Affiliates- What is your value proposition???

Portal pages, deep linking, hub pages, et al... are you actually adding value to the marketplace???

You know when you are at a grocery store trying to buy ice cream. There are a thousand different directions you can go. You can buy an ice cream sandwich, a sorbet cup, an Eskimo pie, a fruity Popsicle, a pint, a half gallon, fat free, low fat, frozen yogurt, astronaut dot ice cream, a tub of ice cream... and you can buy any different flavor. You can decide not to buy at the grocery store and you can go an ice cream parlor- where you can add sprinkles, get it in a cup, get a slab, put it in a sugar cone, a waffle cone, etc etc etc.

The point is- you have options. And the options have value. Depending on your mood, number of people you are buying for, how much money you have in your wallet, the distance from home, your childhood ice cream experience... these factors will determine which direction you choose.

And, you have options on every single block... you can buy it at a convenient store, a gas station, a parlor, a fast food joint, every single grocery store, et al.

What I am saying is there is redundancy in the market. There are tons of variations to accommodate your need for ice cream. But they don't stick around long if they don't add value.

There is only so much room on the shelf for ice cream just like there is only so much room for affiliates and the products they are pushing- so you better be what the people want or you are a short term solution.

Look at your value as an affiliate in the same way. Figure out what your value is and make sure you convey that to your consumer. Don't mislead, trick, hide information from the consumer. Figure out your value prop and scream it from every pore of your website- and/or marketing effort.

Create value where others don't have it. Create your shelf space in a sustainable way so you are always providing incremental value to the consumers. They will appreciate it. Advertisers will love it. Search engines will reward it... it's the right thing to do for as many reasons as there are variations of ice cream.