Earlier this week I attended the LinkShare UK Symposium in London’s Westminster, this was going to be a straight review however Symposium UK – Official Event Wrapup and The Need For Feeds @ LinkShare’s Symposium have saved me the effort thanks guys ‘n’ gals.

The theme for the event ‘Targeting Your Efforts – in 2010 and beyond’ and Linkshare UK certainly hit their target with this event right on the bullseye.

Despite a few logistical nightmares, which must have had Liane Dietrich, Managing Director of LinkShare UK and her team tearing their hair out in the run up to the event as various speakers had to cancel due the flight ban brought on by the Icelandic volcano eruption, the whole day went really well, the quality of the speaking was excellent and was in my opinion pitched at the right level for a mixed and varied audience, kudos to those drafted in at last minute to fill the breach it must have been a bit daunting with so little time to prepare.

2 important points which came out time and time again over the course of the day were:

• Embrace social media, at the very least ensure your company has a twitter account and a facebook page and engage with your users.
• The importance of accurate up to date product feeds, Existem’s Chris Johnson covers this in more detail in the article referenced above.

Lunch was a resounding success and the caterers deserve a round of applause, don’t think I have attended an industry event before where I have heard absolutely no complaints about the food.

The afternoon Dealmaker Tradeshow was a fabulous networking opportunity, a chance to catch up with old friends and meet new ones plus the chance meet the people behind the merchant name and talk about how we can work together towards the common goal of making sales.

The evenings after party went well too in less formal surroundings over a beer or two plenty more chance to network, I would have liked to have seen more merchants in attendance though, its at the end of the day when everyone is a little more relaxed that you can really get to know people and long standing friendships as well as business partnerships can be forged even though the conversation tends to be less about work.

All in all it was a very successful day, and I look forward to Linkshare Symposium UK 2011.

Thank you very much to all at Linkshare for hosting the event, the fantastic hospitality you extended throughout the day and for an interesting session of 2 truths and a lie over a late night Chinese, that will be a topic of conversation for many months to come .

Linkshare UK Hit The Bullseye

Just a quick post of my schedule for next weeks a4uExpo in London. Purely for selfish reasons so I can print it off.

Monday 12th October

11.30 Taxi > Darlington Station

12.02pm – Train > London Kings Cross, not taking laptop so reading The Shadow in The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

2.44pm – Underground & Dlr > Custom House Excel

Hopefully Check in to Custom House Hotel by 4pm find a friend or 2 and possibly get food in upstairs bar at the Fox  5.30- 6pm ish

7pm  Ignite Pre-Show Networking Event at Novotel catch up time with lots of great people, plus most importantly pick up expo badge, this could mean an extra hour in bed on Tuesday Morning.

Tuesday 13th October

A great day in store ) Heres what I intend seeing any blanks I will decide on later

09:15 – 10:15 Platinum 5/6/7 SEO Strategies To Make A Splash! Dave Naylor

10:30 – 11:30 Platinum 5/6/7 Meet The Search Engines Q&A Matthew Trewhella, Google – Dan Cohen, Microsoft – TBA, Yahoo!

12:00 – 13:00 Platinum 4 The Affiliate Doctors Live! Kieron Donoghue – Chris Garrett – Duncan Jennings – Dixon Jones

14:30 – 15:30 Platinum 3 Beyond Link Bait: Getting Authoritative Mentions Online - Dixon Jones – Kelvin Newman – Jon Myers (Moderator)

16:00 – 17:00 Platinum 5/6/7 Advanced Site Architecture And Product Feed SEO Judith Lewis – at a4uExpo Europe I unfortunately missed Judith’s talk but heard some great feedback about it so if there is only one session I see at this years expo this is it. (Sorry Nadeem I’ll catch up with yours by video)

Evening at the o2 food first then Breakout Party at the Inc Club from 9pm

Wednesday 14th October

Another awesome day of education meetings and networking.

11:00 – 12:00 Platinum 5/6/7 Barriers to Conversion & Discovering Untapped Opportunities With Analytics – Joanna Butler – Will Critchlow Lisa Myers

12:15 – 13:15 Platinum 5/6/7 Beat Your Merchants At Their Own Game Ben Jesson & Dr Karl Blanks – I make no secret of the fact I admire the work of Ben and Karl of Conversion Rate Experts, so this is undoubtedly my must see session of day 2

13:30 – 14:15 Platinum 3 Regulation, Promotion and Education – What Can The IAB Affiliate Council Do For You? Matt Bailey, i-level – Daniel Powel, Commision Junction – Dan Thut, Qua Media -  Julia Stent, Vodafone

16:00 – 17:00 Platinum 5/6/7 Conversion is King! Gary Beal

17:15 – 18:00 Platinum 5/6/7 How to Build the Best Performing Email Database - Trine Buus – Email is an area that I have never managed to do anymore than scratch the surface hopefully this will open a whole new world for me.

Wednesday finishes with Fish n Chips at the Networking Drinks, Hot Buffet & Ice Party! in the Fox.

That wraps things up just need to remember to get back to Kings Cross for my 1pm Train on Thursday.

Apologies in advance to anyone I know who is doing at talk at the same time as the sessions I have planned but if you doing one when I’m free give me a shout and if I dont have a meeting scheduled I’ll pop along.

If you my dear reader is planning to attend the expo please stop me and say hi.

My Schedule – a4uExpo London 2009

The agenda for the A4uExpo London 2009 Affiliate Marketing Conference has been released today and what a full on jam packed event it is going to be.

This will be the third A4uExpo in London and their second event of 2009 after the successful foray in mainland Europe with the Amsterdam conference earlier in the year.

Here is the full press release that accompanied today’s agenda announcement.

AFFILIATE MARKETING MUST UP ITS GAME TO SURVIVE, ACCORDING TO A4UEXPO SPEAKERS

The Affiliate Marketing sector must up its game if it is to remain the channel of choice in the current economic climate, according to some of the industry’s most experienced practitioners who are scheduled to speak at this year’s a4uexpo London event.

With sessions highlighting the need for embracing new technology and innovation as well as redefining roles within the £4bn industry, this year’s a4uexpo London Affiliate Marketing event looks set to ensure everyone is aware of the threats as well as the opportunities facing the channel.

Matthew Wood, founder and organiser of a4uexpo, says:

“Now is not the time for complacency and this year’s conference agenda is packed full of ideas and insights to help all parties working in this industry ensure it remains the channel of choice for Online Marketing.”

With sessions including a revealing insight from eBay about the decision behind the introduction of its new Quality Pricing Model; conversion benefits from getting product feeds right; and the future role third party apps can play within the sector, there will also be presentations from some of the leading Affiliate Marketing specialists across the globe giving hints and tips on how they would establish themselves if they were now entering the market for the first time.

The two-day educational conference, which is being held at ExCel London on October 13-14, includes a mix of formal presentations, panel discussions and hands-on workshops, and has been devised to enlighten new starters through to experienced AM practitioners.

With over 40 industry speaks from the Affiliate Marketing, Search, Analytics, Conversion and Social Media arenas, the event brings together an unrivalled team of International and UK-based Affiliate Marketing experts & Online Marketing professionals. Highlights also include:

• Intriguing survey results analysing the purchasing habits surrounding the increasing use of Voucher Codes
• Commission Junction founder and Silicon Valley entrepreneur Per Pettersen on the market’s development and possible routes for future growth
• Ewan Darby from Ogilvy and BA’s Eve Ireland on the role AM plays in the wider Marketing mix
• How to thrive in Affiliate Marketing from buy.at head Michael Steckler
• Bronco’s Dave Naylor’s tips on successful SEO strategies to get a head start in new niches or competitive verticals
• A look at the changing role of Networks from progressive Affiliate Network affilinet
• The role of Affiliates within the purchase chain and adding value, from i-level’s Matt Bailey
• Expert panels on utilising Social Media and Analytics, both moderated by Jon Myers at MediaVest
• Strategies for increasing Affiliate Paid Search earnings from Super Affiliate Sri Sharma
• An Extreme SEO debate from black and white hat industry gurus
• Risk Management skills for Affiliates from More Niche founder Andrew Slack

Matthew adds:

“The aim of a4uexpo is to equip delegates with cutting-edge information on best management practises, complementary channel activity, useful tools as well as expert views on the market and its future potential. This year’s agenda will do just that, and with some surprise speakers yet to be announced, our delegates will be crawling home after their two days of networking, learning and deal breaking!”

Full details regarding the a4uexpo London conference programme, including information on timings & speakers, go to www.a4uexpo.com/london

A4uExpo London 2009 agenda announced

For the second year running I was lucky enough to secure my place at the Affiliate Future Barbados Event, and a very memorable event it was too for a variety of reasons.

Last year I said that I had regretted not being able to go diving or indeed visit the infamous Harbour Lights this year I managed both although the copious drinking, dancing and making merry at the latter was the most successful of the two pursuits.

Again it was great to spend some quality time networking and having fun with some fantastic people some of whom are great friends of long standing, and of the people I met for the first time I’m sure a few of them will also become more than just casual holiday acquaintances.

The Affiliate Future Barbados  event is invaluable for the Affiliate Marketing Industry, long standing business relationships and fantastic friendships are born out of it.

Thanks to the Affiliate Future team for organising the trip and being fantastic hosts, Pete, Alex, Jess and especially the wonderful J Lil who went out of his way to find me alternative accommodation when the first room proved unsuitable, thanks also to Chris Clarkson of Sunshine.co.uk for sponsoring my place yet again.

This awesome video sums up the whole Barbados experience:

Barbados Rocks

As special occasions go you would be hard pushed to beat the glitz and the glamour of the A4uAwards held on Tuesday 2nd June at London’s Park Lane Hilton.

The UK affiliate marketing industry was well represented across all sectors, and everyone was done up to the nines, which proves that even us “grubby affiliates” do on occasion scrub up well.

I had the honour of being invited to the event by DFDS Seaways, so a big thank you to my hosts Andrew Cooper and Tom Fotheringham.

Basically this article is a whole bunch of plaudits, the venue was excellent, the meal was adequate, catering for 500 is never going to be the same as individual attention in a Michelin star restaurant.

The entertainment was great, and the awards themselves well presented.

Of course the company was fabulous so many good friends and acquaintances packed together in one room to applaud and honour the best of the best.

While all the awards are worthy of our fine industry and the winners richly deserving, my particular favourites  are the Publishers’ Choice Awards and Community Choice Awards which were voted for only by members of affiliates4u, my bias toward these awards comes from the fact that many of the winners, highly commended and indeed nominees are very dear friends of mine.

Publishers’ Choice Awards

Publishers’ Choice of Affiliate Network

Winner: Affiliate Window

Highly Commended: DGM

Publishers’ Choice of Account Manager

Winner: Hannah Swift (Existem A.M.)

Highly Commended: Julie Wood (Affiliate Window) & Agnieszka Marchewka (buy.at / Platform A)

Publisher’s Choice of Affiliate Manager 2009

Winner: Chris Clarkson (sunshine.co.uk)

Highly Commended: Naomi Brown (Firebox)

Community Choice Awards

Affiliate Management Agency of 2009

Winner: Existem Affiliate Management

Highly Commended: Azam Marketing

Affiliate Marketing Blog of 2009

Winner: Kirsty McCubbin (affiliatestuff.co.uk)

Highly Commended: Lee McCoy (leemccoy.co.uk)

Congratulations to each and every one of you.

The full list of awards and winners can be found here

Finally massive congratulations must go to  Matthew Wood a young man (he only hit the big 30 a couple of days after this years awards) who has helped shape the entire UK Affiliate Marketing Industry over the past seven or so years, he and his fine team at Existem do such sterling work. Without Matt and the team events like this and the popular a4uexpo may never have been established.

As you can probably tell by the tone of my humble roundup I loved each and every minute of the night, and am already looking forward to next year.

Only change I would like to see is the smaller affiliates and merchants being honoured in some of the verticals, people who wouldn’t necessarily put themselves up for nomination, how this could be achieved is anybodies guess, food for thought.

Penguins and pretty girls at the A4uAwards 2009

The first a4uexpo Europe in Amsterdam was amazing, I knew it would be good but it exceeded my expectations, the venue was ideal, the timetable well structured and the quality of the speakers was of a very high standard. The delegates were naturally of a more international flavour than at the London events however there was still good representation from the UK.

In all I attended a full 12 sessions over the 2 days of the conference, I managed in the main to stick to my timetable the only change I made was the first slot on day two where I ventured into “As Online continues to take its valid slice of the performance cake, what does the future hold for performance advertising in general?” presented by Nicky Iapino, this was by choice I might add not some mis-navigation due to the effects of a heavy night.

Regrets, thats easy I missed a further 7 sessions due to not being able to be in two places at once, however I’m hoping that these will be all available on video at some point.

In general highlights were many and disappointments were few, suffice to say I have a whole host of ideas, from link building to site structure to producing effective content and many other little gems, I have already implemented a couple of things with many more to do, hopefully the rewards will follow.

Changes I’d like to see

• difficult one but maybe a few more minutes between end of lunchtime sessions and start of afternoon sessions
• a way of asking questions without having to use the microphone (some of us are shy) possibly a tear off strip at the bottom of the feedback form.

Highlight of the exhibition hall for me was Conversion Rate Experts who were giving free eyetracking reviews of delegates websites, very illuminating.

I would now like to publicly thank Matthew Wood and his team from a4uevents / Existem for putting on an excellent event and all the speakers, exhibitors, other delegates, back room staff etc for making it a resounding success.

See you all in London in October.

A4uexpo Europe roundup

The inaugural a4uexpo Europe is up on us from 28th – 29th of April the cream of the internet marketing world (plus little old me) will descend on Amsterdam for two days of the most intense networking and conferencing the Affiliate Marketing world has ever seen, with over 800 delegates the industry is well represented across the full spectrum; affiliates, networks, merchants, agencies, management companies, specialists in seo /  content /  search / ppc & pr and many more areas all being in attendance.

As for the conference sessions never before have I filled up my diary so completely with something penciled in for every single slot over the 2 days thats a full 12 sessions, however I have a further 6 sessions earmarked that I will have to miss due to having not yet perfected cloning or time travel, such is the rich cornucopia of delightful goodies on offer.

My Diary Expo(sed) * Please note these are sessions I have cherry picked as being the most use to me as a content affiliate / publisher / blogger.

Monday 27th April

7.00pm

Attend the Ignite Party for networking and very importantly to collect the delegate badge which will save time in the morning.

Tuesday 28th April

The fun begins:

9.30 – 10.30 I am presented with my first choice of the conference;

International SEO 101 – Judith Lewis i-level

New web & traditional PR strategies – Andy Barr 10 Yetis

Both these areas are close to my heart however I suspect the latter will win through as it is scheduled to cover social media marketing such as twitter and facebook, I just hope the one I don’t attend gets videoed.

11.00 -12.00

WordPress optimisation strategies – Joost de Valk Orange Valley

I caught Joost’s session at the London a4uexpo in October and believe me I could listen to him all day, a goldmine of useful information for anyone using or considering using wordpress.

12.30 – 13.30

Extreme SEO panel Q&A – Dave Naylor Bronco, Ciaràn Norris altogetherdigital, Marcus Tandler Mediadonis, Joost de Valk Orange Valley

The brochure says it all – White and Black Hat SEO gurus will demonstrate techniques and answer questions on SEO strategies that could give you the upper hand over your peers.

13:30 – 15:00 Networking Lunch – ha wrong no rest for the wicked

14:00 – 15:00 Lunchtime Sessions

Don’t mess up your content – How creative content increases ROI – Hannah Swift Existem-AM

As a content affiliate this is a must attend session for me.

15.00 – 16.00

Choice time again and a difficult one too

Big site SEO strategies – Dave Naylor Bronco

SEO and conversion surgery – Live Q&A – Dixon Jones Receptional, Gary Beal Vanguard SEO, Joost de Valk Orange Valley, Bas van den Beld SearchCowboys, Roy Huiskes Onetomarket, Ciaràn Norris altogetherdigital

Two Seo sessions which one will I make I do not know. Again I hope the video camera attends the one I can’t get to.

16.30 – 17.30

More choices …

New ways to monetise social media – Alicia Navarro Skimbit

Voucher codes – The demise or is it just the beginning of the channel? -  Kier Marston Webgains, Axel Landschoof raba.tt

I suspect I will attend the social media session however I do run a small voucher code site so do have an interest there too.

End of the sessions but not the end of the day, for delegates with any energy left there is the Breakout Party starting at 8pm.

Wednesday 29th April

Here we go again another jam packed day;

9.30 – 10.30

Innovative AdMedia design with google gadgets – Denis Maibaum zanox

Totally new to me something I’ve never considered so I hope to acquire another tool for the armoury.

11.00 – 12.00

Where is that tardis when I need it.

Conversion clinic: ‘recession proofing’ your landing pages – Ben Jesson, Karl Blanks, Steven Pavlovich Conversion Rate Experts

Standardization, self governance and self regulation as an industry – Can this become a reality? – Matt Bailey IAB Afiliate Council Chair, Pete Wilson Platform-A, Helen Southgate dgm

Regular readers of this blog (I suspect there is at least one) will know that I admire the work of Conversion Rate Experts, however as someone who has been in this industry for quiet some time I want to see provisions in place so that ethical practices win the day, unfortunately logistically I am unable to attend the regular IAB Affiliate Council meetings so this is my opportunity to get up to speed with what they do and the progress that is being made, sorry CRE catch up with you later in the day.

12.30 – 13.30

Maximising affiliate revenue in a digital age – Liane Dietrich Linkshare

Maximising affiliate revenue is a subject close to my heart.

13:30 – 15:00 Networking Lunch . Afraid not grab a bite again and back to it.

14:00 – 14:45 Lunchtime Sessions

Advanced link building, how to find and get those real juicy links in 2009 –  Christopher C Cemper Cemper.com

I make no secret of the fact that link building is one of my weak areas, hopefully this will help.

15.00 – 16.00

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe it doesn’t get any easier for us poor delegates arrg.

Transparency and Afiliates: Is there a benefit? – Ewan Darby Ogilvy, Lori Helms Geoffroy Kodak Gallery, Albrecht Fischer Commission Junction Germany,  Sebastien Galina Sony Style Europe

Optimizing your campaign traffic with Google Analytics – René Nijhuis Google

Yet another tough descision and one that I haven’t made yet.

16.30 – 17.30

The final choice

Link building strategies; Beyond link bait – John Straw Linkdex.com, Wiep Knol Tribal Internet Marketing, Bas van den Beld SearchCowboys

Landing page success story: How we Increased SEOmoz’s sales by 170% – Ben Jesson, Karl Blanks, Steven Pavlovich Conversion Rate Experts

Again a difficult choice on paper but a no brainer for me, having chosen to miss the Conversion Rate Experts earlier in the day, it would be rude of me to miss this one too.

Well thats the end of the sessions what a fabulous conference in prospect, all is not over though anyone still standing can go to the beach.

18.30 – 21.30

The Urban Beach Party – a chance to relax and unwind

All I can say is wow bring it on.

Exposed my a4uExpo Europe diary #a4uexpo

Doing this post as much as a diary for myself as for any other reason, anyone want anything adding just give me a shout.

• 26th March – London Pub Meet Farringdon (sold out) – managed to beg a place for this last minute.
• 2nd April – Linkshare Symposium – I cant get to this one unfortunately
• 28th – 29th April – a4uexpo Amsterdam.
• 2nd June – A4uAwards – win tickets with Existem AM
• 19th June – Affiliate Future Barbados event – fingers crossed I can get a ticket again loads of ways to win including Sunshine who sponsored my ticket last year and are giving away 6 places this year.
• 13th August – Existem AM Summer BBQ – Plymouth
• a4u expo roadshows – dates and venues tba
• 12th September – Think Visibility – Leeds
• 13th – 14th October – a4uExpo 2009 – London – the big daddy of events if you only get to one make it this one

I’m sure I have missed something :0

2009 Must Attend Affiliate Marketing Events

“Matt Wood and his team from Existem … certainly raised the bar”, however I am confident that with a4uexpo 2008 they will rise to the challenge and put on an event that is even bigger and better than this masterpiece.

I wrote that paragraph just after a4uexpo 2007 and it has to be said I was not disappointed, a4uexpo 2008 the Affiliate Marketing Conference and Exhibition was absolutely awesome in every department.

Highlights were many, it was great to see a higher proportion of merchants about, both as delegates and exhibitors, the social side as always was great nice to cement old friendships, and forge new ones, over a couple of drinks.

I wasn’t disappointed at all by the sessions that I highlighted in my article last week:

• Joost de Valk was excellent with his walk though of essential plugins for improving seo with wordpress.
• The Sunshine Boys, Chris and Alan launched their “secret weapon” an innovative wordpress plugin which I am going to enjoy playing with. They also have knocked up a trio of great wordpress travel themes to make getting that first travel site off the ground even easier.
• Karl and Ben of Conversion Rate Experts gave a great talk about about a few methods of converting website visitors, I was particularly pleased to see that there was a good representation of merchants in the audience. This talk was essentially a follow up to the one they gave last year if you never saw that click here to watch the video.

Other sessions I was particularly pleased to have attended were:

• Hero Grigoraki of Webgains and her excellent talk about the use of Voucher Codes, Hero was ably supported by an expert panel. Hopefully this has helped demystify how voucher codes work and the different ways they can be used, nice boost for my ego when Hero put up a slide featuring two of my content sites Fashion Style You and UK Fashion Boutiques as an example of using promotion codes on sites which are not solely dedicated to vouchers and discounts.
• I was very pleased I made the effort on day 2 to attend the early session presented by Gary Beal of StickyEyes, Gary spoke about a selection of great (and mostly free) tools for analysis of PPC and SEO campaigns.

Other Sessions I would have liked to have seen but couldn’t be in 2 places at once include:

• Mark Russell and Keith Budden with their talk about effective communication and incentivisation of affiliates, I appreciate this was aimed at Merchants and Agencies however I feel it never hurts to look at things from another perspective.
• I suspect Internet Marketing Howlers uncovered was a fun session.
• Practical PPC Strategies would no doubt have proved useful, I am currently running only a little PPC but any improvement in ROI is always welcome, and who knows what little joke google may have in store on the run up to Christmas, PPC may have to pay a larger role in my activities if I get messed about too much.

Hopefully I can pick up Video or slides from these presentations.

All in all a4uexpo 2008 was a tremendous success, I’m sat at home now with a million fresh ideas wondering just how I’m going to find time to implement them all, I have more than enough to keep myself busy until next years events, but that said a4uexpo 2009 can’t come round quick enough, bring it on.

Dates for your diary A4uexpo 2009

Amsterdam 28th and 29th April 2009

London 14th and 15th October 2009

Awesome A4uexpo 2008

A4uexpo 2008 is almost upon us and I cant wait, here is just some of what I am looking forward to.

Monday 13th October

A4uexpo 2008 day -1 the Ignite Party in the Upper Deck bar at the Novotel Hotel, ExCeL from 7pm, a great opportunity to catch up with friends in the industry over a few cheeky beers and the added bonus of being able to collect my conference pass which saves time for Tuesday possibly equating to an extra ½ hours sleep.

Tuesday 14th October

11:00 – 12:00 WORDPRESS SEO AND OPTIMISATION STRATEGIES – speaker Joost De Valk.

As around 90% of my income comes via my blogging efforts this hopefully will tell me where I’m getting it right and where I’m getting it wrong and most importantly what I can do to improve.

14:00 – 15:00 SO YOU DON’T DO TRAVEL? – speakers Chris Clarkson and Alan Gilmour.

Short lunch break on day one for me, Chris Clarkson and Alan Gilmour launch the sunshine.co.uk Top Secret Project, a revolutionary new tool for affiliates, if everything else Sunshine have done since they launched their affiliate program is anything to go by this is sure to be mind blowing and I am convinced it will put my haphazard attempts at being a travel affiliate back on track.

Wednesday 15th October

12:30 – 13:30 HOW TO INCREASE CONVERSIONS: A NEW APPROACH, BASED ON PSYCHOLOGICAL METHODS – speakers Dr Karl Blanks and Ben Jesson

The highlight of a4uexpo 2007 for was the session that these guys did and if this is anywhere near as good it will keep me in ideas and strategies for months.

On both days there are a couple of other interesting looking sessions which I may well pop into but I don’t want to plan too much ahead and end up all sessioned out. The ones mentioned above are ones I do not intend missing.

Highlight of a4uexpo 2007

I mentioned above how much I enjoyed the session by Dr Karl Blanks and Ben Jesson so here is a video of it enjoy.

Conversion Rate Experts session from a4uexpo 2007 from Affiliates4u on Vimeo

What I am looking forward to at a4uexpo 2008 and one of the highlights of 2007