In this Outperform podcast episode, AP founder Robert Glazer talks with John Ruhlin about all these benefits of gifting in business as well as common gifting gaffes. 

John Ruhlin is the founder of gifting and logistics company, The Ruhlin Group and author of Giftology.

When you listen to this episode, you'll learn

• How John got started in the business of gifting
• Why he recently sent one prospect 18 gifts over 18 months
• What the status quo of gifting looks like and why it’s not impactful
• Invaluable insights into how you should approach gifting in your business
• Why John doesn’t recommend sending a gift right after being sent a referral
• The gift that John and his clients give that have actually made the recipient cry

If you care about getting more referrals, standing out (in a good way), getting a meeting with almost any decision-maker and winning the hearts and minds of your industry influencers and partners, then this episode is for you.

On this episode of Outperform, Emily Tetto (Director of Talent and Culture) and Angela Hughes, (Associate Director of Affiliate Training and Quality) discuss what Acceleration Partners is doing to reduce our reliance on the industry’s limited capacity of talent and fulfill the increasing demand for strategic account managers. 

Show Notes

• What we mean when we say that there’s a lack of talent and expertise in the affiliate marketing industry
• Things contributing to the talent shortage in the affiliate industry
• Why this talent shortage is such a serious challenge for the industry
• What Affiliate Academy is and how it’s helping AP resolve this issue.
• Who the Affiliate Academy is designed for and why.

Learn more about Acceleration Partners and our company culture at http://www.accelerationpartners.com. 

This Outperform podcast episode features Griffin Thall, CEO and Co-Founder of Pura Vida Bracelets for our Profile of a Growth Marketer series.

Listen in as Griffin delves into Pura Vida’s world, shares his and co-founder, Paul Goodman’s incredible Pura Vida journey and gives us a look at what’s ahead for this inspiring company.

Episode Sneak Peek:

Griffin and his long-time friend, Paul Goodman, founded Pura Vida Bracelets in 2010. Since then they've...

• Grown it into a million-dollar business venture
• Provided fill-time jobs to over 150 people in Costa Rica and around the world.
• Been named to Forbes’ “30 Under 30: Retail” list
• Been featured in Sports Illustrated and Victoria’s Secret
• Grown their Instagram account account to almost a million followers (to date)
• Built a thriving affiliate program
• Donated more than $1,210,409.72 (to date)

You'll also hear how Griffin and Paul got the idea for Pura Vida Bracelets, what pura vida means, how they've guilt such a strong online presence, what's helping them have such a strong affiliate program and the types of affiliates they partner with. 

For anyone interested in entrepreneurship and savvy marketing strategies, this episode is a must-listen. 

Learn more about Acceleration Partners and our clients at http://www.accelerationpartners.com. 

This Outperform episode features Alison Chew, Acceleration Partners' Director of Partners & Innovation.

Alison shares her expertise on how you can connect Influencer Marketing with Affiliate (Performance) Marketing to close the loop on tracking, get top of funnel and bottom on funnel metrics and tell the whole story of how your influencer marketing campaign is performing. 

In this episode you'll learn about:

• How "influencers" and "affiliates" are defined
• What a micro-influencer is and how they are similar to and different from content affiliates
• Challenges and limitations to current approaches to influencer campaign tracking and measurement
• Some pitfalls to avoid when working with influencers and measuring the outcomes of your campaign
• What it means to pay influencers on a "performance plus" basis
• A unique program that makes it possible for brands to work with influencers via the performance model and get valuable top-of-funnel and bottom-of-funnel metrics

Learn more about Acceleration Partners and our Influencer Marketing capabilities at http://www.accelerationpartners.com/capabilities/influencer-marketing/.

On this special edition episode, Robert Glazer and Matt Wool, two of AP’s fearless leaders, transparently reflect on a few client, people, and decision-making mistakes they’ve made over the years while growing Acceleration Partners.

You'll hear Bob and Matt transparently discuss:

• How they totally bombed a meeting with a potential client, what that prospect told them, and how they still heed that advice today.
• Client mistakes they’ve made.
• Why a business coach called them out for acting “weak.”
• Business strategy mistakes they've made that resulted in their focus resembling a strobe light rather than a laser beam.

You'll also hear what they learned from these mistakes and how they moved forward from them.

Visit www.AccelerationPartners.com to learn more about our company, culture, the clients we serve.

What exactly is an "affiliate network?" And how is it different from a software as a service (SaaS) solution? 

If you have an affiliate (performance) marketing program, these are essential questions to answer - and we do, on this Outperform podcast episode! 

Speaking with much experience and authority on this topic are two industry leaders: Todd Crawford and Bob Glazer. 

Todd is the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at Impact Radius, a company that provides a software as a service technology solution for the affiliate industry. Todd has extensive expertise in software as a service solutions and the role they play in affiliate marketing. He was also a co-founder of Commission Junction, one of the first affiliate networks. Bob Glazer is Acceleration Partners' Founder and Managing Director. He's a prominent leader in the affiliate industry, having worked with the world's leading brands. He too has unique perspectives to offer about affiliate networks, SaaS platforms, and their role in the future of the affiliate industry.

Tune in to this episode to learn:

• What an affiliate network is and does
• How and why the affiliate network model has taken a detour
• What SaaS platforms are and the unique solutions they provide to the affiliate (performance) industry
• The role SaaS is likely to play in the future of the affiliate marketing industry
• And much more.

You can also learn more about Acceleration Partners' approach to affiliate marketing program management and the networks and SaaS partners we work with on our website, http://www.accelerationpartners.com.

On this 8th Outperform podcast episode, we discuss transparency in the workplace, what it looks like, and why it matters.

Speaking to this topic is Emily Tetto, Acceleration Partners' Director of Talent and Culture. 

If you care about creating an open, transparent, high-performing culture within your organization, this episode is a must-listen.

In addition to talking about why transparency in the workplace matters, we also discuss:

• What transparency can look like in a remote work culture vs an office culture
• Why some organizations are hesitant to be transparent
• Potential downsides to workplace transparency
• How transparency can benefit an organization
• What companies can do to be more transparent

You can also learn more about our transparent, remote work culture at http://www.accelerationpartners.com/company. 

The Visionary role and the Integrator role are essential in any organization. But why? Who says? And who should be in these roles?

In this special Outperform podcast episode, which we're calling “Truth, Transparency, and ‘Tails",  Bob Glazer (AP’s founder and managing director) and Matt Wool (AP's general manager) answer these very questions - and quite a few more - while sipping a cocktail. 

On our “Truth, Transparency, and Tails” episodes, Bob and Matt open up the AP kimono by transparently tackling tough business topics (hence why there's a cocktail involved). 

On this particular episode, you'll get insight into:

• Why roles of Visionary and Integrator are essential to an organization’s success – no matter the size
• What Bob and Matt are drinking
• Why these roles often have tension/ are at odds with one another 
• Challenges companies face when they either only have a Visionary or only have an Integrator

Learn more about Acceleration Partners, our company culture, and the services we offer the world's leading brands at: www.accelerationpartners.com.

What the heck do we mean by Performance Partnerships™? On this podcast episode, Bob Glazer, Acceleration Partners’ fearless founder and managing director, explains what Performance Partnerships™ are and why they will define the future of affiliate (performance) marketing. Prepare to hear some pretty insightful stuff.

In this podcast we discuss:

• What we mean by Performance Partnerships™ • What inspired Bob and team to come up with this concept • Why performance partnerships are like Chianti Classico • The issues performance partnerships solve / how they benefit companies • What should companies look for in performance partners • How to find performance partners

In addition to listening to this episode, which explains Performance Partnerships in great detail, we also have some helpful resources related to this topic on our AP blog:

- Blog post - http://www.accelerationpartners.com/blog/how-we-define-performance-partnerships/

- Bob's Performance Partnerships book page - http://www.accelerationpartners.com/performance-partnerships/

On this short and sweet episode (8 min, 45 sec), AP’s Director of Talent and Culture, Emily Tetto, discusses AP’s philosophy for hiring for day one and then promoting when ready.

From our perspective, this information is helpful for:

• Existing and prospective AP clients. Emily shares insights into who we hire to manage their program, how we do it and our approach to making sure that our team members are in the right seat at the right time.

Before we bring on an account manager to oversee a program, we ensure they have the experience and know-how to properly manage a performance-based program. If they don’t, but have strong digital marketing skill sets, we thoroughly train them before placing them in an account management role.

• Potential AP team members. As the performance marketing industry continues to grow, the demand for quality account managers who have a broad understanding of the industry and experience in several digital channels is also growing. Rapidly.

This is why one of our biggest initiatives at AP is focused on hiring smart people who have a varied digital marketing background and train them comprehensively in affiliate marketing for three to six months. In this short episode, you'll learn: • What we mean by hiring for day one and promoting when ready • How this approach/philosophy differs from what companies typically do • Why companies should consider taking this approach to their hiring and promoting • How this approach benefits both AP clients and our team members

Visit www.accelerationpartners.com to learn more about our company and our open positions. 

Good listening!