Question About Affiliate Links And Lost Referrals/Potential

[mystery777]

What do you guys do to ensure that you get credit/commission for people who click on your affiliate/referral links and join/buy something, even if they took the action the next day or in the future?

Are there any methods that ensure us that we aren't losing on our commissions, simply because the person who clicked on our links, decided to save the page for future reference, or just removed our affiliate ID from the link, and purchased/joined from the main site? Some sites have these strong cookies that remain for like months, but not all do...

[Marc Meole]

It's really up to the affiliate program and the cookie.

You could use a name squeeze page to lead them to the affiliate link. This way you can follow up.

[Lynn Terry]

First, you should choose Affiliate Programs that offer a solid cookie. But obviously not all will, and there will be products/programs you want to take that risk with because they are a perfect match.

Building a list is a great idea of course, but if its a simple affiliate campaign you dont want to make potential buyers jump through hoops to get to the sales page. On the other hand, if this is a long-term campaign for you, then by all means offer something related for free, have them sign up, and then pre-sell the affiliate product to them via follow-up.

But above all, PRE SELL the product whenever possible. This helps them to make the buying decision right then and there, instead of "thinking on it".

[mystery777]

Too bad that it only depends on the affiliate program... I thought I read somewhere about a method someone uses to overcome that, but I can't seem to remember where... I promote clickbank products and products from IMC... don't know about their cookies.

I think your advise is perfect Lynn. A follow up is always the way to go, but it still doesn't ensure that you get credit for the sale, if the person decides to save the page for future reference, and you somehow lose the cookie...

[john925]