Clickbank moves goalposts again!

54 replies
Just in case anyone was wondering why they have been unexpectedly bumped into higher risk tiers this week:

Clickbank Rep:

At the beginning of this week, our algorithm was updated to include lifetime rates. We recognize performance over time is a historical indicator for quality
In a nutshell, if you focused on bringing your refund rate down to pull you out of a high risk tier then this was in partial vein, since all past activity is now factored in.

Apparently now, as per the quote, history is more important than the aspect of having improved.

Supposedly, Clickbank listen to feedback so be sure to tap "support" on their site and give your opinion.


Daniel
#clickbank #goalposts #moves
  • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
    Just logged into one of my accounts (a less active account with only a few recent sales). All my accounts have always been rated very good or excellent, etc. until now.

    Now this one says "Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 1.76%"

    So I go into analytics of chargebacks -- I have zero charge-backs! (and they have always been rare, both in the recent past and when the account was more active).

    This is worrying and totally perplexing.

    Why do they predict my charge-back rate so high?

    How can I get lower than zero charge-backs?
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    • Profile picture of the author Daniel Evans
      Sorry to hear that.

      I was in the process of teaching people on the topic to bring their accounts into better standing and I was due to launch a product related to the subject, but I'm having to abandon those now.

      Needless to say, I'm not in a position to give advice anymore as I'm totally perplexed myself.


      Daniel
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      • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
        The only theory that I can think of is that 1 recent affiliate sale is for some kind of horse racing product, and somehow it's related to that. I don't even promote that (or any) horse-racing product, at all, so doubt I've sold it before. The sale is probably a chance sale from a ClickBank mall with my affiliate id or something like that.

        But maybe ClickBank's screwy algorithm, has somehow decided that this is horse-racing product is a super-risky sale, and therefore thinks it has a high chance of a charge-back.

        e.g. If ClickBank figures this 1 sale might have say 20% chance of a charge-back, then even if I had made 9 other sales each with 0% chance of a charge-back, they figure I'd average 0.2 charge-backs per 10 total sales, or 2 charge-backs per 100 sales.

        The whole thing is looney tunes though, because I just signed a special contract with ClickBank (I actually received their signed copy today!) which I was going to use this account for, and now this account is apparently at risk, for unrelated reasons that I can't decipher, and which I don't think I had anything to do with!
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    • Profile picture of the author RobinInTexas
      I have a very inactive affiliate account, hardly ever sell anything, at clickbank and the
      Account Refund Rate (Predicted) is 18.25% I have no clue where they come up with that. I can't see any refunds as far back as I can look.
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      ...Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just set there.
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    • Profile picture of the author WillR
      Originally Posted by SunilTanna View Post

      Now this one says "Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 1.76%"
      That figure would be based on the average chargeback rate they expect. If you haven't sold anything and their average network chargeback rate is 5%, then that's the expected chargeback rate for you because they don't have anything else to base it off. If you have sold a few products and had no chargebacks at all then that expected chargeback rate for you would probably slight decrease. You also need to remember that if you are promoting other people's products then they would have to look at the average chargeback rate of the product you are promoting and take that into account as well.

      Besides, don't worry what your expected charge back rate is. Sell products and show them you have few charge backs. Real results speak a lot louder than any expected results.
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  • Profile picture of the author clicknow4cash
    Originally Posted by Daniel Evans View Post

    Just in case anyone was wondering why they have been unexpectedly bumped into higher risk tiers this week:

    Clickbank Rep:

    In a nutshell, if you focused on bringing your refund rate down to pull you out of a high risk tier then this was in partial vein, since all past activity is now factored in.

    Apparently now, as per the quote, history is more important than the aspect of having improved.

    Supposedly, Clickbank listen to feedback so be sure to tap "support" on their site and give your opinion.


    Daniel

    That is outrageous! Everyone made mistakes while they were learning, they should be rewarded for their improved conduct with their education, not forever punished for things they have done so much to correct as they learned. What is going on at ClickBank?
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  • Profile picture of the author Shane12
    That explains why I went from good to unacceptable literally overnight. I'm not too far over the line, but it's still enough to worry me, with nothing I do or do not do apparently mattering. Since I sell primarily a recurring product, these 4-8 months worth of chargebacks that people sometimes do is tough to keep ahead of with a lifetime algorithm.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Hill
    Over the course of an entire year I've had zero refunds and zero charge backs but ClickBank predicts my numbers as follows:

    Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 12.33%
    Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.32%

    Vendor Refund Rate (Predicted) 13.17%
    Vendor Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.19%

    I have no idea where these numbers are coming from or how they are "Predicted". Something isn't right with these numbers that's for sure.
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    • Profile picture of the author WillR
      Originally Posted by Mike Hill View Post

      Over the course of an entire year I've had zero refunds and zero charge backs but ClickBank predicts my numbers as follows:

      Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 12.33%
      Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.32%

      Vendor Refund Rate (Predicted) 13.17%
      Vendor Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.19%

      I have no idea where these numbers are coming from or how they are "Predicted". Something isn't right with these numbers that's for sure.
      Are you sure they are looking at past sales to come up with this data. I thought I read somewhere that this data up until now has just been based on since they launched this new tier feature.

      Anyway, if they are getting your stats wrong then they are getting everyone's elses stats wrong so it all really means nothing and cancels itself out.
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      • Profile picture of the author Daniel Evans
        I've reviewed the feedback given once again (I should have quoted this in it's entirety in my OP) and there appears to be a contradiction which is denoted in red.

        I can confirm with certainty that they are factoring in refunds well before any 60 day window. I've managed accounts that have seen many transactions with little to no refunds for 5 months+ and some of those have rocketed into the poor tiers earlier this week.

        Other peoples results are playing a role in defining the prediction algorithm.


        Thank you for your inquiry! At the beginning of this week, our algorithm was updated to include lifetime rates. We recognize performance over time is a historical indicator for quality.

        ClickBank has developed a series of sophisticated algorithms for accurately measuring account risk, including predicted refund and chargeback rates based on account history and other factors. The algorithms take into account recent sale activity, sale volume, refunds and chargebacks. Refunds are looked at through a 60 day window, and chargebacks are looked at through a 100 day window, unless your account has less than 50 sales. In that case the algorithm will extend to accommodate more sales. These rates are calculated using the dollar amount of the refund/chargeback, not the number of refunds/chargebacks. These scores are developed using a proprietary model weighed against millions of historical transactions and millions of customers.

        ClickBank has developed a Vendor Training on Reducing Refunds, to provide you tips and resources to keep your refund rate low. This valuable information can help you keep more of the money you earn. Check out the video and training here:
        http://clickbankwebinar.com/training/reduce-refunds/
        Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.

        Best regards,
        Eileen H.
        ClickBank Client Adviser
        www.clickbank.com
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    • Profile picture of the author BIG Mike
      Banned
      [DELETED]
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      • Profile picture of the author Daniel Evans
        Originally Posted by BIG Mike View Post

        I don't know (don't use CB), but from a strictly technical standpoint, they'd have to be weighting everyone with some sort of average either globally or among categories - it's the only way to explain why someone with zero refunds would have any risk.
        They are doing that.

        It's detailed in the representative quotes / terms that have been mentioned in this thread.

        CB Rep:


        These scores are developed using a proprietary model weighed against millions of historical transactions and millions of customers.



        Daniel
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        • Profile picture of the author greenbay92
          I got 1 refund this week and my account plunged from Blue to Red. The "predicted" refund rate shot up from an acceptable 6% to an unbelievable 30%... Really?

          The schizophrenic nature of CB's "algorithms" are as irksome as the inconsistencies factored into their calculations.

          This is something that has been bothering me (as a long-standing CB affiliate) since the announcement of these risk management tiers. I even made a thread about it back in March:

          http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...erminaton.html
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  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    I don't think even Clickbank know their a$$ from their head.

    They are trying to overcomplicate something that could have been implemented so easily. All they ever needed was stronger quality control over the products they were approving. That's all that needed to happen. Then have a refund rate and chargeback cap that if anyone goes over, their product is reviewed or removed.

    It sure isn't rocket science. I wonder how much time and money has been spent on this new feature that appears to achieve absolutely nothing at all. Well it probably has achieved something for them... a HUGE amount of unnecessary support tickets from people who don't get it.
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  • Profile picture of the author RogueOne
    If you hover over the i above "risk management" a window pops up that says"Your risk tier is calculated on a daily basis. Click on individual metrics to learn more."

    If you click the link it leads to a page that says in part:

    Predicted Refund and Chargeback Rates
    How are my predicted refund and chargeback rates calculated?
    ClickBank has developed a series of sophisticated algorithms for accurately measuring account quality, including estimated refund and chargeback rates based on account history and other factors. These scores are developed using a proprietary model weighed against millions of historical transactions and millions of customers.
    Why are you using predicted rates instead of actual rates?
    Forward-looking risk models are commonly used to forecast behavior in a range of industries including insurance, payment processing, statistics, etc. ClickBank, similar to other companies, is using forward-looking indicators to determine your account’s overall risk trajectory and the rate of change in risk. We provide these values to you so that you can be as informed as possible on these two key metrics that we use to determine your account’s risk level, so that you can take corrective action if specific trends indicate your level of risk is too high.
    Mine actually improved in the last week.
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    • Profile picture of the author heavysm
      Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 11.54%
      Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.66%

      These are the numbers I'm currently rock'in. I personally feel offended over the refund rate prediction though. I've never actually had one on this account, just canceled subscriptions (I guess they treat those the same way??).

      So whatever. I've been playing with other networks for a while. I think this gives me more reason to concentrate on those other networks now than ever before.
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      • Profile picture of the author wisdomoto
        Originally Posted by heavysm View Post

        Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 11.54%
        Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.66%
        My numbers are almost exact:

        Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 10.73%
        Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.66%

        Also not one single refund on the account.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mike Hill
      Originally Posted by RogueOne View Post

      If you hover over the i above "risk management" a window pops up that says"Your risk tier is calculated on a daily basis. Click on individual metrics to learn more."

      If you click the link it leads to a page that says in part:
      Predicted Refund and Chargeback Rates
      How are my predicted refund and chargeback rates calculated?
      ClickBank has developed a series of sophisticated algorithms for accurately measuring account quality, including estimated refund and chargeback rates based on account history and other factors. These scores are developed using a proprietary model weighed against millions of historical transactions and millions of customers.
      Why are you using predicted rates instead of actual rates?
      Forward-looking risk models are commonly used to forecast behavior in a range of industries including insurance, payment processing, statistics, etc. ClickBank, similar to other companies, is using forward-looking indicators to determine your account’s overall risk trajectory and the rate of change in risk. We provide these values to you so that you can be as informed as possible on these two key metrics that we use to determine your account’s risk level, so that you can take corrective action if specific trends indicate your level of risk is too high.

      Mine actually improved in the last week.

      Gees, ClickBank is starting to sound like Google with all that lingo "sophisticated algorithms" ... "and other factors"... :confused:
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      • Profile picture of the author FredJones
        Unfortunately, Clickbank was one of the last companies I would expect to move to this direction.

        They would argue, they are doing in their favor. They are considering the entire history with equal weights. That does have a point, but it is not a flawless. Especially in the world of the Internet, where whatever you do gets recorded, and that can really get difficult.

        I suppose the counter-argument would be to assign higher weight to recent activities. Simply multiply the weight of activities by (1/t), t being the time elapsed, would be a basic solution, forgetting "sophisticated" algorithms for now... As of now, they are surely getting something wrong.

        Plus, in whatever bit of Clickbank I promote, I have indeed come across refunders that just buy and refund immediately (surprisingly, I am talking about products outside the IM niche). Everyone knows exactly how Clickbank refunds work. So, you also need to be lucky to survive...
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        • Profile picture of the author Walter Parrish
          Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 32.30%
          Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 20.56%

          Vendor Refund Rate (Predicted) 45.17%
          1Vendor Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 1.29%

          Marketers That Will Abandon Clickbank 99.99%

          LOL
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          • Profile picture of the author RogueOne
            Originally Posted by Walter Parrish View Post

            Marketers That Will Abandon Clickbank 99.99%
            Not likely.

            Gees, ClickBank is starting to sound like Google with all that lingo "sophisticated algorithms" ... "and other factors"...
            Just another way of saying, " it's a secret."
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  • Profile picture of the author mervp
    I wonder if Clickbank is basing its predicted rates formula on the PRODUCT's history, regardless of how YOUR individual history with it goes. So if you pick a number of what it considers to be higher risk items (based on their total sales/refund history, across all accounts) your rating is going to suffer, even if you are currently handling the products perfectly.

    I also wonder whether this is just a more complicated way for CB to end up shaving commissions, by incorporating the ratings into deciding how much it will pay you.
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    • Profile picture of the author Shane12
      Originally Posted by mervp View Post

      I wonder if Clickbank is basing its predicted rates formula on the PRODUCT's history, regardless of how YOUR individual history with it goes. So if you pick a number of what it considers to be higher risk items (based on their total sales/refund history, across all accounts) your rating is going to suffer, even if you are currently handling the products perfectly.

      I also wonder whether this is just a more complicated way for CB to end up shaving commissions, by incorporating the ratings into deciding how much it will pay you.
      I imagine it's some combination of both your history and product history (possibly depending on number of sales you have made), in which case the marketplace stars were the only indication there was that could show what's a good product to promote.

      I'm not opposed to letting Clickbank keep a reasonable portion of my earnings to offset any extra costs they may incur from a worse rating, even if I don't fully agree with or understand the ratings.
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  • Profile picture of the author writeaway
    Hopefully, this all results in better value for the buyers.
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    • Profile picture of the author affmemo
      At the end of the day, I think this is ultimately what most affiliates (and I'd like to think, most Internet Marketers in general) want; to be able to have quality products & services to promote to prospective customers.

      I, for one, got tired of finding mostly borderline, if not outright scammy products on ClickBank.

      Originally Posted by writeaway View Post

      Hopefully, this all results in better value for the buyers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Sarevok
    Since some of the accounts in questions are inactive, haven't had any refunds, and still have an estimated refund rate > 0, the "risk" algorithm must contain variables outside of your control, such as vendor averages. (weak)
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  • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
    On further checking.... I have 0 charge-backs in the last 12 months.

    My charge-back rate is however unacceptable high!
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    • Profile picture of the author vendor
      Clickbank has become an unstable platform.
      We are reviewing other options for Transaction Processing and affiliate
      management.
      Possibly an IN-HOUSE affiliate program combined with a merchant account or one of the many other platforms out there these days.
      My own personal affiliate account went from Very Good to Below Average over night and i saw the Vendor accounts also lose ground in clickbank's eyes.
      It is both impossible and illogical to keep up with these changes
      and frankly it does not feel safe anymore to have clickbank as the anchor holding the ship in place.
      A lot of our refunds have to do with duplicate purchases where we refund the second purchase and beyond and 100% proven refund policy abusers.
      In any which case clickbank NEVER sides with the Vendor
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  • Profile picture of the author RobinInTexas
    What does it mean? I must have missed the part where that was explained.

    I see where they tell me that they have a secret formula to come up with their predictions, but nothing to tell me what effect it has on anything?
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    ...Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just set there.
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    • Profile picture of the author greenbay92
      Originally Posted by RobinInTexas View Post

      What does it mean? I must have missed the part where that was explained.

      I see where they tell me that they have a secret formula to come up with their predictions, but nothing to tell me what effect it has on anything?
      IMHO CB is over-thinking this whole risk management system. It's like they are frantically compensating for letting crappy products in their marketplace (between 1998 and 2008) AND making it dead easy to ask for a refund.

      Anyone knows that's a recipe for eventual (if not immediate) disaster.

      [Hypothetical example] -- Say, I'm promoting a product that for me gets little to no refunds and/or chargebacks. However, some incompetent / ignorant affiliates (or competing vendors) decide to play dirty and mess up the product, which then gets hit with refunds and chargebacks from customers.

      Of course, this is going to trigger a reaction in CB's "predicted" values... which, in turn (thanks to global algorithms, cost perception effect and perhaps a mystical domino effect) reflects in my own "predicted" values... even though I myself have done nothing risky or out of line.

      This could explain why some people here (me included) are seeing high predicted values for refunds/chargebacks even though they haven't had any real refunds/chargebacks for a while.

      See the irony here?

      It reminds me of my school days when the whole class used to be punished just because a handful of students decided to throw water balloons at the math teacher. :rolleyes:
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  • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
    Has anybody seen the numbers move in the last couple of days?

    I've made 1 more sale on the account 2 days ago, it still says predicted charge-back rate is unacceptable, same exact number --- despite 0 charge-backs in the account in the last 12 months!

    No reply to my support question to ClickBank yet, but then I guess it's a bit soon for that
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  • Profile picture of the author joaquin112
    Guys just give it some time. They have hundreds of thousands of visitors to their site and these updates take time. There is just too much to test and tweak. It's highly unlikely that they will start banning people based on their flawed algorithm.
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  • Profile picture of the author phowell23
    Where do you see "unacceptable"? Is that in your colored bar under "Risk Management"?

    They are honestly barking up the wrong tree here if they want to improve their products and reduce refunds. They need to focus on the vendors and less on the affiliates. One product I was promoting decided to randomly throw in a strange "bonus" that didn't work and I started getting 5-10 refunds a month for awhile until I stopped promoting it. It's hard when the vendor can randomly change something on their sales page without updating the affiliates and you don't know it's right or wrong until you see more and more refunds.

    However, with all of this being said and them confusing the heck out of affiliates, they are still approving scam forex products. I just saw another one recently approved.
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    • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
      This is what I see - this account is both an affiliate & vendor account:

      Quality MANAGEMENT

      Unacceptable
      Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 9.08%
      Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 1.76% <--- this is in red
      Vendor Refund Rate (Predicted) 11.10%
      Vendor Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.66%

      Like I say, though, my ACTUAL charge-back rate for the last 12 months - both as a vendor & as an affiliate is 0%. I have not had a single charge-back as a vendor or affiliate.

      I don't know how I can get lower than 0 charge-backs!
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  • Profile picture of the author george b
    I have given up with Clickbank now. I'l take my business somewhere that I'm not made to jump through hoops!

    George B
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  • Profile picture of the author phowell23
    Mine is Orange "Borderline"

    RISK MANAGEMENT

    Borderline Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 22.73%
    Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.63%

    I've had 1 chargeback in last 12 months as an affiliate.
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  • Profile picture of the author Shane12
    My numbers over the last few days are not budging, only up or down within a range of 0.01%, still just barely in unacceptable territory. It's a reasonably active account with about 12 sales a day, so I'm not sure what it would take to move the needle. Previously, though, I only ever really saw it move a noticeable amount maybe once a week.

    They seem to have softened their tone on account termination (I haven't heard of any affiliates actually being banned yet), but they still leave that door open that they could do that if they want, maybe not tomorrow, but perhaps people a year from now will be in for a surprise.
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    • Profile picture of the author phowell23
      Originally Posted by Shane12 View Post

      My numbers over the last few days are not budging, only up or down within a range of 0.01%, still just barely in unacceptable territory. It's a reasonably active account with about 12 sales a day, so I'm not sure what it would take to move the needle. Previously, though, I only ever really saw it move a noticeable amount maybe once a week.

      They seem to have softened their tone on account termination (I haven't heard of any affiliates actually being banned yet), but they still leave that door open that they could do that if they want, maybe not tomorrow, but perhaps people a year from now will be in for a surprise.
      Here's one example...

      https://forums.digitalpoint.com/threads/clickbank-bans-a-loyal-affiliate-with-highest-violet-rating-watch-out.2629019/
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  • Profile picture of the author James Campbell
    Time to move to DealGuardian my friends
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  • Profile picture of the author LiftMyRank
    Looks like the FTC really scared CB into all these measures over the last year, without a doubt it would have cost them dearly..especially all that lost push-button launch crap that went on every other day....
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    • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
      I've done some calculations now to compare actual to ClickBank's numbers:

      ClickBank calculates:

      Account Refund Rate (Predicted) 9.08%
      Account Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 1.76% <--- this is in red
      Vendor Refund Rate (Predicted) 11.10%
      Vendor Chargeback Rate (Predicted) 0.66%


      In comparison my actual numbers for the last 12 months are:

      Actual Account Refund Rate: 8.70%
      Actual Account Chargeback Rate: 0.00%

      In comparison my actual numbers for the last 3 months are:

      Actual Account Refund Rate: 13.33%
      Actual Account Chargeback Rate: 0.00%
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  • Profile picture of the author Brent Schmidt
    I'm not sure where this is going but this sure will increase the quality of products.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      I no longer use CB - but are these new "risk factors" associated with increased CB fees? I remember when they launched their new program the higher risk had fees associated.

      Last time I visited the CB site they still hadn't figured out how to add a real keyword search that worked efficiently to find products. I find it hard to accept some advanced algorithm coming from CB.
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      • Profile picture of the author Shane12
        Though this provides an example of an affiliate ban, it is not related to the new risk tiers. That type of ban seems to still be a mystery, and Clickbank has softened the language to say you are at risk of being banned, rather than the original lose 100 points autoban.

        Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

        I no longer use CB - but are these new "risk factors" associated with increased CB fees? I remember when they launched their new program the higher risk had fees associated.
        The proposed additonal fees were removed back in January along with the marketplace stars.
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  • Profile picture of the author smodha
    Is it time to dump Clickbank and move on?

    We can vote with our feet...
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  • Profile picture of the author Wayne
    Their algorithm includes lifetime rates. On my account the last sale I had was in January of 2012 and that was a purchase I made myself, it was probably many months before that before I had my previous sale. I've done almost nothing with Clickbank for the past 8 years, but the 5 years prior to that from 1999-2005 I made a lot of sales with Clickbank, in fact made my living with them back then when it was easy to advertise on adwords. You can't just go by the past 3 months or past year. These are my rates:
    Account refund rate: 10.73%
    Account chargeback rate: 1.05%
    I was in good status before their latest update, now I am below average. I was thinking about getting involved with Clickbank again this year when they came out with the star ratings, but they took them back down again. Hopefully they will come back again.
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    • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
      Originally Posted by Wayne View Post

      Their algorithm includes lifetime rates. On my account the last sale I had was in January of 2012 and that was a purchase I made myself, it was probably many months before that before I had my previous sale. I've done almost nothing with Clickbank for the past 8 years, but the 5 years prior to that from 1999-2005 I made a lot of sales with Clickbank, in fact made my living with them back then when it was easy to advertise on adwords. You can't just go by the past 3 months or past year. These are my rates:
      Account refund rate: 10.73%
      Account chargeback rate: 1.05%
      I was in good status before their latest update, now I am below average. I was thinking about getting involved with Clickbank again this year when they came out with the star ratings, but they took them back down again. Hopefully they will come back again.
      I don't have the last 14 years of records for that clickbank account, but I'm pretty confident my lifetime charge back rate is negligble too. Don't you think they'd have told me, at some point in the last 14 years if there was a genuine problem?

      Additionally when this account had star rating, it was 4 or 5 stars. All my accounts were.

      Further evidence that my chargeback was/is low - this has historically been mostly a vendor account, and cb's own predicted numbers say the vendor chargebacks are low.

      Finally, I wasn't one watching the account like a hawk, but the account was in very good standing even after the update to the algorithm (according to the. Cb rep quote, at the beginning of the week). My numbers only dropped after the affiliate sale of a horse racing product (a sale I made by accident!).

      In other words, it looks like 1 single affiliate sale turned my numbers from excellent to unacceptable.
      Signature
      ClickBank Vendor?
      - Protect Your Thank You Pages & Downloads
      - Give Your Affiliates Multiple Landing Pages (Video Demo)
      - Killer Graphics for Your Site
      SPECIAL WSO PRICES FOR WARRIORS + GET THE "CLICKBANK DISCOUNT" TOO!
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  • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
    Just spoken to somebody at ClickBank. She believes the lifetime (which would be 14 years?) charge-back rate for the account is 2%. I can't dispute it, since I don't have 14 years figures to hand. It's possible I suppose.
    Signature
    ClickBank Vendor?
    - Protect Your Thank You Pages & Downloads
    - Give Your Affiliates Multiple Landing Pages (Video Demo)
    - Killer Graphics for Your Site
    SPECIAL WSO PRICES FOR WARRIORS + GET THE "CLICKBANK DISCOUNT" TOO!
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  • Profile picture of the author roblawrence
    I am considering using Clickbank as a payment provider for my new membership website. Is this something you would recommend? My concern being that they keep changing their rules. How reputable are they?
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    • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
      Well i've been with them for 14 years. Never had any significant concerns prior to Friday!

      They have always been solid. Paid on time, etc.

      This risk tiers thing seems like a bit of a pr disaster though. They annoyed a bunch of people with the previous iteration, and seem to annoyed a different bunch with the revised version. I know the risk tiers are supposed to be about increasing transparency, but It seems odd and rude to be told that you're unaaceptable etc with no real details or suggestion how you can fix it.
      Signature
      ClickBank Vendor?
      - Protect Your Thank You Pages & Downloads
      - Give Your Affiliates Multiple Landing Pages (Video Demo)
      - Killer Graphics for Your Site
      SPECIAL WSO PRICES FOR WARRIORS + GET THE "CLICKBANK DISCOUNT" TOO!
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      • Profile picture of the author roblawrence
        OK that's good to hear. Sounds like mostly a PR problem and rolling things out too quickly before testing. 14 years is a pretty good track record.
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  • Profile picture of the author roblawrence
    My concern with using Clickbank is the "scamminess" factor. Do consumers have a bad taste in their mouth from poor clickbank products they've purchased in the past and got burned? Do they trust the site? If you use clickbank doesn't it make you "look" bad and people think your product might not be good? Anyone know?
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  • Profile picture of the author writeaway
    They are not going to risk their market position by playing fast and loose. Better to tighten things up now than pay the price later.
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  • Profile picture of the author Shane12
    Stuck in slow motion here. After 3 weeks, my predicted chargeback rate has dropped 0.03%, finally enough to pull me out of unacceptable territory for now.
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