[Haiko de Poel, Jr.]

A thread to post the worst in Affiliate Marketing in 2003, from boneheaded decisions to program terms, post em all.

<font size="2" face="Verdana">Haiko


The secret of success is constancy of purpose. ~ Disraeli</font></p>

[Julian]

Making changes to an affiliate program 2 or 3 weeks before Christmas, making it so that affiliates have to change their links

www.cjshoppingnetwork.com

[erninator]

From a phone conversation with an affiliate program manager:

"Yes, I understand how WhenU works, but they only account for a small percent of our affiliate sales. You should have nothing to worry about."

Ernie

It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.

[northernstudio]

Amazon.com's impossible terms.

From low commissions on non-media to $10 commisions caps, to screwing with the commission structure on a quarterly basis to barring affiliate purchases to promoting its Alexa spyware.

Wayne

~The local burglar's 'exclusion list' does little to fight crime~

[bigchuck]

Google. The Florida update. need I say more? They have done more to screw affiliates than any other company I know. However, Adsense rocks! Go figure. I would have to say Google's search, but not the company as a whole. anyone that sends me a check can't be all that bad!

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Big Chuck

[ecomcity]

The almost universal decision by merchant AM's to fed and encourage all forms of affiliate spamming during 2003. This move has given this industry a huge black eye in the minds of the consumer. All consolidation efforts seems to put more power into the best of breed commission con-men who seek to control traffic at it's SE source and during the check-out process. Consumer backlash to gorrilla marketers is on a roll and will now focus in on the affiliate community... the source of monitizing spam, Telemarketers, spyware/adware and identity and CC theft.

Mike & Charlie ...

If they won't adopt and feed a bird ..flip them one! BBQ some Gator and remember to flush WhenU..

[EmDub]

Two words. Tiger. Direct.

Michael

[Nova]

All Networks that let parasites undermine the others works! Is the best of the worst for Affiliate Marketing IMO!

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What does the COC stand for? Crooks Overwriting Commissions.
Don't worry! Tracking is infected!
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Love Life to the fullest. we only get ONE chance! :-) !

[Leader]

What CJSN said. I'll add some specifics: Those who update their datafeed once a year--and December is the month they choose to do it. And those who close their programs/hop networks/temporarily deactivate (and actually return) because in these cases, the only way to keep the site up to date (rip the links and accompanying text down) usually results in SE rank loss.

Also winning my worst award are those who diss people who don't do things their way. This attitude is a detriment to this industry because it stifles advance. They say Thomas Edison had to try something like 5,000 light bulbs to find one that worked--imagine if some Luddite kept telling him that anything but using candles was "wrong" on top of that, and you've got the state of the industry... Helping steer the direction of affiliate marketing is NOT the same thing as helping to fossilize it! But I see a lot of fossilization attempts going on lately and it definitely gets my vote for Worst of the Business. For the record, more than one poster here shares in this "award."

Boneheaded program terms Worst award goes to that place that tried to ban buying keywords/SEOing on ALL terms that are remotely relevant. I forgot the name of the place, darnit, but I remember their stupid TOS quite well!

(Clarified "boneheaded program terms" nomination)

It's the most wonderful time of the year!~Old Christmas Song

[This message was edited by Leader on December 11, 2003 at 08:55 PM.]

[Julian]

Another one is those merchants who decide to remove affiliates just before Christmas. Tiny Monkey Cards did it to me a few days ago.
We are coming into the busiest time of the year for most affiliates

Why would a merchant remove affiliates just before Christmas?

OK, I admit that I have not had any sales with Tiny Monkey Cards, but I have sent them a small amount of traffic, so they are on my site. Due to the potentially massive increases in traffic at this time of year, there is a good chance that more traffic would have gone to some of my non-performing merchants.

To remove affiliates so close to Christmas is insane

www.cjshoppingnetwork.com

[elbowcreek]

I will cite a specific example, don't know if that is what you want, or more generic, coverall suggestions.


Colorado Pen, changing their image server in December, notifying affiliates 2 days later that they would need to update all their links in order for the images to work.

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Once you can accept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy. --Albert Einstein

[bigchuck]

Leader said...<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>But I see a lot of fossilization attempts going on lately and it definitely gets my vote for Worst of the Business. For the record, more than one poster here shares in this "award."<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Hell, Leader, enlighten us to who these evil doers are... you've already gone most of the way with it. Fill in the blank. don't beat around the bush like a coward.

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Big Chuck

[Leader]

Add the nimrod AM who sent the letter in this thread to the nominees. I'm not their affiliate, but he deserves recognition!

http://abw.infopop.cc/6/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=548608979&f=106607689&m=3316090615&r=6946071615#6946071615

@ Chuck-- first , Second, there's a couple more than I can think of right offhand. Plus I'd like this thread to stay open so I'll resist that obvious bait.

It's the most wonderful time of the year!~Old Christmas Song

[Buddha]

Affiliate Programs who send out HTML email only. No plain text, I don't even bother reading it and when I do it's in source code.

SharperImage recently sent out an E-mail with a form in it asking for my username and password and name. No plain text. No link to a secure page for this form at LinkShare. Just hope I'm not being scammed and fill out this form in my INSECURE email client. Yeah right. I waited a couple of days and dang if a plain text version didn't show up with a Linkshare link. You boys know you can actually have plain/text and HTML all in the same email?

Buy.com is nominated for sending me my password in the "Buy.com Application Approved" email. Gee guys how much are you paying LinkShare to take care of loss passwords for you? They got a nice little link right there under their login! LinkShare you are also nominate for giving them any access to my password!

I'ld like to nominate all those who think the only thing that matters is making a buck - no matter what. Congratulation you've diminish us all as a species.

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"A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes." -- Mahatma Gandhi

[Radegast]

The entire population of the planet.

For not visiting my websites and buying stuff with my cookies....

The Bastids!!!!!!!!

[Ebudae]

The Hobby place that just went in and deleted affiliates who had not been performing and in the same swift move deleted people who had just joined.

Bad move right before Christmas!

Ebudae

If you understand, things are just as they are...
if you do not understand, things are just as they are.

[happypoon]

Even though it wont be appreciated - The Tiger Direct datafeed(s) fiasco.

One datafeed isn't enough, lets do another one, endless changes, limit the descriptions, no - don't do that, ah hell just pull everything.

This was definately one of the most frustrating wo*k related experiences of the past year for me. A complete joke and a bad one at that!

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Great News - we can now support ebates and pp merchants - they are cleaning up their act and I'll bet it'll be a long time before we see another clip of ebates overwriting affiliate links.
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[JJJay]

Affiliate managers who are also affiliates in their program, talk about conflict of interests.

[cazzie]

I agree with Poon
The TigerDirect Mess
Cazzie

Join the Fight! Parasite Free In 2003!

[bkirsch]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JJJay:
Affiliate managers who are also affiliates in their program, talk about conflict of interests.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

That really happens?

Gezzz, everywhere I have ever worked, we have had a "no employee can be a company affilaite"
How would you ever get affilaites to trust you, if they thought you were their competiton and you had an unfair advantage.

[JJJay]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Beth Kirsch:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JJJay:
Affiliate managers who are also affiliates in their program, talk about conflict of interests.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

That really happens?

Gezzz, everywhere I have ever worked, we have had a "no employee can be a company affilaite"
How would you ever get affilaites to trust you, if they thought you were their competiton and you had an unfair advantage. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yes I know from personal experience.

[northernstudio]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> Affiliate managers who are also affiliates in their program, talk about conflict of interests.

That really happens? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Forgot about this. This is among the best of the worst.

Wasn't there an AM here a while ago defending the idea? I won't (knowingly) sign up for a program where the AM is my competition, has access to the top affiliates' sales figures and can track their website, optimization, etc. Don't care how honest they claim to be, I won't trust them.

Wayne

~The local burglar's 'exclusion list' does little to fight crime~

[bkirsch]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JJJay:


Yes I know from personal experience.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'm sorry to here that. That is just not acceptable behavior


Beth

[Trust]

thread about it
http://abw.infopop.cc/6/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=548608979&f=179600589&m=7766023944

I work in lounge pants

[elbowcreek]

Actually, I think that Tiger Direct df fiasco was a lot more important than my first suggestion, so I vote for that one instead.

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Once you can accept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy. --Albert Einstein