Affiliate Marketing Naughty and Nice List (2024 Edition) - Tricia Meyer
by Tricia
My posts may include paid links for which I earn a commission.
I can’t believe it’s been 11 years since I last did a Naughty and Nice List! (Looking back at that one is actually pretty fun.) This year’s version is a blend of Naughty and Nice with a touch of Blind Gossip. Companies have business decisions to make in Q4, so I won’t reveal any names, but Santa still knows!
The Naughty List
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Dasher and Dancer: These two are linked because they share the same parent company. Big name jewelry companies sent out an email on December 13 stating they had to “reduce publisher commissions” due to “budget constraints.” This was during peak holiday shopping season. What they meant by “reduce” was actually “eliminate.” Zero commission on 4% of sales—a little late for affiliates to switch links for the remaining shopping season, don’t you think?
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Prancer: We always tell customers that they won’t pay more by shopping through our affiliate links. Not so with a merchant I discovered this week. My conversions dropped suddenly, and upon investigation, I found out that a product I heavily promoted was 25% cheaper on the merchant’s site than through my link. They advertise this lower price everywhere but in the affiliate channel.
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Vixen: This massive company dominated industry news with frequent changes and unpredictable traffic implications. Big rule changes without warning? Check. No one knowing where they stood from one day to the next? Check. It’s a company that’s both attractive and frightening, a perfect fit for a Vixen.
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Comet: This astronomically large company made a significant change to its terms of service in the middle of holiday shopping season with only 7 days' notice. Publishers had to make tough decisions about their links, potentially changing thousands after reviewing conversions and commissions. Unacceptable timing and notice.
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Cupid: An email marketing company promises an easy solution for your needs but then immediately charges your card double upon account creation and refuses support when you encounter problems. Not exactly cupid-like behavior.
The Nice List
- Donder (the Original Name from the Poem): I logged into a network account this week to find all transactions for a niche merchant in November reversed. This was unusual as my promotions were strictly content-based, no coupon codes used, and transactions came from different clicks on various days.