After reading a post on the Shareasale Blog I decided to throw in my thoughts here. Now keep in mind I am not a technical wizard and don’t understand all the issues here but from the standpoint of a somewhat experienced affiliate I have some opinions.
(BTW, for a much better explanation from someone who knows FAR more than me about this subject check out the article Kellie Stevens wrote on Revenews: Putting the Genie Back Into the Bottle)
For those of you who don’t know about the issue let me give a super brief rundown. Brian Littleton and the Shareasale crew have been on the ethical forefront of the affiliate industry for years. Brian has gone out of his way to make sure Shareasale is parasite free and if an affiliate deserves a commission they will get it. He has taken a hard stance on toolbars, BHOs, and software affiliates in the past mainly because they overwrite cookies and hose other affiliates out of their commissions. SAS decided it was time to take another look at this issue and update their policy concerning toolbars and the like and wanted to get input from affiliates, merchants, and others in the industry.
On some of the affiliate forums there has been a big backlash based on this announcement and people are up in arms over Shareasale allowing parasites and toolbars now. First of all let me state that Brian Littleton and the Shareasale crew are top notch people and do whatever they can to run an ethical (don’t want to try to define that right now) affiliate network. If Brian says it is time to look at this issue again I fully trust that it is for the good of the affilaites, the merchants, and the affiliate industry in general. Don’t jump to conclusions and assume just because they want to take another look at the issue that they will open the floodgates for all toolbars and parasites to overtake their network. This will not happen.
Are a lot of toolbars “bad”? Of course. Is there legitimate uses for a toolbar that won’t steal commissions from other affiliates? Of course. Saying all toolbars are bad is just as ignorant as saying all of them are good. I urge you not to overreact until the roundtable is over, peoples opinions and input are heard, and the SAS crew can develop a revised policy
My take on toolbars? There are a lot of “bad” toolbars and other software programs out there that steal commissions. Who knows how much is taken from affiliates each year because of these toolbars. I have probably lost quite a bit due to them over the years myself and they employ tactics I would never consider or condone. I don’t want my affiliate cookies overwritten by these toolbars. If I earn a commission I want to get paid. I won’t get into all the technical issues because there are much more qualified people out there to do that. But I also realize there is room in the industry for toolbars that don’t steal from others, provide value to the merchants and affiliates, and don’t break the “rules”.
Affiliate marketing looks much different today than it did a year or two ago and in another year or two it will look different again. This is still a very young industry and because of that policies need to be regularly changed and new technologies examined. Based on his reputation Brian from Shareasale has earned our trust and with the input from many different people we can all be assured he will do what is right.
Comments? Questions? Let’s hear ’em
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