Co-op marketing is a form of cooperative advertising where two or more businesses share the cost of an ad campaign and/or split the resulting revenue.
But how does it work, what are the benefits, and which type of co-op advertising is best for your business? Let’s take a look at some common questions about co-op marketing. Here are some ways that you can use this powerful strategy to reach new customers today!
What is co op advertising and how does it work?
Co-op advertising is a reimbursement program offered by credit card companies, it’s an agreement between the brand and the issuer to share the cost of marketing. The Co-Op Advertising Program reimburses you for 100% of your allowable net cost of advertising until your account reaches its co-op limit.
So let’s say I bought some bling for my store, and the credit card company offers co-op advertising. The ad says “20% off sale”. For every $100 I spend on the card I get $25 of it back through co ops? Yes!
Why retailers should care about digital co-op advertising
Retailers have known for a long time that there is tremendous value in co-op advertising. But more recently, as they have begun to invest more resources online, they have discovered a whole new world of opportunities available to them through co-op advertising programs on digital platforms.
So why retailers should care about digital co-op advertising?
Increased awareness and relevancy through personalized content
One of the key insights that retailers should take away from this shift towards personalization is that it has become much easier to provide potential customers with relevant ads while ensuring that they don’t show up in front of people who wouldn’t find them relevant.
This is where co-op advertising can help retailers stand out from their competitors.
The ability to provide potential customers with relevant ads across a wide range of digital platforms such as Google, Bing, Facebook and Twitter (among others) means that brands will be able to reach people who would actually find their messages interesting and engaging.
This ultimately results in higher click through rates which, in turn, helps them achieve greater brand awareness and relevancy among consumers.
Ability to measure impact down to the SKU level
One of the great advantages that retailers have when they advertise online is access to a ton of data.
Even though most consumers are browsing for products and services on other sites (like Amazon), it is easy for retailers to direct those individuals back to their own site because they know what products and services those people were interested in.
Co-op advertising programs allow them to do this easily and effectively by offering co-op incentives for driving traffic or sales through advertisements on other websites, as well as allowing them to measure the success of those campaigns down to the SKU level.
A more transparent alternative to the walled gardens
Google and Facebook have launched co-op advertising targeted products, but the walled gardens leave a lot to be desired.
Brands are told they need “trust” that their ads will work, but without transparency into results at a granular level; brands find themselves in an impossible situation where it’s difficult for them know if what seems like success was actually due simply.
Because of luck or better targeting strategies should really start working more effectively soon enough and then suddenly one day everything clicks shutoff without warning!
Best practices for co-op advertising
There are several best practices that should be used for successful co op advertising programs. Be sure to consider the following:
Define your goals
Define your goals and then identify how co-op can help you meet them, before you embark on any program.
Without a plan, there is no goal to achieve so take time at the beginning to clearly establish what success looks like! Also, understand the goals of other advertisers in your program, so you can work together toward common ends instead of working alone toward different ones.
Put in place minimal agreement requirements
Put in place minimal agreement requirements – If both parties don’t do their part then it doesn’t work! There are specific criteria that must be met for co-op to work efficiently and these differ according to the type of ad being run.

For example, if you are signing on for a radio or TV spot then both parties need to adhere to the contractual requirements put in place by the company selling advertising space.
Failure to meet these criteria could result in wasted money, time, and effort so ensure that your partner(s) can fulfill their obligations before any agreements are made!
Ensure that you have adequate support systems
Ensure that you have adequate support systems in place before initiating any campaign – it isn’t easy trying to manage an advertising program alone!
Having a dedicated account manager is recommended but there are other ways to get support during your co op venture including consultation with marketing agencies, online management tools, and free technical support from co op program providers.
Having a system in place to track your success, or lack thereof
Make certain that you have a system in place to track your success, or lack thereof! Without a way to identify how well an advertising venture is performing then there’s no way to take corrective actions if it isn’t going as planned.
Be sure that the plan includes ways for tracking all aspects of the campaign including costs associated with each advertisement, conversions, ROI, and others if appropriate for your business.
Don’t try to sell other products or services until you’ve proven that people are buying yours!
This should be common sense but some advertisers forget this apparently simple fact when they get excited about selling their products through co op advertising!
If you aren’t making sales with your co op ad then you might want to take a step back and figure out why before you try selling someone else’s product!
Make sure that you actually get paid for the advertising space that was purchased
Make sure that you actually get paid for the advertising space that was purchased – Otherwise it is just wasted money and effort!
There is nothing more frustrating than putting in long hours to meet all of the requirements of a campaign, only to find that the advertiser(s) who purchased space didn’t pay up when they were supposed to.
Some advertisers will refuse payment or reduce the amount owed if an order isn’t filled so be sure to include these details in your agreement.
Be careful about how much you charge for each advertisement
Be careful about how much you charge for each advertisement – this topic deserves its own article but suffice it to say that you need to ensure both parties are making money, not just one of you!
Having set out these best practices the next step is to define how your program will work. There are several different types of co op advertising programs and they can be used in many ways so there is no single approach for each situation.
Winning examples of the co-op advertising opportunity
When it comes to a retailer’s marketing plan for the holiday season, in-store co-op displays are going strong and increasing in popularity. Since they’re usually among the first things consumers see when they walk into a store, these displays have become critical advertising tools for retailers of all sizes.
Co-op advertising can take many forms but generally refers to promotional products such as point-of-sale (POS) signs, fixtures and banners; window signage; shelf facings; print advertisements; online ads; social networking campaigns; and more.

Basically any form of advertising that supports retail sales can be considered co-op advertising.
Smaller businesses are finding effective, cost-efficient ways to utilize co-op advertising. For example, independent pharmacies can design and manufacture their own POS displays for local grocery store chains in exchange for having the displays placed at crucial selling points within stores.
By targeting customers with these ads, drugstores increase sales of both name brand and generic products; they also receive brand displays at no cost.
Epsilon is partnering with a leading beauty retailer to help support their brands and see results.
With Epsilon’s rich profile, optimization capabilities, and decades of experience in e-commerce modeling audiences most likely purchase specific items at the brand level—Epsilons helped launch full funnel approaches for this client that have already led to increased conversion rates on certain products by up 0%.
We’re happy to work with this retailer because we know they have a relationship with brands.
As an added bonus, due our unique position of power within the industry and close working partnership as their agent provider; combined we were able achieve ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) ratios averaging $5:1-$15 in campaigns across various categories which has helped strengthen relationships between both parties while solidifying them leader when it comes delivering measurable results that directly impact businesses.
Some tips to help you get the most out of co-op advertising
- To get customers into your store, work with an advertising professional to prepare ads that will appeal to the manufacturer.
- Make sure you maintain a professional tone of voice and stay within industry guidelines for content when making these advertisements.
- Maintaining proper records is key in order not only for billing purposes but also so business can run smoothly.
- You should always keep track how much money has come from each supplier before proceeding any further- this includes sales videos or catalogs if trying something new like this out!
- If getting approval from vendors isn’t possible then at least know what kind of impression might happen because certain things may surprise them (like us).
- Remembering everything about their past campaigns could help make our own product stand apart better too.
- If a manufacturer has no established co-op program in place, pitch your ad campaign to the vendor anyway. After all you’re bringing them business and deserve their help too!
- Expect vendors will offer assistance if they can’t provide money because of this new partnership; just make sure it’s something that works for both parties (ex: sending out product samples).
How can I find out which manufacturers have a co-op program?
As a customer of some company, you can submit Co-Op Info Requests and receive all requirements for manufacturers within two business days. These include information like the list of approved advertisers or what typesmedia they are interested in using your image on!
As more people request this type of data from them, it will become easier to find relevant ads among others that may not be related specifically to one individual’s campaign plan. But instead just happen along at random during browsing through different websites with user generated content enabled by default without any warning signs telling viewers something might contain adverts unless purposely looking out specifically seeking them which some users won’t do even.
How do I know if my company qualifies for this type of marketing strategy
First, you want to make sure that your company has developed not only a product or service that people will buy but also one that customers would recommend to other potential customers. You need to be able to clearly show how the product is superior to others on the market, and what type of results it can produce for its users.
Second, does your company have the budget to support this type of marketing strategy?
Third, if your business operates in a niche industry or in multiple industries you will need to make sure that the company advertising will be effective in each one.
What is an example of a co-op?
An example of co-op advertising is when a national brand, such as Reese’s or Pepsi , agrees to provide product in exchange for placement on the site.
Co-op ads are not exclusive to just Google Adsense, but can also come from various other places on your website. They may be integrated into an affiliate marketing program if you have any, or some would argue that they even show up within your WordPress admin .
What does co-op marketing mean?
Co-op marketing is a form of direct (or mass) marketing in which manufacturers and retailers jointly advertise products. In co-operative advertising, product manufacturers will pay some or all of the cost of an advertisement placed by a retailer in the media.
The manufacturer benefits because its products are advertised to customers at times when they will be in a buying mood, and therefore more likely to buy.
Retailers benefit from this arrangement for several different reasons: they receive free advertising, their sales may increase due to increased consumer demand during advertisements, and most importantly, co-op dollars reduce the need for them to spend money on advertising themselves.
Co-op dollars do not have to be spent exclusively with one retailer or media outlet; indeed they often stretch across a nation, or even throughout the world.
Are there specific guidelines my team needs to follow when creating these ads?
Yes! The right manufacturer can save you time and money by providing ads, templates or other creative.
When working with any company for your co-op campaign be sure to find out if they have certain style requirements before moving forward – this could even mean not spending any media costs at all because the product may already exist in their ad library.
Conclusion
Coop advertising is the process of utilizing cooperative marketing to promote a product or service. The goal can be either selling more products, raising awareness for an issue, or both.
It often works by leveraging one company’s customer base with that of another business in order to create mutually beneficial partnerships where all parties gain something from the arrangement.