Protecting Yourself From Affiliate Link Thieves

So, you have worked really hard to build a fabulous affiliate site. You took the time to add your keywords and relevant information about the products. Your pages load quickly, and your site is even listed in the search engines for specified terms. You look at your stats, and you see a regular flow of traffic coming into your site. You get really excited! You log in to your affiliate program manager, and.... WHAMO! You have very few commissions from sales, and your click-throughs are extremely low. Suddenly, you are asking yourself, "what the heck happened here??" The answer... You might possibly be the victim of affiliate link hijacking!

In this revolving world of the Internet, we are constantly being bombarded by spammers, spyware, viruses, and hackers. Now, we have to worry about link hijackers stealing commissions that are rightfully ours. So, what is link hijacking and how do you prevent it?

In the simplest terms, link hijacking occurs when someone replaces their affiliate ID with yours. The result? They get the commission instead of you. You did all that work, but someone else is getting paid? Yes! You may be wondering how this happens.

Let me explain. I first heard about this phenomenon while visiting various discussion boards on affiliate marketing. Many affiliates had experienced a decline in sales while their site's traffic stats remained high. Common discussions found in affiliate forums include various software programs which "steal" information. Many of these programs download themselves onto a person's computer, either knowingly or unknowingly. These programs can override your affiliate links each time the customer visits your site, therefore giving credit to someone else.

Many times, people download packaged programs that contain these types of software. The innocent surfer may not even realize they have a program running in the background. Anyone who takes part in the Internet community, whether it be a webmaster or a surfer, should stay informed about these programs by visiting parasiteware.com on a regular basis.

Link hijacking comes in various forms... not just from downloads. Let's say your affiliate link looks like this: www.url.com/?123456 , where 123456 is your affiliate ID. A link hijacker is interested in the product and wants to purchase it. He also wants the affiliate commission from the product. He takes your ID 123456 and replaces it with his ID 999999 to look like this: www.url.com/?999999 . The result? He gets the commission from the product purchase. He modified the link to benefit himself. You lose.

Here is another example of link hijacking: A customer comes to your website and sees a link to the product that he wants to buy. When he moves the mouse over your link information, he sees your affiliate url in the status bar of his computer. Instead of clicking your affiliate link, he decides to manually type it into his address bar, leaving off the affiliate referral code: www.url.com. This results in no affiliate tracking information and no commissions for you. You lose again!

So how much money could you be losing? I have read that an estimated 10-30% of commissions are lost due to affiliate link hijacking. (In a recent article from "revenue" magazine, the estimate was as high as 40-50%). Can you imagine the kind of potential revenue that you might be losing right now?

Take Action by Protecting Yourself From Revenue Loss

In the constant search for new scripts and software to improve my websites, I have run into several affiliate cloaking devices. Most of them cost around $50 or more. However, I did run into one cloaking script that is free. It is called Affiliate Link Cloaker (ALC). The site owner simply asks that you subscribe to their newsletter.

By golly, I love free stuff, don't you! If you are interested in learning about this script and how it works, you can visit their site at webmasterinabox.net/affiliate_link_cloaker.html . They have other scripts that you might find useful as well. Now, get out there and protect those links!

Stephani Richardson is a work at home mother of 4 who has been actively involved with affiliate marketing and home business opportunities since December 1999. She owns and operates several business related websites including 1 Work At Home Dot Com.

---

Google News Updated : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:51:23 GMT Palin talks economic worries in Appalachian Ohio - The Associated Press Times Online Palin talks economic worries in Appalachian Ohio The Associated Press - 39 minutes ago ST. CLAIRSVILLE, Ohio (AP) - Sarah Palin told voters in southeastern Ohio on Sunday that she and running mate John McCain would bring jobs back to this economically depressed piece of Appalachia. John McCain and Sarah Palin try new tactics Los Angeles Times US-POLITICS Summary Washington Post Milwaukee Labor Press - Tampa Tribune - guardian.co.uk - FOXNews all 2,032 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:11:58 GMT First Second-Generation Astronaut, Richard Garriott, Launched Into ... - AHN Canada.com First Second-Generation Astronaut, Richard Garriott, Launched Into ... AHN - 2 hours ago Vienna, VA (AHN)-Space Adventures, Ltd, a company that provides space missions to the global community, announced that client Richard Garriott and his crew successfully launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space ... Video: Raw Video: US space tourist begins journey AssociatedPress US game designer blasts into space with DNA cargo The Associated Press VIP Breakdown - Independent - Slashdot - Houston Chronicle all 1,036 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 21:28:36 GMT UPDATE 1-Tropical Storm Nana forms in Atlantic - Reuters UPDATE 1-Tropical Storm Nana forms in Atlantic Reuters - 2 hours ago MIAMI, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Nana, the 14th of the Atlantic hurricane season, formed on Sunday in the Atlantic Ocean east of the Caribbean islands, the US National Hurricane Center said. Forecasters: Tropical Storm Nana forms in Atlantic The Associated Press Tropical Storm Nana Forms Central Florida News 13| El Nuevo Herald - Orlando Sentinel - CBS 4 - WFMY News 2 all 175 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 21:29:57 GMT Mighty Chihuahuas Eclipse DiCaprio and Crowe in Test of Star Power - New York Times Mighty Chihuahuas Eclipse DiCaprio and Crowe in Test of Star Power New York Times - 2 hours ago By BROOKS BARNES LOS ANGELES - This is how far movie stars have fallen in their ability to pull audiences into theaters, at least when the story revolves around Iraq and the messiness of the Middle East: A picture about talking dogs, “Beverly Hills ... Dogs rule: 'Beverly Hills Chihuahua' No. 1 again Los Angeles Times 'Chihuahua' fetches $17.5M, remains top movie dog The Associated Press Reuters - Hollywood.com - Cincinnati.com - Bloomberg all 374 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 21:18:44 GMT Falcons' Ryan is not your typical rookie QB - FOXSports.com Boston Globe Falcons' Ryan is not your typical rookie QB FOXSports.com - 36 minutes ago by Alex Marvez Alex Marvez is a Senior NFL Writer for FOXSports.com. He's covered the NFL for 14 seasons as a beat writer and is the president of the Pro Football Writers of America. Falcons missed chances in red zone Atlanta Journal Constitution Bears rally late, fall to Falcons on last-second FG Chicago Sun-Times Sports Network - SI.com - The Associated Press - Rotowire all 607 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:14:27 GMT Tigers still seeking QB to turn season around - SportingNews.com Seattle Post Intelligencer Tigers still seeking QB to turn season around SportingNews.com - 38 minutes ago AP Sports Wri AUBURN, Ala. (AP) -- The Auburn Tigers didn't figure they'd be in this position: Unranked, desperately trying to salvage a once-promising season and still seeking a quarterback solution seven games into the season. Tuberville And Tigers Trying To Regroup Dawg Post A Pig Sooie Shocker in Auburn WTVM BamaMag.com - Sports Network - The Associated Press - International Herald Tribune all 647 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:13:08 GMT Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Cancer survivor shares her story - Naples Daily News ChattahBox Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Cancer survivor shares her story Naples Daily News - 1 hour ago By LIANE SMITH (Contact) She felt pain in her breasts. One of her aunt’s died in February from breast cancer. Another aunt, in her 60s now, has battled it on and off for more than a dozen years. Pink And Purple Join To Help Women eFluxMedia Breast Cancer Awareness Month Should Be Prevention Month! Food Consumer Princeton Times Leader - San Marcos Daily Record - Hudson Reporter - WISC all 136 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 12 Oct 2008 22:31:44 GMT Clickbank Data Feeds How to Earn Money At Home

PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts, Websites, and more...

Adsense websites

Become A Reseller

If done properly, reselling web hosting and related services can... Read More

Higher Commission Is Not Always Better

I have seen it a million times, especially from newer... Read More

6 Critical Rules When Building An Affiliate Website

There are 6 rules you must use when building any... Read More

Generate More Sales in ANY Affiliate Program ? Part Four

VISUALIZE, STRATEGIZE, ENERGIZE, REALIZE reprogramming is the subject today.Every single... Read More

Not An Affiliate? Why Ever Not?

If the idea of pursuing a living on the net... Read More

Generate More Sales in ANY Affiliate Program ? Part Three

Thinking Outside the square is where we last left off.... Read More

How to Create Multiple Streams of Income, Part 2

A while back I wrote a little article called "My... Read More

What Is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing refers to the promotion of products or services... Read More

Generate More Sales in ANY Affiliate Program ? Part Two

Incentive Marketing, Incentive Marketing, Incentive Marketing?It doesn't matter that there... Read More

How To Become A Data-Feed Super Affiliate

I am not going to describe what a product feed... Read More

Instant Success - Yeh Right.

Join our affiliate-program and make your fortune overnight.Sound familiar ?How... Read More

Seven Ways to Set Yourself Apart From Other Affiliate Marketers

Okay so you've read (fill in the blank with internet... Read More

Unique Joint Venture Twist: Make Huge Profits Even If You Have No Money, No Products, and No List

Would you like to jumpstart your online or offline business... Read More

Generate More Sales in ANY Affiliate Program ? Part Five

Affiliates make money in pretty much two ways, firstly by... Read More

Why Many Affiliates Fail

The title is ugly, but the statistics don't lie. Only... Read More

The Logic Behind Niche Content Profits

In researching most successful online businesses, you start to notice... Read More

How to Easily Increase Your Affiliate Commissions in Two Days or Less?

Clearly, the people benefiting the most from affiliate programs are... Read More

Affiliate is not a Dirty Word

It wasn't very long ago when the word "affiliate" left... Read More

13 Killer Ways To Increase Your Affiliate Commissions

1. Start a private web site. Use it as a... Read More

Basics of Affiliate Marketing

Whether you realize it or not, if you've been on... Read More

5 Ways to Start And Promote Your Affiliate Program

"What's the Buzz About?""I made $5,000 in one week""I quit... Read More

How To Build Website - Seven Steps For Building Optimized Websites For Affiliate Programs

The web has developed in such a mass marketing arena,... Read More

How To Make Money On A Music Website Through Affiliate Programs?

Do you find yourself looking for a way to make... Read More

Affiliate + Blogs = Money

I've been an affiliate for a long time, trying different... Read More

11 Awesome Ways To Explode Your Affiliate Commission

1. Start your own affiliate program directory. Join a large... Read More