Lets simply look at Facts:
1) 80% of the affiliates that attend this event are sponsored. The last event had 250 affiliates. 200 of thise affiliates were sponsored. This fact can not be ignored. Again, 200 of 250 affiliates were sponsored. There was a reason why.
2) Of the sponsored affiliates, some were sponsored hotel rooms and airfare. These were for extremely large affiliates. Most were not.
2) Of the remaining 20%, :
– some affiliates insisted upon paying their own way.
– some were new affiliates and would not be comped
– some did not know that affiliate passes existed. It is for this that we started the thread.
3) This has greatly changed from the original events in 2003, when 100% of the 20-50 affiliates attending paid their own way. And the TREND is that more affiliates will be sponsored at future events, not less. This trend took place as a result of our efforts to get more affiliates at the event.
‘Affiliate Managers are angry?’ If we didn’t take the actions we took, CAC would be TINY event, with few affiliates attending.
Let me get what some of you are saying straight: An affiliate (like Engineer, making $7500 each month in commissions from ONE program) wants to go to CAC to improve his conversions, as that is the goal of the event. He calls his business partner, the affiliate program and asks that a mere $500 pass be comped for him, with the goal of producing higher revenues for the affiliate and the affiliate program. The affiliate program needs to view this as a business investment, and a relationship investment as well.
Some of you propose: ‘How dare someone like Engineer ask for a pass?’
My view is simple:
(a)Those that comp their affiliates of his level have a logical business acumen and see the business between the two growing.
(b) Those that don’t comp an affiliate like Engineer for a mere few hundred dollars illustrate to the affiliate that they don’t support him.
Perhaps affiliate managers are angry at the mere TRUTH of the statement. I am not proposing all affiliates be comped, you need to EARN IT. What it takes to earn it is up to each affiliate program. The common thread is based on your commissions. In other words – HOW MUCH YOU PRODUCE.
There is NOTHING wrong to ASK for something that 80% of your colleagues are getting. I stand behind this 100%.
Marc Lesnick
Conference Organizer
http://www.CasinoAffiliateConvention.com
September 14-15, 2006
Las Vegas