One of the questions from last sundays q&a that I thought deserved a little longer answer then I had time for then.
HipHoper asks:
As far as loyalty goes… All other things being equal – Money talks. I am not in business to LOSE money which is what I am doing by getting a lower payout. There are exceptions I am sure but to be honest I can’t think of anything off the top of my head. We have a great relationship and have made a lot of money with a large variety of affiliate networks. At times I have even been forced to work with networks I despise simply because their was no other choice *cough* CJ *cough*.
Sometimes one of the pitfalls of running our own companies is that we get to make all the decisions. Just picture yourself explaining to your investors why your leaving money on the table because you like the guy/girl who is your affiliate manager.
About the author...
Jeremy Schoemaker – who has written 2416 posts on ShoeMoney.com.
Hi I am Jeremy Schoemaker and ShoeMoney.com is my blog. 99% of the post here are done by me but you will see others occasionally make guest posts. This blog is fun to write but for my day job I run several online companies.
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My Secret To Dominating Digg.com (years ago) 
Knowing When to STFU 
If I could – starting over 
{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }
That’s true! if you can make more money with low payout affiliate then i would also consider going with that! after all everybody want to earn good bucks.
What do you dislike about CJ?
Did I just open a can of worms?
Personally I’ve looked into so many affiliate networks that it’s hard enough breaking it down to maybe 2-3.
There is a balance though. When you’re a player in your vertical everyone will try to offer you a better deal than what you’re currently getting. It’s not practical to keep jumping ships; however as long as you feel you’re getting an awesome deal with a company you have a good relationship with, the few extra dollars a new company may offer you might not be all that appealling. Affiliate managers are just like everyone else. When you’re hot and on top, everyone wants to offer you the world; however, at the beginning when you have nothing but a dream and potential, Affiliate managers really don’t care because they’re more concerned with what you can provide today.
As I am in the food industry I actually hunt down the merchants across a number of affiliate networks as most networks will only have two or three mercahnts I want to be associated with. I think last time I checked I am in about 14 different programs.
How about ease of reporting? Neverblue lets you download the report data via a webservice. Also you can add you own “pingbacks” to get notified instantly when there is a conversion.
For PPC, I won’t promote an offer if it does not have an SID for sure! (Sorry Amazon)
“As far as loyalty goes… All other things being equal – Money talks. I am not in business to LOSE money which is what I am doing by getting a lower payout. ” That is how it is. Money talks. Not many people go out on a limb to lose money or make others more money. Gotta look out for number 1.
I can find NO reson to be loyal to an affiliate company unless they are paying me quite a bit of money.
Go were the money is best, makes sense.
Just saw the pictures of the pool, that is pretty badass. How much did that set you back?
Shoe did you go to college? If not what books have you read? You know your shit and I want to study up. “Just picture yourself explaining to your investors why your leaving money on the table because you like the guy/girl who is your affiliate manager.” Suggestions please.
What don’t you like about CJ?
I had the same question..
can you tell from your experience, which one pays highest ??
I have these two networks with the same offer and landing pages. Network A converts like 10% – 20% better than Network B. Network A paid monthly and don’t want to pay weekly. Network B paid weekly and bump the payout a few cents more.
Ha ha way to beat on CJ. And yes, some networks scrape leads so you get less and tracking can be an issue also… Also some networks will bump you up to a higher rate….
You can always ask the first company to match the payouts of the second one.
school of hard knocks.
I dont read. I do.
It is always important to do some real testing when it comes to affiliate networks. And it may sometimes pay off to repeat a test with a network when some important parameters have been changed.
I have been a publisher of CJ from Last 1.5 Years, They are really the best, No comparison near it..
you are right at this point. we have to look the best opportunity for our web site because while trying to make more money may cause a bad problem.
That’s also one of the advantages of running your own company: if you like the guy/girl who is your affiliate manager, you can stay around even if you’re making less. There’s an opportunity cost that can be figured into everything.
Like most things… money talks and bullsh!t walks!
Money does talk for most and it always will. It makes sense to go where the most money is to be made.
~Terry
I am sure you realize that anyone that cares about spelling or grammar cannot read your posts without cringing. The technology is there to fix that stuff before you publish. Doing so would only help increase your readership. Why does it not matter to you? Isn’t THAT leaving money on the table?
I just hate CJ after months of bad time with it
If you like the guy/girl you should meet privately and get happy. No sense in mixing it with money-decisions.
but they dont pay via paypal.
That suchs..
cheers. i enjoy reading your articles but i can’t understand why you keep says “then” instead of “than” … is it some kind of slag or just a typo? all the best and keep making that money. you’re an example for me
I like to give the grammar nazi’s a reason to live
I know you don’t have time to let me pick your brain. I haven’t followed your life story or anything but there has to be a tip you can send my way. I understand that execution is key but how and when did the light switch on and you have a clear vision of the road you were headed down. Also how many times have you failed meaning being close to finished before you had a handle on things? I know you won’t answer all of this because your a busy man. I’ll try to get to the post on Sunday in time.
that’s what i thought , but i was just thinking to ask you and see it for sure
nice pool btw
i’m thinking to have my own in the near future. right now i don’t have enough money to build one, but i will start with the shoemoney logo, then brick by brick i will build the pool of my dreams 
cheers
My favorite is Advaliant. Easy to use, good products and regular monthly payouts.
Did you ask on question “did you consider right jump from network to network looking for the best payout” or you have anything to add?
Ken, I will give Advaliant a try, thanks
I actually love CJ – stop tha hate!
I hate CJ, my favorite is Advaliant.