Hello to all….it’s Tara DeGiusto , Coordinator of Advertiser Relations for Pepperjam Network.  This is my first time writing a blog, so please bear with me.  Affiliate Summit West has been great so far.  I had the opportunity to meet up with many clients that I have been working with, along with affiliates that I have known for quite some time.   It is great seeing everyone and I am looking forward to the rest of Summit!

I decided to attend Affiliate PPC:  Brand Enhancement or Bid Escalation featuring speakers David Lewis, 77 Blue, and Kevin Lee, Didit.com.  This is a topic that I have discussed with clients I have worked with at pepperjam many times in the past and was very interesting to hear others’ opinions.  It was a great seminar guys and I was happy I got to listen in.  Kevin was leaning toward Bid Escalation, where as David was backing Brand Enhancement.  When it comes to trademarks and branding, advertisers are very touchy on allowing affiliates to use theirs in any search campaign.  Advertisers feel they should be the only ones to bid on their own trademark.  This would then allow the available real estate open to competitors.  This subject has been a debate for many years now and will definitely continue for many more.  The real question to ask when considering Terms and Conditions for Search Policies in any affiliate program is:  If you do decide to allow affiliates to do this, how do you decide who?

David feels advertisers should definitely use their affiliates as partners and find the right ones that will work with you.  Kevin agrees with this statement and feels if you decide to allow it, look at the affiliate sites and decide if they would be a great partner for you..are they doing things that shouldn’t be done?  Get these affiliates on the phone and discuss and see if they are willing to discuss options.  If you have an affiliate program, it is your job to police your trademark, but where should you stop?  Then, how upset would your affiliates be with your program if you do tell them to stop…would they drop you completely?    In closing statements, if you don’t allow this, you will only have 1 offer on the page, the one you post, and this leaves plenty of room for competitors to eat up the rest!  Advertisers need to take control of their brands and do what it takes to make the most money and maximize real estate!  This is definitely an interesting topic that advertisers need to take into further consideration to maximize the potential for their affiliate program. 

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