The Search Monitor has published a free whitepaper titled “Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search” that provides a quick overview of trademark abuse and the steps you can take to protect your brand.

The report goes through the trademark policies at the major search engines, trademark law in the U.S., and the methods to protect your brand.

There are also suggestions to measure the success or failure of your brand protection strategy. Plus, a tip to consider for any affiliates running review sites.

I’d recommend giving it a read – good, concise information. Get the free whitepaper at http://www.thesearchmonitor.com/.

For more information on trademarks and affiliate marketing, check out “Using Trademarks in Affiliate Marketing” by Mark Rosenberg from issue 4 of FeedFront Magazine.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search

Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

ShareASale has created a game where any dollar amount you “win” will be added to the total amount that ShareASale will donate to the Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City, which is the official charity of the Affiliate Summit East 2009.

There are no actual prizes to win, the game is just a fun way to get everyone involved in ShareASale’s donation efforts for this year’s Affiliate Summit.

Play the game at http://www.shareasalecharitystars.com. After you play, please click the options to spread the word on Twitter and Facebook.

Get details on making a tax deductible donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

ShareASale Charity Star Search for Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC

ShareASale Charity Star Search for Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

ShareASale Charity Star Search for Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

The Search Monitor has published a free whitepaper titled “Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search” that provides a quick overview of trademark abuse and the steps you can take to protect your brand.

The report goes through the trademark policies at the major search engines, trademark law in the U.S., and the methods to protect your brand.

There are also suggestions to measure the success or failure of your brand protection strategy. Plus, a tip to consider for any affiliates running review sites.

I’d recommend giving it a read – good, concise information. Get the free whitepaper at http://www.thesearchmonitor.com/.

For more information on trademarks and affiliate marketing, check out “Using Trademarks in Affiliate Marketing” by Mark Rosenberg from issue 4 of FeedFront Magazine.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search

Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Step by Step Guide to Combat Trademark Abuse on Paid Search is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

ShareASale has created a game where any dollar amount you “win” will be added to the total amount that ShareASale will donate to the Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City, which is the official charity of the Affiliate Summit East 2009.

There are no actual prizes to win, the game is just a fun way to get everyone involved in ShareASale’s donation efforts for this year’s Affiliate Summit.

Play the game at http://www.shareasalecharitystars.com. After you play, please click the options to spread the word on Twitter and Facebook.

Get details on making a tax deductible donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

ShareASale Charity Star Search for Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC

ShareASale Charity Star Search for Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

ShareASale Charity Star Search for Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Amazon has purchased Zappos, according to TechCrunch.

That’s big, exciting news, and I’m really curious to see how it all works out. In particular, does this mean the Zappos affiliate program folds into the Amazon affiliate program?

The Zappos affiliate program is at Commission Junction currently and they’ve got impressive EPC figures and Network Earnings.

Zappos and Commission Junction go way back to 2000, and I think it could be said that CJ played a significant role in their growth and success. Stay tuned.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

The Fate of the Zappos Affiliate Program

The Fate of the Zappos Affiliate Program

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

The Fate of the Zappos Affiliate Program is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

I am compiling opinions on sales tax and whether it influences online shopping purchases.

Please take a moment and answer this one question with a yes or no answer at http://twtpoll.com/r/kbr87j:

When you shop online, are you less likely to buy if you have to pay sales tax?

Thanks for your time.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Online Shopping Poll – One Question, Please Answer

Online Shopping Poll – One Question, Please Answer

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Online Shopping Poll – One Question, Please Answer is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Many affiliate managers subscribe to the Pareto Principle (80-20 rule) when it comes to affiliates, where 80 percent of transactions come from 20 percent of affiliates.

I was thinking about the number of affiliate programs I active promote, as opposed to those where I have an open account.

I’m one of the 4 percenters that actively promote 21-30 affiliate programs.

To all of the affiliate managers out there that accept that a minority of your affiliates are active, have you actually ever done anything to activate and retain your affiliates?

This data point and more are in the 2009 edition of the Affiliate Summit AffStat Report – get your free copy at http://affstat.com/.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

How many affiliate programs do you actively promote?

How many affiliate programs do you actively promote?

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

How many affiliate programs do you actively promote? is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Amazon has purchased Zappos, according to TechCrunch.

That’s big, exciting news, and I’m really curious to see how it all works out. In particular, does this mean the Zappos affiliate program folds into the Amazon affiliate program?

The Zappos affiliate program is at Commission Junction currently and they’ve got impressive EPC figures and Network Earnings.

Zappos and Commission Junction go way back to 2000, and I think it could be said that CJ played a significant role in their growth and success. Stay tuned.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

The Fate of the Zappos Affiliate Program

The Fate of the Zappos Affiliate Program

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

The Fate of the Zappos Affiliate Program is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

I am compiling opinions on sales tax and whether it influences online shopping purchases.

Please take a moment and answer this one question with a yes or no answer at http://twtpoll.com/r/kbr87j:

When you shop online, are you less likely to buy if you have to pay sales tax?

Thanks for your time.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

%%Online Shopping Poll – One Question, Please Answer%%

Online Shopping Poll – One Question, Please Answer

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Online Shopping Poll – One Question, Please Answer is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Many affiliate managers subscribe to the Pareto Principle (80-20 rule) when it comes to affiliates, where 80 percent of transactions come from 20 percent of affiliates.

I was thinking about the number of affiliate programs I active promote, as opposed to those where I have an open account.

I’m one of the 4 percenters that actively promote 21-30 affiliate programs.

To all of the affiliate managers out there that accept that a minority of your affiliates are active, have you actually ever done anything to activate and retain your affiliates?

This data point and more are in the 2009 edition of the Affiliate Summit AffStat Report – get your free copy at http://affstat.com/.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

How many affiliate programs do you actively promote?

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

How many affiliate programs do you actively promote? is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Affiliate Summit East 2009 registrations are on the verge of closing. Recently, I thought we’d have them open until Friday, July 31, but they’ve been coming in fast than expected this week.

It looks like the final day to register, before we reach capacity, will be Friday, July 24. So, if you’ve been sitting on the fence, now is the time to get your registration booked.

And as of right now, there is still limited availability in the Hilton New York, where the conference is taking place.

As you may be aware, typically after we have to close registrations, a secondary market pops up with people selling passes on eBay. These are independent of us and the prices often go for 50%, 100%, or more of the face value.

Register now for Affiliate Summit East 2009.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Summit East 2009 Registrations Closing This Week

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Summit East 2009 Registrations Closing This Week is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

I just came across an affiliate network based on video called AffiliatePLY.

The videos are clickable, and AffiliatePLY is a division of PLYmedia, which also runs BubblePLY, a technology that enables affiliates to easily make creative additions to online videos.

More details at http://www.affiliateply.com/.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Video Affiliate Network

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Video Affiliate Network is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Do you know who that is in the picture below (you can blow it up on Flickr)?

The first three correct guesses (must be posted in the comments here) get passes to Affiliate Summit: first gets a Platinum pass, second gets a Gold pass, and third gets a Gold pass.

Hints:

• He’s a blogger
• He had an article in issue 6 of FeedFront magazine
• He has over 30,000 followers on Twitter
• His site is displayed somewhere in the photo

What’s with that skunk wig thing on the right?

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Name That Affiliate Summit Attendee

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Name That Affiliate Summit Attendee is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

Affiliate Day is a day to recognize the power of affiliate marketing and all of the folks behind it.

On September 14, 2009, we will be holding several fun-filled promotions over the course of the day, which are designed to increase awareness of the industry, as well as reward affiliate marketers with all sorts of goodies.

Prizes will include passes to Affiliate Summit West 2010, taking place January 17-19, 2010 in Las Vegas.

More details to come soon at http://www.affiliateday.com/.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Day

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Day is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

I recently read the book, WordPress for Business Bloggers, and as a user of WordPress for years, it wasn’t really useful.

However, I think it would be a great resource for somebody who is just getting into WordPress and wants to start up a blog.

The book covers the basics and serves as a good primer on the terminology, options, and getting the most out of WordPress.

I was glad to see that chapter 10 was focused on monetizing a blog. This chapter doesn’t delve deep into affiliate marketing, but it gives a quick overview on using AdSense, Amazon, and various widgets to monetize a blog.

It’s a little pricey at $39.99 (list price), but for those new to blogging, it’s worth the price, rather than trying to find all of this information in blogs and forums.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

WordPress for Business Bloggers

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

WordPress for Business Bloggers is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

I’ve completed my first 5k, and I was very excited to complete it as part of my affiliate fatblogging odyssey.

As I was preparing for the race, I saw a lot of 5k tutorials that recommended working up to it over 6-12 weeks, and I probably pushed myself too quick into it (all in just a few weeks).

Also, all of my practice was on flat trails, and I was brutally surprised by the inclines during the 5k.

So while I finished it, and I am satisfied about that, I would have loved to have a better time. I think I’ll go back to the drawing board and run shorter lengths to properly build up my speed and stamina.

Here are my embarrassing stats…

Yep, 22 out of 22 for my age/gender group of guys aged 35-39 and 360th overall. No medal this time around. There were children ahead of me!

Anyhow, I’ve been looking around for other races in the area and plan to run some 5k’s in September and October.

As far as the weight, I’m still stuck at 218. While I exercised a whole lot leading up to the 5k, I also made a trip down to Maryland for the Tax Talk & Crab Feast at the buy.at office, and mixed some great networking with too many eats and drinks.

Starting weight: 225
Last week: 218
This week: 218

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Fatblogging: I Finished My First 5k Race

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Fatblogging: I Finished My First 5k Race is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

At that time, I was thinking about things I could do to get in better shape, and decided to try going for a run. I was in for a rude awakening, as I cut it short at a half mile.

On the way home I saw a sign advertising a 5k in my town. I decided that was something I was going to do, despite the training regimens that suggest taking anywhere from 6 to 12 weeks to ramp up to a 5k.

But I established this goal and did what I had to in order to accomplish it.

Why does that image say 2.89 miles? Apparently, I didn’t calibrate my Nike + iPod Sport Kit perfectly. Here’s a quick new goal – I’ll run a couple miles on a track tomorrow and recalibrate.

Similarly, I decided back in the fall of 2006 that I wanted to learn how to edit video. I grabbed a copy of Sony Vegas Movie Studio software to edit video.

And it sat on the shelf for a couple months. I decided I needed a hard deadline to learn it, or I would probably never get around to learning.

So, when I was creating my Christmas card for that year, I included a message pointing people to a special URL for a video message from me.

There was no more time to slack. I had to figure out that software an make a video before the cards hit.

I’m sure you have some goals in business that you’ve been putting off. Stop the excuses, set up a date to accomplish them, and make it happen.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

The Importance of Goals

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

The Importance of Goals is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

But many affiliates are reading the agreements, which can make them a liability in various ways.

I would encourage affiliate managers to regularly reiterate key terms to avoid issues with affiliates.

This data point and more are in the 2009 edition of the Affiliate Summit AffStat Report – get your free copy at http://affstat.com/.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Do Affiliates Read Affiliate Agreements?

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Do Affiliates Read Affiliate Agreements? is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

There has been a lot of talk about the state taxes that are impacting the industry, but this issue is tough to track, since everybody seems to call it something different.

I’ve been calling it the advertising tax for quite a while, as have a number of others. Then there is the affiliate tax, the Amazon tax (popular in the media), and the Internet retail tax.

And it’s 1, 2, 3… what are we fighting for?

Seriously, if we are going to have a coordinated effort against these taxes moving forward, we should agree on a name.

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Wait, what is this advertising, affiliate, Amazon, Internet retail tax?

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Wait, what is this advertising, affiliate, Amazon, Internet retail tax? is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com

I’ve been giving my new running shoes a good workout. As I mentioned in a recent affiliate fatblogging post, I am working towards running in my first 5k.

I am running several times a week and gradually increasing the length of my runs to build stamina.

Based on what I’ve been reading online, you should usually train about 12 weeks from not running at all to a 5k, but I’ve been trying to do it in about 3 weeks.

This has been a bit of a punishing process, since I am out of shape and don’t have the stamina. But now I’m up to 2.5 miles per run, which I did yesterday and today.

When I ran today, I thought I was going to collapse with the heat, cramps, etc., but I couldn’t stop.

Anyhow, I discovered a cool thing with my Nike + iPod Sport Kit where every time I sync up my iPod Touch, the information from my latest run is automatically being sent to nikeplus.com.

That was already happening, but a new feature on the Beta of their site enables me to have this information posted automatically to my Twitter and/or Facebook accounts.

Currently, I am not quite a trailblazer, as I clock in at around a 10 minute mile, but I’m just trying to make it through the run right now.

This coming Sunday, July 12 is my big race. In the coming days, I need to push up to 3 miles to make it through the 5k.

One downside of accelerating my running has been that my legs are hurting. I went straight from my running trail to my gym today and hopped into the pool to swim a little and then spent a while in the hot tub soothing my achy, old legs.

That might have to be my new ritual, because I felt totally rejuvenated after soaking a while. Well, that and some Advil.

Starting weight: 225
Last week: 218
This week: 218

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Fatblogging: My Running Progress on Twitter

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Affiliate Fatblogging: My Running Progress on Twitter is a post from: Cash-Bandit.com