Opportunities Ahead: New Ambassador Program & Important Terms of Use Changes

[Heather]

Hi Creators,

First and foremost, we want to express our sincere gratitude for your valuable feedback and insights. We truly appreciate the time you’ve taken to submit your questions and feedback through our form regarding the updates to our Terms of Use, which are effective today, April 1st. We’ve carefully reviewed each of your questions and, based on your feedback, have put together a comprehensive Creator FAQ and Ambassador FAQ to help clarify the changes and provide more detail. 

As we all know, the world around us is constantly evolving. Marketing costs are rising, and competition for Customer attention is higher than ever. In order to keep up with these changes and continue thriving together, we too must adapt and grow. We understand that change can be challenging, but it's essential for us to stay dynamic and align with the ever-evolving landscape.

For almost 20 years, we’ve been proud to be a marketplace where Creators from all walks of life can sell their Content, and many have even built a sustainable income doing what they love. Creators are the heart and soul of our platform, and we truly appreciate the partnership we’ve built with all of you. 

With the launch of our new Ambassador Program, we want to ensure that Creators who actively promote their Products and drive traffic are properly rewarded. The new program simplifies the Earnings model, ensures a fairer fee distribution, and aligns financial incentives with Creators’ success. Whether you’re actively promoting your Content or allowing us to handle it, we’re here to support your growth. 

We’re hopeful about the new opportunities this opens up for you as a Creator. This update means you’ll have the chance to earn what we would pay those “other guys”—and we hope you see it as a way to grow your Earnings in meaningful ways. 

To keep the discussion and questions for us organized, please reply below and we ask you to continue to submit your questions to the form. We also opened an “Ambassador Program” board for Creators to discuss specific topics together. 

Once again, thank you for your continued contributions to our community. We can’t wait to see what the future holds as we continue to evolve together in our marketplace.

Warmly,

The Zazzle Team

UPDATE - 4/2/25

Hi Creators,

We’ve heard some common questions that we’d like to address and clarify. We've added these questions to our FAQ and will be addressing more questions soon. 

1. Why does it seem like the Excess Royalty is taken out twice for the Self-Promotion?
2. Why am I being charged a Marketing Royalty Fee for Self-Promotion Sales?
3. Why in some cases did I make more money in the Promoter 2.0 Program? 

Q: Why does it seem like the Excess Royalty is taken out twice for the Self-Promotion example below? 

Example 1: Self-Promotion Link (own Product) in Clothing & Shoes with Your Royalty Rate set at 12% 

• Product Price (= Net Referral Sales for this example): $100
• Your Royalty Rate: 12% → $12 Gross Royalty
• Excess Royalty Fee: → 5% of $12 = $0.60
  (applies because Your Royalty Rate is above 10%. The fee is 5% of your Gross Royalty) 
• Marketing Royalty Fee: → 35% of $12 = $4.20
  (applies to all Referred Sales. For Clothing & Shoes, it's 35% of your Gross Royalty) 
• Royalty: → $7.20
  (after deduction of Royalty Fees)
• Referral Commission for a Referred Sale via a Self-Promotion Link
• Department Rate: → 35% of Net Referral Sales
  (Clothing & Shoes)
• Self-Promotion Earnings Goal: → 35% of $100 is a $35 Goal.
  (from this $35 goal, you’ve already earned $7.20 in Net Royalties and the $0.60 Excess Royalty Fee applies)
• Referral Commission from Self-Promotion Link: → $35 - $7.20 - $0.60 = $27.20
• Your Earnings = $34.40
  ($7.20 paid via Royalty, $27.20 paid via Referral Commission).
• Note: Because Your Royalty Rate was above 10%, the Excess Royalty Fee slightly reduced the total Earnings you could have received from the Referred Sale via a Self-Promotion Link.

A: If you look at Example 1, the Self-Promotion Earnings Goal is $35, and the Excess Royalty Fee is $0.60. Your Earnings are $34.40 ($35 - $0.60). So while we need to deduct the Excess Royalty Fee from the Gross Royalties to help calculate the Royalty - which we then use to calculate the Referral Commission by deducting it from the Self-Promotion Earnings Goal - it is more to do the math to figure out the amounts you’ve earned rather than actually being taken out twice.

Q: Why am I being charged a Marketing Royalty Fee for Self-Promotion Sales?

A: The Marketing Royalty Fee applies whenever a sale is referred, whether by you, another Ambassador, or Zazzle. This structure helps our systems run smoothly across all types of Referrals.  So in order to make sure your Earnings hit the Self-Promotion Earnings Goal (which is based on the Department Rate), we calculate your Referral Commission to make up the difference between the Self-Promotion Earnings Goal and your Royalty.  The math can be a little bit complicated, but the end result is the same - your Earnings for that sale do not change.

Q: Why in some cases did I make more money in the Promoter 2.0 Program? 

A: Promoter 2.0 was originally a "beta" program, and we're now expanding it to all Creators. The Ambassador Program is designed to serve a wider population of Creators, while reflecting current marketing costs, so while there were situations where former Promoters benefitted more, this new program is designed to benefit the whole Ambassador community more overall.

[Lea]

I asked a question previously before I had a fuller understanding of how this plays out. But now I have a new updated question -
If a 3rd party ambassador gets a 15% referral commission on the sale of one of my products, why is 35-50% deducted from my commission for the marketing referral fee? Why not just that 15%?

[LJ]

Referral commission is 15% calcluated from sale price ($15 for a $100 order). Marketing fee is calculated from your royalty ($10 for a $100 order if it’s set to 10%, that’s a $3.5-5 fee)

[Lea]

Thank you. My brain is really struggling to process all of this (I’m an intelligent person but I’ve never felt dumber honestly) and just when I think I get it I find I’m actually more confused. I hope our reports update soon so we can see it real life broken down and not just these examples. 

[klstock]

I would like to know if Zazzle will be increasing their own advertising/marketing efforts to generate traffic to designers and the Zazzle marketplace. My emphasis here is on Zazzle themselves rather than by way of other designers' efforts. 

Are these Marketing Fees that Zazzle is now taking out - of even self-referrals! - going to go toward marketing campaigns that will measurably increase traffic and sales? 

[SJoy]

I have been wondering something similar. Also, I am concerned that this "marketing fee" is being put in a pool of funds to support marketing efforts across all of Zazzle, which in the end would fund the boosting of the already higher up level sellers. If I am paying a marketing fee the amount should go to the marketing of "my" products. I don't want to be paying for someone elses limelight, so to speak.

[klstock]

Yes that is a good point. But if there were to be marketing efforts to bring more traffic to the Zazzle marketplace, I would think of the saying 'a rising tide raises all ships' and not just the ones already on a higher wave. In theory, the MFs taken out of their sales would also go into this same pool and could benefit you or me. But, alas, that is if these MFs will be used toward marketing efforts at all...

[tsikona]

Thank you, now it is clear how is calculated % 

[Lea]

Is there an ETA when the new reports will roll out? Any chance we could get a sneak preview of how they'll look and/or the data they'll provide? Really hoping those will provide at least a bit more clarity.

[Zorinda]

These tools should have been provided at least by the time the flip was switched to the new rates. April 1. Instead, Zazzle has left all sellers to flail around with confusing partial information from the jump with only sparse comment. Crazy disrespectful.  Sadly, I am unsurprised. Rollouts have never been Zazzle’s forte (anyone remember the universally loathed Design Tool 1.0 that they introduced but were forced to withdraw?) which is a purposeful understatement. My actual thoughts are somewhat more….colorful.

[SJoy]

With these new fees and carve outs taking sometimes upwards of half our royalties it will take forever to climb the pro tiers... this seems like if we are not already a high pro tier that it will take twice as long to get there now.

[wpl]

so technically If no one refers my product not even me then I am in benefit , if someone refers my product I make less, if I refer my products I make lesser? so this means I rather be an ambassador than a creator?

[InkgoeswildAK]

I would like to opt out of the Ambassador program.  If I do so will I automatically go back to the Promoter 2.0 program? 

I promoted my Zazzle shop exhaustively the first several years I had it (I've had my shop for 11 years now).  I spent hours crafting professional looking advertisements for daily sales to post across my social media accounts.  I gained a few sales, here and there, from my ads but not nearly enough to justify the time it took to craft them.  I'm a full-time artist with a website to maintain, a wholesale and retail art business to promote, and last but not least I have to have the time to actually create my artwork. 

For these reasons the bulk of my Zazzle shop sales have been my own purchases over the years.  I use my Zazzle merchandise to market my art business, as well as to advertise my Zazzle shop a number of ways; one of which are the monthly giveaways I do.  I'm not making enough from my art business to stay afloat, and am now looking for a part-time job (I'm at retirement age) to supplement my income.  The only reason I was able to keep purchasing my Zazzle merchandise was because I gained "earnings" from my own sales.  I always made sure to earn my referral fees.  In turn I used those earnings to towards purchasing more of my merchandise.  I tried to always spend my earnings, rather than have them be deposited into my PayPal account.

If I can go back to the Promoter 2.0 program I will be able to keep purchasing my merchandise to use for promotional purposes.  If not I won't be able to afford to keep purchasing my merchandise at the rate, and quantity, I was previously purchasing it.

Corinne Danzl

Ink Goes Wild Alaska

[Lea]

Will there be more answers coming before the 15th? Or can the royalty change window be extended? Especially with the concerns around digital downloads, we should be able to make adjustments once we get more clarification (and ideally correction there).

[wpl]

The problem is how high can you go for digital downloads? When ppl are already selling it at $2 and $3 at etsy! 

[ion_teodora_plu]

You (Zazzle)  say that creators are the heart and soul of your platform, but right now, it feels like marketers are being prioritized instead. I actively promote my products on social media, create collection covers, product covers, and product designs — all for a modest income. In two years, I’ve only had four referrals, so I can’t say I see any shining opportunities to earn more with the new program. In fact, it feels like my royalties are being cut in half — I’m now earning around 5% per sale. I was already struggling, and this change is incredibly frustrating.

Not all of us are natural marketers, just like not everyone can create great designs. It feels unfair, and to be honest, it doesn’t seem like creators are, as you Zazzle said,  "the heart and soul of Zazzle" at the moment.

[BN_Stationery]

it totally sucks, I'm having what used to be considered good sales of 50+ invitations per order but with the new kickback to affiliates I'm making a few dollars on that

[tiffjamaica]

It's not an affiliate kickback, though. The marketing fee all goes to Zazzle. Affiliates still only get 15% like they used to.  😞   I'm seeing more invitation sales of ONE invitation, which is really frustrating. 

[BN_Stationery]

oh i thought ambassadors get up to 50% like we would on a self referral, this is all so confusing

[tiffjamaica]

It is overly confusing! The 35-50% is just Zazzle's new marketing fee. There was always a 20% carve out from our royalties when any sale was referred (3rd party or self), but the affiliate (now ambassador) only gets 15%.   And our referrals on self referred sales are now 35-50% BUT that includes royalty +referral now, so it's not straightforward at all. If you were in the promoter program, you'll likely earn less with self referrals now as well. 

[BN_Stationery]

i'm also getting a lot of one invitation, .36 haha

[AirTwin]

Shouldn't one invite sale be a higher cost digital proof and not a single mailed?

[ion_teodora_plu]

The creator gets 5%, while the affiliate still gets 15%. ..as I see it, the message is pretty clear: they don’t need more designs, just promotion. The reward of 50% for self-promotion feels like a rare gem, and only the top marketers are seeing it as an opportunity. For most, though, it’s going to be a major setback.

[tiffjamaica]

I won't reduce my royalties to 5% - that's a crazy ask from them considering all the work we do now with cover photos, videos, collections etc..  And as far as self promotions, I don't know about anyone else, but since April 1st an overwhelming amount of my sales are now 3rd party.  I used to get about 64% 3rd party sales - this month it's 95%. Something has changed and I wish they'd be transparent in what that is. 

[ion_teodora_plu]

Most of my royalties are set between 10–11%, but ever since the new ambassador program was introduced, any sale that comes through a third party gets hit with the Marketing Royalty Fee — so I only receive half (which is why I say all I get is 5%). A few days ago, someone bought 50 invitations for $84.50, and even with an 11% royalty rate, I ended up with just $4.18. It’s pretty discouraging. 

[NHW]

That’s exactly why I increased my rate to 23.7, in line with @ColsCreations very helpful calculations. I can’t earn so much less than before. My earnings already dropped by 75% over the past 2 years, so I’m already partially dependent on family (I’m confined to bed, so Zazzle is my only source of income). Thankfully I’m still making sales. Hopefully these ridiculous tariffs don’t affect Zazzle. I assume they will, but I can still hope. 

[YesItsRoy]

---

@tiffjamaica wrote:

The marketing fee all goes to Zazzle. Affiliates still only get 15% like they used to.  😞   

---

Not to defend the Marketing Fee because I think it's an atrocity that Zazzle takes money from Designer Royalties to pay Affiliates//Associations/Ambassadors, but to help understanding of where the money is going. 😊

• Selling Price:  $100
• Royalty 10% of SELLING PRICE:  $10
• Marketing Fee 50% of ROYALTY*:  $5
• Ambassador Referral 15% of SELLING PRICE:  $15

I know it *feels* like the Marketing Fee is 50% of SELLING PRICE, but it's not -- it's 50% of ROYALTY.  So it's NOT $50 and then they pay the Ambassador a measly $15.  It's just $5.  (I say "just," but yes, it's a lot to take from the Designer -- it's "just $5" compared to $50.)

So Zazzle gets $100 from the customer, this is where it goes:

• $5 to Designer > $10 is owed to the Designer, but Zazzle keeps $5.
• $15 to Ambassador > The $5 Zazzle takes from the Designer is given to the Ambassador and $10 is paid by Zazzle out of the $100, for a total of $15.
• $80 goes to Zazzle > This pays suppliers, employees, rent/mortgage, insurance, shipping, and so on, and yes, Marketing, even though the Ambassador did the marketing in this case.

So instead of paying out $25 to Designer + Ambassador, Zazzle pays $20 to Designer + Ambassador.  The money they keep from the Designer is going to the Ambassador.  WE, as Designers, are paying a portion of the Ambassador's Referral Fee.

Now, where ZAZZLE is the "3rd Party," Zazzle would keep that $5 they take from the Designer and still only give the Designer $5.  And my feelings on Zazzle as a "3rd Party" were well known years ago when I used to post regularly. They haven't changed, but not much point in beating that drum. 

[tiffjamaica]

Yes, sorry if I was unclear - We are (and always have been) paying a portion of the referral fee (used to be 20%, now 35-50% of royalty fee). I meant it's not a "kickback to affiliates" in the sense that they are getting any more money from the new program. They see the same amount of referral earnings as they always have at 15%.  Zazzle isn't raising our fees to give more money to affiliates. They're just keeping the difference.  

[AirTwin]

Oh so this marketing fee is a percentage for the email sales funnel only? If you are not in the email, you don't have to pay the fee?

[tiffjamaica]

I'm not sure what you're asking, but the marketing fee is 35%-50% fee taken from all referred sales. This is for everyone. 
Zazzle used to carve out 20% for referred sales, but they've raised it based on what department the product sold is in (there's a chart in the Ambassador FAQ). 

[AirTwin]

The links Zazzle send out in its email newsletter, other wise where are these link coming from? Referred has to be a link from someplace. Is the marketing fee is coming off from organic google search and site search as well?

[klstock]

I have had 3 different orders in the last couple days of people ordering just one invitation. And it isn't a wedding invitation where they might be "sampling" it before placing a bigger order. These are birthday invitations - and each one was counted as a 3rd party referral as well. 

[InkgoeswildAK]

Perhaps when Zazzle says creators are the "heart and soul" of Zazzle they really mean we're their "sole" instead, as in the sole of their shoe as they walk all over us.  I'm being somewhat sarcastic.  I feel like this new program is like a kick in the teeth.