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Affiliate Examples #3: Moving Away from a "Click & GTFO" Affiliate Model
Please note: This issue of Affiliate Examples is purely based on my opinions and ideas. It should be considered a thought exercise.
Please note: This issue of Affiliate Examples is purely based on my opinions and ideas. It should be considered a thought exercise.
A friend once described his approach to UX as âclick my affiliate link & get the f*** off my siteâ.
In simple terms: Put as many affiliate links onto pages as you can so that a user is highly likely to click one. If they disappear after earning you a commission, who cares?
In simple terms: Put as many affiliate links onto pages as you can so that a user is highly likely to click one. If they disappear after earning you a commission, who cares?
This is a strategy that Iâd started to use with enormous success, and was one also employed by numerous large affiliate sites â though Iâm sure they wouldnât describe it in quite the same way as I have above.
However, my sites were hit hard in the Dec '20 Core Update.
I'd speculated previously that aggressive use of affiliate links could lead to algorithm penalties in the future. Some other sites that also used this âclick & GTFOâ model & were hit hard.
Is this all linked? Maybe.
I'd speculated previously that aggressive use of affiliate links could lead to algorithm penalties in the future. Some other sites that also used this âclick & GTFOâ model & were hit hard.
Is this all linked? Maybe.
The idea for including a product grid at the top of posts to encourage users to immediately click an affiliate link (without even needing to go below the fold) came from GearHungry.
GearHungry suffered immensely in the December 2020 Core Update.
GearHungry suffered immensely in the December 2020 Core Update.
Itâs interesting to note that at some point between January 9th 2021 â just a few weeks after getting wrecked by Google â & writing this newsletter in late January 2021, they ditched their longstanding product feature grid design, a design theyâd been using since at least 2018.
Another site weâll look at is BestOfMachinery, which was referenced on r/JustStart a few times in 2020 due to its absolute explosion in growth, who are still sticking with this design choice at the time of writing.
Ahrefs suggests that BestOfMachinery went from an estimated 562,000 organic visitors per month before the Core Update to around 23,000 after it. Big yikes.
Why am I highlighting this choice of design specifically? Because I think it demonstrates the âClick and GTFOâ mentality perfectly. Users see 3 products with affiliate links added to the product name, image & âClick for Priceâ button.
Thatâs 9 *above-the-fold* affiliate links.
Thatâs 9 *above-the-fold* affiliate links.
So, what should affiliate marketers be doing instead?
I think sites that are hit should go from optimising for affiliate CTR to optimising for a longer session duration.
Caveats: There are flaws in Session/Bounce metrics, + longer session does not always mean better experience.
I think sites that are hit should go from optimising for affiliate CTR to optimising for a longer session duration.
Caveats: There are flaws in Session/Bounce metrics, + longer session does not always mean better experience.
Instead of Click & GTFO, we should be thinking about something more along the lines of Hook, Read, Click. Entice a reader to begin digesting your content and ensure they take value from it.
If you offer compelling content â we saw in the previous issue of Affiliate Examples that a buyerâs guide on canned tomatoes can be interesting â users will want to read what youâve written, rather than skipping past the drivel your 20th $0.02-per-word Upwork writer sicked up.
When looking for the best camera for YouTube videos, I donât need to know why having a great camera for YouTube is really important. I already know that. I need specific features I should be looking for and maybe a minimum budget for acquiring something half-decent.
If a post succinctly explained what I should be looking for and then hit me with product recommendations and affiliate links â and theyâd also highlighted why theyâre a good recommendation â Iâd be much more likely to give them the click a site needs to make money.
My advice: de-optimise your posts for affiliate CTR, but optimise them for a greater UX â one that will encourage users to enjoy your content and be more likely to recommend it to others (shares + backlinks).
Put the priority on the reader. Youâll still make money.
Put the priority on the reader. Youâll still make money.
Please note: This issue of Affiliate Examples is purely based on my opinions and ideas. It should be considered a thought exercise.
Taken from Affiliate Examples #3: https://affiliateexamples.substack.com/p/moving-away-from-a-click-and-gtfo
Taken from Affiliate Examples #3: https://affiliateexamples.substack.com/p/moving-away-from-a-click-and-gtfo
