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Cloaking Direct Links - Is There Need?

by Apollo-Articles
5 replies
Hi Everyone,

I'm looking to run a few campaigns on POF and this is one of the few ad platforms which allow direct linking.

I was about to buy a domain to cloak with my affiliate link, when i got thinking do i really need to do this?

One of the reasons we do this is because we know people don't like to see long established links in the URL bar but most affiliate urls simply redirect to a main address. So that only leaves one reason which is that we think someone might write the address down or remember it and visit it again, but how likely is this is CPA offers? Not very likely, surely?

So can anyone give me advise whether buying domain names to use with my offers is worthwhile or a waste of time, energy and thought.

Sam
#cloaking #direct #links
  • Profile picture of the author MrWhistler
    The thing is, having a long url is often messy, and difficult to remember - in case a visitor needs to re-visit your site. So, it's better to buy a TLD, make it simple and easy to remember, and redirect to your offer.

    That's what I think anyway.
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  • Profile picture of the author azmanar
    Originally Posted by Apollo-Articles View Post

    Hi Everyone,

    I'm looking to run a few campaigns on POF and this is one of the few ad platforms which allow direct linking.

    I was about to buy a domain to cloak with my affiliate link, when i got thinking do i really need to do this?

    One of the reasons we do this is because we know people don't like to see long established links in the URL bar but most affiliate urls simply redirect to a main address. So that only leaves one reason which is that we think someone might write the address down or remember it and visit it again, but how likely is this is CPA offers? Not very likely, surely?

    So can anyone give me advise whether buying domain names to use with my offers is worthwhile or a waste of time, energy and thought.

    Sam
    Hi,

    In my opinion it is strategic to brand your domain. But you have to know best ways to cloak and redirect it.

    PHP location header redirect function is a good way. The other is using 3rd party cloaking and tracking system.

    There are several reasons why some of us cloak Aff links:

    A - Basic Prevention

    1. Thieves : they copy your links and then they paste it in the browser pointer. Then they delete your affiliate code and directly go to the page. They don't feel good if you benefit even a penny.

    2. Hijackers : if they happened to be sniffing network packets or a visitor is careless enough to have a trojan-infested PC, they can hijack your links and replace part of the codes to theirs. There are millions of infested PCs.

    3. Copycats : these are people who are too lazy to think for themselves. If they saw your landing pages and its hot, they would copy it straight away.

    4. Competitors : you're letting them see your best offers. If the space and offer are hot, what they can do is to overbid your PPC or CPM in the spot you're advertising at. Especially if the space is unique and popular.

    You'll find a sudden drop in your traffic or earnings after that.

    B - Tracking Performance

    Tracking202/Prosper202 ( and other systems ) can cloak your links and at the same give you stats on the performance of your Ads. Some short URL providers give this but the stats are insufficient to create more value from it.

    By cloaking & tracking, you can see which offers are great and not so great. Here you can make important decisions whether to improve traffic volume, drop the offer, change Ad space or improve Ad copies.

    Afterwards from the same tracking Stats, it helps greatly in split-testing Ad copies for your specific target groups. You'll get the optimum money-making copy.

    My few cents.
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  • Profile picture of the author ChrisBa
    Originally Posted by Apollo-Articles View Post

    Hi Everyone,

    I'm looking to run a few campaigns on POF and this is one of the few ad platforms which allow direct linking.

    I was about to buy a domain to cloak with my affiliate link, when i got thinking do i really need to do this?

    One of the reasons we do this is because we know people don't like to see long established links in the URL bar but most affiliate urls simply redirect to a main address. So that only leaves one reason which is that we think someone might write the address down or remember it and visit it again, but how likely is this is CPA offers? Not very likely, surely?

    So can anyone give me advise whether buying domain names to use with my offers is worthwhile or a waste of time, energy and thought.

    Sam


    I guess it really depends on the reasoning on why you would want to, is it to hide stuff from the networks or to appease your possible leads?
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  • Profile picture of the author imback
    Mostly used to shorten a URL or hide your keywords from networks, competition, and etc.


    Goodluck,

    CHAD
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    • Profile picture of the author Alex Tran
      I cloaked my links to track and to "swap-out" the offer in case it gets pulled.
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