Hi everyone,
I want to share my experience after testing four of my own products and over 6,000 pins, including both my own and third-party designs. Despite following all the Ambassador Program rules, I have never received a single referral commission.
During my tests, I found that Pinterest often modifies referral links. This happens even if I manually create the pins, use the correct referral ID or tracking code, or post my own product. Pinterest often replaces the links with elements like "epik=", "pin.it" is from Pinterest, or "zazzle.campaign" is from Zazzle, which turns Pinterest into the official referrer. In that case, they receive the referral credit – not the artist who shared the link.
Even when I used a clean browser and created new Zazzle test accounts with separate email addresses and payment details, the result was always the same. I clicked on my own pins and made real purchases. Three of the products were mine, and one was from another designer. None of them generated a referral commission for me. Instead, all of them were listed under "3rd Party Referrer" in my reports. One of the items didn’t show up in the report at all.
This issue does not seem to be directly Zazzle’s fault. If Pinterest rewrites or strips out referral data, Zazzle cannot track the sale correctly. Unfortunately, it makes Pinterest referrals unreliable and unpredictable.
In my case, I have tried everything – using clean links, test purchases, different tracking formats, and over 6,000 pins. Still, I have never seen a single valid referral in my reports. Everything is marked as 3rd Party, no matter what I do.
If anyone has had a different experience, I would love to hear it. I still love designing, even if I earn almost nothing. But I will now focus more on the creative side and less on chasing referral income.
Stay smart and informed,
Holmer
