• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, August 15, 2005

Yahoo! is broadening its search marketing program to provide training to third-party partners through its "Ambassador Program," the company said last week.

The initiative, dubbed "Alliances Program," seeks to broaden Yahoo!'s four-year-old program, formerly limited to top partners, to include smaller search engine marketing firms and individual search marketers. The three-tiered Ambassadors Program provides partners with education, training, and search marketing resources to help them sell and manage paid search campaigns.

At the introductory Ambassador level, commissions are paid a flat rate of $20 for each new advertiser referred to Yahoo! Search Marketing, with no minimum spend required. Certified and Strategic Ambassadors must meet a minimum monthly spend and demonstrate additional expertise in Yahoo! Search Marketing products. Partners in the higher tiers also receive dedicated customer service, on-site training, and advertiser Web services.

Yahoo! is also adding to its existing affiliate program with a new Certified Affiliate program, which offers Web-based training and marketing materials to help affiliates educate their clients before referring them to begin a paid search campaign with Yahoo! The program is currently limited to affiliates in the United States and Canada, with plans to expand to other countries in the future.