Come on Zazzle, seriously?!

[wheresthekarma]

You guys had to know people were already upset when we are asked to promote our products on social media like Pinterest and other social media, but when people click on our shared links, trying to reach OUR product,  under them is a row of "other" people's products.

But now, you have them on the top too? It's like you are asking us to promote our products, only to purposely hide them inside everyone elses! So basically we are promoting Zazzle and not going to get any referrals. It was already hard enough.

If you're just trying to upsell products, then maybe have those products be our other products from our store or collection since the customer is already interested in our work to have clicked on this. That way it's not a waste of time for us to keep promoting our items. You guys win and so do we.

[Hallie27]

I totally agree with you! My own product that I promote is much less visible this way. The first attention goes to the row above my product.

[PlayfulPixel]

This is my product that is half being shown here. I've come to it from a product link from Pinterest.

If a potential customer clicks on that link because they like this product, they would expect to be taken directly to it. However, the link takes them to this where the product lies in effect below the fold (on a laptop).

Why are you doing this? @Scott  I'd welcome your thoughts.

[Windy]

Seems confusing for the customer. As a customer, I abandon any site where the link I follow takes me to some other stuff I was not expecting.

[ColsCreations]

Zazzle is far from alone in this strategy. Here's a post I made back in Dec about this. Tons of sites do this for SEO, from Home Depot to Red Bubble. And sometimes the page you get clicking an item via a Google search result is even more cluttered then the page version shown going from a Pin.

As a shopper, I don't mind this approach all that much. Sometimes it's actually helpful, there might be something shown that I like much better than whatever I happened to click on to lead me to the site. 

As a designer, it doesn't particularly bother me either because as in this example of a garden flag, NONE of the other items shown are even remotely similar to my flag.

Someone interested enough in my hippie tie-dye flag to click a link to it they found somewhere is not suddenly going to decide they'd rather have a graduation or sympathy flag instead. But that's also precisely what is wrong with this approach on Zazzle - they are not showing other things that are actually similar!  I've been saying this since the "landing page" first came into being. How is this possibly helping sales overall, showing shoppers a bunch of stuff totally unrelated to what they first clicked on?

As an affiliate trying for the 15% referral, this is awful. Sure, you'd like the sale stats & royalty on your own product, but if they buy something they like better you still earn 15% (which can often be more than the Designer themself earns). But if they're being shown all this other unrelated stuff instead of the design style they were actually interested enough in to click on, it benefits noone.

So I may be an outlier here but I don't mind all this other stuff being shown, my problem is that it is not actually similar stuff.

[PlayfulPixel]

You do make some good points.

[WillowSprings]

i have to ask as a affilite how long does each link last? is there a time line in a referal link? or its a forever thing , as i know you only get the commission if they buy within a time frame of entering the zazzle space

[SheaPrints]

I prefer the way it now lands directly on the product page (as it used to). I think the single row of 'Other designs you might like' is okay-ish, since you can still see your own design below on the screen. However, the 'Other designs from this category' listed below (60 designs on the PC or 30 on the mobile) separates your design from its important information like the Zazzle 'Product Specifications'. Customers might miss this information and get frustrated if they think it's not included.

It's also a big separation from the 'About This Design', 'Other products from this collection', and 'Transfer design to a product'.

[LMGildersleeve]

The Zazzle landing pages change every 3 to 6 months with links leaving Pinterest. We've seen this view with the suggested products at the top of the page before.

We have to remember that our own products shows up on other Creator's product pages as well. So you may find your product sells via that landing page.

I think this page is problematic for those of us who are in the Promoter Program and we will loose our 35% referral if the customer strays to buy another product and not your own. If you have the 15% Associates Referral you at the very least will earn some money if your product isn't purchased.

Read below for some straight talk about working on a Product on Demand site.

I hate to say it, but the Zazzle site is it's own. They are in it to make money, yes, off of our designs. That is their business model. They optimize their site and try out new ways to garner more income for themselves. Sometimes these kind of changes are just tests, and once their testing is done the original views go back to what they were. 

You have to decide on your own if this is the business model you want. You have control over your designs, which affiliate program to be a part of, and where to promote your products (or others Creator's products).

There are good and bad things about using a Product on Demand platform to earn money. But the decision to do so is solely in your hands.

I've been on Zazzle for a long time and I don't pretend to know everything. I just thought I would share what I've learned on this subject. Go forth, make great designs and do your best to learn everything about promoting your products! 😘🤑

[PlayfulPixel]

Yes, I understand that this is Zazzle's site and it's their business model and they are in it to make money. Nothing wrong with that. And I have a choice whether to create on Zazzle or not.

But the point I'm making is that if a customer clicks a link to explore something further and the link doesn't open to that page/product, then that business tactic needs tweaking.

And isn't Zazzle in partnership with their creators?

[wheresthekarma]

Yeah, it just doesn't seem fair to push us to promote our products, then find all these ways to take away our referrals. Plus if you are in the 2.0 program you are not going to get that 15% fee if the customers buy someone else's products so it's just a lose lose situation for the seller.

[SandyMDesigns]

Even if someone came into your Zazzle product with your referral attached, chances are that you won't get the 15% affiliate royalty if they buy someone else's products. Zazzle has this 30-day cookie that is in place when that person last visited Zazzle. Then the royalty goes to someone else. Even when the buyers clear their cache and go through all the extra steps, your referral should count, but in my case, it never does.

[osea]

Referrals are just something more for boost marketing I guess, but not always recognized and applied as Zazzle terms and conditions. But I agree, when someone put much effort, they must be recognized. Let we look at the new terms to see if there are any changes about this...

However, it's better focuse mostly about designs, promote and ways to show them in the marketplace to offer customers the best experience. 

[Amanda23]

I noticed this the other day. I understand the “other products you may like” under my entry, though I’m HIGHLY IRRITATED they have to wade VERY far down the page to read my description.  This is especially bothersome because if we pin straight from Zazzle, they override our info with info about the product, making it generic and weird. 

A large problem with products over mine, besides the fact that it’s just massively insulting, is that when a prospective customer lands, they may be confused and think they didn’t go where they intended. NOW they may not even stay on the site, so when they pop back to Pinterest, Pinterest thinks something may be wrong with the link and stops promoting it. This causes our pin to be seen less often and also damages Zazzle’s traffic as well. 

Seems like an ill-thought out plan. 

Finally, if they plan to do this, people in the Promoter 2.0 program should earn the 15% referral rate. 

[wheresthekarma]

Yes, to everything you said! I so agree. 2.0 should get a 15% referral fee too. When i first clicked on a product and saw all the others, I clicked off zazzle cuz I though I had clicked on something wrong. And I'm a Z seller so a customer is not going to realize they have to scroll through tons of other products to get to theirs. It's just a confusing layout. As a customer I just want to click on a product and go there. I can see products UNDER the product and it's description and a link to the collection but not on top and under and everywhere in between.

[SandyMDesigns]

This situation is concerning and reminds me of issues I've encountered in the past. It seems unfair to the seller, as it appears to be another way of diverting money away from them.

I'm not entirely sure if this is still occurring, but years ago, when we used to have postage stamps, my niece ordered cards from me. I asked her about the envelope, which had a stamp and an address label from another designer. She replied, "Those are yours. When I went to my cart, Zazzle suggested those items and asked if I wanted to add a stamp and address label."

The last time I ordered something, I noticed that there were suggested items to add to my cart that were not from me. While this may stray a bit from the main topic, it highlights how sales that should go to us can benefit someone else.

[Jinaiji]

I'm not a big fan of having too many other products on the same page either, but think of it this way: when another designer promotes their product,  your invitation is also being shown under theirs - just like theirs appear under yours. It’s a system designed for everyone. Also, consider this: if a customer looks at your product but decides not to buy it, wouldn’t it be better if they ended up purchasing something else they found in the suggested section (maybe even another one of your designs!) rather than leaving Zazzle altogether? Keeping customers engaged on the platform increases the chances that they’ll make a purchase now and return in the future, rather than navigating away to Etsy or another site where they might become loyal to a different marketplace.

[sheindesigns]

True, but maybe if we bring the potential customer, Zazzle can offer a referral or click fee payment (5%) to the person who first brought the person to zazzle?

[CrazyMermaid]

It is always the same products, from the same bestselling Zazzlers. Unless you are in the top six bestselling products in a category, I don't see much of a chance of being promoted in this way

[DiamondWillow]

I totally agree with you.  If a customer comes to our product and is interesting in buying, and see another above or below (was bad enough) maybe it was a bit cheaper which is better for Zazzle?  

[daphsam]

I completely agree with you on this too. It looks cheesy. 

[digizazzleit]

I think it's ludicrous that Zazzle would put other people's products BEFORE the product they wanted to look at initially. Not only that, if you go from Pinterest and click on "Visit Site" You get not only the top row of "Other designs you might like, but then after your product you get ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY more designs you might like, before you get to "Other products from this collection". Seriously????  That's like saying to the customer "yes, I know you wanted to see this pillow, but instead you should look at all these other ones that are so much better than yours!"  To me, it's like a slap in the designer's face and as a customer, I'd be completely confused too. I probably would never get down to the bottom where the rest of the items in the designers collection were posted. Hence, potentially another lost sale of an item from the collection.  

[igiftcenter]

Don't have time to read through all of these posts but did you ever think...
well this could be good for my sales also as your product may be displayed underneath in a row of choices also.

Just saying
I wish you continued success

[CrazyMermaid]

The only products that get displayed are from the bestsellers. usually the top 6, so it benefits the mega-zazzlers and not much of anyone else. 

[igiftcenter]

I stand corrected. Thank you for sharing this information. Im still learning

[LMGildersleeve]

Because of the niche you are in Nelda that may be true for hot products like the wedding niche. But that is not the tried and true for all niches. It's no secret that wedding is Zazzle's money maker so the competition is stiffer and dominated by top sellers.

[Windy]

I agree. When I post my own products to Facebook, I always click the link to see what the Zazzle page displays. I very often will find one (or two) (or THREE) of my own products displayed in the line above.

[LMGildersleeve]

I wouldn't trust that. Perhaps your products are showing because the tags are similar to your own products in that feed?

I also know for a time in the MP the algorithm would show your own products first because they are clicked on by you. It's primarily for customers who have an interest in products which were clicked on by them in hopes that seeing them again would garner a sale.

By design nothing is cut and dry with Z. *sigh*

[Windy]

LOL, the reason my products show in the Above Ribbon is because they are so obscure. Which gets me nowhere, so ......

[almdrs]

Everybody sees something different. Do the same from another computer in another location.

[CrazyMermaid]

Well for me it isn't worth it to share my products on Pinterest and Instagram, when I see what the landing pages look like. I also don't have the patience for the constant Pinterest problems.

[wheresthekarma]

Someone mentioned to me that the change in adding the pictures above the main product picture is probably what is causing the Pinterest problem. It's really very annoying. Its' the main way most of us share our products and that has become almost impossible now too.

[JimCarnicelli]

Strange. I am not seeing that when I directly visit your product detail page. Including with Incognito mode:

I'm getting there from your Snuggle Hamster Designs product page. Or by visiting the Zazzle URL directly.

I spoke with Hui. She saw the line of "Other designs" earlier today but like me is now not seeing it. I wonder if they are field testing it.

[LMGildersleeve]

They're always testing views.

[PlayfulPixel]

Just as an addendum to your post.
I've just clicked through to a page from Facebook, and this is what I see, all showing above the fold -  I expected to see a jar of honey with a label, not these 5 items.

If I'm a first time visitor to Zazzle - even if I've been before - I could well think that the link is directed to the wrong place and move away. I might not scroll down - many people do not scroll.

Let's hope they are testing this @Jim and decide to abandon it. As this isn't right from anyone's viewpoint, particularly a customers.

Just saying..

[MyMemes_Store]

I did a count: 65 other items now appear on a page that I send customers to. I fear that this is just a symptom of something greater. RB pushed the creators to the bottom of the pile and look what is happening to all concerned. It would be a shame if the same happened to Z. 

[WillowSprings]

they want us to promote but if you dont want to and to stop confusion for customers  , the way round it is to set up a store outside zazzle with links to all your products on zazzle , that way the customer presses the link it goes straight to your product only , its time consuming  as zazzle doesnt have csv file for each store but ive been setting up my store for the last couple of weeks , my customers never see other zazzle sellers products just my own products. 

[WillowSprings]

ve just tested my theory , if i post from my website to pinterest , it goes straight to my product only , wheras if i post from zazzle its the mixed view. so theres ways round it its just alot of extra work if you want to do it like that. 

@Scott we really need csv files for our stores please.