Hopefully this will be the first of many ‘Case Study’ posts. They will look at a successful affiliate site and interview the owner and give you an insight into the site
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Case Study: MyVoucherCodes.co.uk
Description: Site offering users free voucher codes. Codes that save you money when shopping online.
MyVoucherCodes was launched in mid December last year by Mark Pearson. The site was set up to allow users to save money by using voucher codes which are also known as discount codes, coupons, promotional codes. The site has thousands of codes for hundreds of shops online. Mark uses affiliate links on his site, so when a user finds a code and goes through him to the shop he gets a commission from them. It’s a win win situation, the user gains by saving money and Mark by receiving a commission.
Marks PR company 10Yetis has done an amazing job and have got Marks site mentioned in the following media. The Times, BBC News, Metro, Independent, The Times, the Sun, Yahoo news, BBC radio and countless more places. It was published in the Metro that he had saved users £3 million this year and pushed £30 million worth of sales through his site. Now this is a pretty amazing achievement in a site just a year old and we can only start to imagine the commission coming in from all that ;)
I knew Mark from when he first really started his site, He actually bought a voucher code site off me (now I’m thinking maybe I should have kept my site and gone full time into it) and we stayed in contact. I’ve seen his site grow and grow and the effort he has put into it is admirable despite some criticisms from people in the industry which can be viewed and your own opinions made here and here.
Question and Answers
Me: What has been the highlight of your year starting and running MyVoucherCodes?
Mark: Firstly thanks Max for asking me to do this, it’s a real pleasure and very humbling that you even want to talk about my site. Some of the highlights have been the great feedback I receive via email everyday from my site visitors, the fact that people have saved money or found a great deal, simply by viewing my email newsletter or website is a real nice feeling. For people to go out of their way and email you to thank you this really touches me and motivates me further to grow the site and add as many discounts and deals as possible. Another highlight is the fact that I have now been able to take on a few full time staff to help me to maintain the current website and build a new website for 2008
Me: What do you make of the criticism you’ve had over at Affiliates4u?
Mark: The million dollar question! I should point out that I love the Affiliate4U site and until recently I went there most days. I don’t want to get drawn into responding to the criticism, all I will say is that I made the business model behind MyVoucherCodes very transparent from the start, including telling media and members of the public.I know for a fact that those who make the negative comments are in the minority and I have had so many messages of support from people telling me it is just down to petty jealousy that I just smile and get on with running the business.At the end of the day, whilst some people are taking time out to take a pop at us we are working 24/7 on growing our company and I think this is a better use of my time. Me: How has the lifestyle of being a full time affiliate been? Mark: I really love the flexability the industry gives you. I can switch on and off whenever I like. For 12 months now I have not had an alarm clock – don’t need one! However like anyone who runs their own business, I probably work harder now that I ever have done in my life, but all the rewards are for yourself and the ones around you. One of my new years resolutions will be to take more ME time, yes I have been on some nice holidays this year (still keeping an eye on my websites while on the beach) but I, like many affiliates really find it hard to switch off. But I still love the thought of being away from the computer and logging in to see how many sales or how much commission the site has made.
Me: How do you market MyVoucherCodes apart from PR?
Mark: I am very active at all aspects of advertsing and marketing. I would say it is one of my strengths. Advertising your website is not just about seo and ppc (of which we do both) But also creating a buzz about your website, maybe a community around it. By helping your site visitors do the marketing for you and using word of mouth. You have a regular userbase, so give them tools to be able to promote you – that costs nothing.
Me: What does the future hold for MyVoucherCodes?
Mark: Who knows? The economy is facing a crunch time and as with any business you have to adapt and be flexible so as to meet market needs. I am always looking for other niche areas we can break into and you can rest assured that we have some really exciting things in the pipeline.
Me: Do you like to call yourself a ‘Super Affiliate’?
Mark: I am happy with the success that I have achieved personally and always strive for bigger and better things. Everyone has a different level of what they class as successful. At the end of the day as long as you are happy within yourself, that is all that counts. Of course one day I would like to be classed as a super affiliate, doesn’t everybody who does affiliate marketing?! But I think I am far from being anywhere near what some of the high profile affiliates do and acheive
Finally a question which many would love to know but I’m sure it won’t be answered 
Me: How much has MyVoucherCodes made for you this year?
Mark: Ha, love this question! How long is a piece of string… how much has your sites made you Max? What I will say enough to keep me happy and comfortable, enough to employ me full time and my new staff for this and another websites I have in development.
I’d like to Thank Mark for letting me interview him and hope him all the best for the future of MyVoucherCodes.
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