VigLink

Blogs Drive Purchase Intent

March 12, 2013

We knew it. You knew it. Now here’s the proof.

Last week a new report published by Technorati, the 2013 Digital Influence Report, showed that blogs are more likely to influence consumer purchase behavior that any other independent online media. More than Twitter, Facebook, even online magazines, consumers reported that blogs ranked behind only the retail and brand sites themselves. Consumers continue to rate blogs one of the most overall trustworthy sources of information on the internet.


The report pointed out that ‘brands spending is not fully aligned with how and where consumers are seeing value and being influenced’. Despite this, bloggers reported that e-commerce and affiliate links were the most acceptable forms of monetization.


Consumers value bloggers to guide their the purchase decisions and as a source of inspiration and clarity, cutting through the noise. Bloggers want to get compensated for this by using monetization methods that connect them directly to the purchase decisions they shape. We have said this all along and have created the tools to capture your value.

Posted in Content-Driven Commerce, News and Updates, Relevant Reading

A Blogger’s Guide to Earning More

March 4, 2013

You’ve built a following. You’re working hard to create unique, compelling, and engaging material that your followers love to read. So how do you grow your revenue? Surely it doesn’t mean resorting to plastering your blog with banner ads. Does it mean degrading your editorial integrity and selling your posts? It doesn’t mean either of these, we promise.

The old mode of online retailing – going to the store and figuring out what you want to buy – is increasingly outdated. These days it’s about finding and listening to your chosen and trusted experts – friends, forum communities, and, yes, you.  It’s bloggers like you who provide the most trusted advice: you are the muse and the inspiration. Indeed, it is your content that is increasingly driving sales (2x faster than overall e-commerce). So how can you capitalize on your value?

The solution is native monetization – a method of generating revenue in a way that’s organic to your site and maintains (or even improves) the user experience. This is the opposite of traditional monetization that degrades and distracts the user. Using the humble hyperlink and our technology, anyone can turn their content into revenue without having to wallpaper your blog with ugly, outdated and often irrelevant banner advertising.

In this guide, we lay out how you can take your blog from being average, to being a top earner. It’s all about the Three Bs: Brand, Bond and Business. We steer you through the key steps to develop and optimize your brand, the bond you build with your followers, and the business you aim to drive. The guide helps you leverage your influence and your audience to turn your click-throughs into commerce. In just 5 easy and concrete steps, VigLink can help you to earn more, much more, through what you do best – blogging.

Download your copy now

Content-driven commerce is changing the way consumers buy, merchants sell, and publishers earn. Make the most of it!

 

Posted in Content Monetization, Content-Driven Commerce, Publisher Best Practices

Need Content-Driven Commerce be So Complicated?

February 5, 2013

Two articles recently hit our radar that speak to the opportunities, but also the challenges, of capturing the real value created by content that drives commerce:

AdWeek dove into the recent efforts of some traditional publishers such as Harper’s Bazaar to drive e-commerce. Meanwhile, eMedia Vitals profiled Dwell’s efforts to move into “contextual commerce.”

In both of these articles, the reporters point to media companies taking some extraordinary steps to connect with shoppers and expand their revenue sources beyond traditional advertising. They cite Thrillist purchasing flash deal site JackThreads “after seeing the enormity of the JackThreads warehouse operation.” They cite Dwell partnering with AhaLife to make a fully “shoppable” magazine using a mobile app complete with augmented reality technology.

These are creative ideas, yes, but they are also remarkably difficult (not to mention expensive) to execute. Should media companies really start taking on merchandise inventory and the real estate to house it? Should magazines look beyond the reader adoption of specific smart-phone apps tied to a single retailer?

As you might have guessed, we think there’s an much easier way to capture the value of contextual commerce at scale: The hyperlink (as monetized by VigLink, of course). From QR codes in print to plain old webpages, the hyperlink is ready and willing to convert the purchase intent created by media into a sale, and a sale into a commission, across thousands of retailers.

 

 

Posted in Content Monetization, Content-Driven Commerce, Relevant Reading

Playing Cupid Pays: Consumers will Spend about $3.4B Online for Valentine’s Day

January 31, 2013

People celebrating V-Day will shell out an average of $125, according to 2012 data from the National Retail Federation. The holiday is about “wants” instead of “needs,” so people are looking for creative ideas. They’ll turn to publishers, forums, and blogs for inspiration.

Here are a few more facts about Valentine’s Day purchases:

  • Half will buy candy
  • 19% will buy jewelry
  • 36% will buy flowers (and we’re now offering 18% commission from 1-800-Flowers.com!)
  • 5.6% will treat someone to a nice evening out
  • Men spend twice as much as women
  • People buy for their pets (seriously!)
  • 13.3% will buy gift cards

Stats aside, the most successful publishers will think outside the box for nontraditional gift ideas as well – those that match their “voice” as an expert and speak to their audience.

This brings up a good point about thinking like a retailer: V-Day is a shopping opportunity, one that retailers know how to promote and package. Shouldn’t you do the same with your site?

The calendar has opportunities for content-driven commerce all year long. Valentine’s Day now, followed by Spring Break season (a great opportunity to showcase travel accessories, fashion and stuff to keep the kids busy), Spring Fashion season, Mother’s Day, graduation…you get the idea.

Make it work today to maximize your revenues:

  • Stay a bit ahead to find items that inspire your audience.
  • Time your content to appear when your audience is in a buying frame of mind. (Hence the timing of this post.) Too early and they’ll hesitate; too late and they’ll miss.
  • Browse VigLink’s Merchant Explorer tool to find merchants that monetize and the best commission rates.
  • Visit VigLink Insider to find the latest offers and commission increases (and we’ve got a ton for Valentine’s Day)
  • Want to go further? Developers can use the VigLink API Product Catalog to capture product images, compare prices, find deals, and offer coupons to drive purchase intent and significantly increase click-through rates.

More to come: Check back for our soon-to-be published “Think Like a Retailer: A Publisher’s Guide Maximizing Revenue.”

 

 

Posted in Content-Driven Commerce, Publisher Best Practices

Publishers: You’re in the Driver’s Seat of E-commerce — and Driving Twice as Fast

January 24, 2013

Our analysis of comScore’s recently reported holiday e-commerce figures shows that while holiday e-commerce as a whole grew 14% over 2011, “content-driven commerce” —  defined as e-retail sales linked from blogs, forums and social curation sites (aka your world)  – grew more than twice as fast, at 31%. (See our related press release for details.)

Congratulations — it’s a pretty big achievement for VigLink publishers. What does this really mean to you?

  1. You are the driver of consumer spend in the e-commerce equation. Your influence – your brand – is changing buyer behavior. Content-driven commerce is real and growing. In a recent BlogHer survey about women and their social media habits, 81% of women representing the general U.S. population said they trusted blogs most to learn about new products, to read product recommendations and make purchase decisions. For forums, the influence is tangible, as well: More than 53% of respondents in a survey from Huddler (a fellow VigLink customer) reported that they had made purchases in the past 12 months as a direct result of doing research on enthusiast communities. Social curation apps like Wanelo, ranked in the top 50 on iTunes’ App Store, and similar sites are exploding as a means of personal/consumer expression.
  1. Consumers want to shop through your “vision” — and merchants want to tap into your influence to reach them. Consumers are tired of intrusive, distracting, and generally irrelevant advertising in traditional forms. Brands and e-retailers are realizing that affiliation with a curated blog or community that has a loyal audience is much more cost efficient and effective than banner and pop-up ads. Once garnering a click through rate (CTR) as high as 78%, today display ads generate a CTR of just 0.09%. Your context is valuable, results in strong commission rates and true audience engagement.
  1. Our momentum pays off for you directly. In 2012, we quadrupled our publisher base and more than doubled our merchant base, now capturing over 90% of the affiliate programs within the Internet Retailer Top 500. As more publishers use VigLink, the network’s value to merchants grows, enabling higher commissions.

We’ll continue to analyze the power of content-driven commerce, giving you stats and practical advice on how to “merchandise” your influence to greatest profits. (In the meantime, check out some tips inspired by Shauna Miller of PennyChic fame, here.)

How are you measuring your impact? In followers, revenues, or both? Tell us! We’re only a tweet away.

 

Posted in Content-Driven Commerce, News and Updates