One of the mainstays of affiliate marketing is the e-mail marketer. A person or company who owns an e-mail list and knows how to use it can make a great living as an affiliate. In the world of affiliate advertising, an e-mailer is very close to the top of the food chain.

E-mailers have their pick of offers, and most merchants and networks have plenty of e-mail offers available. The popularity of e-mail marketing stems from one main fact – when e-mailers work they make money not only for themselves, but for the advertiser they are representing because they can reach consumers quickly and efficiently through their e-mail lists!

Must-Have Qualifications

The criteria merchants use when evaluating potential publishers is quite rigorous. Many are selected because they have met certain standards for success. Often e-mail affiliates need to show a track record that shows they’ve worked on several other offers successfully, are CAN-SPAM compliant and will scrub their lists against suppression files religiously. These things are non-negotiable.

Here are several valuable tips for e-mail marketers starting out or seeking success in the affiliate marketing world:

#1 - Know your list! Lists segmented by demographic data are worth more money to merchants!

#2 – Develop good relationships with major email service providers. Listen to their advice.

#3 – Get white listed. Yes it’s hard to do, but it can improve deliverability by 25%.

#4 - Quality control is your biggest job. Typos, errors and under performing creatives just increase your un-sub rate, so proofread before your offers go out.

#5 – Don’t over-mail your list and be selective about the offers you choose to send into the homes of your customers. This extends the life of your list.

#6 – Abide by CAN-SPAM. Download suppression lists regularly, keep an in-house “do not mail” list and check that un-subscribe links work before sending offers.

#7 - Test offers. Experiment with new creative and subject lines, measure every response so that you’ll know a winner when you see one.

#8 – To develop your list, remember that opt-in is good, but double opt-in is better.

#9 - Continuously upgrade, add to and grow your email list. Think of your list as a living thing. Your list grows better when you tend it, and dies when ignored.

#10 - You can never have too much new creative material. Deliverability and consumer response metrics are positively correlated to an ongoing stream of fresh creatives.

Finally, remember that successful e-mail affiliates are not sitting back, playing video games and eating bon-bons; they are working hard every day. Merchants and network operators acknowledge that affiliates are the independent sales force they rely on to drive sales.

So our last advice to email marketers is this: go where you are wanted and well treated.

Work with merchants who view you and your list as partners in profitability. This is something that you should never forget.