Both statistical data and casual evidence support that performance-based marketing has the potential to survive, if not thrive in tough economic times.

As advertisers and agencies around the world look for greater accountability and transparency, and for their marketing dollars to “work harder”, it opens the door to responsible networks and affiliate marketers to shine.

It may sound counterintuitive to say 2009 might be the time our industry grows up even more, but it’s looking good for this space as other sectors, not based on performance, are in decline.

Recession Proof Marketing?

Performance marketing and affiliate marketing are not totally recession-proof. There is simply no way to tell what will happen to worldwide consumer demand in 2009, the effect of the credit crisis, and what a new administration in the U.S. will mean for large and small businesses and sole proprietors.

To try and claim that online marketing at large is part of a business ecosystem resistant to larger, global, external factors is naïve at best. I’m simply stating that our sector has as good a chance as any at thriving.

The Performance Growth Trend

With every report published by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), a very clear trend has been happening for years.

Performance marketing is increasing to the point where it now makes up the majority of advertising spend online in the U.S. This trend is following suit globally, too.

Search is growing. Display, despite its negative press in recent months, is growing. Traffic and internet usage worldwide continues to increase overall which means there will be inventory, eyeballs, clicks and actions to be had.

Social networks continue to blossom and represent opportunity for marketers who can monetize them effectively.

Opportunity is Knocking

If you’ve been around this business for any length of time, you know there are always new opportunities to make money, build new businesses, and invent new products or brand-build in unsaturated niches.

There is an appeal to the practice we call direct marketing, and these are the times to educate the larger population, including advertisers, about its virtues; such as greater measurability, speed to market, transparency, accountability; none of which have to be at the expense of a brand.

The opportunities exist for new offers, new ad formats and new ways to reach consumers in 2009.

On a macro scale, it could be an opportune time for performance marketing as a whole to attract a new breed of advertiser or agency looking to market more effectively.

Affiliates should keep their eyes open every day, but also be mindful of the long-term vision and stability available from a reputable network.

With an industry still in its adolescence, it’s good for everyone in the ecosystem to build sustainable, responsible businesses that attracts a more diverse group of advertisers; can stand the test of time; weather future downturns; and provide future rewards.

Michael Sprouse is the Chief Marketing Officer for Epic Advertising, and is based at the company’s headquarters in New York, NY.

Download the entire FeedFront issue 4 here – http://feedfront.com/feedfront-issue4.pdf
FeedFront issue 4 articles can be found here as well: http://feedfront.com/archives/category/issue-4/

The basics that every advertiser and publisher should know

I recently attended ad:tech San Francisco, which boasted nearly 15k attendees. I enjoyed catching up with old friends, having brainstorming sessions over drinks, and even accepting an ad:tech finalist award for “Best Affiliate Marketing Campaign” (congrats to Schaaf Consulting who was the category winner).

However, my major take away from the conference was that our industry is flooded with affiliate networks, ad networks, and vertical ad networks, as evidenced by the volume of booths in the exhibit hall claiming to be the leading network. While the growth in the ad network space is certainly not new, it has exploded over the past 12-18 months.

The growth of vertical ad networks makes lots of sense, since many advertisers are frequently looking to tap into relevant niche websites. Where ad networks include a broad mix of many websites (for example, advertising.com), vertical ad networks are much smaller, but highly targeted to particular content areas (for example, traveladnetwork.com).

Why Should You Care?

Publishers need to cut through the noise and decide which type of network (or combination thereof) to associate themselves with. Advertisers need to build strategies to effectively utilize an optimal mix of these marketing channels.

Value to Publishers

All three of these marketing channels offer publishers access to many leading advertisers through a system that streamlines the process of:

• finding advertisers
• launching campaigns
• tracking performance
• receiving payments

Where they are different requires a closer look:

Value to Advertisers

The ability to easily run ad campaigns across a multitude of websites speaks to the scale offered by these channels and highlights one key advertiser benefit offered by these marketing channels.

Many sites that appear in these marketing channels would never make it to a media plan on their own, because of their limited audience and reach. However, they can work with leading advertisers through these channels and reap the rewards of those relationships.

Here are some differences:

Summing Up

If you decide to explore any of these channels, do your homework first. While there are a number of benefits in doing so, there are also pitfalls, such as how to ensure your ad network buys do not poach your affiliates etc., but I will save those for future articles.

Peter Figueredo is the CEO and Co-Founder of NETexponent, a performance marketing agency that is efficient, evolving, and ethical. Their suite of services includes Affiliate Marketing Management, Media Partnerships, and PPC Search Marketing.

Download issue 1 of FeedFront at http://feedfront.com/feedfront-issue1.pdf.