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Originally Posted by Barefootsies
Then you have seen the changes in the programs right over that time?
You did not get automatic approval in "the good ole days". You had to show who and what you are. They would then go and look at your sites and stats. More often than not you had to be established before they would let you join. This helped to lock down content, and fraud.
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Actually I believe the first time I ever had to be approved for a program was around 2006 or 2007 but I have some very old accounts and at that time mostly stuck with a core group of sponsors. In the old days it was automatic at most places. The closest thing to it that I ever ran into was AVS programs which had to approve your sites in order for them to be listed on their directory.
May I ask if your join date is about the time when you came in to adult? Mine says 2007 but I've been around since before GFY existed and when Lensman used to post on PornCity BBS about his cameras... I used to have an older GFY account from 2003 maybe but I honestly (really!) don't know the email, nickname, or anything. It's been so long ago. I also might have posted 12 times at best.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Barefootsies
Over time, many of these forum owners learned that they just had to sign up to be an affiliate and they could get all of the content via an affiliate program. They could even ask for free passed to the sites to make their 'customer promotional material' and then they would go use this for their forums.
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In all the programs I am an affiliate with (around 500) and within the past 13 years, I have asked for members area access or for special content to be made for me no more than three times. Usually it was due to a complete lack of any promo content available for me to promote a site. On the other hand I've probably NOT sent traffic to a program due to a lack of promo content over 100 times or more.
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Originally Posted by Barefootsies
Then over the next decade you had affiliates wanting more and more, giving away more and more. Affiliate programs had to comply if they wanted the traffic including the insane $75-100.00 payouts.
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Up until recently I strongly favored 50% revshare and always have. Nearly 90% of paysites which I promote are currently on a revshare basis. I've always been a long term affiliate. I agree that the herd has acted stupidly and I've been just as frustrated with it.
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Originally Posted by Barefootsies
Of course the affiliates would like to complain of traffic leaks, the X-Sell, Upsells, and the rest. But they STILL wanted their high payouts. Never breaking out a calculator on how exactly a company can pay out $100.00 on a $24.99 membership. Yet expecting an affiliate program to stay in business.
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See the section above. I am 90% revshare. That's why I am so adament about not having those things. I want a real long term partnership. That's what I have always been about. But I've since moved away from that and am starting to stop promoting new paysites completely due to instability. Also PPS in now more attractive due to the uncertainty and all of the games being played on affiliates.
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Originally Posted by Barefootsies
Then somewhere in all of this they are 'amazed' there are all of these things that have happened in the past... X sells, card banging, and the rest. The numbers never made sense in the first place.
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The herd has bothered me as well. I agree. But a lot of this stuff is still happening on revshare programs. I see that as the sponsor just being greedy and an ass to their loyal affiliates.
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Originally Posted by Barefootsies
Anyway, I'll just leave it to you to debate the affiliate end it's clear you are set in how you want to see it. The affiliate model, in its's current form, is dying and the programs have moved away from it. Sure, there will always be room for the king fish who can convert like a Robbie or alike. But most of the old affiliates will no longer be competitive in the adult of the future.
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I agree it is dying in this industry and has been for a long time. I'm set in my ways in the sense that I want an honest long term partnership and will not consent to being ripped off. But what I want is a rare thing in this industry. A relic of the past rarely seen these days. There are very few programs in 2011 which I consider to be acceptable and fewer yet who convert well. I still send these programs joins and will continue to do so until that's no longer the case. In the meantime I'm also moving on to other things. Hell I already often feel like some sort of endangered species. ;)
Gotta go get some other things done. Nice chatting with you. Interesting conversation actually. You made me think.
