London UK, 1 May 2012 – TradeDoubler, the performance marketing and technology company, has announced that it is now opening for the second round of applications and is inviting UK-based start-ups to apply for a place in The Zoo Project, the company’s affiliate/e-commerce incubation scheme. TradeDoubler is committing more than £1m in business resources to the scheme to foster grass roots business growth and help drive innovation in an industry that generated more than £5bn in e-commerce revenue in 2011.¹

The second round for applications is open from 1st May – 15th June and can be submitted via www.thezooproject.co.uk.

The Zoo Project was launched last December by TradeDoubler and entries are judged by a panel of ‘dragons’ – marketing and business experts from some of the UK’s top companies, including Tesco, British Gas and BT.

The next wave of start-ups will not only win one year’s rent and rates free office space at TradeDoubler’s prestigious central London UK headquarters in Victoria, but also mentoring from TradeDoubler’s affiliate marketing industry experts; access to major brand advertisers and partners and networking opportunities with other Zoo Project companies and industry entrepreneurs.

Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader, North West, TradeDoubler, said: “Now that the first six start-ups have joined us in Victoria and have made it a success, it’s time to open our doors to more entrepreneurs and business leaders. We’re creating an e-commerce hub that encourages innovation and creativity and that is responding to consumers’ changing behaviour as they search for great deals and products online and on their mobiles.”

“In the longer term, we see the kind of performance-based marketing practiced by affiliates becoming as important as TV or press advertising – even more so. Combine this with British entrepreneurial spirit, and the fact that online advertising in the UK is forecast to grow by over 10% this year, and we think that this hugely dynamic business sector will give the UK economy a real shot in the arm,” continued Wilson.

“We were really pleased with the quality of some of the entrants in the first round and it was a clear indication for all the dragons that there is a wealth of talent out there and we’re excited to be opening for the next round,” said Steve Wilson, Head of Online, British Gas Business.

“We are really keen to see more entries, especially from the mobile, social sectors and developers. But really, we want to hear from anyone in the early stages of developing an online company, product or service. The Zoo Project is a truly unique opportunity to accelerate a start-up’s commercial success and supercharge their networking opportunities,” continued Wilson.

- More -

The Zoo Project ‘dragons’ include Tim Jessop, marketing manager for online advertising at Tesco; Steve Wilson, head of online for British Gas Business; Rob Wilson, market unit leader for the North West, at TradeDoubler; Strategic advisor and digital agency mentor Mary Keane-Dawson; Paul Bongers, head of paid search at BT/clickbuyclick; and Matthew Wood, founder of the A4U affiliate marketing forums and Serial Entrepreneur Leo Harrison. For more information or to sign up, please visit www.thezooproject.co.uk

1. Source: Econsultancy / A4u UK Affiliate Census 2011

All six start-ups are based in the UK and were chosen by a panel of “Dragons” – marketing and business experts from some of the UK’s top companies, including Tesco, British Gas and BT.

The Zoo Project was launched last December by TradeDoubler to foster grass roots growth and help drive innovation in an industry that drove more than £5bn in e-commerce revenue in 2011. [Source: Econsultancy / A4u UK Affiliate Census 2011, sponsored by Commission Junction and Argos, October 2011]

The Project will eventually offer 20 affiliate marketing start-ups a “home” in the Zoo for one year. They will benefit from more than £1m worth of business resources, including rent- and rates-free office space at TradeDoubler’s UK headquarters in Victoria, London; access to TradeDoubler technology; hands-on mentoring from affiliate marketing experts; access to major brand advertisers and partners; and networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs.

The first six winners are: Stylenest, a luxury online magazine for “yummy mummies”; Boomah, a cash rewards site which allows members to donate money to their favourite club, charity or cause as they shop; As Seen on the TV, a site which links consumers with products they’ve seen on the telly; PicYeah, which is developing a sponsored photo platform to enable consumers to collect rewards via sponsored photo frames; Hot Drops, is a brand new online personalised content platform that delivers relevant content to 18 – 34 year olds on a daily basis, based around their interests and lifestyle; and finally, AWESEM – based in London and Germany – is an online marketing company, specialising in optimising sites so that they can be better detected by search engines and creating WordPress themes and plugins for bloggers and websites.

These first half-dozen – announced at an event in London last week – were chosen after a Dragon’s Den-style pitch process which lasted a month. The panel of “dragons” including Tim Jessop, marketing manager for online advertising at Tesco; Steve Wilson, head of online for British Gas Business; Rob Wilson, market unit leader for the North West, at TradeDoubler; strategic advisor and digital agency mentor Mary Keane-Dawson; Paul Bongers, head of paid search at BT/clickbuyclick; and Matthew Wood, founder of the A4U affiliate marketing forums.

“The quality of entries was extremely high, and whittling them down to a top six was a difficult task,” said Rob Wilson TradeDoubler’s Market Unit Leader North West “But we have a worthy first tranche of winners and we’re looking forward immensely to helping them set off on the road to success. We believe the difficult economic climate brings unique opportunities for affiliates as consumers search for better deals online. In the longer term, we see the kind of performance-based marketing practiced by affiliates becoming as important as TV or press advertising – even more so. Combine this with good old British entrepreneurial spirit, and the fact that online advertising in the UK is forecast to grow by over 10% this year, and we think that this hugely dynamic business sector will give the UK economy a real shot in the arm.”
//ends//

For more information, please contact:
Marie Dalton, Project Manager TradeDoubler on 0207 798 6470 marie.dalton@tradedoubler.com
Kevin Whitlock on 07759 940406 (kevin.whitlock@btinternet.com)

London, UK – 19 January 2012 - It’s never been easier for budding entrepreneurs to make January the month to start their own affiliate marketing business, according to TradeDoubler, the number one pan-European performance marketing company. January is the golden window of opportunity for affiliate entrepreneurs to gain entry into TradeDoubler’s prestigious £1 million UK Affiliate Marketing incubator initiative, The Zoo Project. The company today unveiled details of the industry mentoring, business services, technology solutions and infrastructure support on offer to successful entrants, as well as the addition of Leo Harrison, founder of Artemis Eight (now known as Found), who joins fellow industry heavyweights as a ‘dragon’ for the incubator.

Successful incubator residents into The Zoo Project will benefit from a unique combination of hands-on mentoring, expertise, technology tools and business infrastructure, including:

- Full access to TradeDoubler’s award-winning technology platform and capabilities including access to a reporting API for data and analysis.

- Access to market best practice and technology sales mentoring from some of the industry’s most knowledgeable and successful experts, including:

o Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West, TradeDoubler
o Mary Keane Dawson, Strategic Advisor and Digital Agency Mentor
o Paul Bongers, Head of Paid Search at BT / clickbuyclick
o Matthew Wood, Founder of A4U
o Jasmine Birtles television presenter and business and personal finance expert
o Tim Jessop, Marketing Manager for Online Advertising at Tesco
o Steve Wilson, Head of Online for British Gas Business
o Leo Harrison, founder of Artemis Eight / Found.co.uk

- Access to TradeDoubler’s onsite team of technical consultants for hands-on advice, support and solutions.

- Unique access to major brand advertisers and partners.

- Networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs.

- More than £1 million worth of business resources, including rent and rates free office space at TradeDoubler’s prestigious UK headquarters in Victoria.

The addition of Leo Harrison as an incubator ‘dragon’ brings the total number of industry mentors to eight. Together, they will decide the fate of up to 20 UK Affiliate Marketing start-ups that are applying for residency in the Zoo for one year. Leo founded Artemis Eight, an affiliate publisher, back in 2004 and grew the company from a one man band to a thriving workforce of over 25 with a multi-million pound turnover. Leo’s cutting-edge and innovative approach to affiliate publishing earned Artemis Eight a number of prestigious industry awards and a place among a small group of UK “Super Affiliates”. In 2010, Leo continued with the expansion of the company and oversaw the re-brand of Artemis Eight into Found.co.uk, now a successful and rapidly growing UK digital agency. Having sold his share of the company in August 2011, Leo is currently working on two new business ventures of his own, and advising digital start-ups, providing vision, practical advice and funding.

“We’re not just encouraging people to take that leap of faith and start their own digital marketing business – we’re helping them do it,” said Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West for TradeDoubler. “This is a unique opportunity for people to capitalise on affiliate marketing business support at the grass roots level and make 2012 the year they launched their successful new business entity.”

With applications open until 31 January 2012, up to 20 Affiliate Marketing start-up companies will be admitted into the Zoo for one year. Interested affiliates can download an application form at www.thezooproject.co.uk or send an email to apply@thezooproject.co.uk. Shortlisted applicants will then be invited to meet with one or more of The Zoo’s panel of ‘Dragons’.

About TradeDoubler

TradeDoubler helps companies improve their online results, both by increasing sales and by increasing brand awareness. The core business is performance-based online marketing. With a network of over 138,000 web publishers, TradeDoubler helps more than 1,900 advertisers worldwide to reach their business goals. The company has a unique reach being able to address around 75 per cent of Europe’s e-commerce consumers. Among the advertisers are Apple, American Express, Dell, Disney, Expedia, lastminute.com and Nokia. The share is listed on Nasdaq OMX.

More information is available at www.TradeDoubler.com

For further information, please contact:
Kim Lynch, Devonshire Marketing (PR for TradeDoubler)

Tel: +44 (0) 870 7000 166, Email: kim@devonshiremarketing.com

Marie Dalton, TradeDoubler
Tel: +44 (0) 207 798 6470, Email: marie.dalton@tradedoubler.com

At TradeDoubler, we want to help the affiliate marketing industry to innovate, harness new opportunities and grow into sustainable businesses. So we’re putting our money where our mouth is.  The Zoo Project is a UK Affiliate Marketing incubator designed to foster grass roots growth and help drive innovation in the Affiliate Marketing arena.

With applications now open until 31 January 2012, up to 20 Affiliate Marketing start-up companies will be admitted into the Zoo for one year, and will benefit from more than £1 million worth of business resources, including rent free and rates free office space at TradeDoubler’s prestigious UK headquarters in Victoria; hands-on mentoring from TradeDoubler’s affiliate marketing industry experts; unique access to major brand advertisers and partners; and networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs.

We believe the UK is still one of the world’s biggest gateways for new ideas. Every day we help our clients reach thousands of customers through Affiliate Marketing campaigns, and want to see more affiliates come to market and achieve similar levels of success. We believe the difficult economic climate brings unique opportunities for affiliates as consumers search for better deals online. We also believe Affiliate Marketing is inherently entrepreneurial as an industry sector, and most importantly, we believe in you. Get your application forms in – www.thezooproject.co.uk

London, UK – 5 December 2011 – TradeDoubler, the number one pan-European performance marketing company, today announced the addition of three more business and industry experts to serve as ‘dragons’ for its £1 million UK Affiliate Marketing incubator initiative, The Zoo Project, bringing the panelist line-up to seven.  The dragons will decide the fate of up to 20 UK Affiliate Marketing start-ups that apply for residency in the Zoo for one year. The new incubator project is designed to foster grass roots growth and help drive innovation in the Affiliate Marketing arena.

Television presenter Jasmine Birtles brings her business and personal finance expertise to the Zoo Project panel. She has co-presented BBC 1’s “Homes Under the Hammer”, ITV Scotland’s “Spend Spend Spend,” as well as “First Time Buyers” and “Doctor Dosh” for UKTV Style. She is also the co-presenter of RaW Money on the BBC website (www.bbc.co.uk/raw/money). She regularly appears as a financial expert on Daybreak, This Morning, BBC News, BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio Sky News and The Wright Stuff. Jasmine is the founder and editor of the money-saving and money-making website Moneymagpie.com. She has also set up Clever Video Production which creates online videos for companies. As a financial journalist she has a column for Reader’s Digest, Prima Baby, Yourchoices.co.uk and Tescomagazine.co.uk. She also writes for the Daily Express and also contributes to the Independent on Sunday, The Spectator Business, The Mirror, The Express, Essentials Magazine, You Magazine, Prima, Woman & Home and many others. She is the author of 38 books including her latest, ‘Beat the Banks’.

Tim Jessop, Marketing Manager for Online Advertising at Tesco also joins the Zoo’s team of dragons. Tim has seven years’ experience in affiliate marketing and has been at Tesco for the past five years. He currently manages the online advertising for Tesco.com, including the Tesco affiliate programme.  This programme covers a range of product areas such as Grocery, Tesco Direct, Wine by the case and Entertainment. Tim works closely with affiliate partners to support their campaigns with Tesco’s range of tools, and has an in-depth understanding of the affiliate marketing industry.  Tesco.com is the UK’s biggest online grocery retailer. It also has a huge range of non-food products on offer with a loyal customer base.

Also joining the Zoo Project’s team of dragons is Steve Wilson, Head of Online for British Gas Business. Steve is a highly experienced senior manager in online sales and marketing and has worked closely with both large and small affiliates in his 10+ years in the industry. Steve brings a client slide perspective to the dragons panel with a background that includes roles such as Head of E-Commerce at O2, Head of Online Sales and Marketing for Europe at McAfee, and Global Online Merchandising Director for Nokia.

Together with The Zoo Project’s four other dragons – Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West, TradeDoubler, Mary Keane Dawson, Strategic Advisor and Digital Agency Mentor, Paul Bongers, Head of Paid Search at BT / clickbuyclick, and Matthew Wood, Founder of A4U – the team of seven panelists will review and judge the entries of hopeful affiliate applicants.

With applications open until 6 January 2012, up to 20 Affiliate Marketing start-up companies will be admitted into the Zoo for one year, and will benefit from more than £1 million worth of business resources, including rent free and rates free office space at TradeDoubler’s prestigious UK headquarters in Victoria; hands-on mentoring from TradeDoubler’s affiliate marketing industry experts; unique access to major brand advertisers and partners; and networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs.

“We’re delighted to see industry innovators lend their support to The Zoo Project to help encourage, mentor and inspire the entrepreneurs in the UK Affiliate Marketing arena,” said Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West for TradeDoubler. “We have a very strong team of dragons with collective insight, industry expertise and business acumen. This is a unique opportunity for affiliate start-ups, and we’re excited to see how the successful applicants will prosper and thrive with such levels of support.”

Interested affiliates can download an application form at www.thezooproject.co.uk or send an email toapply@thezooproject.co.uk. Shortlisted applicants will then be invited to meet with one or more of The Zoo’s panel of ‘Dragons’.

TradeDoubler will announce the list of successful incubator companies at the end of January 2012, followed by a launch party to celebrate the new incubator residents.  Entry requirements and further information can be found online at www.thezooproject.co.uk

About TradeDoubler
TradeDoubler helps companies improve their online results, both by increasing sales and by increasing brand awareness. The core business is performance-based online marketing. With a network of over 138,000 web publishers, TradeDoubler helps more than 1,900 advertisers worldwide to reach their business goals. The company has a unique reach being able to address around 75 per cent of Europe’s e-commerce consumers. Among the advertisers are Apple, American Express, Dell, Disney, Expedia, lastminute.com and Nokia. The share is listed on Nasdaq OMX. More information is available at www.TradeDoubler.com

For further information, please contact:

Kim Lynch, Devonshire Marketing (PR for TradeDoubler)

Tel: +44 (0) 870 7000 166, Email: kim@devonshiremarketing.com

Marie Dalton, TradeDoubler

Tel: +44 (0) 207 798 6470, Email: marie.dalton@tradedoubler.com

Pan-European performance marketing company TradeDoubler has launched The Zoo Project, a UK Affiliate Marketing incubator designed to foster grass roots growth and help drive innovation in the Affiliate Marketing arena.

The project offers 20 affiliate marketing start-ups a home in the Zoo for one year. They will benefit from more than £1m worth of business resources, including rent- and rates-free office space at TradeDoubler’s UK headquarters in Victoria; hands-on mentoring from TradeDoubler’s affiliate marketing experts; unique access to major brand advertisers and partners; and networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs.

A £1 million ‘Dragons Den’ style incubator has been launched to foster Grass Roots Growth and Drive Innovation across the affiliate marketing sector.
The Zoo Project, an initiative from performance marketing company TradeDoubler, is offering £1m worth of business resources and industry mentoring to help entrepreneurial affiliates.

Up to 20 affiliate marketing start-up companies will be admitted into the Zoo for one year, and will benefit from the business resources, including rent free and rates free office space at TradeDoubler’s UK headquarters in Victoria.

They will also have access to hands-on mentoring from TradeDoubler’s affiliate marketing industry experts as well as major brand advertisers and partners; and networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs. Applications to the incubator are now open until 6 January 2012.

Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West for TradeDoubler, said affiliate marketing was inherently entrepreneurial as an industry sector. “We believe the UK is still one of the world’s biggest gateways for new ideas. Every day we help our clients reach thousands of customers through affiliate marketing campaigns, and want to see more affiliates come to market and achieve similar levels of success.

“We believe the difficult economic climate brings unique opportunities for affiliates as consumers search for better deals online. The Zoo Project will help start-up affiliate businesses harness these opportunities, enabling them to grow into major sustainable companies,” Wilson added.

The project is being supported by several industry experts and thought leaders in the market including Mary Keane Dawson, strategic advisor and digital agency mentor, head of paid search at BT/clickbuyclick Paul Bongers and Matthew Wood, Founder of A4U.

Interested affiliates can download an application form at www.thezooproject.co.uk or send an email to apply@thezooproject.co.uk. Shortlisted applicants will then be invited to meet with one or more of The Zoo’s panel of ‘Dragons’. The list of successful incubator companies at the end of January 2012, followed by a launch party to celebrate the new incubator residents. Entry requirements and further information can be found online at www.thezooproject.co.uk

Performance marketing company TradeDoubler has launched The Zoo Project, a UK Affiliate Marketing incubator designed to foster grass roots growth and help drive innovation in the Affiliate Marketing arena.
With applications now open until 31st January 2012, up to 20 Affiliate Marketing start-up companies will be admitted into the Zoo for one year, provided they meet the approval of a ‘Dragon’s Den’ style panel of judges.

Winning companies will benefit from more than £1 million worth of business resources, including rent free and rates free office space at TradeDoubler’s UK headquarters in Victoria; hands-on mentoring from TradeDoubler’s affiliate marketing industry experts; unique access to major brand advertisers and partners; and networking opportunities with other companies and entrepreneurs.

“Affiliate Marketing is inherently entrepreneurial as an industry sector, and we want to mentor and help support grass roots affiliate growth in the UK,” said Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West for TradeDoubler. “We believe the UK is still one of the world’s biggest gateways for new ideas. Every day we help our clients reach thousands of customers through Affiliate Marketing campaigns, and want to see more affiliates come to market and achieve similar levels of success. We believe the difficult economic climate brings unique opportunities for affiliates as consumers search for better deals online. The Zoo Project will help start-up affiliate businesses harness these opportunities, enabling them to grow into major sustainable companies.”

Interested affiliates can download an application form at www.thezooproject.co.uk or send an email to apply@thezooproject.co.uk. Shortlisted applicants will then be invited to meet with one or more of The Zoo’s panel of ‘Dragons’.

The project is being supported by several industry experts and thought leaders in the market with the final panel being announced in the coming weeks. Key experts include:

• Rob Wilson, Market Unit Leader North West, TradeDoubler
• Mary Keane Dawson, Strategic Advisor and Digital Agency Mentor
• Paul Bongers, Head of Paid Search at BT / clickbuyclick
• Matthew Wood, Founder of A4U

TradeDoubler will announce the list of successful incubator companies at the end of January 2012, followed by a launch party to celebrate the new incubator residents.
Entry requirements and further information can be found online at www.thezooproject.co.uk

Performance-based affiliate marketing company TradeDoubler has launched what it is calling “a business incubator” for affiliates and new start-ups in order to encourage new developments and innovations in the industry.

The scheme, dubbed “The Zoo Project”, will offer successful affiliates and start-ups access to a number of business resources including rent and rate-free office space with TradeDoubler’s own Victoria office, mentoring from TradeDoubler employees, the opportunity to attend client pitches, and access to their advertising and commercial partners.

Taking its cue from entrepreneur-finding television programmes such as Dragons Den, companies wanting to take part in the Zoo Project will need to pitch their ideas or technologies to a panel of affiliate market experts (unoriginally dubbed “Dragons”). These include, at present, the founder of A4U, a Market Unit Leader from TradeDoubler, the Head of Paid Search at BT, and an independent advisor.

The project will choose up to 20 companies to be included, for a period of one year, though placements may be extended at TradeDoubler’s discretion. Applications are welcome from online and mobile companies, with a deadline of January 31st 2012. Hopeful applicants are asked to submit a business plan, have at least one full-time employee, and “adequate financial resources”. Interestingly, pitches will be accepted without a full business plan, which suggests they are trying to encourage entrepreneurs who may have a great innovation but lack the knowledge to implement it.

It will be interesting to see what comes out of the process; a year is not long to make a new business stick, but we guess it is long enough for TradeDoubler to work out whether the business has long-term potential. We will be keeping an eye on this particular Den.