Hello,
I have been using this website for about 7 years an have noticed a trend of the same designers always being featured on the “Home Page” or their artwork suggested while browsing.
I understand the concept of promoting your friends and spouses but it just seems so “in your face” nowadays.
I have been taking screenshots of MOODTHOLOGY and Redwood and Vine, and their variants for a while now.
In the long term, I feel that this practice could cause more harm than good,
Moodthology has 1,100 Editors picks and 799 Zazzle selects. 14.5% of their entire inventory.
Given we only have 40,500 ish Editors picks, this does seem a tad disproportionate.
There are 40,500 Editor’s Picks??? OMG!! So, having an Editor’s Pick doesn’t guarantee sales for those products, right?
They haven’t garnered me any sales but the picks aren’t ones I’d have chosen.
I’ve been here nearly 18 years and have always seen how zazzle promotes great designs. Sometimes even one of my own shows up, which is always an honor.
Both designers mentioned have incredible, stunning designs.
If I ran zazzle, I’d promote them too. I wish them all the best in their POD career here.
It’s frustrating for the rest of us, who want more exposure, but since Zazzle’s main motivation is to make money, they feature their top-selling designs, designers, and shops.
Moodthology creates original artwork and I like their designs - I would rather see that promoted any day over the redundant cookie cutter stuff. Redwood & Vine has very tastefully done designs and when I started out and didn’t have a clue what to put on wedding or shower invites, I would look at how she did her templates because they were so well-done. I don’t have any problem with them being promoted.
There are about 30 or so who come up over and over, most of which are head-scratchers to me as to why. The thing I take issue with is where my pin promoting my own product has been redirected to this ‘landing page’ thing that shows 65 other designs (usually from the same 30 or so designers). I didn’t enter into any agreement to become an affiliate for these designers, let alone an unpaid one!
Right! I have had Editor’s Picks for items with zero sales before, and zero sales since. 😀
I’m not a fan of zazzle changing our product pages to the leaky, 65 other designs page.
That being said… regardless of who zazzle is promoting, customers will chose the designs _ they _ like best.
So, I have to make every effort to make sure they like mine , best. 😂
I agree, customers will choose the designs they like and it is important to make every effort to make sure they like mine best…
I don’t worry that a customer will choose one of the 65 other offerings instead of mine - the issue I have is that if they choose one in addition to mine that I am not compensated for that. It was my work, my pin, my product that brought the customer there, and I am doing those pins to promote my own work to get the 35% self-promotion $, not to act as free advertising to 65 others!
I understand all too well how frustrating it is to lose a referral that should have been yours. At the same time, I also appreciate that zazzle offers the platform free of charge for any designer to set up shop.
Essentially, their house = their rules. Yes that’s an oversimplification and while no one likes losing referrals, I seriously doubt zazzle will change back to the less “leaky” product pages. Especially if it’s profitable for them. If that’s the cost of doing business here, and if that keeps this platform strong and successful, then I’m good with that (despite being prone to grumbling at first). Their success = my continued success.
I don’t think pointing all these pins back to the same 30 or so designers/products = success.
If I was a customer searching Pinterest for Christmas cards, and clicked on a few pins of cards I like - to find that they don’t take me to where I can view details and buy the product I liked but instead take me to this weird page that is pushing the same 60 cards in the ‘other products in this category’ options over and over, that would be a turn off to me. Especially after clicking on more than one pin and finding each one takes me to the exact same ‘60 other’ Christmas cards. I would be irritated with the bait and switch and the added step of having to click another ‘view product details’ link, and wondering "Why do they keep trying to foist these same cards on me, especially when they are not remotely similar to the card that brought me here?!’
I have Christmas cards that have sold several thousand - if it were just about pushing what will sell and be profitable for them, then put mine (and other proven good sellers) in the mix.
I am all for a strong and successful platform but I need to be sharing in that success when I am contributing to it.
you have some wonderful designs @CarlaRolfe - I want to be like you when I grow up. 😋
As an affiliate marketer, the value of unique, niche-focused, well-designed print-on-demand (POD) items cannot be overstated.
Imagine navigating through an ocean of similar products and websites, all offering commonplace designs. It’s tough to shine or make an impact in such a saturated space. That’s where unique and niche-focused POD items come in. They set you apart in a sea of similarity, grabbing attention and piquing curiosity.
Unique designs that can’t be easily found elsewhere add a touch of rarity, making them more attractive to potential buyers.
As an affiliate, promoting such items positions you as offering something distinct and valuable. Creating engaging content, like blog posts, becomes much simpler when you have unique products to talk about. It’s easier to write compelling content when you’re discussing something that’s not already inundated across the web. Plus, your content stands a higher chance of ranking well on search engines because it fills a gap in the market.
In a landscape where everyone is chasing after the same trends, finding a niche with minimal competition gives your content a better chance to shine. Your blog posts aren’t lost in the multitude of similar content; instead, they stand out prominently, drawing in the audience that craves something different.
The prominence of “editor’s picks” in searches and listings as such poses challenges for affiliate marketers seeking unique designs based on customer preferences. When platforms prioritize certain items as “editor’s picks” it can obscure the actual trends driven by customer preferences.
These top picks might not always represent what customers truly favor. When editor’s picks dominate search results, it becomes harder to discern what designs or products are organically resonating with the audience. This lack of visibility into actual sales or views makes it challenging to align promotional strategies with customer demands.
As such I am in favor of the filters ‘working’. Ie if the filter states ‘most popular’ that is what we should see, YES award Editor’s Picks, but don’t hide what is actually popular and trending. Or restrict Ep’s to a top row (carousel) or just as a ‘filter’ of its own. Customers DO like to see EP’s, but they also want to see ‘what is popular’, just as we affiliates do.
Additionally Ep’s are given to talented designers however there a lot more who haven’t yet been discovered and for me, I’d like to see LESS generic designs that mimic offerings across the Podiverse. In a crowded marketplace I do believe the ONLY edge is in offering things no one else has. This is where sites like Etsy triumph … diversity. Just my thoughts.
I don’t worry that a customer will choose one of the 65 other offerings instead of mine
That is my mindset. As far back as last year I was posting screenshots that show that the “other products from this category” are usually designs completely unrelated to the main one the user clicked on from a link. Unless one is creating/promoting the same generic photo collage worlds-best-daddy I heart pugs type designs as on the cat landing pages, then those other designs pose no threat. It’s the “other designs you might like” scroll of 25 products that one needs to worry about as those are usually extremely similar as they are pulled from tags. If you look at Carla’s prescription label coffee mug, all 25 other designs in that scroll are just slightly different variations by other designers. But the “other products from this category” section, nothing there is even remotely similar to the prescription label design. There’s zero threat there, especially if one is taking the much-given advice to do your own thing, find your own niche, instead of trying to compete with the trendy/popular front-page designs that already have a track record. So I have been failing to comprehend all the fuss being made in recent weeks over this. But
the issue I have is that if they choose one in addition to mine that I am not compensated for that. It was my work, my pin, my product that brought the customer there, and I am doing those pins to promote my own work to get the 35% self-promotion $, not to act as free advertising to 65 others!
that might finally explain it. It’s not that one might be losing sales, its that they may be making sales for others without being compensated. Although I don’t feel the same way I can understand now what’s maybe triggering people. But, A) given the above it’s unlikely IMO that it is resulting in sales of those totally dissimilar products and B) when using a promoter link one knows they are playing the odds, 15% on anything/everything or 35% if yours. It’s a known gamble one voluntarily takes when using a promoter link. Those are the terms. So again I am left struggling to understand the fuss; if one is getting the 35% on their own product getting bought, then they met their goal, promotion was successful, so why care if they also bought something from another Creator?
I hit Reply on your post but am talking globally here as this has been such a common topic in the forums of late.
There’s no “arguing” with feelings, people will feel what they feel and nothing will change that. I am more comfortable with facts & stats & hard data and that’s something I feel has been missing from all the discussion on this.
So, @CreativeLeahG , you have been the biggest opponent of the “landing page” because you say it is luring people away from the product you are promoting in the hopes of earning that 35%, and you’ve been very free in posting screenshots of your personal stats. I’m not going to go back to try to find any specific one so I have a test for you that would provide some real stats. Since we know that if a person comes in on a PP2 link but buys something else, the Promoter gets a $0 referral that ups their total referral # but not total $'s, and since we know you do a load of referring with impressive link-over stats, here’s what I propose:
Pick any upcoming day this week. After, look at your number of linkovers for that day. (We know you can’t tell which were 15% and which were 35% links but it’s enough.) Then look at your referral numbers to see how many $0 referrals you got that same day. That would show how many people came in on one of those links, got distracted, and bought something else. Compare this to how many Self-referrals you got same day for people buying your own stuff you were promoting. How do those totals compare to the each other and to the total number of link-overs for the day? You’re only one person but an extremely active one with promoting & linkovers & referrals so some real numbers here might shed some light on all the hyperbole.
I love your Diamond Mindset @CarlaRolfe ! 
I haven’t been the biggest opponent Col … I am merely the voice for MANY - many who speak in
What more can I do?
Nothing. I am waiting for a reply to the landing page issue and make no mistake, they will be getting private complaints from fellow affiliates I am sure. Because this IS a big deal for P2 affiliates.
ps. I did request to leave the P2 program, but it doesn’t appear to have been actioned as yet.
Your designs are pretty amazing already Heather, do not underestimate yourself.
Thank you for a ton of great points @ColsCreations - - - I love your contributions to the forum as they are always fact driven and tested. As a Zazzle newcomer I initially felt a panic when I saw so many seasoned designers upset with the platform. It really made me question if Zazzle was a platform for me.
Thank you for being a beacon of logic and trying to bring facts to this topic since when emotions are high, no one prevails.
Sorry about the nonsensical post, I did an edit and the text disappeared!!
The gist was (much abbreviated now)
I’m not the biggest opponent, merely representing others too afraid to speak up. I have messages and blog post comments from those equally dismayed and obviously, there is a lot shared in private forums.
I can’t post 0% referrals as I don’t have an iPhone. I did request this data from Zazzle but had no reply.
I have always been transparent and shared screenshots for full transparency on many threads.