Advertisingonline reinvented
Tim van der Bilt,Country Manager Benelux of Platform-A
Agenda
An intro to Platform-A
How to get results from your online marketing spend
Client Cases
European Affiliate Marketing Poll - Results
The future of Affiliate
WORLDS’ LARGEST MEDIA COMPANY
Who is Platform-A?
Our Global Footprint
Netherlands65.6% reach
7.8 million unique users
Affiliate | Display |Search
USA: 89.5% Reach
UK: 87.1%
Norway: 76%
Sweden: 76.2% Denmark: 75.9%Spain*: 76%
France*: 87% Germany*: 82.6%
Finland 79.6%Netherlands 65.6% EU: 61.1% Reach
Source: comScore, Feb 2009, *Nielsen / NetRatings, Feb 2009Platform-A properties
The challenge … Fragmented Media Landscape
TV
Online
RadioOutdoor
Right person, right time, right message
6am 11pm
Mobile internet on way to work
Webmail check
Checks news on
main portal
Browses niche affiliate
siteSurfing / Online
shopping
Streams Online Video
Platform-A
How can we help? Performance
Display
flights
Search
AirlineSite
Web Display activity leads users to the airline site to book flights
A simultaneous Search campaign also drives online bookings
Users who visit the site but do not convert can be retargeted via LeadBack
Branding solutions such as NetBlocks can intensify the effects of these products and speed customer acquisition
Book Now
Affiliate
Affiliate activity drives volume from niche and specific sites
Our market leading technology and expertise has made us a preferred partner of TUIfly for 4
years
“The performance of the campaign has been a great success. We have seen huge number of planes filled with passengers on the back of this
activity while maintaining a constant price. Platform-A has met our objectives and continues
to surpass them.”
Stefan Schaub, Head of E-Commerce, TUIfly.com
Powerful proof:
Sal
es
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4
+627%
+27%
+117%
Launching Today!
buy.at and Affiliate marketing in Europe?
Peter Wilson,European Product Manager buy.at
Current market…
Fragmented European Market place: No one affiliate network can offer a total solution to advertisers or affiliates
Market varies greatly from country to country
Types of AffiliateNumber of networksTypes of advertisersAffiliate marketing as part of the marketing mix
Survey’s aim was to gain further understanding of these differences and look for common themes.
Who did we talk to?
Focusing on Affiliates or Publishers
Who did we talk to?
What are their genders? How many employees do you have?
Sectors and Types
PPC14%
Email10%
Banner advertising
17%
Product feeds10%
SEO13%
Video1%
Cashback - points
1%
Cashback - cash2%
Offline - posters, vouchers
9%
Other3%Widgets
3%
Blogs/niche sites17%
Adult2%
Gaming8%
Charity3%
Entertainment13%
Healthcare5%
Property5%
Motoring5%
Other5%
Travel15%
Insurance8%
Finance11%
Retail17%
Medical3%
What sectors do you operate in? What type of affiliate would you describe yourself as?
What qualities do you look for in a Affiliate Network?
0 20 40 60 80 100
Good range of merchants
Sector specific expertise
Excellent tracking and reporting
Good resources of marketing products
Payment
Policies on unethical behaviour
Support
Advice
Communication
Reputation
Other
Service!
“Service!”“Good User Interface”
“Merchants and commission”
“Strong client list in the area I work in”
What do I like about my preferred network?
Service
TechnologyPrice
Large Network
The key hygiene factors for success
A sensitive subject – Vouchers
Q: Voucher codes are a growing concern for merchants – to what extent do you agree with this statement?
Views on Vouchers
“The sale’s effectively been made by then”
“it overly complicates the process”
“devalues brands – people just wait until a voucher turns up before buying”
“You often have to backtrack to find the code once you see the code box – it’s a bad experience”
“It drives intent to purchase”
“It provides a feel good factor when you find one”
“Vouchers dramatically increase the Click Thru Rate”
“They really work well for retailers with a good reputation”
Search: specifically microsites combined with SEO on keywords, a dramatic increase in Search Engine dominance as they own the customer interface.
Recession: Commissions being squeezed due to recessionary pressures and subsequent network consolidation
Content: unless increasing amounts of good quality content are provided there is a risk of declining effectiveness. Content will drive new customers
Traditional Media: Increasing integration with other media and major print media developing partnerships for their websites to bypass affiliates
Regulation/rules/ethics: Better definition about ethical and good practice – and that these checks and balances are policed, particularly removing affiliates sending customers to sites under false pretences
Vouchers: Perhaps they’ve had their day! – a feeling that there will be a clampdown possibly due to merchants following a trend rather than popularity waning
The next couple of years…Your thoughts on key trends or things to look out for…
Conclusions
The recession is causing pressure on margins Despite every recession being unique, some things never change…
service continues to be the main driver of business as people try to hunt for value as much as being price sensitized
Vouchers continue to be a contentious issue that divides opinion Interesting the number of times that we talked about technology and
pricing and how few times the consumer was referred to Good content appears firmly in the sights of many affiliates
Why Platform A’s buy.at?
Service is key – that’s why we are investing in staff on the ground in each country.
Regulations / rules / ethics – are core to our philosophy.
Problem solving through technology and innovation
Questions?
Tim van der Bilt –Country Manager Benelux of Platform-A
Peter Wilson – European Product Manager buy.at