Blog posts have become the new preferred spam method for the SEO community. They have replaced paid links, reciprocal linking, and forum/blog comment link dropping as the most popular method for promoting mediocre content. Of course, those old tried and true methods are still being abused so the search engine filters undoubtedly have their work cut out for them.
It’s almost impossible to find an SEO-related blog, forum, or article that doesn’t tell people to start their own blogs and begin posting away. I’ve been giving out that advice myself for a year or two. It’s been generally good advice but as with all good ideas that are openly shared in the SEO community it has almost run its course. In a few more months I’ll be less likely to advise clients to start their own blogs.
Blogging should become part of the Web landscape the same way professional reciprocation has. There is nothing wrong with exchanging links with business partners. People get themselves into trouble by exchanging links with non-business partners. The blogging community took on the burden of link spamming through “link trains” and “SEO memes” this year. When you see hordes of blogs following such obviously bad advice, you know that it’s time to rethink your linking strategies.
But let’s talk about business partnerships for a moment. We can use a pretty broad definition without creating too many difficulties. For example, non-commercial “fan” Web sites devoted to celebrities, movies, books, and television shows “do business with each other” by promoting each other’s content. Fan sites have been telling their visitors about other fan sites since long before Web logs were invented. People are more likely to use blogs than traditional static Web content to create fan Web sites these days so the tradition of sharing news, events, and opinions remains strong.
Merchants with affiliate networks obviously “do business” with other Web sites but affiliate marketers are often made to feel like criminals. Many merchants treat their affiliates very badly and speak poorly of their affiliates in marketing discussion groups. The merchants usually don’t see how they come across as arrogant, self-important jerks because they are focusing on building out the value of their brands. Affiliates can have brand value, too. In fact, many affiliates do have substantial brand value. But merchants don’t respect that brand value in their dealings with affiliates.
A typical merchant-affiliate relationship consists of the merchant sending out marketing hype eNewsletters once or twice a month (the specials and clearances are, of course, important information for affiliates who like to stay on top of those events). Some merchants may create an “affiliate of the month” program, but where most of those AOTM programs fail is that they inevitably focus on the powerhouse sites. It would be better (more inspiring to the masses) to recognize innovation over sales.
Although traditional sales managers would argue that you need to reward sales performance over “wow effect” performance, the Web is not a retail show room where you must replace your sales staff for non-performance. Affiliate sites don’t cost any money so they can be nurtured in ways that pay-check earning sales staff cannot. The average affiliate site is never going to be a top-performer. Most top-performing affiliates are commercial grade Web sites with marketing budgets.
There are, in fact, several different types of affiliates and the merchant needs to understand that each type of affiliate brings something different to the market. Affiliate Web sites are not simply referral sources. They are extensions of the merchant brand and as such may leverage some of their own brand value to help the merchant. And that brings us back to search engine optimization.
I’ve seen many retailers complain about how their affiliates outrank them in search engines. My opinion about companies who complain when their affiliates outperform them is that the companies need to get out of the affiliate program business. If you don’t see any value in having an affiliate outrank you in search results then you either need new affiliates or you’re pursuing the wrong marketing goals. You should be choosing affiliates who provide your brand with a respectable visibility. I’ve been turned down for more than one affiliate program simply because the merchant felt we were not a good match. That’s the way an affiliate program should be built.
If you don’t care who sells your merchandise, then you have no reason to care who ranks for your name. You’re not paying attention to the details that really matter. If you’re in business to make money, being greedy for the 5% commission (or 10% commission) you could save by displacing your successful affiliates just makes you seem cheap and unprofessional. If you’re going to obsess and agonize over 1st-place listings in search results then you need a solid SEO team and lots of content, not an affiliate network.
A good merchant will find ways to promote as many affiliates as possible. Recognize the value those affiliates create through their unique content, their original presentation, their own brand position. Showing people that you cherish and appreciate the affiliate network and not just the high performing affiliates sets you apart in so many fundamental ways from your whining, selfish, narrow-minded competitors you begin to take on a social value they can never aspire to.
Good business builds relationships. Bad business buries relationships, hides them, makes them seem petty and worthless. Back-door relationships with the underworld may exist in every corner of the globe but that doesn’t mean you need to treat your Web business partners as if they are the scum of the Internet. You should only choose partners you’ll proudly tell your visitors about.
That principle works for every aspect of Web marketing, both commercial and non-commercial. When you talk up your partners — write about them, tell your visitors about the value they offer, show people how to use your partners’ goods, services, or information — when you show that you honestly care about and respect the people with whom you engage in “Web business”, you create value for both yourself and your partners.
People want to know what you think. The Web is more about opinion than information. It’s been that way for years and there is no sign that people will change their surfing habits. So even if you operate a multi-billion dollar company with stores, factories, and thousands of products in your online inventory, sharing opinions is good Web business for both you and your partners. That doesn’t mean you need a blog or that you have to write gushy obviously promotional posts about someone else’s sales campaign.
It means that you should use your Web site to show people you have relationships with other Web sites that you respect and care about — not only do your partners mean something to you, but your relationships with those partners are important to you. By creating that value through your own content you give other people (including your partners but also your visitors) plenty of reason to recognize the value you have created.
And don’t be fooled by marketing hype. Some people will call that “link baiting”, but it’s not. Link bait is all about creating an event. Respecting and showcasing your business partnerships is about building relationships regardless of whether you earn links.
In fact, the fewer metrics you apply to your business partnerships, the more value you place on those partnerships. The less you strive to measure performance for a business relationship, the more that relationship means to you. Your goal should be to build as many metricless business relationships as possible regardless of whether you are trying to make money.
That has a tremendous impact on search engine visibility in both tangible and intangible ways. It’s also good for business. In fact, it’s great for business.
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