4 ms·

It becomes more funny once you shift online. Basically every checkout has a "coupon" field. Now you look for coupons, and some coupon aggregator of doubtful qu

It becomes more funny once you shift online. Basically every checkout has a "coupon" field. Now you look for coupons, and some coupon aggregator of doubtful quality pops up. You find something that works. Or give up. Done. The coupon sites are usually of doubtful quality because .... Basically all affiliate networks forbid it. It's also the reason why "last click" attribution is horribly broken. Funnily enough it's now mostly magazins & newspapers that run these coupon sites in Germany.

legutierr 3y ago
> The coupon sites are usually of doubtful quality because .... Basically all affiliate networks forbid it. I wasn’t aware of this, and I’m not sure I understand why this would be the case. Do you have any more information about this?
- anonymouskimmer 3y ago
  https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39243992 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39243992
- MichaelVangard 3y ago
  If you’re asking why a referral program would forbid the listing of referral links on coupon sites, I’d imagine it’s because most people visiting a coupon aggregator are already on the website checkout page ready to make a purchase. You’re not referring these customers and bringing someone new to the table.
shostack 3y ago
I used to run an affiliate program for a company and one of the top affiliates who was making a large sum annually from the program before I took over got quite hostile when I pointed out the bulk of their referrals were from coupon sites. They started trying to intimidate us about the backlash that would ensue if we took action and even brought a very physically intimidating person into a meeting for no other apparent purpose other than to be intimidating. The data was very cut and dry and in blocking coupon sites in our terms as one of the first actions I took in taking it over they lost a very high double digit % of their revenue from the program overnight. Surprise surprise, overall trials and subscription rates didn't change and channel ROI improved significantly. Goodbye Felicia.

legutierr 3y ago

> The coupon sites are usually of doubtful quality because .... Basically all affiliate networks forbid it. I wasn’t aware of this, and I’m not sure I understand why this would be the case. Do you have any more information about this?

anonymouskimmer 3y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39243992 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39243992
MichaelVangard 3y ago
If you’re asking why a referral program would forbid the listing of referral links on coupon sites, I’d imagine it’s because most people visiting a coupon aggregator are already on the website checkout page ready to make a purchase. You’re not referring these customers and bringing someone new to the table.

shostack 3y ago

I used to run an affiliate program for a company and one of the top affiliates who was making a large sum annually from the program before I took over got quite hostile when I pointed out the bulk of their referrals were from coupon sites. They started trying to intimidate us about the backlash that would ensue if we took action and even brought a very physically intimidating person into a meeting for no other apparent purpose other than to be intimidating. The data was very cut and dry and in blocking coupon sites in our terms as one of the first actions I took in taking it over they lost a very high double digit % of their revenue from the program overnight. Surprise surprise, overall trials and subscription rates didn't change and channel ROI improved significantly. Goodbye Felicia.