Designed for start-up and scale-ups alike, Accelerate 2021 was a unique event that allowed entrepreneurs, innovators and accelerators to take a virtual front seat to listen in on affiliate marketing experts and digital gurus sharing their knowledge, top tips and advice on performance marketing and global e-commerce strategy.
Punchy thirty minute sessions contained actionable tips to showcase how to jump start your affiliate programme and build a winning strategy. Attendees learned how to elevate and solidify their business from the comfort of their own home; whilst gaining the opportunity to make connections, challenge and converse with industry experts and business leaders from the Webgains network.
The Highlights:
Day one
CEO of Webgains, Richard Dennys, opened the event with a roundtable discussion on emerging trends, consumer behaviour and the acceleration of affiliate in the rise of ecommerce. Richard was joined by the head of client support, Jessi Frey, UK managing director, Alona Malinovska and chief marketing officer, Natasha McKenzie. The team explored consumer confidence in the aftermath of 2020 and the investment in ecommerce for start up and scale up brands.
At noon, attendees gathered for a virtual fireside chat with Webgains’ senior business development manager James Cullen and Condor Bikes’ marketing manager Claire Beaumont. Claire spoke to James about the trials and tribulations Condor Bikes faced last year; as well as the important role affiliate marketing has played for the brand under Webgains’ guidance. Claire shared Condor’s experience of adapting their strategy during 2020, by focusing on service, rather than competing on price, thus increasing brand loyalty and driving sales.
Day two
The second day started with ‘CEO Crunch Time’ where our chief marketing officer, Natasha McKenzie was joined by Nilay Oza of Klevu and Richie Jones of vvast. Natasha, Nilay and Richie covered a broad range of topics including how to build effective teams, why SME retailers can now match larger players; and how e-commerce will soon be dropping the ‘e’ as retailers adopt a hybrid approach to business development.
The discussion finished with a forecast on the future of retail with Richie predicting that shopping centres will become a boutique experience through merchandising; integrating a seamless buying process that consumers have become accustomed to in the advent of mobile. Nilay added to this with his thoughts on omnichannel being at the forefront of retail; and the evolution of transforming the customer journey through voice search and image to information technology.
The last session of the day saw Webgains’ Humphrey Shiel walk through Webgains’ ground-breaking tool, Affiliate Discovery. Affiliate Discovery uses machine learning to provide tailored publisher recommendations to advertisers. Attendees discovered how to make better connections using Affiliate Discovery; and how the tool makes affiliate programs five times more likely to succeed.
Day three
The last day of Accelerate 2021 was met with invaluable and tangible tips alongside commentary on how to choose the right affiliates, minimise costs and maximise performance. Webgains’ COO, Ami Spencer, debunked affiliate marketing myths, giving attendees a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of affiliate marketing. Worth a watch for publishers and advertisers alike.
Day three closed with an insightful discussion on Affiliate versus PPC and SEO. Webgains’ senior account director, Andrew North, was joined by Adam Mason, director of Quibble Content and affiliate marketing specialist, Kunal Patel. Together the panel debated best practice for SEO and PPC and where to invest your marketing budget for smarter returns.
From wellbeing in the workplace, to the importance of brand authenticity; through the benefits of working with SMEs; and how to take your business global, the three-day event covered many aspects of business development and the performance industry as a whole. The final takeaways being that connection and loyalty to the customer is key to success; as well as leveraging your affiliate channel to form a stable and resilient business model.
Missed the event? You can catch up on all seventeen sessions by registering. Want to know more about starting an affiliate program? Get in touch with the Webgains team at accelerate@webgains.com.
