RabbitsReview traffic leaks on sponsor linking-code tours? WTF
 

Why do some sponsors put that rabbit review porn-category selection link thing on their affiliate's linking codes?

Doesn't anyone have a problem with this huge fucking traffic leak? It's like we're all sending our traffic right to RR to send back to sponsors.

Seriously what is the reasoning here? Are these sponsors that fucking desperate?

New here?

Well, back in days Rabbit wanted a back link to its awesome page just to get listed :)

:2 cents::2 cents:

When I was hired as an affiliate manager awhile back, we had them on our splash/warning pages. I then changed all default affiliate links to the tour. If there is ever a need for an affiliate to link to a warning page, it can always be duplicated without the review site buttons.

And we still require it. Some things change... while other's...

:)

As for the OP, if you send traffic that's (and I apologize but..) so low quality that a banner on a footer of a tour ends up being seriously detrimental to your business... well... you really don't have quality traffic, do you? :P

It's not easy running a program these days. We've seen so many sponsors folding--not because they have made so many gold bricks and wish to retire early, but because it's tougher than ever for smaller companies to gain traction.

We have a perfect filter. Instead of trial and error, throwing up banners on a tour or member's area trying 10s or 100's of sponsors, we can do it with a thousand sponsors immediately. We optimize so a sponsor can make the most of crap tour traffic or killer member's area traffic. We've been doing this for a decade so we know what we're doing.

We don't make a ton from it, but the sponsor usually can make more using us than anyone else just due to the amount of options we offer and our ability to optimize. And you, as an affiliate, should let them.

If you really have quality traffic and you're sending a bunch of valuable joins, then the sponsor may not mind doing a custom tour for you, one that's clean and without our ad system. You should always ask. Short of that, we all should be lucky that whatever sponsor we're sending to is still in business and allowing us as an industry to make money with them. It's really tough out there and everyone deserves the right to survive. That goes for you, us and them. :)

And StinkyPink is right. All affiliate traffic should go to your home page and not the warning page. Leave that for site's like ours that require a recip. It's just smart business. :)

Ummmm... that's a little awesome :0)

Could be that his site is one of the best review sites out there and he sends quality joins so the sponsors know it's worth the link and having potential complaints that others sending less traffic and less quality joins maybe? I really don't know. What I do know is that the site is a pretty awesome review site to say the least. Don't know Doug personally but thumbs up for a solid site.

I do have one question I've always wondered....why the name "rabbit's"? How did that brand come about. Just curious. Nickname I imagine? :)

I'm not talking about the warning pages ? that review-site 'recip' shit isn't a problem at all there. I'm talking about a direct affiliate's tracked linking code that defaults to the tour.

Here's a simple tip for fuckhead sponsors that do this: Create 2 tours!
One fully leaked and whored out tour for your internal use and type-ins, and a SECOND tour just for affiliate use that is clean with no ads or leaks.

@Doug - Some HUGE sponsors do this, which makes no sense following your 'everyone's struggling' BS reply.

Taken from an interview the Rabbit gave to AVN...

"Give us a little history about Rabbit's Reviews. Where did the name come from? When did it start? How many employees are there? What is in the future for the site?

I was looking for an easily brandable, catchy and iconic name. A rabbit was the first animal that came to mind, given its association to sex and the industry, and the name just rolls off your tongue. The site was launched in 2003. I started working from my home until the site began to take off and then moved into an office. We moved to a larger office at the start of 2008 and now have 18 full-time employees who take reviews from start to finish in about 30 days. As for future projects, we are currently working on launching a one-of-a-kind busty model index. As those close to me know, I'm a boob man and this is a pet project of mine."

It's subjective, my friend. You may look at their success as huge, but they are not making the money they used to. Very few of us are.

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

So what you are saying is, if it isn't high quality traffic, then it is a free for all?

I agree that whatever loads at the end of an affiliate link should link to nothing but the join page. But that's between you and your sponsor, if you don't like who they link to, contact them directly, or send your traffic elsewhere :2 cents:

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

i dont care about that few clicks to site that everyone knows anyway, more what i am thinking about is why is someone putting banner, that dont fit to the design, and put it on homepage? when i see site with review site banners around, i am like oh man another amateur ... :2 cents:

Linking back to an affiliate? Well, the program must be proud to have that affiliate. Other than that it's nonsense from any other point of view (mostly for SEO) because it cannibalizes organic sales and other affiliate sales.

Well this is a very old complaint but you probably wouldn't feel this way if it were someone else's banner instead of your own....

I think most people just held their nose and dealt with it but I think this kind of thing is yet another reason why many affiliates left. Here you are working your ass off to send sales but sales are declining like crazy (as you admitted) because of piracy and then the sponsor puts up these uncredited links such as to your review site or a clips4sale store. It's like a slap in the face to the affiliate. There probably is some financial impact but more important for me whenever I saw something like this I always felt disrespected. I got the sense that the sponsor views the regular affiliate as some sort of slave who doesn't matter and can be taken advantage of without a second thought.

QFT ^^^^ - I've seen a few sponsors pull this. It's pretty lame but you and I don't buy Bro Drinks so.... This is generally the same sponsor crowd who climbed up on tube cock so I expect nothing more than more of the same.

I was asked to join a program a few months ago. I asked for a link...and didn't make it past the first page. Traffic holes to cams, clips, dick pills, whatever you can think of. It was absurd. They must think we are as dumb as they are.

For affiliates I always insist they link to the index1.html page, or the join.html page. Linking to the 'homepage' (index.html) is not smart. Splash pages are a notorious traffic leak and a waste of traffic. Its okay to have a Rabbit's recip link on index.html but not further into the tour.

BTW: Every single review site requires a recip link so on many paysites you see a fuckload of little flashing GIFs on the Splash page. LOL

It's not like review sites have sales lined up. They have to earn the money.

:2 cents:

Oh I agree! Just saying there's gonna be a lot of review recips that's all and the OP shouldn't get his panties in a bunch over it.

VividCash (vivid.com) has traffic leaks as well with hardcode links for their own celeb sites.

According to many (not me) on GFY it's because you/they are lazy.

I'm surprised you haven't yet been hit with the storm of bros ready to tell you that you should be flipping burgers if you can't make the money you once did ... or that things are better than ever etc....