Big brands missing out on affiliate potential

Bigmouthmedia has warned that some of Britain's biggest brands are missing out on a potential online revenue stream worth more than GBP370m by ignoring affiliate marketing.

The agency said that an analysis of the FTSE 100's digital marketing activity revealed that some of the country's top companies stand to lose out on a raft of sales in 2009.

While the majority of the UK's leading companies run successful affiliate marketing campaigns responsible for increasing internet sales on average by 15 per cent, many major corporations are still failing to exploit the channel.

Lyndsay Menzies, chief operations officer at Bigmouthmedia, said: 'This is just the tip of the iceberg.

'The research focused solely on FTSE 100 operations, but if Britain's biggest companies are failing to capitalise on such a lucrative revenue stream, the amounts being lost across the entire UK business spectrum could be significant.

'Affiliate marketing is a well-established and proven digital channel, and the fact that so many leading companies continue to ignore it is remarkable in light of the current economic situation,' she added.

Online FTSE 100 revenues were calculated using recent British Retail Index estimates that 15 pence in every pound is now spent online.

Figures included only income derived from goods and services sold direct to consumers.

In the interests of accuracy, only FTSE-listed companies trading with the public were included in the analysis.

Due to the current unpredictable nature of the savings and loans sector, banking organisations were similarly discounted.

Although there is broad industry consensus that affiliate marketing campaigns that are run according to best practice guidelines can boost online revenues by up to 15 per cent, Bigmouthmedia calculated the listed companies' potential 2009 income from the channel based on a more conservative figure of 10 per cent.

Jen Brain, affiliates manager at Bigmouthmedia, said: 'Affiliate marketing is a pay-for-performance model - you can see exactly where your pound is being spent.

'It is a proven channel for acquiring new customers, driving incremental sales and getting brand exposure on sites that you would not necessarily traditionally target through other online marketing strategies.

'The low financial risk associated with the affiliate channel makes it an ideal marketing tool in the current economic environment and one that all transactional websites should look to invest in,' she added.

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