As an affiliate marketer: How to overcome the 1. cookie wins setup?

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Hi, fellow Warriors

Lately I am having a hard time selling for one of my sites that has been a 'cash cow' the last 3 years. The company I sell for may not necessarily have changed their general cookie setup, but they have just become much more active in ensuring that they get the 1. cookie.

The way I see it, the only way around that for me as an affiliate is to entice the website visitors to clear their cookies, before they continue to click my affiliate link and buy the product.

Difficult, but surely not impossible. And if only 5 people's purchases per day get attributed to me like this, then this will be an additional $100. I'm OK with that, esp. if I can set up the enticement to do so in a 'set it and forget it' way

My question:
Has anybody made good experiences with getting around the 1. cookie wins challenge, and if so, how? What could be a good way to entice someone to clean cookies?

I am sure that there are several brilliant affiliate marketing minds in this group who can share a thing or two about that

Thank you in advance
David

EDIT: After the first comments came in, here an add-on: It's the very same merchant who has stepped up their game in spreading their own cookie first, e.g. through Facebook ads but also through writing blog posts for SEO. They do want to have the affiliates still on board, to 'objectively' write about the product and to spread the word. But by the time somebody interested in the product ends up on my website, very likely this visitor already has a cookie from the merchant. So my websites serves as a seemingly objective and positive review of the product, but my cookie won't result in commission anymore because the merchant has a 1. cookie wins setup and they have, very likely, done a good job in ensuring that they are in many cases the first one to place the cookie.
#main internet marketing discussion forum #affiliate #cookie #marketer #overcome #setup #wins
  • If you mean that the first affiliate that gets cookied will get the commission no matter what then I would contact the vendor. In my opinion it should always be the last person that sends the visitor should get the commission.

    If you are making regular sales then I would contact the vendor an mention that if you are being taken out of the commission loop because someone might have been to other sites and clicked an affiliate link, that you will not continue to promote product.

    Lets face it. 9 times out of 10 it is the last affiliate site a customer visits that probably convinced them to buy

    al
    • [ 2 ] Thanks
    • [1] reply
    • Thanks al. See my EDIT in the initial post.
  • This sounds like overthinking

    If you have concerns like this then have a discussion with the merchant or affiliate network you are working with
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • [1] reply
    • Thanks Chris. See my EDIT in the initial post.
  • Add on after the first comments came in (which I added as 'EDIT' at the end of my post): It's the very same merchant who has stepped up their game in spreading their own cookie first, e.g. through Facebook ads but also through writing blog posts for SEO. They do want to have the affiliates still on board, to 'objectively' write about the product and to spread the word. But by the time somebody interested in the product ends up on my website, very likely this visitor already has a cookie from the merchant. So my websites serves as a seemingly objective and positive review of the product, but my cookie won't result in commission anymore because the merchant has a 1. cookie wins setup and they have, very likely, done a good job in ensuring that they are in many cases the first one to place the cookie.
  • I wouldn't devote my energy to trying to overcome it, David.

    I help my readers through helpful, valuable content. I include affiliate links. My readers buy through affiliate links. I do things through Amazon Associates though, where I link in through widgets and short links.

    Enticing the cookie clear is awkward and manipulative. Not in a terrible way. But in a "Why is he telling me to clear my cookies and what does we want out of this?" type way Just let it go. Share value. Value and money and loyal customers will find you.
  • It sounds a bit like that merchant is not consistent in it´s actions, thus both wanting affiliates to promote their products, and at the same time preventing affiliates from earning commissions. It kind of sounds like they have gone from partnership and win-win to using you without giving back. Maybe there are other merchants out there that could be a good fit for you? What kind of products are you promoting?
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