Comments on: All Hail the New Parasite http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/ Affiliate & Web Marketing Stuff Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:35:38 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.2 By: » Trademark Poaching - Who’s Stealing Your Holiday Commissions? AffConnect: Affiliate & Web Marketing Stuff http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-92 » Trademark Poaching - Who’s Stealing Your Holiday Commissions? AffConnect: Affiliate & Web Marketing Stuff Thu, 13 Dec 2007 21:33:52 +0000 http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-92 [...] eat in Online Merchant Stuff, Program Management, SEO SEM PPC, Affiliate Marketing In my last post, All Hail the New Parasite, I ranted a bit about networks, OPMs and affiliates taking advantage of merchants on the TM PPC [...] […] eat in Online Merchant Stuff, Program Management, SEO SEM PPC, Affiliate Marketing In my last post, All Hail the New Parasite, I ranted a bit about networks, OPMs and affiliates taking advantage of merchants on the TM PPC […]

]]> By: eat http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-88 eat Wed, 05 Dec 2007 23:00:14 +0000 http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-88 My beef isn't so much with direct to merchant PPC (we allow it on our retail program and I've used it with some success as an affiliate), but rather with the rampant abuse of merchant policies and how that abuse is driving much of the market data at the network. It's getting way out of control. My beef isn’t so much with direct to merchant PPC (we allow it on our retail program and I’ve used it with some success as an affiliate), but rather with the rampant abuse of merchant policies and how that abuse is driving much of the market data at the network. It’s getting way out of control.

]]> By: meagain http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-87 meagain Wed, 05 Dec 2007 05:12:12 +0000 http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-87 Uh-oh! Looks like there's another reason that DTM PPC using the merchant's URL is a bad idea: http://forum.abestweb.com/showthread.php?t=98352 Don't get me wrong, I do not think there is anything wrong with sending clicks DTM using PPC, but not disguised as the merchant. If the merchant has terms prohibiting it then it should not be done. If your campaign is directly targeting a particular product and the landing page is the merchan't product page and if they don't prohibit the practice then it is competition between advertisers. I have never done this but it doesn't bother me if other affiliates do. Maybe there is some aspect to it that I don't see but there is only one practice that should not be permitted by networks and that is the use of the merchant's URL as a display URL, IMHO. Using the Merchant's URL as your display URL is deceptive, misleading and overwrites other affiliate's cookies - those that sent them searching for that URL, plus costs the merchant extra commissions without bringing in NEW clients. Uh-oh! Looks like there’s another reason that DTM PPC using the merchant’s URL is a bad idea:
http://forum.abestweb.com/showthread.php?t=98352
Don’t get me wrong, I do not think there is anything wrong with sending clicks DTM using PPC, but not disguised as the merchant. If the merchant has terms prohibiting it then it should not be done. If your campaign is directly targeting a particular product and the landing page is the merchan’t product page and if they don’t prohibit the practice then it is competition between advertisers. I have never done this but it doesn’t bother me if other affiliates do. Maybe there is some aspect to it that I don’t see but there is only one practice that should not be permitted by networks and that is the use of the merchant’s URL as a display URL, IMHO.
Using the Merchant’s URL as your display URL is deceptive, misleading and overwrites other affiliate’s cookies - those that sent them searching for that URL, plus costs the merchant extra commissions without bringing in NEW clients.

]]> By: eat http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-85 eat Sat, 01 Dec 2007 06:30:15 +0000 http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-85 "...or condone it because they get a percentage." You see a well structured set of program terms detailing everything from a to z and it looks like the OPM is on the job kicking ass for the merchant, but that same set of terms fails to even mention PPC. Sorta' makes you wonder which side of that conflict of interest was favored when the program was set up... "The nonsense about displacing your competition is ludicrous, your competion cannot place highly bidding on your trademark, it would cost them a fortune because of the lack of relevancy to THE keyword." Spot on! It's a pile of absurd horsecrap that keeps getting flopped on the table, flies and all, whenever the topic comes up. “…or condone it because they get a percentage.”

You see a well structured set of program terms detailing everything from a to z and it looks like the OPM is on the job kicking ass for the merchant, but that same set of terms fails to even mention PPC. Sorta’ makes you wonder which side of that conflict of interest was favored when the program was set up…

“The nonsense about displacing your competition is ludicrous, your competion cannot place highly bidding on your trademark, it would cost them a fortune because of the lack of relevancy to THE keyword.”

Spot on! It’s a pile of absurd horsecrap that keeps getting flopped on the table, flies and all, whenever the topic comes up.

]]> By: meagain http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-84 meagain Sat, 01 Dec 2007 04:08:07 +0000 http://www.affconnect.com/affiliate-marketing/all-hail-the-new-parasite/#comment-84 --"shouldn’t OPM firms educate their clients and suggest they put a PPC policy in place, shouldn’t legitimate marketers get annoyed that these folks are posing as merchants and potentially overwriting their hard won cookies?" -- You bet, but I am starting to think that some of the OPMs either are the bidders or condone it because they get a percentage. I could name a few mechants whose programs I quit because of this and hundreds of others that I won't join for that same reason. Very simply it is stupid to permit the practice because it brings in zero new customers and steals from other affiliates plus causes the merchant to pay unnecessary commissions. I have heard merchants defend the practice, even debated one back and forth over it. I have written many emails to potential 'partners' trying to understand the blindness. When I'm building a site and want to round it out with products that are available through these dummies it just seems such a shame - but I will not spend my time to send visitors to a vulture. The nonsense about displacing your competition is ludicrous, your competion cannot place highly bidding on your trademark, it would cost them a fortune because of the lack of relevancy to THE keyword. An affiliate sending traffic directly to your URL on the other hand pays next to nothing, much less than affiliates sending clicks through their own domains - again due to relevancy. There is a feature in the SAS reports where you can see how long after setting the original cookie that the sale was made. Immediately: 1 percent; more than 14 days later: 98 percent. Of couse I'm sure none of those 98 percent would go look through Google to find 'that place' after two weeks..right? –”shouldn’t OPM firms educate their clients and suggest they put a PPC policy in place, shouldn’t legitimate marketers get annoyed that these folks are posing as merchants and potentially overwriting their hard won cookies?” –
You bet, but I am starting to think that some of the OPMs either are the bidders or condone it because they get a percentage. I could name a few mechants whose programs I quit because of this and hundreds of others that I won’t join for that same reason. Very simply it is stupid to permit the practice because it brings in zero new customers and steals from other affiliates plus causes the merchant to pay unnecessary commissions. I have heard merchants defend the practice, even debated one back and forth over it. I have written many emails to potential ‘partners’ trying to understand the blindness. When I’m building a site and want to round it out with products that are available through these dummies it just seems such a shame - but I will not spend my time to send visitors to a vulture.
The nonsense about displacing your competition is ludicrous, your competion cannot place highly bidding on your trademark, it would cost them a fortune because of the lack of relevancy to THE keyword. An affiliate sending traffic directly to your URL on the other hand pays next to nothing, much less than affiliates sending clicks through their own domains - again due to relevancy.
There is a feature in the SAS reports where you can see how long after setting the original cookie that the sale was made. Immediately: 1 percent; more than 14 days later: 98 percent. Of couse I’m sure none of those 98 percent would go look through Google to find ‘that place’ after two weeks..right?

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