Referrer list from my Zazzle promotion Blog: Wish Zazzle would provide a list like this

[Susang6]

I checked my blog analytics for last 7 days and found a referrer list that made me stop and think. Some traffic came from the usual places Google, Baidu, and other search engines but then I saw links from Ethereum.org, TheGuardian.com, SteamPowered.com, and even Dartmouth.edu. That last one really caught my attention. It makes me wonder if my blog is listed on some academic resource page, or if someone’s watching it with AdSense placement in mind.

It’s not just the .edu traffic it’s the mix. Tech, fashion, gaming, education. That’s a wide range for a blog that mostly features styled Zazzle products, and autumn season posts.  I wonder are my information/ promotion  blog posts being discussed in classrooms, shared in forums, or bookmarked by niche readers?

This kind of referrer list gives you insight not just numbers. It shows who’s linking to your blog, what kind of visibility you’re getting.  I wish Zazzle gave us this kind of breakdown. Imagine knowing which external site is sending buyers/ traffic  your way. 

Are you seeing similar referrers or traffic spikes, at your blog? Are you fascinated by who’s sending traffic to your blog?

[Amanda23]

You mean this isn't enough info for you? 😅

[Amanda23]

OHH! Interesting. Does anyone remember seeing that last source before (Zazzle Marketing and SEO)? 

[Amanda23]

I'm having fun now. 🤣
Can someone explain this stat?! Maybe bookmarked or saved to a cart or something? 

[Badeesie]

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@Amanda23 wrote:

I'm having fun now. 🤣
Can someone explain this stat?! Maybe bookmarked or saved to a cart or something? 
(chart showing 2 orders on a day with 0 views)

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Maybe saved to cart. Maybe the customer came through Brave and couldn't be tracked.

[Amanda23]

I don't know about Brave. Could you explain that one? 😄 

[Badeesie]

Brave is an internet browser that automatically blocks trackers and ads. It is specifically mentioned as preventing views from registering in this thread, and in my experience: https://community.zazzle.com/t5/ambassador-program/another-question-about-referrals-yes-sigh/m-p/219...

[Susang6]

Sorry that chart does not compare to my referrer analytics on my blog. But if your satisfied with the breakdown , that's your deal  .  ? what does that circle tell you and the Direct & Other traffic?  

[Amanda23]

Sorry for any confusion. That was a sarcastic reply: the chart is super unhelpful. The only thing it tells me is clearly I drive the vast majority of all my traffic .

Also, if you review your stats in the front and back, the views are massively different. The backend sometimes shows more and sometimes shows less, so I don’t even know which way it tends…

[Susang6]

Thanks for clarifying the sarcasm...

[Amanda23]

I truly apologize. So much context is lost when we don't have nonverbal cues. I was hoping the emoji would help. Your frustration with the lack of insights available to us here is absolutely felt by us all. 

[Windy]

I got the joke! Yeah, that circle ring chart tells us not much......

[NigelSutherland]

I noticed on my blog that I have many referrals from the unlikeliest sources - ikea.com and pizzahut.com for example. Obviously such sites aren’t really going to be seeking out my blog so I looked up in a search why this should be happening. The general consensus is that they are from bots using the other domains to mask what they actually are and where they’re coming from.

[Susang6]

I actually clicked through a couple of those referrers The Guardian and Dartmouth College and they both opened to legit pages on their actual domains. So at least some of the traffic seems real, not spoofed. I know referral spam is a thing (and I’ve seen it too), but in this case, it looks like there’s genuine interest or at least a direct link somewhere. I know that AdSense tracks real views and I get a whole lot a views to my blogs.   I  saw that Facebook has one of my blog posts ranked really well in SEO   I thought maybe because its indexed my post could have been picked up by aggregators, newsletters, or even embedded in other sites leading to referrals from domains like theguardian.com, dartmouth.edu, or steampowered.com.   I don’t know, I just think its interesting.

[NigelSutherland]

Oh yes, the links do actually work, taking you to the sites they state, but I believe they're spoofed.

My top referrer in the last 7 days is Ikea.com - more than Google. Highly unlikely to be genuine seeing as it's a superstore marketplace.

[Susang6]

I think you’re applying catalog logic to a blog that’s built on ripple traffic, seasonal indexing, and educational context. I’m not just showcasing Zazzle products; I’m teaching people how to use them, documenting local wildlife, and sharing lived experience with verified sources. That kind of content gets picked up by unexpected referrers.

Ikea.com might seem “highly unlikely” from a catalog lens, but from my blog’s perspective? Totally plausible. Someone could read a DIY table styling post on Ikea’s site, click through to my tissue paper decoupage guide, and boom referral logged. Or maybe my post was shared in a Pinterest board that links back to both Ikea and my blog. That’s ripple traffic. It’s not spoofed it’s layered.

I think the assumption here is that all traffic should look like yours: clean, direct, product-to-cart. But my blog is part of a larger conversation. It’s indexed, shared, and referenced in ways that catalog blogs don’t typically experience.

Please follow my autumn blog

[Susang6]

I clicked through to your blog and it’s definitely not like mine. Yours is a well-written catalog lens clean product presentation, affiliate links, and visual styling, it looks great.  I can see why domains like PizzaHut or IKEA would feel off in your referrer list; they don’t align with catalog traffic.

But my blog isn’t just listing products. I’m teaching, documenting, and creating ripple traffic that catalog blogs don’t typically generate. For example, I don’t just post my “fall season” tissue paper I show how to use it to decoupage a table, with step-by-step instructions. That kind of content gets picked up by aggregators, newsletters, and social shares.

So yes, my referrers look different and honestly, many of them make sense considering what I’m sharing. I think our blogs serve different purposes, and that’s reflected in how traffic flows

[LMGildersleeve]

@Susang6 Nigel is probably right. I asked my husband a computer science professor and spoofing a large company/entity website is what those bots do. They may provide you with a legit website page though the bots did not generate from those websites. 

My husband explained there are many ways for the phenomenon you experienced happened. But what you have described led him to determined Nigel is correct.

[Susang6]

Just to clarify this spike is happening on my autumn blog, not across all 6 of my blogs. The autumn blog t’s a mix of seasonal recipes, current activities, news worthy trending articles and Zazzle products where they fit. I haven’t boosted anything, but Pinterest, Facebook, and Google indexing are driving organic traffic.

AdSense is tracking over 1K real views weekly, and I’m seeing referrers from places like PETA, The Guardian, and Dartmouth. I’ve checked some are legit, not just spoofed.

One post in particular is getting shared: and from the actual  AdSense views this post is probably bringing referrers.
 Joplin Misses the Mark on Nursing Deer

Like I said autumn blog is not a catalog / It’s not a selling blog it’s an educational archive. I share Zazzle products when they support the story, but the focus is on verified sources and lived experience.

Like I said before…maybe bots… maybe not.

[ColsCreations]

You may not be aware, but your blog is absolutely littered with ads. 

[Susang6]

This blog is currently participating in a Auto ads experiment for Google AdSense. As part of the experiment, ad layout and density are controlled by the program itself. I’m aware of the placement and pacing, Once the experiment is  completed, I’ll reassess layout and visibility to ensure the best experience for readers and supporters alike.  Until then its not recommended to mess with it.  "Google’s Auto Ads experiments are designed to gather clean data, which means no manual interference during the test phase"  if ads bug you install an ad blocker..

[LMGildersleeve]

Just to be clear the bots could care less what your content is that they are combing. They just hit anything in their path. You can believe what you want to believe.

What would really be helpful is if you told us what blog post the bot hit which led back to which Dartmouth.edu page. 

[Susang6]

Just to clarify: my autumn blog is getting consistent real views 440 today and over 1K weekly tracked through AdSense, not just Blogger stats. The named referrers like Dartmouth The Guardian, and PETA line up with those numbers and look legit. Referrer stats aren’t outlandish they match closely to the real traffic. What is inflated is the “Other” category, which keeps ballooning while named referrers stay steady. That likely includes bots, private shares, and unparsed links. AdSense filters out most invalid traffic, so no I don’t believe all referrers are bots. And Blogger doesn’t offer post-level referrer tracking, so I rely on verified view counts in adsense. If you have a method beyond speculation, feel free to share.

[SimplyDesigned]

I have to agree here, if someone is spoofing you, you WON'T know it. That's kind of the whole point. Just like how scammers spoof your home area code before they call you, you think its local so you end up answering. "Catalog Logic", "Selling blog", "Educational blog" & "Ripple Traffic" it makes 0 difference for fake bot traffic. People are trying to let you be more informed on how things work (or don't work) and when you say "oh your blog is different mine is ABC yours is XYZ" it makes it really hard @Susang6. 

Providing some answers from Google to further clarify about spoofing:

"Spoofing is a type of attack where a malicious actor disguises their identity to appear as a trusted source, such as a well-known company, a government agency, or even a friend."

"Spoofing is a type of cybercriminal activity where someone or something forges the sender's information and pretends to be a legitimate source."

"While it is possible to generate fake website traffic, it is a deceptive and unethical practice with serious legal consequences, especially when used for fraud. The techniques, often called "traffic spoofing," involve misleading people or automated systems into believing that false traffic is legitimate. Responsible web administrators focus on earning legitimate, high-quality traffic through ethical marketing practices."

You have to wonder though, since its, GOOGLE Adsense, GOOGLE Blogspot, GOOGLE Analytics, people buying ads from GOOGLE. If they knew people were going around spoofing things to inflate traffic numbers or ad views, its making them money either way so why fix it? They could even take it a step further and be purchasing ads for stuff it controls to place on the websites it controls, they'll get a cut of what they spent back, inflate numbers AND perhaps make some conversions on the ads. Its all Google so who else would ever know? This is all hypothetical thinking on my part and I am NOT claiming anything in this paragraph as fact.

What I WILL claim is i've personally ran into so many "its making us money so why fix it" situations I lost count a long time ago.

[Susang6]

What started as a simple suggestion wouldn’t it be helpful if Zazzle provided a referrer list like this has spiraled into “you’re being spoofed, period.” Seems like you can’t point out anything anymore without being discredited.

Just to clarify: my autumn blog is getting consistent real views 440 today and over 1K weekly tracked through AdSense, not just Blogger stats. The named referrers line up with those numbers and look legit. Referrer views aren’t outlandish they match the real traffic. What is inflated is the “Other” category, which keeps ballooning while named referrers stay steady. That likely includes bots, private shares, and unparsed links. AdSense filters out most invalid traffic, so no I don’t believe all referrers are bots. But yes, some could be bots disguised as respectable referrers. I’ve said that repeatedly throughout this thread.

Also worth noting: the post getting the most views was timely and widely shared across Facebook (2K followers), Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and picked up by fellow bloggers. It’s entirely plausible that some referrers are arriving through those shares, or even checking for AdSense widget placement.

Again, I’m not claiming every referer is human. But I’m also not dismissing organic reach. There’s nuance here and I’m documenting it, not speculating.  Suggesting that Google is inflating traffic undermines the entire framework of verified engagement and responsible monetization.. 

[Laura]

I'm finding GA is reporting referral links from chatgpt, they started showing up in April.

[Amanda23]

I feel like this might be accurate. Interesting. 

[Windy]

I cannot remember the last time I encountered any reference to any blog while searching for any topic. 

[Windy]

What is 'lived experience'?

[SimplyDesigned]

I potentially just found the way to open and shut this case. A consultation to Google "My blog says I'm getting traffic from etherium.org website, how would that work?" says it all. Replace the website with any other one off the list and Google will tell you the only ones that might be legitimate are TheGuardian (if someone wrote an article and referenced you on the website) or on Steam but there's about 8-9 different ways you could have popped up on there. But all of them have the potential to be fake traffic, here's Google's response:

If your blog's analytics show traffic from etherium.org, it is almost certainly a type of spam known as "ghost referral traffic". This fake data, generated by bots, never actually visits your website but directly targets your analytics software to appear in your reports.

The practice is not meant to harm your website directly, but rather to deceive you and inflate the spammer's own site traffic when you, out of curiosity, click the suspicious link in your report.

Why are you seeing this traffic?

• The bots never visit your site. Ghost spam is created by bots that send false information directly to your analytics account, pretending to be a legitimate source.
• Targeting analytics software. Spammers target analytics tracking codes (like a Google Analytics ID) rather than your website itself. They use automated scripts to guess tracking IDs and send fake data.
• Skewed data. The goal is to pollute your analytics with skewed data. For smaller blogs, this can dramatically distort your traffic reports, engagement rates, and other metrics.
• Generating clicks. The spammer's ultimate goal is to generate traffic for their own website. They hope that when you see an unfamiliar domain in your referral report, you'll click the link to see where the traffic came from. 

[Susang6]

Update: I tagged Cornell.edu a couple days ago as a source code with hyperlink in my post, and just checked referrer views six direct hits from Cornell. That’s not bot behavior. That’s human traffic, likely internal. The tag did its job. Honestly, highly unlikely this was automated. If you’re still doubting the impact of strategic sourcing, this is your reminder: academic domains do track back when the content resonates or gets shared. I document these patterns for a reason. Maybe you should too.

Also, I’ve only been blogging at Autumn since 8/25 what is that, two weeks? And my real views are already impressive. Not all of my referrers are spoofing me. Some maybe, but not all. I watch the patterns. I know the difference

[Susang6]

So yes, some referrers might be noise. But not all. What you’re insinuating is that every referrer in my list is a ghost bot and that’s simply not accurate. I’ve tracked this closely. My referrer stats show low percentages from known spam domains, while legitimate sources like Cornell.edu are showing up with clustered views. That’s not spoofing. That’s real traffic. (considering I tagged them in a hyperlink for source code) 

Also, I’ve only been blogging at Autumn since 8/25, and in the last 30 days I’ve logged 6,344 real views, with 3,000+ in the last 7 days alone. That’s not bot inflation. That’s organic engagement. I document these patterns for a reason and I know the difference between spoofed noise and legitimate traction.

Quoting a generic Google help article doesn’t “shut the case.” It ignores the nuance of real-world tracking, and it dismisses the work I’ve done to separate signal from noise.

If you’re not interested in understanding how I document and filter my analytics, that’s fine. But don’t misrepresent my data or throw AI-generated commentary in my face like it’s gospel. I track this daily. I know what’s real

If you want to continue discrediting me, the floor is yours. Don’t let me stop you. But I’ll keep publishing, documenting, and tracking what’s real. And the numbers speak for themselves.

[SimplyDesigned]

"What you’re insinuating is that every referrer in my list is a ghost bot and that’s simply not accurate."

You're doing it again, where you take someone's words and twist them. I CLEARLY said "Google will tell you the only ones that might be legitimate are TheGuardian (if someone wrote an article and referenced you on the website) or on Steam but there's about 8-9 different ways you could have popped up on there. But all of them have the potential to be fake traffic"

I have NEVER discredited you & said all your traffic or referrers are bots. I only tried to make the clarity for all these technical terms like "spoofing" and ghost traffic" for not only you, but anyone else in this very public forum who prefer lurking rather than responding. Nigel has reached out with helpful insight, as well as LMGildersleeve through their husband & I myself have reached out on this thread you created.

I don't need a floor. The fact that you even think this IS a floor is what's the matter with this whole conversation right now. We're all here in the forums to build each other up. The main reason I chime in on forums is to help with YouTube, Content Creation, Video Editing, Thumbnail Making, YT SEO, and channel growing tips. I have been doing YT just as long as Zazzle but YT is far more fruitful for me. I also deal with bots and bot traffic day in and day out through the channels I manage, so I thought I could add onto what was previously said with greater detail.

I wash my hands of this topic because you are discrediting ME and MY words now, I am tired of my hand getting bitten like i'm sure others are too. Stepping away from the forums now, because this is just not good for my mental health.