Retail surgery: How do I get the maximum benefit from increased affiliation with voucher code sites?

When used well, the voucher model can bring in significant incremental business. Doug Scott, MD of DiscountVouchers.co.uk, says it has added as many as 30,000 transactions to one retailer in a month. To work well, however, it requires a true partnership, and retailers need to steer clear of certain common mistakes. Scott advises them to make sure they are included in the discount site’s newsletter and social networking channels. “To achieve this you will need to come up with offers that are unique to the voucher site’s customer base,” he says.

He also recommends retailers ensure their landing pages are “tuned in to what the visitor is looking for” to get optimum conversion rates. “Too often the landing page is the home page and this just confuses the buyer and distracts them from the purchase they were about to make. If you look at sites that convert well there is the opportunity to order on the landing page.”

To gain maximum exposure to the discount site’s audience also requires retailers to be sensible about the commission they pay. It’s a competitive marketplace, and these sites know the power of their database, so consider whether you are paying the right money to maximise your return on investment.

Lastly, be open with the voucher site, says Scott. “Don’t try and convince them that the business they generate would have come in anyway. They will have some pretty sophisticated analytics that will prove otherwise.”