Publisher Refuses to put Analytics Code on Thank You Page...

[AlexKaplo]

Hey guy's,

It's been a while since I posted here, but I really need your help (especially from you affiliate veterans!)...

Over the past few weeks I've been promoting a Clickbank product and in my initial testing the campaign was very profitable...

Now once I determine a campaign is profitable I usually email the publisher and kindly ask for him put my google analytics code + my prosper202 analytics code on hes "thank you" order page, so that I can really begin analyzing all the data... in most cases the publisher is thrilled to have a serious affiliate on board!

But not this time...

I fell on a real hard as$#@#... basically he is completely refusing to put my analytics codes on his thank you page and didn't even offer me some kind of alternative method. (We've already sent over 10 emails going back and forth and he doesn't seem to be willing to change hes mind...)

Now aside of this guy's real attitude problem... he has a killer product that converts like crazy and good enough to stick with it... and I can almost say for sure that with the proper "tweaking" I can really make this project become very profitable...

So my question is how do you guy's get around this?... I still want to see which keywords are making me money, but I have no way of accessing the page that customers fall on after purchasing...

Hope there is some kind of way around this ...

Thanks in advance !

Alex

[AverageGuy]

well, i think it is normal that the code-proposal was rejected. why he should add it? yes, he get one more affiliate, but the downside is: what if the code could do what it is not supposed to do? you may say he can check the code. why he should take time to check the code for you?

just some thoughts. anyway, I will not add any codes from affiliates just so the affiliate can track my traffic. The request is weird enough.


david

[Keith Kogane]

Yeah, I wouldn't do that for an affiliate I didn't have some kind of agreement with - there's just way too much you can do with tracking code. Depending on your industry, that kind of data could actually be considered trade secret.

I personally wouldn't want to give anyone any insight into my traffic numbers even if it WOULD help them sell more copies. It could also help them evaluate reverse engineering my whole product and cloning it.

[sevenish]

Adding jscript code to a page can slow loading time significantly, possibly even resulting in a time out. It's his business on the line here, don't forget.

With most CPA networks, we can place tracking pixels before and after the sale to track the conversions. I wish other affiliate networks provided that capability. So I understand where you're trying to go here, but I don't blame the merchant for denying your request to load the page with code that won't directly impact his bottom line.

[AlexKaplo]

Originally Posted by AverageGuy

well, i think it is normal that the code-proposal was rejected. why he should add it? yes, he get one more affiliate, but the downside is: what if the code could do what it is supposed to do? you may say he can check the code. why he should take time to check the code for you?

just some thoughts. anyway, I will not add any codes from affiliates just so the affiliate can track my traffic. The request is weird enough.


david

Keep in mind this person knows I'm the guy that drove a few dozen sales over the past 3 weeks... so I'm not this random guy asking for this "favor"... this guy is going to make free money from me... and I see absolutely no reason why he should refuse this unless I'm planning to do some sort of scheme which isn't the case.... (and which I stated to him many times).

Regardless of what he decides to do I'm tired of debating...

I'm just looking for that alternative method to track sales from my keywords ...

[sevenish]

Why not ask him to place your Prosper202 tracking pixel on his confirmation page? much less work and page load and will not reveal data to you beyond the Prosper202 information, which tracks kws, PPC campaign, etc.

Edit: Not to mention the fact that YOUR GA jscript on HIS confirmation page would give you data from all of his sales, not simply your sales. It would be very risky and insecure for the merchant, IMO, and he/she probably understands that. Again, just ask him/her to place your tracking pixel.

[Mike Hill]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Hey guy's,

It's been a while since I posted here, but I really need your help (especially from you affiliate veterans!)...

Over the past few weeks I've been promoting a Clickbank product and in my initial testing the campaign was very profitable...

Now once I determine a campaign is profitable I usually email the publisher and kindly ask for him put my google analytics code + my prosper202 analytics code on hes "thank you" order page, so that I can really begin analyzing all the data... in most cases the publisher is thrilled to have a serious affiliate on board!

But not this time...

I fell on a real hard as$#@#... basically he is completely refusing to put my analytics codes on his thank you page and didn't even offer me some kind of alternative method. (We've already sent over 10 emails going back and forth and he doesn't seem to be willing to change hes mind...)

Now aside of this guy's real attitude problem... he has a killer product that converts like crazy and good enough to stick with it... and I can almost say for sure that with the proper "tweaking" I can really make this project become very profitable...

So my question is how do you guy's get around this?... I still want to see which keywords are making me money, but I have no way of accessing the page that customers fall on after purchasing...

Hope there is some kind of way around this ...

Thanks in advance !

Alex

Create a competing product and offer the product in different versions (audio, video, PDF, worksheets, etc...) to increase the value over the other product... Contact all his affiliates (there are tools to get that info) and let them know about your product and that they get a bigger commission, more affiliate tools, etc...

That's what I would do...

Mike Hill

[James Schramko]

Offer a bonus and place the code on your bonus confirm page.... that's what I do

[AlexKaplo]

Originally Posted by Mike Hill

Create a competing product and offer the product in different versions (audio, video, PDF, worksheets, etc...) to increase the value over the other product... Contact all his affiliates (there are tools to get that info) and let them know about your product and that they get a bigger commission, more affiliate tools, etc...

That's what I would do...

Mike Hill

Oh dude don't worry... that's my whole plan behind every affiliate campaign I run... I do a few months promotions and get a good cash-flow running from the project and analyze the market THEN I unleash hell on him...

But this affiliate campaign is already doing over 250% ROI in the beginning stages and I'm not gonna let this go if it's the last thing I do!

Does anyone have some kind of script or software, anything really...lol ?

[Keith Kogane]

Originally Posted by Keith Kogane

I personally wouldn't want to give anyone any insight into my traffic numbers even if it WOULD help them sell more copies. It could also help them evaluate reverse engineering my whole product and cloning it.

Originally Posted by Mike Hill

Create a competing product and offer the product in different versions (audio, video, PDF, worksheets, etc...) to increase the value over the other product... Contact all his affiliates (there are tools to get that info) and let them know about your product and that they get a bigger commission, more affiliate tools, etc...

That's what I would do...

Mike Hill

Originally Posted by NathanFalkner

I'd do the same thing.

Called it. Told you.

[GarrieWilson]

Use a program like xconversions that creates a TID based on the data you need.

Garrie

[sevenish]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Does anyone have some kind of script or software, anything really...lol ?

P202 does, which you're already using. The tracking pixel will provide you with data that is related to your traffic only.

[GarrieWilson]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Oh dude don't worry... that's my whole plan behind every affiliate campaign I run... I do a few months promotions and get a good cash-flow running from the project and analyze the market THEN I unleash hell on him...

And you wonder why he refuses.

People don't let foxs in the hen house.

[LB]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Oh dude don't worry... that's my whole plan behind every affiliate campaign I run... I do a few months promotions and get a good cash-flow running from the project and analyze the market THEN I unleash hell on him...

But this affiliate campaign is already doing over 250% ROI in the beginning stages and I'm not gonna let this go if it's the last thing I do!

Does anyone have some kind of script or software, anything really...lol ?

And affiliates bitch that vendors don't jump when they ask. This is why.

[drooblez]

Yeah, I mean you say he has no reason to not place the code on the thank you page, but then you say how your gonna re-create the product and unleash hell on him.

Maybe that's his reasoning behind why he won't place the code on his thank you page?

[sevenish]

Originally Posted by GarrieWilson

And you wonder why he refuses.

People don't let foxs in the hen house.

I can't understand why anyone would be surprised by this merchant's refusal to reveal the entirety of his landing page data, which is what using your GA script would do. Maybe ask him to send you his ATM card and PIN too.

[AlexKaplo]

Originally Posted by sevenish

P202 does, which you're already using. The tracking pixel will provide you with data that is related to your traffic only.

Prosper will allow a pixel or a code that will fire but again this has to be put isnide the "thank page" of the publishers website...

Originally Posted by GarrieWilson

Use a program like xconversions that creates a TID based on the data you need.

Garrie

Garrie can you please elaborate on what you mean by TID data?

Also I'm not using "ANY" of this person personal DATA from the analytics information to then compete with him!... I just make sure I run a solid affiliate campaign tracking all the info I need to track to make this work, get the keywords, analyze the market, and create an overall better product...

[sevenish]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Prosper will allow a pixel or a code that will fire but again this has to be put isnide the "thank page" of the publishers website...

Yes. but it's secure and reveals to you only the data that is related to your traffic through the P202 redirection link, unlike the request described in your OP, which would reveal to you ALL of the data for ALL of the sales, including kws, traffic sources, etc.

In other words, the merchant would have to be an idiot to grant your request as described in your OP.

[yesacpow]

Hey To Th Op,

You can use a software such as xtreme conversions as someone above mentioned.

You install it to your server and it will place a tracking id on all your keywords and tell you exactly which ones you got the sale from. You don't have to place any tracking code on the vendors' page.

Here is the sales page --> Xtreme Conversions - Total Affiliate Domination

[AlexKaplo]

Originally Posted by sevenish

Yes. but it's secure and reveals to you only the data that is related to your traffic through the P202 redirection link, unlike the request described in your OP, which would reveal to you ALL of the data for ALL of the sales, including kws, traffic sources, etc.

In other words, the merchant would have to be an idiot to grant your request as described in your OP.

Yeah but the reason I like to also have the google analytics is because I get to see almost everything in one place.

Also, in google analytics if you have the ecommerce script already coded to your "thank you" page for your own personal use, there is a special code that you can give out to affiliates so that they can track their metrics only... and not see all the publishers info...

[AlexKaplo]

Originally Posted by yesacpow

Hey To Th Op,

You can use a software such as xtreme conversions as someone above mentioned.

You install it to your server and it will place a tracking id on all your keywords and tell you exactly which ones you got the sale from. You don't have to place any tracking code on the vendors' page.

Here is the sales page --> Xtreme Conversions - Total Affiliate Domination

Ahh thankk you my man... this is the kind of thing I'm looking for!

[sevenish]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Also, in google analytics if you have the ecommerce script already coded to your "thank you" page for your own personal use, there is a special code that you can give out to affiliates so that they can track their metrics only... and not see all the publishers info...

True enough, but I can still see why a merchant may not wish to add front end load.

The xtreme conversions product sounds great. I'll look into that myself.

[yesacpow]

You are very welcome.

All the best..

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Ahh thankk you my man... this is the kind of thing I'm looking for!

[Istvan Horvath]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Also, in google analytics if you have the ecommerce script already coded to your "thank you" page for your own personal use, there is a special code that you can give out to affiliates so that they can track their metrics only... and not see all the publishers info...

Actually, in your OP you were talking about something completely different: you wanted to place your code into his page (and not asking him to give out his code!).

I agree with the others: he should be a complete idiot to let you place any code in his own website. Remember: it is his website, he makes the rules. Period.

And those that were letting you do it were not "thrilled" - they were just ignorant and didn't know any better.

[Alice Seba]

ClickBank has tracking available. Is it not reliable, even if cumbersome?

A client of ours recently recommended this StatsJunky - Automatically Download And Compare Your Affiliate & PPC Stats to people who wanted to track their affiliate PPC campaigns. I have no experience with it, but it has a free trial that might be worth looking at.

Alice

[AlexKaplo]

Ok sorry for the confusion...

When I mentioned the google analytics code I meant that special affiliate code which restricts most of the private stuff... and allows you to see your sales from keywords, etc... not my actual google analytics code. (Which I did mention to the publisher and no luck...)

[Alice Seba]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Ok sorry for the confusion...

When I mentioned the google analytics code I meant that special affiliate code which restricts most of the private stuff... and allows you to see your sales from keywords, etc... not my actual google analytics code.

So perhaps you should tell the dude that? :-)

[yesacpow]

Just a correction.

It is not Google Analytics code but rather

Google Conversion Tracking Code

They are two different codes. Hope that clears things up!

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Ok sorry for the confusion...

When I mentioned the google analytics code I meant that special affiliate code which restricts most of the private stuff... and allows you to see your sales from keywords, etc... not my actual google analytics code.

[Emmanuel Betinis]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Does anyone have some kind of script or software, anything really?

Yep...I use Split Test Acclerator...it does just what you're looking for.

Split Test Accelerator | Jim Stone, Ph.D. | Taguchi Split Testing Software | Landing Page Optimization

[Harvey Segal]

You might be interested in this ClickBank announcement last month

Pilot Participants Wanted for New ClickBank Reporting Feature | ClickBank Blog

ClickBank will soon release a new feature that allows clients to track successful orders (conversions) by linking the ClickBank order process to Google Analytics, Google AdWords, and Yahoo Search Marketing. This additional reporting gives ClickBank clients more information about their sales and the effectiveness of their promotional efforts than ever before. For example, vendors can insert tracking scripts on order conversion pages, allowing them to monitor drop-off rates at every stage of the sales process including the ClickBank order form.

....
...


Harvey


.

[Paul Schlegel]

Originally Posted by James Schramko

Offer a bonus and place the code on your bonus confirm page.... that's what I do

I love this idea. Pretty slick.

[Thomas]

If he has a "killer product that converts like crazy", maybe your "few dozen sales over the past 3 weeks" aren't all that significant to him?

Besides, you say this:

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

... I see absolutely no reason why he should refuse this unless I'm planning to do some sort of scheme which isn't the case.... (and which I stated to him many times).

... and then say, in fact, you ARE planning to do exactly that after all:

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

... that's my whole plan behind every affiliate campaign I run... I do a few months promotions and get a good cash-flow running from the project and analyze the market THEN I unleash hell on him...

... and, yet, he's the one with the "attitude problem"?:

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

... a real hard as$#@#... this guy's real attitude problem

[Dan Grossman]

Can't T202 or whatever you're using already tell you this data without putting conversion code on the affiliate site?

As long as whatever network it's on supports subid tracking, each click you send should have a unique subid which you can track back to the original click (and referrer, keywords used, etc).

Those subids would be in the commission reports, doesn't T202 import those?

I only played around with it for a few days before realizing T202 wasn't for me (and went and built w3roi to do the kind of tracking I need) , but I thought it already had those abilities.

[BIG Mike]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

Keep in mind this person knows I'm the guy that drove a few dozen sales over the past 3 weeks

A whole few dozen sales?

Speaking from the other side, I'm frequently asked to jump through all kinds of hoops for people who claim they're going to deliver the moon - and really never even get off the launch pad.

Invariably, the ones who bitch and moan the loudest are the ones not making any sales or a few dozen, so I don't blame the product owner for not wanting to be bothered.

I see absolutely no reason why he should refuse this unless I'm planning to do some sort of scheme which isn't the case.... (and which I stated to him many times).

And yet here you say:

Oh dude don't worry... that's my whole plan behind every affiliate campaign I run... I do a few months promotions and get a good cash-flow running from the project and analyze the market THEN I unleash hell on him...

So you're surprised he won't help you become a competitor?

[James Schramko]

Originally Posted by markquinn

I love this idea. Pretty slick.

Aside from tracking keywords you are building a list as well. This turns affiliate into super affiliate.

[igorhelpsyousucceed]

What's in it for him?
If he has plenty of affiliates why does he need
to trust you on delivering a whole lot more sales
by doing tweaking on his page?
If it was me, I would refuse too. It is my product,
and I want to control the data flow.
It is kind of an ego issue, but still I can relate to the guy.

Igor

[JayXtreme]

Originally Posted by AlexKaplo

I'm the guy that drove a few dozen sales over the past 3 weeks...

A few dozen sales is a drop in the ocean for a high converting product..

Maybe turn over a few dozen a day and he/she might be open to your request..

Even then, I think he'd say no, or at least he should do... Go the bonus route as suggested by James S above.

Peace

Jay

[Matt.Lake]

I too would recommend StatsJunky.com.

That way you can track the keywords without putting any code on the thank you page.

I believe Statsjunky actually have a sale on at the moment. It's usually about $79 a month but you can get LIFETIME ACCESS for about $297.

That's a VERY good deal if you find the software useful.

[Vijay M]

Originally Posted by James Schramko

Aside from tracking keywords you are building a list as well. This turns affiliate into super affiliate.

James,

Thanks for the "bonus" idea, but how do you keep track of the keyword that prompted the sale?

After a buyer buys( at which point he has already left our site), he could choose to come back at some point later in time to claim his bonus. At this time, how would the buyer know where exactly to enter his receipt# for verification purposes?

Maybe, I'm just not thinking it through :-(

P.S: I use xconversions

Vijay

[briankoz]

Many vendors have their reasons for not allowing this. First and foremost, a lot of that information is often a business secret that they don't want to give out. Even if you make some sales for someone, why should they give out all their numbers to you?

On top of that, you say that you're going to copy his product and then later say that you wouldn't use the analytics information against him. But I'd reckon that that's probably not going to be the case. If you know he's getting tons of traffic to his download page, that's all the more reason you're going to be motivated to copy him. Whereas if it's minimal, you might not be wasting all that time.

In addition, why would anyone want to help your advertising campaign, even if you're making him some sales, if you're just going to copy him later? That's like going out of your way to help the competition.

Now don't get me wrong, I've had serious affiliates that we sometimes go out of our way for, and I've had some that made a couple sales and thought they were entitled to everything. Often times, the last ones take up far more of your time, complain about minor differences, etc. and it's just not worth it.

Now to answer your question, an easy way, as mentioned above, would be to offer a killer bonus and have the tracking code on that page. There are a few tools out there where you can automatically offer bonuses, and this is a workaround that some affiliates do.

Koz

[LB]

I've had hundreds of requests to put peoples' tracking codes on my sites. I very rarely do it, but I have made exceptions for affiliates who have a track record with me (hundreds of sales+) and will allow an adwords conversion code.

I will say the OP is an exception at least in the regard that he has already made some sales, most people promise untold success and never make a sale.

Tracking codes can cause the page to load slowly or freeze up, especially when multiple codes are in place.

A few dozen sales is a good start, but I would also not allow code at this point either. It's no secret that many affiliates are about a week away from trying to rip your product off so it pays for vendors to keep things on lock down.

Last year I paid my lawyer to get a site shut down that had stolen portions of my sales page as well as my product verbatim. When we finally got the domain registrar's info, it was on of my previous top-affiliates doing it.

Food for thought.

[Jimbeam]

you need decent KW tracking software by the sounds of it, something that can track based on IDs.

[Marian Berghes]

why not ask the vendor for a white label deal?

Meaning that he/you would create his site on another domain and you will be the only person driving traffic to it..he would just have to set up the payment buttons and all that...
so now, you will see only your own keywords and stuff and not his entire data.