In a post from Sep 2009, Chris Dixon notes that sites who influence purchasing intent are not fairly rewarded since existing affiliate programs only pay the site that delivered the user to the merchant.
For example, Gizmodo might influence me to consider a Canon 7D, which I would research via Google and eventually buy on Amazon. Amazon would kick back a few bucks to Google and Gizmodo would get nothing. Google would make a few additional pennies off my research.
Fred Wilson echoed the same tone.
In both posts and their comments, the proposed solutions were that the “attribution models” needed improvement so that each influencer in the Intent Chain would get their fair due. This would presumably be accomplished with better tracking, algorithmic or social assignment of value to each influencer, and some mechanism for distributing the bounty.
This strikes me as an impractical approach.
On the implementation side, we need
- a robust tracking mechanism across diverse sites and platforms,
- a consensual policy for assigning credit, and,
- a system for distribution of proceeds.
Edge cases abound. Do I get credit if my blog visitor purchases the item after a month? What happens with product returns? etc.
But there’s a social aspect too. Distributing rewards up the chain is at odds with social practice. Winner Takes All, To the Victor go the Spoils, etc. Consider the matter of criminal guilt. The guy who pulls the trigger cannot reduce his sentence by offering up “attribute models” that dilute and assign blame to a book, blog, or person who influenced his decision.
The approach we are taking at MashLogic is to reduce the links in the Intent Chain. To the extent that there are fewer hops between the point of inspiration and the point of transaction, the process of reward attribution is simplified. If Gizmodo had provided immediate access to product reviews, shopping options, and my social network, without requiring me to leave the page, and finally a purchase link, they’d get direct credit and no one pays the Search Engine Toll.
We welcome publishers who wish to integrate intelligent links from MashLogic on their site. Contact us at bizdev@mashlogic.com to increase your page views and unlock your revenue potential.
