I am on site this week with one of my consulting clients who is a merchant. Since I have been here, many things have come to light that really seemed to surprise this client. He is a smart and successful person who simply did not know some of the things relating to the affiliate marketing industry that I do and I simply figure that everyone knows about these things.

Many times I say something to the effect of, “My job is so easy that it is scary.” What I mean when I say this is that many things I do I consider second nature. Perhaps it is because I have been at this for a while that I consider these things to be simple and to be common knowledge.

When wearing my consultant hat, I have to admit that when I hear my clients refer to something I just educated them about as invaluable, it sends me back to my hotel room that night feeling good…like I have really earned my money for that day.

My point is that merchants, regardless of their size or importance, can always learn something good from a successful affiliate. These things will sometimes relate to their affiliate program, sometimes they will relate to their operation in general. Either way, a face-to-face between an informed consultant and a merchant who is willing to listen and learn will most always end up in a positive light with positive change resulting from such a session.

It is human nature to think we have control. Sometimes we have control and we become complacent and happy. An outside voice can usually shed some light on topics that the complacent ones could not see previously.

There are many products that I have tried promoting via PPC over the years. Some work well while others provide margins that are negative or so close that they are unacceptable. Of course, I move on from those items as I am not here to spend money unless a good ROI is involved.

Before this holiday season started I looked back through my Adwords account to see what items I had promoted over the past year that did not pay. I made a list of these items and those that were close to making money or barely in the positive, I re-activated for the holidays.

Much to my surprise (well, not really because I expected this) I am now making money on some of these same campaigns that were not successful at other times of the year. The fact is, people are scouring the web right now looking for things to buy. Many shoppers are wide open for suggestion or are simply looking for some guidance in purchasing gifts. I am guiding them along with a few extra PPC efforts that are now profitable.

So look through those old campaigns. Get the ones that were close out, dust them off and fire them back up. You might be surprise at the results. Of course, monitor them closely, especially if it is an item that can sell out, and also keep an eye on them once the holiday surge is over. You might want to pack them back up and put them away until November 2008.

Happy Selling!