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Sneaky new affiliate tactic
Associate Programs Newsletter #364
Deceptive affiliate marketing makes our world a worse place.
I reckon it's time to fight back.
CONTENTS:
1. Beware of this sneaky new affiliate tactic
2. Why I didn't just keep quiet about it
3. Have your say
4. New free affiliate training course
5. Are you new to affiliate programs?
6. Thought for today: Fracturing of trust
=============================================
1. Beware of this sneaky new affiliate tactic
=============================================
Occasionally we receive some nasty smelling submissions to our affiliate directory.
Here's one I want to warn you about...
It's called Affiliate List Controller.
The salesletter recommends a deliberately deceptive tactic.
Affiliate List Controller is software that creates a pop-up which appears on top of ANY website you care to choose.
Here's how it works...
Let's say you're an affiliate vendor and I'm an affiliate directing potential customers to YourSite.com. I can now make a pop-up appear on top of YourSite.com asking people to sign up to MY newsletter.
Some affiliates place a squeeze page between their links and a vendor's site. That's OK. It's a legitimate way of building a targeted list. There's normally nothing deceptive about it.
This is quite different. Sneaky.
Here's the salesletter...
http://affiliatelistcontroller.com
(That's NOT an affiliate link.)
I hope you're as outraged as I am.
I wanted a second opinion so I asked a friend who's a very experienced marketer. Here's how he sees it...
"This software is designed to give visitors the impression they're signing up for the merchant's list, not the affiliate's. There's no amount of rationalization that can cover that fact. There's a heavy emphasis on making sure the merchant's site is the one visible, and the sales copy emphasizes that the pop-up appears 'on' the merchant's site.
"The funny thing is, no matter how carefully they word the pop-up language, this will still create false impressions. They know it, or they wouldn't describe it as 'almost' black hat."
As he says, it's not "almost" black hat. It IS black hat.
The script does have potential proper uses.
For instance, you could use it when sending someone from an article to your own site, from your blog to your own salesletter, from part 1 or 2 of a 3-part web-based e-course, etc.
As with any tool, it can be used in ethical or unethical ways.
My friend sums it up nicely: "My opinion? Anyone using this sort of pop-up over someone else's site should be banned from the affiliate program/network involved and their commissions forfeited. It is deliberately deceptive."
Just in case you're still puzzling over the ethics involved here, picture this...
You sign up for a newsletter, thinking it's published by XYZ Company. You KNOW it's published by that company because you were on the company's website when you signed up. However, after a few editions, you eventually catch on - it's published not by XYZ, but by a spruiker.
I'm not buying or promoting this product. I try hard to avoid buying stuff from people who advocate deceptive marketing.
========================================
2. Why I didn't just keep quiet about it
========================================
When I see bad affiliate stuff happening, I wrestle with the decision to talk about it or just keep quiet.
GOOD: Writing about Affiliate List Controller warns affiliate merchants that they need to be on the lookout for affiliates who are using it in a deceptive way and are harming the merchant's image.
BAD: On the other hand, it gives the vendor publicity which could lead to sales.
So should I just keep quiet?
Well, here's how I see it...
Deceptive marketing makes our world a worse place. Someone has to fight back.
================
3. Have your say
================
Should I have just shut up about Affiliate List Controller? Am I making a fuss about nothing? Do you think it's none of my business if you use this so-called "almost black hat" stuff? Do you think it's harmless?
Or are you, like me, sick and tired of seeing deceptive marketing tactics used online? Do you agree it's time to fight back?
Do you just shrug off this sort of thing or does it make you angry?
I'd love to know your opinion. Please have your say...
You can always do this when you read one of these newsletters.
It's easy. Go to http://www.AssociatePrograms.com
You'll see the latest newsletter featured on the main page.
Scroll to the bottom of the newsletter and add your comment.
(Comments are moderated. I'm in Queensland, Australia, and may be sleeping when your comments are posted. So if you see no comments immediately, that's probably the reason.)
I really would appreciate some feedback on this.
=====================================
4. New free affiliate training course
=====================================
Super affiliate Jeremy Palmer is putting on a new free course called the Black Ink Project...
http://www.theblackinkproject.com .
It's an affiliate marketing training course, aimed at affiliates who are struggling to reach profitability.
The course has just started and has been receiving a lot of positive buzz. Nearly 2,000 people have signed up so far.
This is 100% free, with no hidden upsell. As you can see from the outline, he's put together a solid curriculum that covers a lot of ground...
http://www.theblackinkproject.com/outline.php
He's also recruited some experts to help...
http://www.theblackinkproject.com/blog/?p=10
Jeremy is a very smart affiliate - he has an award from Commission Junction to prove it - and a good teacher.
Jeremy is a smart cookie. He's putting a lot of work into this, offering a lot of genuinely useful training for affiliates.
I've signed up to keep an eye on it. I recommend you do, too.
=====================================
5. Are you new to affiliate programs?
=====================================
If you're new to affiliate programs and affiliate marketing, here's the place to start...
=========================================
6. Thought for today: Fracturing of trust
=========================================
"In the 1960s, if you introduced a new product to America, 90% of the people who viewed it for the first time believed in the corporate promise. Then 40 years later if you performed the same exercise less than 10% of the public believed it was true. The fracturing of trust is based on the fact that the consumer has been let down." - Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman.
All the best
Allan Gardyne
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Well done sir, this is why I've been reading your newsletter since the first issue.
regards
Roy
Gene
This kind of unethical marketing has been going on since the WWW came into being. I've been fighting back for over eight years. This is the reason the International Council of Online Professionals (iCop) was born.
At the time, I was told by well-known marketers that these things were none of my business - that I was a "self-appointed watch dog." Said with the intention of being insulting.
These issues are an uphill battle that will never be "won." I realized that early on. The best we can do is help more marketers take PRIDE in good, ethical behavior. An organization like iCop removes members found participating in this type of behavior.
At the very least, online consumers can have higher expectations of members, and be assured they will have back-up from the organization, if they run into problems with a marketer who IS a member. And, with a history of 8+ years of a great reputation, we're here to stay and will continue to do the very best we can to keep standards high.
Quite frankly, I salute you for your stand on this subject! If more people weren't afraid to voice their opinions of this type of behavior, it would definitely help.
:-) jl
jl scott, ph.d., Director of iCop
International Council of Online Professionals
The Seal of Integrity in Online Business
http://www.i-Cop.org
[Hi jl, Thanks. If anyone doesn't already know about iCop, I recommend you check it out. Allan.]
1. Most of us are students in marketing. We need to learn what to avoid doing as much as what to do.
Alerting us to stuff like this arms us to be able to avoid systems that will ultimately be exposed for what they are (fraud) and bring about a thoroughly negative impact on what we are attempting to achieve - namely ligitimate, successful marketing that builds a relationship with prospects and customers.
2. Unscrupulous people are going to behave unscrupulously regardless. The best way to make it difficult for them to do so is by doing exactly what you have - exposing bad practice.
So keep up the education!
Thank you.
Beyond that, keeping the sleaze quotient as low as possible helps all internet marketers. I already had one career that was considered by some to be kind of slimy (I used to be a lawyer), so I'd rather my IM work be held in higher esteem!
Thank you for all your time and effort in keeping us well informed. Just to say you're one of my online guardian angels!
Hello Allan, I was reading your newsletter and thought to myself - Hang on - I've seen this before. And actually I have - I bought a script quite some time ago and it was called Flurry Pop - Do you remember it. It works on the same basis. But I'll be honest - I only used it once - because I also had the same ethical issues of building a lits that way.
I actually used it for an affiliate promotion but instead of building a list - I actually put a message inside the pop up that if you buy the product from my link - you will get these addiitional bonuses. which worked very well. But I never used it since.
I dont think that was an unethical use I dont think. But Yes you are right - It's very border line - and easy for misuse. Great content Allan as usual.
Thanks
Hamant
I think if you want to speak out about products or practices that you feel are harming the industry, then that's what you should do.
Anything can be spun. If you speak out about it, and that causes others to speak out as well, then that can be spun by the creators of the product into "everyone is talking about this controversial product."
Will that lead to more sales? Maybe. On the other hand, it may persuade those who are on the fence to back off from it. And, it's really those on the fence who need to be informed.
- The publicity they get is free, but it's also *harmful.* Their tactics are exposed, their credibility plummets, and their professional image vanishes into oblivion.
- More and more people know about the offending company(ies). Word spreads among folks who, just like you, try hard to avoid such deceiving tactics.
- The reputation of the affiliate business as a whole is enhanced when people realize that we're mostly "decent folk."
- As for the black-hat guys who would jump on such deceitful opportunities... well, they would find out about them one way or another. So it's best to keep the first 3 points into consideration.
Again, Thank you Allan for the great service you run here :-). Two thumbs up!
I for one applaud you for informing your subscribers about Affiliate List Controller. The thing I don't understand is why more people do not speak out against these tactics? Why would anyone want to keep quiet about being deceived or lied to?
Why do people resort to these tactics? Because they can get away with it and they know that. That needs to change. If there were serious consequences to pay for using these black hat tactics maybe people would not be so anxious to use them?
Let's get rid of this crap now before it consumes and ruins everything business was truly meant to be, serving others in an honest, helpful and valuable way.
Dennis Manz
- A generic banner I see used on other cheap sites
- A face that looks like Charles Manson (would you trust this?)
- An overused sales page template
Now I feel dirty and have to scrub my browser history! Allan, I don't think you need to worry about publicizing it. People who are serious about this business won't be tempted to try it out. They'll know better. I haven't checked any forums to see how this is being taken (if at all), but I don't think it'll last long. Black-hat methods never do.
Being in this business for about 3 years, I'm confounded as to why certain people wish to make short-term shortcuts which only destroys their business in the long run - not to mention giving the rest of us a bad name.
Why not be ethical and build a long-term, trusting and sustainable online business? Be patient, work hard, and soon your sites will self-generate income, and your newsletter lists will have members who want to hear from you.
Before you know it, you'll be taking extended vacations and living your life, while those black-hatters will still be hacking at their computers because Google and other industries wiped out their business for the upteenth time. Doesn't sound like a "short cut" to success to me.
Thanks!
Kudos Allan
Ilse
- Kristine
You are damn well correct in your way of thinking.....
The net has become a regular " free for all"
compared to years ago..... SOMETHING has to be done.........
Cheers ! Karl
Those who tell you it's not your business or place to point these unscrupulous methods out to the rest of us are the same type of people that in the "real world" don't want to get involved in helping others or stopping criminal behavior. What's that expression... nothing will change if good men do nothing? Keep fighting the good fight!
It may be a little misleading but I really see nothing wrong with doing what it takes to add to my list.
[I suggest you re-read what I wrote. I explained carefully why it's deliberately deceptive. Allan.]
I would not doubt that some people who have posted here have already gone to the site and made a purchase and using it to add to their list. Maybe this is a very slick way to get more people to purchase the software. :)
[Sunlight is a powerful disinfectant. Allan.]
Thanks for the information on Affiliate List Controller. I totally agree with your assessment, and these tactics only hurt those who are truly trying to make a legitimate living on line. Being new and trying to learn, I appreciate someone like yourself speaking up and making us aware of such tactics. Keep up the good work, and its refreshing to see someone take a stand on such a deceptive practice.
The internet has become one of their favorite playgrounds, because they can hide behind their computer screens.
Just look at the ones that create virus's to damage the computers of people that they do not even know. A normal person would not get enjoyment from that, but they seem to.
Eventually they will put heavy restrictions on the internet, making it hard on legitimate marketers, because of the antics of the criminal element that just can't seem to behave.
I am a firm believer in Peace To All, Harm To No One -- meaning No Don't Tell (if it hurts someone) But then if you don't tell, does it hurt someone else? Here, possibly. Complicated, isn't it? If you find the real answer, let me know. :)
Jan
I'm not a licensed or trained webmaster but because of Mr. Ken Evoy's help, I would consider myself to be a self-taught webmaster (just for those who may be curious, my latest site I built for a friend is at http://www.home-financing-with-daryl.com/.
If you took a glance at the site above, you'll see that I like to keep it simple and keep it real.
Such is the way I feel about the topic of RSSing. I like to dig deep into everything to find the real reason behind it all and work with that.
The way I see it, the people or person who came up with the idea of RSSing wanted to find a really convenient and easy way to distribute information on the Internet.
In doing so and just like with anything new, there are always those out there who try to exploit it to their advantage - such as the people who came out with the "Affiliate List Controller".
Like Allan said in the article above, this new technology could possibly come in useful in very select situations but for the most part, there is no real good that can come of this.
I can also tell you that the general public may be slow but they're not stupid and they will catch on to this after a while. They will then start avoiding any sites that pull this tactic and it will fade away just as quickly as it comes into existence.
It went on to say that the FREE article could not be changed in anyway except for the one or two affiliate links that would ALREADY BE CHANGED for whoever downloaded that article to use.
And they so nicely do that for you so the new affiliate has nothing to do but offer it FREE on their website and to their mailing lists. HOW NICE... too nice I thought. There has to be a catch.
The person(s) who decided to download and offer the FREE article to their own mailing lists and/or website traffic would get more people (again, their own ID already changed for them) so now they could offer that same FREE article to their mailing lists and website traffic, and so on...
The only difference in the original FREE article would be that one or maybe two links would be changed to whoever downloaded and offered that FREE article. The rest of the article stays the same and would still have the ORIGINAL embedded links promoting those OTHER items.
That FREE article would be distributed to a vast amount of people through multiple mailing lists and websites for FREE. The reasoning behind it was since you got the rights to use their article for FREE, they keep those embedded links there for themselves in exchange for the PLR to their article.
NOW, isn't that sneaky or is that a common practice? I'm new so I hope this isn't a dumb question but something just doesn't seem right.
Let me know whenever you have a spare minute or two (few and far between, I'm sure)... and I know you're legit because you promote what?
Ken Evoy - SBI - SITESELL -- 5 Pillars -- they are the best, just like a big family. Ken right there like a Daddy of sorts. Everyone helping everyone, as it should be... go Canada!
[To me, sneaky tactics are ones where something is hidden. In the case you're describing, it just sounds like a lousy proposal. I wouldn't touch it. Allan.]