t know about you, but most of my “relationships” are one to one and not “one to team.”

Your affiliate emails and affiliate program page are a chance for you to show affiliates that your program values them enough to put a person in charge of dealing with them and handling their needs.  In an ideal world, the affiliate manager would actually have some contact information on the affiliate and pick up the phone from time to time and get to know their affiliates.  You’d be amazed at the activation you will see if you do this.

In the case of my company, we have 3 of us that an affiliate could be in contact with - so we’ll sign emails:

Wade, Karen and Joel
Affiliate Managers
XYZ.com Affiliate Program
affiliates@xyz.com

This is the LEAST that you should be doing -

I’m actually moving to a model where I make my name, email address, cell phone and a chat handle  or two available to affiliates.

As an affiliate - few things are more frustrating than having a question about a program and having no easy to identify contact to get in touch with or means to get in touch with them.

Personalize your communications with your affiliates from the start.  You will be glad you did.

God Bless,

Wade

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Save 10 percent on Affiliate Summit registration

Oct 14, 2008 Affiliate Summit West

I’m really excited to be able to offer a nice incentive to my blog followers to attend Affiliate Summit West in January in Las Vegas.   I highly recommend this event for a couple of reasons: sessions and networking.

In the sessions you can learn from some of the top folks in the industry on a variety of topics in the industry.   The most important aspect of attending Affiliate Summit West (or any live event) is networking face to face with real live people.  In an industry where most business is done by email, chat or phone, it’s nice to be able to connect live with folks you may have  been following from afar for a long time.

There’s one more great reason to go - The 3rd Annual Affiliate Summit Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues - this is the ultimate affiliate industry networking event for believers.  It features awesome food, off the hook networking, and a stage show that will have you on your feet and singing along.  It’s a great way to kick off Affiliate Summit on a spiritual high note.  More info to come.

Shawn and Missy (the show organizers) are great folks and friends who have been generous to give me a coupon code for followers of the CAM Blog - you can save 10% on any registration level by entering “CAM10WEST” as the coupon code during checkout.   Please use one of the links on this page to click through as the affiliate commissions will support the CAM Blog.

Register now for Affiliate Summit West and Save 10%

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Free T Shirt Offer at Womensuits.com

Oct 8, 2008 Christian Affiliate Programs

Donna Vinci suit at Womensuits.com

Women's Suit from Donna Vinci

Do women at your church still really dress for Sunday morning?

Do you have wedding-related  traffic on your site?

Have Gospel Music interested traffic on your site?

You should be working with Womensuits.com as an affiliate.

Womensuits.com is a women’s formalwear retailer that specializes in “Church suits” for women as well as other formal wear including “mother of the bride” suits and other formal fashions.  They are celebrating their 10th year of helping their customers be “Well dressed and well blessed.”  They are also a new GTO Management client (my company)

Womensuits.com is entering one of their annual busy seasons (running through November) and they are offering a really fun promotion that is getting some great interest on from site visitors by offering a Free Designer T Shirt from Donna Vinci with any purchase of a Woman’s suit with a value of $149 or more.  No coupon is required - the cart does all the work.

If you’d like to promote this offer, just mention it to your audience.  There are text links announcing the promotion in Shareasale.

If you are not working with Womensuits.com now, you can find their offer in Shareasale or CJ.

The program offers a 10% commission on all sales generated with a 120 day cookie and an average order of $230 for an average commission of $23 per sale.

We’d love to work with you.

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Evangelicals and Executive Salaries - food for thought

Oct 3, 2008 Faith in Culture

I just got done reading a really thought provoking article on Christianity Today called The Engine of the Market that urged wealthy Evangelicals to take a close look at executive compensation.  In difficult economic times like we are seeing today, some of the stories we see on the huge paychecks executives are making are magnified ny their contrast to what the normal production level worker is making.  The story referenced Alan Fishman of WaMu - who cleared a 19 million dollar “golden parachute” for presiding over a company for 18 days and seeing the FDIC seize and sell off the business.

Dr. Michael Lindsay also referenced John Tyson of Tyson Foods who in 2004 reacted to an economic downtun by demanding pay cuts from production workers that I am willing to be were making $50,000 a year or much less given Tyson’s past habit of hiring illegal workers. Meanwhile, his pay escalated to upwards of $20,000,000 per year.   To me that works out to almost 600 jobs at $35,000 a year that could be funded with what he was making.

What kind of a Witness was he giving in this as a Christian?

Eric Schlosser of The Nation interviewed Tyson on his labor management philosophies after all this and got this gem in response:

“During an interview … Tyson outlined his personal theory of labor management, … [citing the importance of] a moral anchor. Tyson said, ‘You have to serve the people that work for you … and in effect become a servant to the people that work for you.’ He said it with a straight face.”

I’m not saying by any means that talented CEO’s shouldn’t be making some nice money.  I do think that it’s extremely questionable to make huge money at the expense of tossing your workers out into the street while you pad your paycheck with increasing earn outs and bumped up salaries.   I think it’s absolutely abhorrent for a clown like Fishman to get rewarded with $1.12 million per day he was with a company that tanked and lost a ton of money for people who trusted them.

The more important part of the article highlighted folks like Joel Manby (formerly of Saab USA) who decided to live at a reasonable level and help others:

“We could afford a second home, [but] with all these people … homeless, I just don’t feel right about that … .I’d rather do Habitat for Humanity where I’m building second homes [rather] than living in one.”

and Ralph Larsen (formerly of Johnson and Johnson) who, with his wife made the decision to live well below their income level and not upgrade homes and neighborhoods with his rise up the corporate ladder.  Instead they used the wealth that they were blessed with to aggressively fund missions, charities and ministries.

As Christians - we need to have a conscience.   We need to look to the teachings of Christ and the Gospel writers as they talk about the dangers of falling in love with money and the perks it can bring.

I am in no way talking about government redistribution of wealth here.   I’m a capitalist… but a compassionate one.   What I am saying is that as Christians (Evangelical or otherwise) we’ve been given teachings on the dangers of falling in love with money and it’s trappings.  Something a Jewish carpenter said about it “being easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle that for a rich man to get to heaven”  comes to mind.   We need to act as we’ve been taught and share our blessings (and do it happily.)  If we did so - there would be no call for the redistribution of our money..

Anyway… The article is a great call for business owners and executives who claim Christian beliefs to put their money where their mouths are.   Either make sure that your workers are being served and blessed by working with you - or look to pass on some of the perks as frivolous or put them to work for good through generous giving.

Does your compensation plan and giving reflect your Witness?

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