Is this how affiliate programs work?

[darktemplar]

Hey guys,

I might have the stupidest affiliate program question to ever be asked on here, but here goes . . I was on a website a while back and they were talking about their affiliate program being really unique, it was some IM related affiliate program. What they said was unique about their affiliate program was that every time someone clicked their affiliate link, they would log that IP address and associate them with whomever's affiliate link that they clicked.

Is this really unique, or do all affiliate programs work the same?

If not, is the standard affiliate program practice that if someone clicks your affiliate link, they have to buy something right after they click it in the same session for you to get a commission?

Thanks a lot everyone.

SS

[Denise Hall]

It sounds to me like they're referring to cookies - "they log the IP address and associate them with the affiliate whose link was clicked."

Most affiliate programs do cookie the website visitor's computer, but if the person clears their cookies, then the affiliate loses the commission.

Some affiliate programs hard code the vistors, though, and in that case, clearing cookies doesn't cause affiliates to lose commissions. But I think there are very few that do that.

I hope this helps.

Denise

[Catalyst eMarketing]

Most affiliate programs use cookies and cookies can be set up for various periods of time. Many programs have 90 day or even 365 day cookies. Some even have cookies that are never set to expire.

But we all know cookies don't last forever. So some tracking programs DO offer IP tracking as a back up to cookie tracking. IP tracking by itself isn't ideal either, so it's usually added to cookie tracking so if one doesn't track the other one can.

[Alexa Smith]

Originally Posted by Denise Hall

It sounds to me like they're referring to cookies - "they log the IP address and associate them with the affiliate whose link was clicked."

I may be wrong, but it sounds to me like the opposite, Denise. I think they're differentiating their service from mere cookie-tracking (which can indeed be very unreliable for many different reasons) and saying that that's what's "unique" about it.

I suspect that "unique" is something of an exaggeration, but it's certainly unusual, anyway.

In any case, very clearly not a dumb or basic question!

[darktemplar]

Thanks guys. Yeah, I mean they kind of played it up to get you to join I suppose. Anyways, so if you are an affiliate and someone clicks your affiliate link, they don't have to buy an item right away for you to get commission, correct?

SS

[Jill Carpenter]

I believe the software used with idev affiliate does this. It is not necessarily done with every affiliate program, but who ever you are dealing with is not "unique" in doing it.

I used to see IP address, which webpage a person came from, and a plethora of other data that when I first started was all gibberish to me.

It takes time to learn how to use this type of data.

[Catalyst eMarketing]

Originally Posted by darktemplar

Anyways, so if you are an affiliate and someone clicks your affiliate link, they don't have to buy an item right away for you to get commission, correct?

Depends on the program and how it's set up but MOST affiliate programs have a decent cookie length. One big exception is Amazon who only has a 24 hour cookie.

[Alexa Smith]

Originally Posted by darktemplar

if you are an affiliate and someone clicks your affiliate link, they don't have to buy an item right away for you to get commission, correct?

They almost do with Amazon, I believe - their cookies last only 1 day, I think.

It varies.

With Clickbank, for example, the reality is that when they return, you'll get paid ONLY IF ALL of the following are true:-

1. The customer hasn't "deleted cookies"

2. The customer doesn't use anti-spyware/malware software that destroys Clickbank cookies

3. It's within 60 days of their clicking your affiliate-link (that's the duration of a Clickbank cookie)

4. The vendor hasn't sent your customer any email with a link to the sales page with his or his wife's or his cousin's affiliate-link in it (you can easily prevent this, as many professional affiliates do, simply by choosing not to promote products with an opt-in on the sales page and selecting another product instead)

5. The customer hasn't seen anyone else's review/site/blog and followed a link subsequent to your own (because the "most recent cookie" gets credited with the sale - not much you can do about that, and of course it's quite common because people looking at "review sites" will often look at more than one)

6. Clickbank happen not to have any of their "affiliate tracking problems" on the day when the customer returns

These are all part of affliates' frustrations and difficulties, really. One just avoids the problems one can, and hopes for the best regarding the others. Still plenty of money to be made, although it would be really nice if Clickbank could improve the affiliate tracking problems.

Honest Clickbank vendors paying a nominal 75% commission usually reckon that realistically it will cost them only 50% or 55% overall, because of the proportion of sales on which the affiliate isn't credited. Dishonest ones, of course, can save even more than that.