Shawn Collins CEO of Affiliate Summit : How To Became Super Affiliate

How do you start a major conference with zero budget and zero experience? 🎤

In this interview, Shawn Collins, CEO and co-founder of Affiliate Summit, shares his 20 years as an affiliate marketer, how the event began on a cruise ship, and his advice for newcomers. 🎙️

📊 In this episode, we unpacked:

• 📚 From magazine publishing to affiliate manager
• 🚢 How Affiliate Summit started
• 🛒 Self-service sales and frugal growth
• 💰 His affiliate start and favorite networks
• 🛏️ Trends: mattresses and comparison sites
• ⚖️ Balance, tools and tips for newcomers

🎥 Watch the full episode:

📚 From Magazine Publishing to Affiliate Manager

Shawn was unhappy in magazine publishing and answered a newspaper ad for a startup trying to be “Amazon for medical books.” 📚

He knew a few terms from Amazon’s program, and that was enough to get hired to run their affiliate program. With no blogs or podcasts to learn from, he made things up as he went, pitching medical schools that had never heard of affiliates. 🧠

He wrote a book, Successful Affiliate Marketing for Merchants, about managing affiliate programs. 📖

🚢 How Affiliate Summit Started

In 2003, he attended Affiliate Force, a conference on a cruise ship out of Miami that focused on partying over content and couldn’t attract big brands. 🚢

There he met Missy Ward. Their ideas were ignored, so in May 2003, Shawn called her to start their own conference, with just enough money for a domain. 🤝

For my later interview at their 50th show, read Shawn Collins at Affiliate Summit’s 50th show. 🔗

🛒 Self-Service Sales and Frugal Growth

Shawn’s email list from his book brought speakers, sponsors and volunteers. 📧

Neither he nor Missy liked sales, so they made booths and sponsorships self-service, available any time, for attendees from about 70 countries. They never had a sales team. 🛒

Not knowing the “official” way to run events forced them to find the cheapest, fastest methods. ⚡

They promote with Facebook ads, some Instagram and Google AdWords, their print magazine FeedFront (sent to about 45,000 people quarterly), and years of session videos on YouTube. 📣

💰 His Affiliate Start and Favorite Networks

In 1997, he built a basic HTML site on AOL about visiting New York City and promoted books through Amazon. Reports came by email only every three months, so he earned nothing the first three months. 💰

He doesn’t share figures, but his best month beat any salary he’d earned. He now focuses on rev-share physical products via ShareASale and Commission Junction (CJ), plus Amazon. 🧾

🛏️ Trends: Mattresses and Comparison Sites

A big US trend is mattresses in a box, like Casper, Tuft & Needle and Purple. Comparison sites in that space can make seven figures a year. 🛏️

Affiliate marketing is simple: solve people’s problems, whether they need antivirus or a mattress. 🧩

For SEO, he just writes naturally in his own voice and gets indexed fine without keyword stuffing. For more on niche sites, read Branden Schmidt on flipping websites. For more affiliate stories, read my interview with Ian Fernando. 🔗

⚖️ Balance, Tools and Tips for Newcomers

With four children, Shawn moved from the New York area to Austin, Texas, and stopped working until 3 AM. Now he stops around 6 PM, though he’s always checking his phone for inbox zero. ⚖️

Tools: HootSuite on a dedicated monitor and AWeber for over ten years. Speakers are chosen by public vote plus an advisory board. 🧰

Next: international expansion, starting with London, and possibly Israel, India, Thailand, Japan and Brazil. 🌍

For beginners: pick a topic you’re genuinely excited about. He abandoned trend-chasing sites he didn’t care about. The barrier to entry is just a domain and hosting. 💡

📝 Key Takeaways From the Shawn Collins Interview

• 🚀 Shawn started as an affiliate manager with no background
• 🤝 Affiliate Summit began in 2003 with zero budget
• 🛒 Remove friction: self-service sales work
• 🧩 Affiliate marketing is about solving problems
• ⚖️ Balance matters: he moved to Austin for family
• 💡 Choose a niche you care about

❓ FAQs About Shawn Collins

How did Affiliate Summit start?

Shawn Collins and Missy Ward met on a 2003 cruise-ship conference, were frustrated by its focus on partying, and launched their own event with zero budget.

Which affiliate networks does Shawn Collins use?

ShareASale and Commission Junction (CJ), plus Amazon.

What is Shawn Collins’ advice for new affiliates?

Pick a topic you’re genuinely excited about, because you’ll stick with it, and readers can feel your passion.

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What would you build with zero budget and a good idea? Share this with an affiliate friend. 💬

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