Affiliate Marketing

● Office Depot launched an augmented reality/mobile campaign earlier this year with rock band R5 that targets millennial back-to-school shoppers with the hopes of bringing them into its stores.

It's springtime in Texas. The weather is warming up and the air is thick and humid as students count down the days until summer break, but inside one Houston-area high school, a group of students isn't exactly tied to their desks. They aren't in the gym, in home economics class or studying math. These students are inside Scarborough High School's mock Wal-Mart store. The store is a lab of sorts, set up and paid for by the retail giant, complete with a cash register, shelves of inventory and those familiar "rollback" pricing signs on each display.

The secondary market is all too often a secondary thought for many retailers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). However, in the new retail supply chain, what you don't know can hurt you. Without intending to, organizations can be negatively impacted by a number of factors in their reverse supply chain — from lost margins to brand distortion — simply by missing how they're managing their returned and overstock product flows. By applying the old paradigms for managing the return-to-vendor (RTV) process, you put yourself behind in the race against your competitors.

In a session yesterday at the Affiliate Summit East in Philadelphia, three affiliate marketing managers shared their insights on how online marketers can optimize their day-to-day affiliate marketing efforts. Karen McMahon, affiliate marketing strategist known as the Affiliate Whisperer; Amy Ely, e-commerce acquisition manager at Under Armour; and Kim Salvino, director of publisher development at Chateau 20, a provider of performance marketing solutions, led the session. Here are their 10 tips:

When the initial announcement was made on Tuesday, April 16, the innocuous headline gave no hint of the size of the news to come. It read: "An Update on Google Affiliate Network." But the news was huge. Google Affiliate Network (GAN), at the time the fourth largest affiliate network in the industry, would be shutting down in a few months.

Helzberg Diamonds is now the exclusive national jewelry retail partner of David's Bridal, a bridal store chain with hundreds of locations in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. The new partnership creates a "unique, one-stop resource for brides-to-be," Helzberg Diamonds said, and will generate additional channels of consumer communication for both companies. Marketing efforts underway include Helzberg Diamonds' in-store signage at David's Bridal and product features on the David's Bridal website. Catalog and email marketing also will come into play.

HSN announced a complete relaunch of the company's digital channels, elevating the customer experience by making the retailer's platforms faster, more efficient and even more social. The relaunch is part of a comprehensive, multiplatform digital redesign that's been in development for more than a year. It enhances the customer experience, not just on the top 10 most trafficked e-commerce site HSN.com, but across all mobile devices, including tablets, android and Windows 8.

Urban Outfitters, a lifestyle specialty retail company, announced an exclusive distribution and marketing agreement with World Co., Ltd for its Free People brand in Japan. "We are excited to partner with World Co., Ltd to help us expand the Free People brand in Japan," said Chief Executive Officer Richard A. Hayne. "Free People designs compelling merchandise with a strong lifestyle message, and World brings deep expertise and a track record of marketing success in Japan."

Amazon.com has signed its first athlete sponsorship — with eight-time world skateboard champion Andy Macdonald — to coincide with the launch of its new online action sports store. Andy "Mac" will be featured in exclusive videos on the site, which will sell skateboards, BMX bikes, surf and stand-up paddle boards, skates, skis, and snowboards. He'll weigh in on the best products and give tips for new and experienced skateboarders.

Tiny Prints, a brand of Shutterfly that sells chic photo cards, personalized stationery, and stylish greeting cards and holiday cards, is finding great success — and new prospects — with its affiliate marketing program.