Avant Link ® Full Review

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AvantLink is an affiliate network that connects businesses with marketers. Merchants can use the advantages of affiliate marketing to boost their brand both in terms of reach and increased sales and profit. The main benefit of affiliate marketing is the exposure in new spheres and channels otherwise not reachable by traditional marketing efforts.

AvantLink hosts several international affiliate networks that are country specific, featuring USA, Canada and Australia networks. This company accepts merchants from a wide variety of industries, which in turn attracts potential affiliates. Affiliates are individuals who join an affiliate program set up by merchants in order to market certain products. Affiliates are the ones who further handle the marketing and get creative trying to sell the products from the program in order to earn a commission. This commission based on the sale amount is what motivates affiliates to give their best in trying to successfully market the products and generate sales.

 

So How Does It Work?

AvantLink provides a platform in form of online interface where merchants and affiliates can collaborate. This interface is used to facilitate the mutual marketing efforts. Merchants need to provide information about their affiliate program, set commission percentages and all the details about their products. Affiliates can then take this information and details to further market products which are part of the affiliate program. System handles tracking of all sales and commission eligibility.

When user visits AvantLink, he needs to specify if he is a Merchant or Affiliate.

Merchants

Merchants need to sign up on the site and decide which network they would like to become a part of. There are three to choose from: United States, Canada and Australia. Merchants should choose the region they would like to focus their marketing efforts in. Businesses can take advantage of the technology, transparency and already large affiliate base on the network to achieve a high return of investment through affiliate program marketing. Affiliate marketing is a model that usually favors merchants a bit more than affiliates. This is because merchants have a choice of paying only for certain results, such as sales. Other, more traditional marketing models are usually billed on impressions or clicks basis. Unfortunately, impressions or clicks on ads not always result in sales, which can render some online marketing campaigns ineffective.

Upon joining the network, merchants will add information about their products in the system. Affiliates will then be able to join the program and scoop up information on those products available. They will then try to market those products through their channels, on their own. This means that affiliates might post links on their blogs or websites to your products sales pages. If any visitor clicks on those links while reading the blog and that action results in the end in a sale of that product then affiliate will earn a preset commission based on the product price. If there are no sales, merchant does not need to pay. This is what makes this model attractive to businesses. On the other hand, affiliates can find a lot of value and make quite a bit of passive income by working on promoting products they feel good about. Only well-established retailers that have quality products to offer are allowed on the network.

When merchants login on the network they are presented with a merchant panel. This is where they can setup everything. In the top there is a home menu, affiliates menu, tools, account settings, reports and support tab.

All merchant videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL75225FB2B16AE2DA

 

 

Affiliates

Affiliates need to use getting started link on the homepage to sign up in order to join the network. They also get to select a sub-network they would like to join, based on their region of interest. Once on the network, affiliates can browse the available affiliate programs and join the ones that fit their niche. This depends on the kind of online presence they have. Usually bloggers would match up their blog niche with products they promote through the blog. Sport portal websites might decide to market sport products and gear. This match between target audience and product is very important in making the marketing campaigns effective.

This network guarantees that all the merchants on the network will be of high quality. Precise tracking technologies are implemented, as well as great support for affiliates. Affiliates can use the provided reporting data to adjust their marketing strategies in order to increase revenue.

When affiliates login, they will get access to the affiliates panel. This is the interface they will be using to interact with the merchants and network. On the top of the screen there is a header menu with the links to home, merchants section, tools, account settings, reports and support. Each section contains related options and settings.

All affiliate related videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL348CD950D86034A6

 

 

 

 

Plans and Pricing

There are three service levels merchants can choose from.

All plans are available for a fee, which is charged monthly.

 

1. Basic – Program Coach

This plan includes three months of coaching on ways to setup your affiliate program in order to gain optimum results. This plan is usually suitable for those business owners who have a dedicated affiliate manager that is currently in the training. This way, he will get proper training in affiliate management and learn new tricks.

 

2. Advanced – Program Manager

This program features all the same benefits of the most advanced program offered (Expert Program Manager) with the exception that it covers only 3 months. After 3 months have passed, all the duties will be handled back to your in-house affiliate manager.

 

3. Expert – Program Manager

This is the completely outsourced affiliate program solution. AvantLink will handle everything related to your affiliate program and optimize the campaigns to bring optimum results and return of investment. This plan is great for those who do not have their own affiliate manager yet are looking to start a robust affiliate marketing program. There is also a note listed on their website which claims that clients who choose this program usually see a positive return of investment in 2 to 8 months.
It is also possible to email AvantLink (partnerships@avantlink.com) to request a custom plan better suited to your individual needs.

 

 

How to Get Started?

Go to the homepage and then click on the “Get started” button found in the top right corner. There you get to choose to join the network as merchant or affiliate.

Choose “merchant” and then you will need to choose which network you would like to join (USA, Canada or Australia). Fill in the necessary data about your company and click on signup button found in the footer to get started.

Affiliates should choose “affiliate” upon signing up and enter details about their site as well as personal and contact data.

 

 

The benefits

Instant exposure to a large base of potential affiliates. This is a major benefit over affiliate software solutions out there as it can help you start a program and get it to generate traffic and sales faster.
Fully managed plan tailored for those merchants who do not have a dedicated affiliate manager
Network focused on different, country specific regions
Availability of training for new merchants or for their intern affiliate managers
Support for affiliates
Available affiliate programs listed on the site (no need for signup to see the details)

 

 

Downsides

Affiliate networks charge all kinds of fees starting from network fee to transaction fees for each sale. If you are looking to avoid these additional costs and prefer a fixed priced solutions, check out affiliate software possibilities

 

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

“I am new to the network and affiliate marketing. Are there any how-to materials available for merchants? “

Yes, you can check various articles as well as instructional videos to get started. These can be found via support page.

“How are monthly charges billed?”

At the end of each month the system will automatically charge the merchants’ payment source for the previous month.

“Can anyone become a merchant?”

No, only high quality merchants with good reputation will be accepted.

“Is affiliate application instantaneous?”

Each affiliate application is reviewed and it takes a bit of time for a potential affiliate to get accepted.

“When are affiliates paid?”

Eligible affiliates are paid on the 25th of each month.

“I am a new merchant on the network. Can I get training?”

There is a weekly training session scheduled for 11 am to 1 pm mountain time which covers topics relevant to new merchants.

“How are sales tracked?”

There is a code which needs to be inserted on every page of your website for successful tracking. The code functions in a similar way web analytics systems do, tracking visitor behavior on the site via cookies.

“How can I get support?”

Besides contacting AvantLink support team, there are highly useful blog posts as well as forum for discussion of any possible issues.

 

 

About The Company

Quality, ethics and innovations are the foundations for building the AvantLink Company led by Scott Kalbach (founder and CEO). Their team is highly skilled in various sectors and this insures quality support, as well as marketing campaign management and optimization. Company headquarters are located in Utah. This is a privately owned company.

 

 

 

Final Recommendation

AvantLink is an interesting affiliate network to join if you are looking to start from scratch or boost affiliate program sales. This company offers a range of subscription plans, based on the level of support and management needed. This is great for those merchants who do not have a dedicated affiliate manager and would like to leave everything to AvantLink and their experts. This way, all the tasks of campaign management, optimization and marketing can potentially be outsourced to AvantLink. When merchants opt for this kind of service, there is a strong chance of positive return of investment in the first year.

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