Recent predictions regarding the success rate of online marketing this holiday season reveal a general consensus that affiliate marketers will make bank this holiday season despite the current economic downturn. A recent article on Emarketer.com states, “This year 49% of holiday gift spending among US Internet users will occur online, compared with 44% in stores-making this the first time the Web has surpassed the store as the preferred channel for Internet users to purchase holiday gifts.” In order to reap the benefits of the predicted increase of online users, affiliates must have an effective promotional plan that will guarantee a high success rate for conversions and revenue.

Though it may seem last minute with Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday approaching, there is still time to optimize your marketing approach. This includes using related keywords to drive more traffic, sending holiday newsletters highlighting seasonal promotions, tweaking landing pages to appeal to holiday consumers, and providing related content to ensure a quality online experience, which may potentially gain return users. Those who generally promote CPL offers or “freebie” offers may want to try setting up a special holiday section for product offers on their sites or send special newsletters in order to take advantage of the increase of CPS (cost-per-sale) revenue.

Branded campaigns and consumer products are the obvious campaigns to consider promoting since they are more likely to provide special promotions and cater to the e-commerce market. Be sure to consider campaigns related to the New Year as well since consumers will be apt to click on self improvement ads while shopping for gifts. With a good plan and great campaigns, you can be a part of what should be a positive economic turn in the online industry. Contact your Account Manager today to find the right campaigns to bring you success in the final weeks of Q4!

Sources:
http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1006647, http://www.amwso.com/news/affiliatesholidayseason.php, http://www.marketingexperiments.com/improving-website-conversion/ecommerce-holiday-playbook.html, http://www.affiliatetips.com/november-trends-in-the-affiliate-world.html