06/19/17
How to Use Affinity Marketing to Grow Your Brand
We’ve been talking a lot this month about big changes underway at OBI Creative. All of these announcements are indications of our refusal to say ‘no’ to opportunities and our relentless pursuit of excellence. In case you missed any of it, recently we’ve announced:
- Our acquisition of Alt Studios and expansion into Des Moines
- Our offering of Organization and Design Consulting Services
- Reorganization around strengths critical to growth
Today, I am excited to continue the positive onslaught with the announcement of another service we are equipped to provide — Affinity Program Marketing Services.
Affinity Marketing – Where to Start
Designing a successful affinity begins with understanding why you do them in the first place. From a business perspective, affinity marketing gives you access to more people through that affinity group’s network. Increased access limits the cost of your marketing efforts and provides valuable insight into what turns groups of consumers on or off about your brand. If you establish an open feedback loop with your affinity marketing manager, you can customize an effective program that maximizes the benefit of the arrangement for your brand.
The other beautiful thing about affinity deals is that they are EASY. You do NOT have to change anything typically within the company. Rather, you reposition a product or service that is already in place to add value to the Affinity Member that they otherwise could not have gotten if they weren’t part of that group.
Steps for Maximizing Your Affinity Marketing Program
Once you understand what your brand stands to gain from an affinity marketing program, you can follow some simple steps to identify affinity networks:
- Find affinities or networks that talk to your target audience(s).
- Come up with “value” for the affinity. Identify what you can give to the affinity group that is exponentially valuable, yet has little cost impact on your bottom line.
- Assemble a special program for the affinity so their membership grants access to something special. Remember, in many cases, “special benefits” is typically just a repositioning of something you already offer.
- Take your high-level idea to the Affinity marketing leader.
As you explore these steps, be persistent, passionate and positive. Remember, you have a great service or product to offer to the affinity network, and your brand stands to benefit from the increased exposure to their members. When pursued this way, affinity marketing truly is a win-win for everyone.
What has your experience been with affiliate marketing? What worked and what didn’t? If you tried affiliate marketing in the past and didn’t get what you wanted to out of it, do you know why?
