Affiliate marketing is something that most people in business will have heard of, or even out to work, but some reading this may not truly understand how important affiliate marketing can be to a business. While affiliate marketing can be regarded as slightly outdated, it’s still one of the key ways to market for any business operating in the online world still to this day. In fact, it is a huge consideration for fiercely competitive markets like online gaming where operators rely heavily on this type of marketing. So for example, in the online bingo world, established brand names like mFortune would even have a separate affiliate team to manage this aspect of their business.

As with anything in business, there are a lot of positives which come with affiliate marketing and it’s these benefits which make it a very useful weapon to have in your arsenal. One of the first things that really shows the importance of affiliate marketing is that it is performance based. This ultimately means that unless an action has taken place, an affiliate won’t earn their commission. So, a business will only pay out when they get what they have agreed to pay for, there will be no money wasted in attempting to drive traffic, and the affiliate is likely to work as hard as possible to earn their payment.

The above underlines that affiliate marketing is an extremely cost-effective marketing strategy, and that is of great importance to any business operating in any sector. A scatter gun approach to marketing where money could be thrown at ads with no guarantee of any sort of return can be a drain on a business financially, but decision makers need not worry where affiliate marketing is concerned as you’re only paying for it when it works and is beneficial to your business.

Affiliate marketing can also be a great way to increase and further the reputation of a business too. Reputation is everything these days, especially when operating in competitive industries, and by partnering up with reputable websites and bloggers, a business can improve their own standing amongst customers, potential customers and the general population. With a reputable blogger writing about a business and the products and services they offer, a person is much more likely to take note.

It doesn’t matter what sector a business is in or however niche they are, there will always be affiliates in the market. This will be of huge importance to a business as the affiliate will already have their own visitor based established, meaning that no matter what sector you’re trying to crack or make it big in, affiliates will already be on hand and have the tools in place to help you on your way. It is actually invaluable in providing expert localised marketing to new countries and regions that businesses would never be able to cultivate in a short space of time.

Affiliate marketing will also be a godsend when it comes to climbing search engine rankings too, complimenting the SEO efforts that are already likely in place. Higher placed positions in search engine rankings are always hotly contested, and with affiliates linking back to a businesses site, it will see them shoot up the rankings as a result. Inevitably, this will mean the business is seen by more people when searching, again another example of just how important affiliate marketing is to any business today.

At one point or another, we’ve all shot daggers at the small spinning wheel that taunts us while a web page loads. What feels like a lifetime is in fact only 5 seconds or more, but either way it’s frustrating.

However, apart from making even the most patient saint want to drop their device from a third story window, slow page speeds can have a negative impact on your SEO in more ways than one.

1. User experience

Rightfully, one of the biggest implications of slow page speeds is the harmful effect it has on the user’s experience of a site. For any site, the speed in which a user can find the information or product they’re after will determine whether they stay on the site and whether they convert.

The navigation process on a website should be swift and effortless. If the user is noticeably having to wait every time a web page loads, the likelihood of them leaving your site and completing the conversion process with one of your competitors is high. To put this into perspective, 53% of mobile users will leave a site if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load.

Indeed, user experience is particularly important for e-commerce websites such as our client Alsico. A lengthier session than most online experiences, e-commerce sites enable users to browse a vast range of products – opening on average between 2-10 pages per session. In response to this, the browsing process needs to be quick to guarantee a conversion from the user. On top of this, businesses like Alsico don’t have a physical store, the quality of the user’s experience is where they build customer loyalty and determine the level of customer retention.

2. Bounce rate

In hindsight, you may have already guessed this one, but slow page speeds can increase your bounce rate percentage. Nevertheless, other than the most obvious downfall of this being that your users aren’t staying on the site, another downfall is that Google may perceive this is due to your website not holding the relevant information to answer the user’s search.

Read on to find out how this conclusion by Google could affect two separate areas of your marketing.

3. Google ads not appearing?

Any Google Ads experts out there will understand the pain of acquiring the perfectly balanced Quality Score for each of your selected keywords. To do this, there is a list of criteria that needs to be met, one of these being relevant content on the designated landing page to answer the user’s question.

As stated above, Google often views a high bounce rate as a sign that the content on said website is not relevant and leaves users dissatisfied. Therefore, the relevancy criteria would not be met and could lead to a below average Quality Score making it difficult to compete with competitors for certain keywords and resulting in your ads not being shown at all.

4. Dropped in the Google search results?

Alternatively, in conjunction with being well-optimised and referred to by other credible websites, user experience plays a key role when Google decides which websites should appear at the top of the first page. As we well know by now, page speed rates are a factor that can increase your bounce rate level, indicating that your user experience leaves little to be desired.

For example, our client – East Coast Insulations – have a rotating banner image on their homepage, static banner images on every other page, and various images that load elsewhere on the pages. As a result of this, their page speeds were detrimental to the user experience as there was an abundance of features that needed to be loaded in before the page was ready to display completely to the user. By carrying out a simple step such as compressing and resizing the images, we were able to reduce their loading times and bounce rate.

Not only will user experience determine where you appear in the organic search results, but also in the voice search results. Specifically, when a user searches verbally, the need for a quick verbal response from their voice assistant is urgent to not leave the user waiting in silence. With voice search expected to equate to 50% of searches by 2020, the importance to level your chances of appearing in them is high.

To round everything up, poor page speeds have more implications than just winding up your users and should be approached with similar attitude as site optimisation and link building: improve and excel.

Norwich law firm Hatch Brenner has appointed Solicitor Helen Barker as Head of Commercial Property.

Helen has a wide-ranging legal background, and takes up the new role having chosen to specialise in Commercial Property. Her practice will focus on working with businesses and individuals on matters including the sale and purchase of commercial property with associated business for sale, leasehold disposals and acquisitions, and landlord and tenant matters. She has particular expertise within the food and drink sector having worked with many pubs, café and restaurant business owners.

In addition to working with clients on their Commercial Property transactions, she will oversee the Commercial Property team, and help to strengthen local relationships with business owners and professionals.

Hatch Brenner Managing Partner Dawn Parkes commented: “We are all very pleased to welcome Helen to Hatch Brenner. She is a very positive and driven person, and will fit in well. Her broad experience combined with her pro-active nature will be a great asset to the firm.”

Helen added: “I am looking forward to both working with our current longstanding Commercial Property clients, and building new relationships across the city and beyond. Hatch Brenner has an excellent reputation and is a long standing, city centre firm, so I am very pleased to take up this new role. I enjoy being client-focused and can apply my breadth of experience to tailor my service in line with the objectives of my clients. Each transaction is unique and I combine attention to detail with a pragmatic approach to ensure my clients’ business needs are promptly met.”

Helen completed her Solicitor training with Hansells, Norwich, qualifying in 2011. She has previously worked at North Norfolk District Council and most recently Pope Solicitors in Cromer working across departments including Family, Private Client, and Residential and Commercial Property.

Active in Norwich networking, she also enjoys writing industry articles. Outside of work she spends time with her family, and enjoys running, singing, baking, reading, and watching films.

While all recruitment decisions are important, choosing the right executive leaders or board members can be one of the most challenging tasks a company can face. Senior appointments can have a significant impact on the strategic direction of a business and on the levels of employee engagement and motivation to deliver the planned vision of success. In turn, this all influences an organisation’s employer brand and its success in recruiting and retaining high-calibre employees at all levels.

Through our Pure Executive division, we specialise in board and top-level appointments across a range of sectors and work with organisations ranging from privately owned through to listed businesses. We are known for our personalised, consultative approach where we provide a balance between listening to employer’s needs and challenging them to make the right choices for the long term. Here are just some of the things we support clients to consider when recruiting at this level.

DIVERSITY AND COMBINED STRENGTHS

When recruiting to build a leadership team, diversity is widely understood to be fundamental. This is because all great teams display a diverse mix of qualities, skills, experiences and outlooks. The varied perspectives and a mix of voices which reflects the breadth of the organisation’s stakeholders results in stronger governance and better decision making. There are a range of ways to achieve this including through assembling a team of high performing leaders with a mix of gender, ethnicity, age and backgrounds.

Alongside this, look at the skills and experience you already have in place and examine if there are any gaps to be filled in building a team with the combined strengths needed to drive strategy, mentor and invest in staff, shape company culture, and ultimately work effectively with each other. This helps to evaluate prospective candidates for their respective abilities and aptitudes, not just their experience in a role or industry. Appointing non-executive board members can also be a highly effective way of achieving a diverse team with combined strengths. NEDs can provide not just relevant experience but also an external viewpoint as well as acting as a ‘critical friend’ to the business.

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE FOR GROWTH AMBITIONS

Establishing a strong leadership team, from senior management through to executive board, is critical to the sustainability and future success of a business. However, the search criteria for senior recruits will vary depending on the size and history of the business. The skills and experience needed to launch a business and lead it through its first few years of growth are different to the ones needed to manage an established company for example. Even when a business is well established, expanding and further strengthening the leadership team can support the organisation’s future growth by bringing in new ideas and experiences to help shape strategic direction. For example, we recently supported Treatt plc to appoint two new Non-Executive Directors in preparation for the organisation’s next phase of transformative growth. Already one of the Eastern region’s most successful companies, it was important for Treatt to attract more international business experience to its board to help drive its worldwide expansion, as well as to achieve a greater balance and diversity of thinking.

AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP QUALITIES

The subject of authentic leadership regularly comes up when we are recruiting for board and executive roles. At this level, the focus shifts from looking to find specific skills sets towards an emphasis on broader leadership qualities. Employers talk about finding candidates who are genuine and open, and those who have the ability to bring a team together by inspiring loyalty and trust. Whether leading the business as a CEO or leading the board as the chair, a poll of the Forbes Human Resources Council revealed the top traits they looked for when recruiting for these types of positions were; passion, integrity, problem-solving, action and vision sellers. These traits are all more focussed on the skills needed to effectively bring together and engage a team in delivering on the organisation’s vision.

THE RIGHT CULTURAL FIT

For a senior recruitment decision to be an effective long-term investment, cultural fit must also be taken into consideration. It’s not just about finding the right skills and experience but also about selecting those who will best suit the culture of the organisation. It is far easier for leaders to be authentic if they genuinely share an organisation’s vision, values and purpose. They are more likely to lead with the integrity, honesty and passion needed to gain credibility and trust among existing teams. They won’t feel a need to mask their true selves, will be able to show their natural style and unique strengths, and lead by example in developing and maintaining your organisation’s culture.

DEVELOPING YOUR OWN LEADERS FOR SUCCESSION PLANNING

When planning ahead for executive recruitment we are often asked whether it is better to recruit externally or to nurture potential leaders from within existing teams. There are benefits to both options and various considerations needed, for example the cost to recruit versus the cost to train employees in leadership skills. Developing your own leadership talent is likely to mean a good cultural fit is already established and that relevant company and industry knowledge will be at a premium. However, you may not gain different perspectives, achieve greater diversity or secure new areas of expertise to strengthen the existing leadership team. In essence, the decision all depends on the role, the timings, the current business plan, the vision for the future and the skills and experience already in place. At Pure, we are committed to developing the talent pipeline of Executive and Non-Executive Directors in the Eastern region with a team of highly experienced executive recruitment consultants. Our Board Ready Talent Scheme and Women’s Leadership Programme both support businesses to progress their own talented employees and to develop a succession plan for when the right leadership opportunities arise.

ABOUT GILL BUCHANAN

Gill is a founding Director of Pure and has worked in the recruitment field since 1988. Gill’s experience is broad-based and includes eight years of specialist recruitment experience within an international specialist recruitment company including five years working within financial services recruitment in Sydney, Australia.

Affiliate businesses rely on their network to be successful. Without their network, they will struggle to grow into new areas and make mutually beneficial connections. In a time when we are all scrolling through social media too much, it can be difficult to make those connections, but conferences are one way of saying hello to potential business partners and even shaking hand on new deals. Here are some of the best reasons why conferences are essential to affiliate businesses.

1.   Networking

One of the first advantages of saying yes to your next conference invite is to network. This was touched on above and is one of the first benefits people think of when considering going to an event like these. However, many do not make the most of their opportunity to network. They do not prepare or execute a strategy to network and sometimes people stick to familiar faces rather than branching out. Networking requires you to step outside of your safe space and choose to interact with new people. In fact, reaching a hand out to industries you do not network with enough can be especially beneficial and open unseen opportunities. So, next time you are at a conference, head on over to the table of that marketing company you keep seeing branded around. You may find great relationships in unlikely places.

2.   Making Old Connections

Just like conferences are great for making new connections and expanding your network, they are also the perfect place to meet up with your current business partners and affiliates. Making time for these people during the hectic business schedule can be difficult and a conference allows you to meet up with many of them at once, without wrestling with logistic headaches and time constraints. You also need to make sure you are at the forefront of these people’s minds to secure further deals and continue your relationship. Many businesses receive a majority of their success through limited avenues. If you are one of these businesses, maintaining relationships can be just as important as creating new ones. A perfect example of this is Affiliate conferences in the gaming arena, where even global brands like PartyCasino take advantage of these events to re-acquaint themselves with current partners and foster new relationships as well.

3.   Knowledge is Power

The core aim of a conference may be seen as a place to network, but we should not forget that conferences are also put on to share knowledge and innovations. By attending conferences, you reduce the chance of your affiliate business from missing out on opportunities to embrace the latest developments. You also stay up to date on the ways that technology is reshaping your key areas. Knowledge is certainly power – and conferences are one way of getting your share.

RSVP Yes!

Next time you and your business partners are invited to a conference, instead of scoffing at the thought of sub-standard sandwiches and boring seminars, consider going to meet new prospects and a benefit in a whole host of other ways.

In April just gone, it was the 100th Anniversary of the death of Frank Winfield Woolworth, the American entrepreneur who founded F.W. Woolworth or ‘Woollies’ as it was fondly known in the UK. He was one of the first retailers who bought goods directly from manufacturers and suppliers, and then fixed the selling prices on them rather than haggling. He then came up with the revolutionary idea of turning the counters round allowing customers to self-serve themselves and look, touch and feel the merchandise without the need of a sales assistant, and so you could just select and pay the cashier. Those two ideas changed the course of retailing and shopping, making Frank a multi-millionaire whilst giving him enough spare money to build what was then the tallest building in New York (and the world) at a cost of $13.5 million, which Frank paid for in cash!

I wonder what Frank would now make of the latest ‘GO!’ store opened in San Francisco by Amazon, which has no sales staff, no tills and of course, no cashiers? The store sells prepared food stuffs, snacks, and drinks with a particular focus on Amazon’s new own brand of sandwiches, salads and what is known in the USA as ‘meal kits’ (partially-prepared food ingredients and recipes to prepare homecooked meals), but the big difference is the removal of the checkout completely. So how does that work? Well instead of standing in a queue to pay after selecting your food and drink or snack, you just simply leave the store because on entering the store you will have scanned in on your Amazon ‘GO!’ account and the cameras and sensors in the store then track your movements registering what you have taken, so that when you walk out your Amazon standalone ‘Go!’ App account is updated and charged for your shopping, for which you receive a digital receipt via the App for the goods you bought. This new concept is sure to have a dynamic effect on the types of jobs that will employ people in the future, and how the power and quality of the brand will figure in choice and where packaging becomes the silent salesperson.

It is clear that at least in the San Francisco area, Amazon are targeting delis, cafes, lunch takeaway stores and drugstores with their new retail model. Amazon have also made the conscious decision of installing their own central kitchens to produce the freshly made foods so that they can also control and maintain high quality standards and include variety. So for the first time we see a major online player like Amazon showing where the future of offline retail is bound to go in food outlets and much more, where the only staff in the store are the merchandisers, until the robots take over. Would Frank be turning in his grave, I rather doubt it.

We are already experiencing the change that self-checkouts have had in our supermarkets and how this will continue changing the shopping experiences for consumers as each quantum leap in technology evolves, whilst also changing the business models for business owners and affecting the type of jobs that will be on offer and the training that will be offered. Some job types may disappear entirely.

How employers hire people and who they hire has also been affected by the leaps and bounds in technology. For many companies we are already seeing signs that the part of the country where you live no longer affects your ability to do a job or manage people. A manager living in Leeds can now manage a team of people in London and vice versa, and because of email, social media and video-conferencing utilising Skype, Google Chat, etc., more people are ‘tele-commuting’ rather than the need for them to spend several hours in a car going from A to B.

What comes with these innovations and the changes they make to our work patterns and lifestyles is the danger that there is too much technology, and with the ability for people to be ‘available’ all of the time it becomes so easy to always be ‘on call’ and not clocking out by turning off emails and notifications, or turning off your mobile phone, which can be crucial when trying to avoid techno-burnout. Amazon have now entered the market with a convenience store that has no staff or checkout because people do not have the time to queue and pay, but it is important to remember that every day we all need to checkout from work to find ourselves some #MeTime.