Welcome to the AffiliateTip.com Newsletter. Be sure to check out the AffiliateTip.com blog for the latest news and information at http://www.affiliatetip.com/blog/

Topics in this issue:

1. Affiliate Summit Deadlines
2. Affiliate Jam Session and Sing-a-Long
3. E-Mail is the New Black for Affiliates
4. Affiliate Program News
5. Ask Shawn Collins: Finding the Best Affiliate Programs for Me
6. Top 10 Affiliate Programs - August 2006

1. Affiliate Summit Deadlines
Early bird registration prices for the next Affiliate Summit, taking place January 21-23, 2007 in Las Vegas, end on September 30.

Registration for a full conference pass is currently $949 and exhibit hall only passes are $199. Starting on October 1, the prices will increase to $1,449 and $299 respectively.

The price for a booth is also going up after September 30 from $3,995 to $4,995.

Also, we'll be accepting speaker submissions through midnight EDT on Friday, September 15.

Affiliate Summit will have multiple tracks targeted to affiliates and merchants. We are looking for presentations that will educate and inform attendees on the latest issues in affiliate marketing.

If you are interested in speaking at the show, visit the Affiliate Summit speaker page for more details.

Some attributes that will increase the chances of a person's proposal being accepted are: case studies with new, interesting data; nuts and bolts on how you do what you do; and advanced level content. Those with something to sell need not apply.

Affiliates and merchants will receive preference over agencies for speaking roles. Accepted speakers will be notified no later than October 1, 2006.

To submit a proposal, please visit http://www.affiliatesummit.com/speakers.shtml and complete the online application. Proposals will be accepted until September 15, 2006 -- no proposals after that date will be considered.

A complimentary full-conference registration is provided to Affiliate Summit speakers. Travel, hotel and any other expenses are the responsibility of the speakers.

Check out Google Video for examples of past Affiliate Summit speakers.

2. Affiliate Jam Session and Sing-a-Long
Shareasale.com is hosting an Affiliate Jam Session and Sing-a-Long at the next Affiliate Summit, and we're looking for musicians who are semi-pro at a minimum.

The Affiliate Jam Session and Sing-a-Long is taking place on the evening of Sunday, January 21 at Bally's Las Vegas.

We are looking for talent who can accompany a piano player (Shareasale.com kingpin, Brian Littleton, will be tickling the ivories) who will be playing sing-a-long songs from a songbook. It will be similar to a Howl-at-the-Moon or dueling piano kind of setup.

If you have your own instruments, can play by ear, and are used to playing in this atmosphere, contact us at http://www.affiliatesummit.com/contact.shtml.

3. E-Mail is the New Black for Affiliates
In late 2003 it seemed a perfect storm had swelled against the use of e-mail in affiliate marketing. The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, signed into law by President Bush on December 16, 2003, made legitimate e-mail affiliates wary of clicking the "send" button.

In addition to challenges like getting white listed by ISPs and beating Spam filters to reach their double opt-in subscribers, affiliates utilizing e-mail now had to lose sleep over whether they might run afoul of the FTC's ambiguous e-mail regulations.

At the same time, industry pundits lined up to anoint RSS the heir apparent to e-mail. RSS, an acronym for Really Simple Syndication, Rich Site Summary or RDF Site Summary, enables people to subscribe to receive communications to an "RSS feed reader". It sounded good on paper and pixels – subscribers get only what they want with RSS.

Could this be the end of e-mail as an affiliate marketing tool?

Continued at http://www.dmnews.com/cms/dm-news/e-mail-marketing/38225.html

4. Affiliate Program News
Hydra Network - - the leading CPA source for affiliate publishers.
Over 1,000 campaigns and more than 300 exclusive offers available. Find all the right campaigns, market them to your site, email, path, pop or other audience, and get paid fast! Sign up today to begin maximizing your inventory profitability, while getting the attention you deserve from one of our Affiliate Managers. Call 310-659-5755 or visit: http://network.hydramedia.com/.

Montana Legend - Premium Steaks Online thru ShareASale
Montana Legend is running three affiliate promotions: sign up before September first and earn a base 15% commission (10% afterwards); get a sale in August and be eligible for $100 worth of product; finally, contact brook@schaafco.com to see if you're eligible for a $25 first sale bonus.

Payless.com Affiliate Promo
Latest offer from Payless: Save $5 off any order of $55 or more. (Coupon code is PSS5OFF55 - Ends 10/11). Also, free standard ground shipping and handling with any order of $50 or more (no coupon required). Visit http://www.paylessaffiliates.com.

Snapfish Increases and Expands Commission
The base commission for Snapfish affiliates is going up to $10.00 (a $.50 raise) on every new customer. Also, for the first time ever, all affiliates will get an 8% commission on repeat customer purchases and a 60 day cookie. In order for current affiliates to receive these new terms, check your pending offers on CJ and accept the Snapfish offer. Visit snapfishaffiliates.com for details on the Snapfish affiliate program.

5. Ask Shawn Collins: Finding the Best Affiliate Programs for Me
There are many companies out there with offers - how do I know which merchants with affiliate programs are best for my readers, as well as the top money making opportunities? Are they telling me everything I need to know?

One easy method is to identify the top sites in your vertical that run affiliate offers and study which affiliate programs they are promoting.

This is certainly not a scientific approach, but it's a quick way to get things started.

I'd advise against the lazy route for the long term, but it's ok while you're getting your feet wet. During this time, identify the relevant affiliate programs for your audience.

Try looking through affiliate program directories and searching on the search engines for keywords tied to affiliate programs in your area of concentration.

For instance, if your focus is real estate, search for "real estate affiliate program."

After you've compiled a list of affiliate programs that could be good for you, do some research on each one. Check out things like how long the company has been around, and search on affiliate forums for information on the affiliate programs. Any complaints or praise?

Continued at http://www.affiliatetip.com/blog/archives/
ask_shawn_collins_finding_the_best_affiliate_programs_for_me.html

6. Top 10 Affiliate Programs - August 2006
Below are the Top Ten Affiliate Programs for August 2006 as tracked by the AffiliateTip.com Affiliate Program Directory.

The Top Ten affiliate programs are calculated by the number of clickthroughs each program received in the affiliate program directory.

Disclaimer: While we attempt to include only legitimate programs in this directory, no warranties are made. Please research each company carefully to arrive at your own conclusions. If you experience difficulties with any of the programs listed, contact us, so that we may investigate them.

1. Lillian Vernon
2. Payless ShoeSource
3. GameTap.com
4. Snapfish
5. eHealthInsurance
6. Advanta Bank Corp
7. Orbitz
8. Art.com
9. zZounds.com
10. CardScan

CPA networks are treated as individual affiliate programs for the purposes of the Top 10 Affiliate Programs list.

Affiliate programs can be submitted to the directory at http://www.affiliatething.com/reg.php.

As always, I'd love to hear from you! Drop me a line and let me know if you have any suggestions or questions.

Visit http://www.affiliatetip.com/advertise.php for information on advertising in the newsletter or on the site.

Take care,
Shawn Collins

shawn@affiliatetip.com
http://www.affiliatetip.com/
908-771-5574
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