Tip: If you own an affiliate program, please be prompt in paying those who represent your company.

Today’s tip was prompted by a recently received e-mail. This e-mail was a PayPal payment notification for an affiliate program payout. As phishing e-mails are common, I was skeptical. Rather than click on the link in the body of the e-mail, I pointed my browser to PayPal.com. Sure enough, the recent activity showed a small commission payment from a web hosting company. I was thoroughly confused as Inspired Graphics Media has been offering hosting to its customers since October 2005. I didn’t want to be giving away business.

To get to the bottom of this, I looked up my user name and password for the affiliate program and logged in. I searched my affiliate history as far back as January 2005 and saw no evidence of a referral. Ready to chalk it up to good luck, I decided to search a little further back. To my amazement, there was one referral listed…for February 2004! I was getting paid for a referral I made 25 months ago! That’s a little over 2 years!

This both amuses and saddens me. It’s amusing because the company received an unexpected windfall. It’s less than $20, but every bit helps when you’re a small business. It’s sad because if I got paid 25 months later, other people who diligently promoted this company’s services also got paid up to 2 years later. Their hard work probably felt in vain.

Please heed today’s tip, and treat your affiliates with respect. They are doing you a great service by promoting your company to others. Please show your appreciation by issuing them timely payments.

Dequiana Brooks Jackson

Dequiana Brooks Jackson, CEO of Inspired Marketing, Inc. takes the fear out of small business marketing. This author, speaker and business coach is the creator of the SPARK Marketing System™, an exclusive program that shows entrepreneurs how to shatter negative mindsets, take control of their marketing and make more money. Schedule your free consultation today!

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