1) Conversion rate is the single most important metric. 4) “Lead quality is of paramount importance,” says Brook. “Don’t What’s the biggest metric for affiliate programs and how understanding it can get you more customers without spending more money. Have you noticed that affiliate programs don’t make it to the cover magazines like BusinessWeek or Wired? Maybe it’s because affiliate programs aren’t as cool as social networks or aren’t as fun to talk as iPhone apps.

and key metrics such as customer acquisition and average revenue per user. While the fit/capability of the team is paramount to my decision, I find it is better left until after I understand the basic premise of the business so that I can really assess the business purely on its own merits. In meeting with entrepreneurs, especially those that I haven’t met or heard about before, I often ask them to give me the 5 min overview of the business before we dive into any details or the formal presentation deck. I