A recent affiliate survey, targeted at pinpointing their preferences and choices, indicates that digital marketing techniques like online video advertising and location-based marketing are very much on their radar. The survey was based on responses from affiliates keen to use the channel more as an experiment as well as full time affiliates, who earn sizable revenue from it.

The broad conclusion of the exercise can be summed up as follows:

While affiliates are pushing ahead in their quest to make use of several new innovative techniques as well as core techniques for ensuring online visibility like SEO, they are also eager to ensure a sustained presence online through quality content offerings. A wide array of digital marketing channels such as SEO, PPC, affiliate marketing, Online Media Planning, Social Networking, Online PR and Web Analytics, Brand Monitoring are now available to them, widening the scope of activity for them.

The elaborate survey was conducted by one among Europe’s major independent digital marketing agencies, bigmouthmedia Media strives to maximize exposure for brands online. Andrew Girdwood, the Media Innovations director, was quotes as saying:

“Affiliate marketing always works best when brands in conjunction with affiliates instead of working against them. Our survey shows that the latter are willing and able to help push a particular brand’s digital marketing plans forward. However, this is sometimes impeded by a lack of resources and often (a lack of) understanding from agencies as well as merchants.”

Some of the significant findings of the survey are as follows:

1. Nearly 68% mentioned that agencies were not able to offer requisite creative resources and impetus to support their campaign. Affiliates termed blog friendly banners, videos and data feeds among the key shortfalls or missing elements of creative supplies.
2. More than 75% of the respondents believed they were probably better at leveraging digital marketing techniques than the brands that they worked with.
3. Retail was found to be among the most popular and choicest affiliate verticals, mentioned by nearly 46% as the one within which most of their business takes place. Over 20% respondents quoted the travel sector as an industry of their choice. A distant third was finance at 8%, followed by telecommunications and also gaming affiliates at 4% each.
4. More than 70% were wary of fraudulent or low quality traffic as an area of concern. Other major problem area mentioned was an apparent lack of communication between affiliates and brands.
5. The opinion was divided as to whether affiliates were more successful by concentrating on a niche segment or covering several, at a time.