I’m sorry if this has been addressed already but please bear with me as I am new and trying to get abreast of everything…On Zazzle a few weeks and also set up a PINTREST account and post prodcuts to pintrest when publishing on Zazzle
Any I got a sale the other day and when i looked at it in detail it said it was a thrid party referral and i was charged 35% of the royalty which is very low to begin with …But does that mean that Zazzle charges me to market my product ? Did it charge me for the PINTREST link i automatically created when I published my product ? or what as my products ar enot being viewed on Zazzle yet
Does Zazzle charge this ‘third party referal’ fee now and claim it ? I dont understand. Is Zazzle now not a free market place. Do I have to pay a marketing fee labelled as a 3rd party referral fee ? I have no information as to who the 3rd party was ? How does this ambassador program help the designer . And the end of the day I got 6% on the sale ..Zazzle got 94% How is it viable to make money on Zazzle with these numbers ?
The other thing I noticed and maybe someone can clarify . When I hit a link on pintrest to one of my product and i get on zazzle a horizontal list of other people’s prodcuts appear first. So does that mean that if the person who hit my link chose the other sellerss product I get the commission ? andits unfair to use my link and show the competetion first ? How is this even a thing ?
Finally the zazzle pictures on tees have glaring errors and the models look unnatural ?
that post is very detailed and comprehensive but right now I have not enough information to make sene of it
But my simple question is this ?
is the automated saved pin Zazzle can create /creates when I publish my product a 3rd party referral with Zazzle as the referrer or as it is saved onto my pintrest boards not a 3rd party referral ?.
On the Zazzle site when you post the product and create the quick linked pin the language gives the imprission that if a user clicks on the quick pin then I dont incure a 3rd party referral but I asked CHATGPT ( no one else to ask) and it says these pins are counted as Zazzle referrals and zazzle gets the 3rd party fee from customers clicking on them …
can anyone say which it is please…would be very grateful for your help ..thanks
There are five different ways earnings on a sale of your own products can be calculated: 1) None = there was no referrer, so no one is earning a referral on it, not even Zazzle 2) Cross-Promo = you used an RF# link so earned 15% as Referrer in addition to your Royalty 3) Self-Promo = you used a “clean” link so earned a total of 35-50% of the order total 4) 3rd Party - Other = the sale was Referred but you were not the Referrer 5) 3rd Party - Zazzle = the sale was Referred but you were not the Referrer
If you use Zazzle’s share button to share your own product, the link will not include your RF#. If someone follows the link, doesn’t already have someone else’s cookie active, and purchases your product(s), it would be #3 - a Self-Promotion “clean” link. If they already have an active cookie from Zazzle when they follow your link, it would be #4 or #5, a 3rd Party sale, and there is no way to really tell whether it was Other or Zazzle. If the visitor has cookies/tracking blocked somehow, it would be a rare #1 - None sale. With this type of link you only have the potential to earn a referral on your own products. You will not get a referral commission on anything they buy that isn’t yours.
If you use Zazzle’s share button to share_ someone else’s product_, the link will include your RF# (#2) and you have the potential to earn 15% on anything they buy, your product or not. A #2 type sale. Same “cookie” rules as above apply here, too. Meaning regardless of which type link you use it can still always end up a 3rd Party sale.
A Message to Zazzle: Our Concerns About the New Creator Royalty Structure
Subject: Honest, Urgent Feedback: The Challenge of the Marketing Royalty Fee for Zazzle Creators
Dear Zazzle Team,
I’m reaching out to you not just as a Zazzle ID, but as a real person who puts time and creativity into your platform. I only joined in June 2024 , and I’m already finding it a genuine struggle to build a future here under the new royalty structure.
We all want Zazzle to succeed, and we understand that running a platform costs money. But right now, the Marketing Royalty Fee (MRF) feels like a crushing weight on the creative community.
Here’s why this change has been so demoralizing, especially for someone who relies on the marketplace:
The Problem with Marketplace Sales
The biggest issue is what happens when a customer finds my design on their own—a sale that should be a win-win. When this happens (what you call a “Third-Party” sale), Zazzle takes a massive cut: 35% to 50% of my Gross Royalty is automatically deducted as the MRF.
It Devalues Our Designs: I spend hours creating unique, high-quality products. That design is the value. When a customer finds it, I’m essentially being penalized for having a good product in your marketplace. This massive, unexpected fee devalues every design I’ve spent time uploading.
The Unfair “Cookie” Fee: The term “Third-Party” is confusing and feels unjust. It often just means the customer had any old Zazzle cookie from any generic ad or even just searching your site. We are being charged a huge marketing fee for sales that are driven by my design and your organic search results , not by a high-cost, specific ad campaign.
A Roadblock for New Creators: This fee forces me to spend all my time marketing just to make my basic royalty worthwhile, taking my focus away from creating new, great products. It’s incredibly hard for new sellers to justify the effort when every successful marketplace sale is immediately cut in half.
I sincerely ask you to look at this from a Creator’s perspective. We are the heart of Zazzle. The current fee structure makes the platform feel less like a partnership and more like a barrier. We need a fairer balance that acknowledges the lasting value and effort we pour into every design, even when the sale is found organically.
Thank you for hearing our concerns and for considering a solution that allows us to build a viable, long-term business with Zazzle.
RE: 2) Cross-Promo and, “in addition to your Royalty.”
Does this mean that, if I were to use my RF code while promoting one of my own products and it sells, I’d get 15%? For some reason, I thought I had to use RF to promote others and clean links to promote myself.
Because if that’s the case, it could potentially be better for us to always use the RF code. Yes, it means we earn less on our own products compared to a clean link, but it also means we at least get something if we drive traffic to the site and the customer buys another designer’s products, which might happen all the time for all I know (I have a lot of linkovers but few self referrals). If I understand this correctly?
This is the exact reason I use my RF# on all links, mine and others. I’d rather take a chance at a referral on ANY item bought from my link rather than a “chance” at the higher amount since Z populates their landing page with oodles of choices..
AS i am new i am busy making designs, getting to grips with the design tool and making mockups , etc so hardly have time to turn around. Will need to visit this ambasador programme in much more detail when I have some time, to understnad the nunances as it seems non transparent , convoluted and different posts are introducing terms without explanation of what those mean and therefore make it more confusing.
I expect the question is if one can earn 15% of the total sale (i presume as not clear) or 35% of total sale then why design and why not be a referrer …seems more lucrative ???
Also does one not need to use the #ref code in all links as otherwise how can the system identify you..you imply the ref codes makes the link a cross promo ?? but surel it is more than that to distinguish a cross promo from another referral type?
Not sure what a clean link is either as need a referral code also to identify the promoter or how would the system know who is referring ??
If i promote another persons collection how do i earn 35% - 50% without sharing ref code on the link ??? but above you imply that is a cross promo and gets me 15%
why cant Zazzle produce some simple documentation to explain their system ??
Now i have been told the zazzle quick pins on my PIntrest board is a 3rd party referral (ie Zazzle) and is not a third party referral but I earn 15% plus roylaty with this link…its a self promo and I earn 35% of the total …talk about confusing for what should be simple issue to clarify
what i do know is fewer and fewer people type in Zazzle.com ..ie no referral
people rarely buy on their first vistit to an ecommerce site
So that means nearly all purchases will be a referral and unless its directly from me I will lose royalties which seems to be happening