Unfortunately this week we had a mic failure on Mike’s part, so even though I could hear him when we were recording the podcast on Skype, when listening back he was inaudible.  I tried amplifying it and leveling it and everything, but it was a lost cause.  So instead, we decided I’d give you a recap on what we talked about since they were all pretty important issues.  Basically, we’re taking a page from Shawn Collins’ book on podcast failures ;).  So the title refers both to all the changes going on with tax rules and disclosure regarding affiliates AND to the change Mike has to make to get the recording right next week!

The recap episode is a short and sweet 26 minutes on the dot since it includes a Jackson tribute at the end.

In this show, we discussed:

• A recap of Affiliate Convention.
• Amazon dropped North Carolina affiliates and sent a warning letter to Rhode Island affiliates.  Darren Rowse wrote about it on Problogger.
• The FTC is tightening it’s rules regarding disclosure, but it’s still ambiguous enough to leave affiliates questioning what this means for them.  Daniel M. Clark wrote an article on the FTC disclosure issue, as well as Brian Clark of Copyblogger’s wrote about how to turn disclosure into a selling point.
• Twitter servers took a hit yesterday when the news about Michael Jackson’s sudden death broke.  Are they ready to be a major search engine?
• Rumors swirled about other celebrity deaths - this doesn’t make Twitter look like a legitimate resource in the eyes of skeptics.
• Finally, Rest in Peace to Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson, who both passed away yesterday.  We pay tribute to MJ and pontificated on whether or not we’d see affiliates attempting to capitalize on these events.  I see just now that Shawn Collins is thinking about this topic as well on his blog.

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So without further ado, PMG at Affiliate Convention.

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Unfortunately, the only panels I was able to attend were the Super Affiliate Strategies panel and the Final Debate panel, both of which involved Heather speaking, so I was focused on taking lots of pictures and video and not taking notes to share here like I normally do.  But the plus side is that I’ll be sharing the video of some of Heather’s bits of knowledge soon.  The irony in this is that Affiliate Convention was definitely geared more towards the education of affiliates and less about trends in the industry.  With affiliates getting free entry, there was an overwhelming show that I’ve not seen at past Affiliate Summit’s I’ve attended.  Paulson Management Group was the only OPM in strong attendance, which was good for us that we stood out, but a little frustrating to explain 100 times that we weren’t a network of some kind (almost all of the other exhibitors were networks).

We avoided the opening night’s party being held at a gentleman’s club (in full operation), and instead spent the evening in Boulder, where PMG is based and Tony & I (both having flown out from California) were staying. The following day, the first day of Affiliate Convention offered a huge turn out of affiliates wandering the exhibit hall floor, which was a quite intimate setting with about 20-25 exhibitors divided between full booths and table tops.  We were always busy telling affiliates about the programs we manage that they’d be interested in, and it wasn’t just because we had plates of cookies!  We took turns in the booth, making sure we all got a chance to network, wander around to check out the conference, and took PLENTY of photos with various affiliates and other industry folks that stopped by to chat!

Later that night, as I mentioned before, PMG threw a great party at Alto Restaurant in the lower downtown (LoDo) area of Denver.  It was a fantastic venue that offered plenty of room for people to wander around and network.  Jazz filled the rooms at first, but once the in-house DJ showed up, we let him do his thing and the result was a strange yet awesome mix of newer hip hop, rock, and some 80’s songs thrown in.  We gave away a Flip Mino HD Video Camera to CPA network XY7 for all they did in helping Affiliate Convention happen.  Afterward we headed to the WebmasterRadio.fm Affiliate Bash just around the corner, where libations and good times were had.  The party had hired some wait staff ladies to be topless and painted with scenes of Colorado on their fronts and the logos of the sponsors on their backs.  It was definitely interesting to see the artists work freehand trying to recreate photos of scenery and the logos (and some men behaving questionably as the night wore on).

The second day was a bit slower in terms of the exhibit hall, but I know the session in which I was a speaker, Social Media Marketing, was standing room only!  I hear most of the other sessions were that way too.  Moderated by Dave Taylor, our panel featured myself, Wade Sisson of PartnerCentric, and David Snyder of Search & Social.  David trucked through despite a cold, and I forgot the last point I was going to make during the Q&A, but otherwise I think it was fantastic.  I heard some good feedback, and if you were there and have more feedback for me I’m all ears!  I’ve spoken before at the Social Media Marketing Summit back in October, but this was definitely more of an industry conference, so I was a tiny bit more nervous.  But it was excellent practice for my upcomming panel at Affiliate Summit East 2009 in August!

Heather spoke on the final panel, which was billed as a debate but ended up more like an “Ask the Experts” panel, which was cool too.  I busted out my Flip and took some video of her nuggets of information, which I’ll share soon.  After the event was done, some people headed over to a final party, but thanks to Dina and MarketLeverage, Tony and I headed over to Coors Field to check out a Colorado Rockies game!  So, yeah big thanks while I’m at it to MarketLeverage for being awesome and getting a sky box that had tons of food, a great view, and awesome company.  Another quick shout out to Tony & my new network BFF’s NDemand Affliates’ Mike & Robert for the ride back to Boulder and good times.

Saturday our team decided to sleep in and skip the Webmaster Pub Social and have a team BBQ.  Tony did a great job corralling the fire and the chicken drumsticks were awesome.  The flight home was uneventful and I’m glad to be back at sea level and ready to hit the ground running with all the new stuff I picked up from attending!

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You may remember the grass-roots campaign we waged in April, to defeat an anti-affiliate tax bill that would have a detrimental effect on affiliate programs. Even though we defeated that bill, it has been revived, in a desperate hope to help California’s budget crisis. The bill was originally defeated thanks to the affiliate community in California, who was responsible for convincing the sponsoring committee that this bill was a bad idea. Now it is time to repeat that stellar effort, because we have a few more people to convince.

So we need your assistance again!  Below is a list of important California officials that need to hear from you that this is a BAD idea!  Also below is the copy you can feel free to paste into the email you send to them!  Some folks are going back to Sacramento today to do what they can, and unfortunately I won’t be able to join them this time.  So I sent emails.  I checked these against the website and they all seem accurate even though several of mine bounced back, so I’m also including a link to their website’s contact form.  Note, however, that some won’t accept correspondence from an address outside their district, which I think is complete fail of the system, but that’s just me.

• Senator Lois Wolk - Senator.Wolk@senate.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Darrell Steinberg - senator.steinberg@sen.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Elaine Alquist - senator.alquist@sen.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Roderick Wright - Senator.Wright@senate.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Ronald Calderon - senator.calderon@sen.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod - senator.mcleod@sen.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Lou Correa - senator.correa@sen.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Senator Denise Ducheny - Senator.Ducheny@senate.ca.gov - Contact Form
• Jennifer Kent (Gov. Schwarzenegger’s tax adviser; please address as “Ms. Kent”) - Jennifer.Kent@gov.ca.gov

Here is the email copy you can paste into the email.  Remember to edit the parts I’ve italicized in red below.  Commission Junction’s template can be found here.

Subject: OPPOSITION to Sales/Use Tax Nexus Bill (AB 178 Skinner)

Dear Senator [Insert Last Name]

I am a small business owner with a website, and I am in strong opposition to Sales/Use Tax Nexus Bill (AB 178 Skinner), which would require retailers that receive referrals from advertising on websites, such as mine, to collect sales tax in California.

I am opposed to this bill because it would substantially harm my small business by reducing a large source of revenue that I depend on to survive. This revenue results from providing advertising on my website on behalf of out-of-state retailers. [Describe briefly how your business model is set-up and what you contribute to the local economy.]

If retailers believe that doing business with me will result in their having to collect sales tax on all California sales, they likely will sever ties with my business, putting the viability of my business at risk. Such was the case in New York State where Overstock dismantled its affiliates program and hundreds of other business followed Overstock’s example. This left thousands of small and medium-sized affiliate businesses with a 50% loss of income.

Unfortunately, this bill is futile. If enacted, retailers will drop me as a partner, California won’t collect sales tax as a result - and my business will be devastated in the process.

For these reasons, I respectfully oppose this legislation.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]

Please be sure to spread the word to your fellow affiliates potentially affected by this bill!

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Okay, I got caught up on Friday with lots of work, so I didn’t get this episode edited until this weekend so we talk a lot about dated stuff, unfortunately.  But never fear - there’s plenty of good stuff that we cover in our sweet, sweet 30 minutes of podcast.

• We chat about the Bay Area Affiliate Managers Coalition meeting held at eBay.
• The countdown excitement to getting vanity URLs for our Facebook profiles, and the nice aspect of having unique names.
• The Interactive Advertising Bureau’s video featuring Tim Carter of AskTheBuilder.com.
• Affiliate conferences coming up, including my excitement about traveling to Denver for the first time and a long foodie aside on bagels and pizza in the now SOLD OUT (exhibitors and meet market tables) Affiliate Summit in NYC.
• Using Skype for business calls, podcasts, and actually paying for a subscription.
• Finally a big shout out to custom bumper stickers giant John Fischer of Sticker Giant for helping us out for our upcoming Getting Noticed FAST panel in August.

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• A4U Awards Winners for 2009 were announced after the ceremony in New York on Tuesday.  Congrats to all the winners!
• James Martell wrote a good post on Affiliate Summit with some great tips for attendees.
• Twitter is on the cover of Time Magazine.  Sigh.
• Huge shout out to StickerGiant.com and their CEO John Fischer for his help with some nifty stickers to give away to our audience of the Getting Noticed FAST panel at Affiliate Summit this coming August!

I know, this doesn’t even scratch the surface, but before some of this gets TOO outdated, I wanted to share!

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Guest Post by Nicole Munoz

Sales are down, investors are bailing, and companies are laying people off left and right because they can no longer afford to staff full time workers. It’s been a heartbreaking process for millions of people across the country who awaken to the reality that they no longer have a job to go. But let’s take a positive look at how this can be good for everyone; businesses and the unemployed alike. Many experienced professionals with new-found time on their hands are turning to outsourcing their skills to make some extra money while they search for full-time work. There are benefits for the hiring companies as well. This blog will look at the top 5 reasons why outsourcing is a great idea.

For many of us, cutting down our expenses has become a routine part of life. Companies are no different. Once a full time staff member has been let go, there is an empty space in the function of the organization that still needs to be filled by someone. Other employees may be asked to take on the additional role, and for expense’s sake, it’s a good idea to utilize them until sales increase. However, an even better idea is to outsource! With this form of employment, a company can save on the expense of having a desk, PC, office supplies, etc. set aside for that person. Outsourced workers usually work from home and are available by phone, email, or fax which means that they are instantly accessible.

Another great reason to outsource your work is that there is a large pool of potentials ready to be interviewed at any time you need. With companies like elance and oDesk, they have freelance workers ready to start immediately. They can bid on the projects and job openings that companies post. Many times, the freelancers get paid by the project to complete projects, but they can certainly be hired on a permanent basis. Each person receives feedback after they complete a job or project, so new clients can see that they have a good reputation. Another type of outsourcing, as with StartRankingNow, employs a set of people who are always on stand by to take projects immediately when clients knock at their door. Each person is contracted out to perform certain jobs based on their skill sets.

Third on the list of reasons is convenience. It is extremely fitting, especially in this economy, to hire someone “by the project” if you aren’t prepared to hire someone full time. If you needed marketing brochures or web content, for example, you could hire an expert to get the project done right away. After everything is completed, you can get back to running your business. Expertise is another great reason to outsource your work. With a flooded job market, there are tons of specially-skilled professionals ready for the opportunity to get hired out for your projects. This economy has given companies an even better choice of qualified individuals to hire for any task they need completed!

Finally, outsourcing is a great method for hiring because project tracking is already done for you online. Due dates for rough drafts, revisions, and final drafts are all laid out by the client and adjusted as necessary. Project management is easier and faster than ever with these helpful online tools! So, don’t spend another moment worrying about how your site is ranking; find an SEO Expert to outsource!

–

Nicole Munoz is the owner of Start Ranking Now. She is an SEO Outsourcing, Link Building, and Social Media Expert. She also conducts SEO training in San Diego to other entrepreneurs and Internet marketing professionals.

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Another two weeks has passed and we’re back. We started with a good sized agenda and elaborated into areas we didn’t expect. Despite trying to keep it short since Mike’s not feeling well, we still ran a hearty 45 minutes. Remember to drink your fluids, kids! In in this episode we discuss:

• Twitter Job Search?
• Twitter TV Show?! Twitter says not so fast.
• Blink 182 Tweet Deck
• Whatever happened to WeFollow?
• Server issues Mike’s having with GoDaddy Shared Server Hosting.  Might try Host Gator, BlueHost, HostMonster, JustHost.  Not ready for dedicated servers like Rackspace.
• Update on DataFeedR data feed plug-in Mike’s using
• Blogger LinkUp Update

So please, go check it out and comment and let us know what you think!

Affiliate Marketing Fanatics 8: Twitter Obsession and Some Real Tools

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• Last week I reported that Affiliate Summit East 2009 was all sold out of booths.  They’re now all sold out of Meet Market tables as well, the first time for them that they’ve sold out of exhibitor space before Early Bird pricing was done.  Congrats to the ASE09 team!
• Speaking of Affiliate Summit, co-founders Missy Ward and Shawn Collins were in Dallas at the Inbound Marketing Summit speaking about monetizing blogs.  Missy was kind enough to share their slides from the presentation.
• Affiliate network ShareASale is toying with an Affiliate API and has released the initial sections for use.
• Google recently changed their trademarks policy in regards to AdWords paid search ads.  Search Engine Land wrote an article on how to protect your brand under Google’s new trademark policy, and Geno Prussakov also wrote an article on how this applies to affiliate marketing.
• Apparently Google mucked around with PageRank… AGAIN… and devalued Twitter profiles.  Which is fine with me since I realized awhile back my twitter page was  PR9 when this here blog was only PR2 (currently my twitter page is a PR3).  What really irritated me was that, out of nowhere, this blog went down to PR0 out of nowhere with no real changes other than a redesign (that, if anything, should have HELPED SEO).  So in my opinion Google can shove with with their PageRank racket anyway.  Anyway, Andy Beard explains a few things about the change.
• I’ve seen a certain someone from a certain CPA network tweeting a lot in the last two days about making money from Twitter with CPA ads.  That seems to be ALL this person is tweeting about and it’s getting on my anti-spam nerves.  So instead of calling this person out, I’ll be passive-aggressive and just pass on this article for everyone: 10 Irritating Mistakes that People Make with Twitter. Thanks Nikki Pilkington for a good article right when I was thinking about it!
• I’m a big fan of to-do lists.  There’s been some talk about different apps recently (I was turned onto Toodledoo and love its integration with iGoogle homepage).  Nate Moller wrote a great article on why to-do lists are key to entrepreneur success that any slightly unmotivated or scattered entrepreneur should read!

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Affiliate Convention - June 18th & 19th - Denver, CO
Friday, June 19th.  10:15 - 11:15 am.
Super Affiliate Room I: Social Media Marketing

Do you Tweet? Have you found Facebook useful for fun and profit? Wade Sisson, David Snyder, and Trisha Lyn Fawver take this session through the various social media applications and teaches several ways to successfully harness the power of speaking to a massive audience of friends, followers and fellow social media users.

I’ll be speaking along side: Wade Sisson, Director of Marketing for PartnerCentric and David Snyder, Co-Founder of Search & Social

Affiliate Summit East 2009 - August 9th - 11th - New York, NY
Sunday, August 9th.  12:00 - 1:00 pm.
Classroom D: Getting Noticed FAST

Regardless what your role in the industry is, it’s important to be noticed within the industry. Learn the networking and social media techniques that make it possible.

Our panel will be moderated by Lisa Picarille, Online Marketing Consultant at LisaPicarille.com.  I’ll be joined by Mike Buechele, Founder of Comic Book Fury, Jen Goode, Doodler-in-Charge of JGoode Designs, and Stephanie Lichtenstein, Affiliate Program Manager for Andy Rodriguez Consulting.

Some come on out!  I’ll have plenty of good things to say and you’ll be able to meet me live and in person!

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