Promoter Program 2.0 still worth it?

[LJ]

As working on promoting my products with their new mockup images, I was wondering if it's still worth using the Promoter Program 2.0 links without referral codes, after all the recent/not so recent changes here.

I already got used to the "Other products you might like" stripe right under my product. I don't agree with the placement, however I can understand the intention.

But showing an entire product category (Other designs from this category) instead of the "Add to cart" button for visitors that just found a product they like enough to click through? I've never seen any other website that - right after clicking on a product pin for example on Pinterest - shows a product page that literally says: "Please buy something else".
Discussed here: https://community.zazzle.com/t5/general-zazzle-discussion/other-designs-from-this-category-is-hurtin...
OK, I also understand the intent, but I don't find it fair to tell me that I'll get 35% if the customer buys my own product and 0% if someone else's, then make serious efforts to distract the customer away from my product that they already liked. (Also people often get confused if they are offered too many alternatives to choose from, so they might just leave instead of buying the one they initially wanted. They can choose and decide from 3-5 options easily, but give up if they are offered 100s of choices.)
With the new product sort, pushing Editor's picks to the top of category pages, meaning the "Popular" sort doesn't display the most popular products any more - just Zazzle employees' favorites - my referral links are channeled right to a select few hand-picked, privileged designers, without me getting any compensation for the referral.

Now even my product pages started showing other designers' collections instead of mine with the matching products. With star ratings and whoever knows what other changes on the horizon for new collections, I think those will also be biased by hand picking some designers and show their collections on product pages, and customers will have to click "Next collection" to have a chance to find matching items.
Discussed here: https://community.zazzle.com/t5/technical-issues/item-s-first-collection-shown-on-product-page-is-no...

I feel like I was tricked into sending out a gazillion clean links for referrals, then the rules of the game were changed to save the 35% and not pay me anything for my marketing efforts. Should I use the referral code again to get at least the 15% instead of nothing? How could I know what percentage of customers choose other designers' products? It would be easier to decide if Referral history showed the 0% referrals too.

I'm interested in your thoughts on this. Maybe someone more organized than me can share some stats on the difference between with/without referral codes? Or just leave Zazzle and focus on marketing S6 and RB?

[LoraSeverson]

"How could I know what percentage of customers choose other designers' products? It would be easier to decide if Referral history showed the 0% referrals too."

If you look under "Overall" on the zazzle app on your phone, it shows if you have any zero referrals. 

[LJ]

Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately the app is not available in my region.

[CreativeLeahG]

I can't see anything account related on the app, no sales history or anything?

[LoraSeverson]

It's in the zazzle earnings app

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earnings-by-zazzle/id1241135549

[CreativeLeahG]

Oh thank you! I shall check that!!

[CreativeLeahG]

Only available to apple users 😞

[Zorinda]

I wonder how accurate that is (looking at the”Overall”). I regularly get some big volume number jumps with no corresponding royalties.  I always figured it was from referrals to others since that was the case when we could still see the zero referrals in our accounts using the browser.   I looked at the app and found some but not nearly as many as I would have expected.

[DancingPelican]

LJ, I am in the Promoter 2.0 program and I have found I earn more referral dollars by being in the program than I made in referrals BEFORE I got in the program. After reading your post, I went back through my last 2 years of earnings records - I keep a notebook with my monthly earnings that includes 1) all earnings for the month (both royalty earnings and referral earnings), my monthly referral earnings total, and then I calculate average earnings per day for that month. It gives me a snapshot of how I'm doing and helps me notice when earnings dip and I need to change my approach. While my referral earnings under the Promoter 2 Program were higher in 2022 than they have been in 2023, I still have some very good months that come close to the 2022 referral earnings numbers. This is in spite of Zazzle's evolving landscape with how they present our products and with collections, cover images, etc. All things considered, my numbers show the Promoter Program 2.0 is a good option for me.  If you can review your monthly statistics for the past few years, you may find you earn more by being in that program.  If not, then it's time to get out of it!  Do the analysis on your referrals. You can get that on the earnings page under "Referral History". You can use custom dates with the time period you have been in the Promoter 2.0 Program and then compare it to the referrals you earned during the time period before you got in the program. Hope this is helpful.  Good luck!  - Susan

[LJ]

Thank you for the statistics insight, it's good to know not all is lost.

I've checked my previous referral earnings, but I've been here since there was no need to advertise my products, because they just sold without that. The times when we could focus on designing. So I only had a couple of pins on Pinterest, not comparable to nowadays when I have hundreds if not thousands of clean links at various places. I just started marketing because of the 35% in the Promoter Program 2.0

[DancingPelican]

I have been here since 2014 and it works for me! 😋

[Fiorenzo]

I would say it all depends on your follower base, your niche, and your design/art style. If you have a unique style with little competition and a loyal customer/follower base (perhaps in a specific niche) that loves your art, the promoter program is definitely your best choice, since chances are slim that your people will buy anyone else's designs. If you have a broader audience and showcase/design a more generic sort of designs that are subject to more competition, e.g. trendy color patterns, then you may consider following the regular 15% affiliation route.

What works better in your case you can find out by trying out different promotions on different sites/socials, ones with clean links for your promo share, and others with your affiliate ID for the regular one. I would avoid mixing on the same site, since your referral cookie will last 2 weeks and you may get unwanted results, depending on what sort of link your visitors/customers click first.

Be also aware that your referral gets lost if your customers switch to local Zazzle domains (e.g. to the German, UK or French domain) from within Zazzle. So, if you address an international audience and are not focused on the US/com domain, you may want to send your customers directly to their appropriate local domain, e.g. by offering the language/domain choice on your own website. This is a technical flaw (possibly working as intended) on Zazzle's side and may have changed in the meantime but I doubt it.

[LJ]

Thanks, that's a great idea! I think, I will start testing some fresh product links with referral codes. There's a huge competition, and my designs are not that special. Plus, I often come across copies of my products that appear right beneath mine, which can easily divert potential customers.

[Fiorenzo]

Most welcome. I checked your stores and think the regular affiliate model may be better suited for you on broader promotion to a generic audience. This way you can earn something no matter what they buy. When addressing friends or people you know (e.g. a closer follower base on a specific social), you can use the clean promo links for a higher share when selling your own products. Good luck!

[CreativeLeahG]

I agree with your sentiments. I send around 20,000 customers to Zazzle a month (obviously I don't make 20,000 referrals a month) and yet as you note, my Pins that I create and direct to my products now show my one product and 65 products belonging to other people. It doesn't actually go to the product page! 

Like you I am considering coming out of the promoter program. I feel that our pins nolonger going to our own product pages is pretty poor and not what I anticipated would happen when I shared several thousand of own Zazzle products  without referral codes. 

A year or so ago I was making 5+ referrals a day, now it is a couple every other day so it has definitely impacted me. 

[sm]

Is anything on Zazzle 'worth it'? Maybe not, but we still do it lol. You have to weigh up the amount of time and cost you spend on something to how you are rewarded for it in different ways. It's not always about money so only you can answer that question. Before the EU messed up my affiliate websites, I got a buzz out of promoting other people's work, despite it not paying off that well. For me, the old referral program worked well because I enjoyed promoting good designs, whether they were mine or not. This new program would be infuriating the way Zazzle seems to go to great lengths to get the customer to change their minds. I've never seen anything like it anywhere, tbh. No system on here is there to make us money. It's there to make Zazzle the maximum amount of money. It's their baby so they can do what they like but this new Promotor Program is definitely not worth my time. If I was going to promote again with affiliate sites, it would be the old way.

[Jadendreamer13]

So, can you switch from the Promoter 2.0 program back to the old Affiliate program?

[Fiorenzo]

You can use both at the same time. If you're in the program, "clean" links to your products, stores, categories, and collections will place your self-referred promo-cookie if there isn't any other cookie never than 2 weeks (if it hasn't changed) already active. Make sure you do NOT send your customers/followers to a different Zazzle page than yours (the ones mentioned above) or that self-referral is lost for you for the next 2 weeks. If you want go the old way, just attach your referral ID to your links, as always. You can also opt-out from the promo program.

[sm]

@Jadendreamer13 I have no idea. I had been away for a while and recently read about it.

@Fiorenzo, I thought people need to be invited into the program. Are you saying that by default, we are in it and have to physically opt out of it somewhere? So if I share links without my referral ID, I'm in the program? Also where do you opt out? It wouldn't be bad using both ways for different designs.

[Fiorenzo]

@sm At first you were invited to join, yes, then it was open to all. No, you are not in by default, you need to apply. Back then it was a Google form if I remember well, I could be wrong. Don't ask me how you can join, no idea, I'm in since beginning, just ask a mod.

You can exit again if you want but there is no need to do that since you can use both ways as you desire. You just need to link as I described. You need to be careful how you mix, though, because the cookies will last 2 weeks, so depending on what link your customer clicks first, you may get unlucky.

It's a bit of a double-edged sword. You may earn a nice share on your products, if your cookie sticks, but you get nothing on any other product. Plus you need to be careful that you direct your people only to your pages/products/collections/categories first or you will lose both, the regular affiliate and your promo share. The regular affiliate link is safer since you add your referral ID, so it doesn't matter on what Z page you send your customer as long as your ID is attached. Be also aware that neither the promo nor the regular affiliate share work cross-domain, so if you have an international audience you may want to send your people to their local domain (e.g. by letting them choose on your own website) or you will lose your share if they switch within Zazzle.

[sm]

@Fiorenzo Thank you for the detailed explanation. It's definitely something I will consider when I get back into the swing of things.