Click to Reveal Banned!

[Leeky]

OK, so its not banned yet or may never will be, but who genuinely thinks it should be banned completely, whether the code has expired or not.

We re-coded our white label sites today so click to reveal isn't used at all, our free downloadable framework sites don't use click to reveal nor do the wp plugin sites.

It seems to me that the main cause of all the problems with vc sites is the use of click to reveal, and I feel without it everyone would have a much fairer playing field.

Lee

[thebusiness]

It seems to me that the main cause of all the problems with vc sites is the use of click to reveal, and I feel without it everyone would have a much fairer playing field.

Absolutely - about time too!

[ash]

Although i currently utilise CTR myself, i'd love it to be banned.

It got to a point where i was losing too much to other VC sites.

[Leeky]

Although i currently utilise CTR myself, i'd love it to be banned.

It got to a point where i was losing too much to other VC sites.

Exactly, you hit the nail on the head.. which is why it took us this long to dump it ourselves, the problem is if nobody makes a stand then it will be here for ever and so will the problems.

99% of VC sites only use click the reveal because the BIG 1% of VC sites do (its nothing to do with stealing sales from content sites because smaller vc sites get the cookies overwritten by the big vc sites just as much as content sites do)

The big VC sites use the click to reveal along with other methods to confuse the visitor to click as many links as possible until they find or in most cases don't find the thing they were looking for.. smaller vc sites just don't have the amount of visitors to make this worth while and so click to reveal is negligable for them anyway.)

Then to make it worse, the small vc sites get penalized just as much as the big vc sites.. but the big vc sites can afford to be penalised as they steal that much along the way by use of click to reveal.

As long as you use click to reveal then you are helping the big vc sites carry on operating the way they are.

I think at least a temp ban of 6 months on all sites would be fantastic.

Lee

[Hero]

The big VC sites use the click to reveal along with other methods to confuse the visitor to click as many links as possible until they find or in most cases don't find the thing they were looking for.. smaller vc sites just don't have the amount of visitors to make this worth while and so click to reveal is negligable for them anyway.)

the reason CTR was invented was to prevent other affiliates from scrapping the codes they had collated with effort. As a method, it's fine - it's its abuse that causes problems and the IAB has addressed them.
As a network rep - I've had to spend far more time investigating stolen vouchers than sites non-conforming to the IAB guidelines

[ian]

the reason CTR was invented was to prevent other affiliates from scrapping the codes they had collated with effort. As a method, it's fine - it's its abuse that causes problems and the IAB has addressed them.
As a network rep - I've had to spend far more time investigating stolen vouchers than sites non-conforming to the IAB guidelines

Sorry Hero, but that's simply not true. It's cookie stuffing

[Hero]

It's cookie stuffing

an abuse which the IAB addressed with the code of conduct. Cookie stuffing is defined as consciously misleading the customer or him being unaware of what is happening - not the case when the guidelines are followed.

[Leeky]

the reason CTR was invented was to prevent other affiliates from scrapping the codes they had collated with effort. As a method, it's fine - it's its abuse that causes problems and the IAB has addressed them.
As a network rep - I've had to spend far more time investigating stolen vouchers than sites non-conforming to the IAB guidelines

Looks like a very poor excuse in defence of keeping 'click to reveal'

Click to reveal is just an allowed way of cookie stuffing, especially when used in conjunction with a site layout which is designed to confuse the visitors on purpose.

Most vouchers now are available in feeds from the networks, so no need for anyone to do any steeling and no need for 'click to reveal, and if the concern is steeling exclusive codes then make only exclusive codes click to reveal.

Lee

[Hero]

Looks like a very poor excuse in defence of keeping 'click to reveal'

Click to reveal is just an allowed way of cookie stuffing, especially when used in conjunction with a site layout which is designed to confuse the visitors on purpose.

Most vouchers now are available in feeds from the networks, so no need for anyone to do any steeling and no need for 'click to reveal, and if the concern is steeling exclusive codes then make only exclusive codes click to reveal.

Lee

i'm not defending anyone, but you don't accept any opinion that's different than yours.
I agree that using it for generic codes and, most importantly, offers/promotions, is far fetched and possibly unnecessary, but I can't ignore the fact that there was consensus from agencies, merchants and affiliates for the guidelines.

I will say again - it's not the method that's problematic, it's how it's used and why

[befuddle]

My code site doesn't use 'click to reveal' and I don't want it banned.

Site's have to differentiate somehow and they can't all just be a feed of the same content presented in the same way.

[ian]

an abuse which the IAB addressed with the code of conduct. Cookie stuffing is defined as consciously misleading the customer or him being unaware of what is happening - not the case when the guidelines are followed.

The guidelines set out to force affiliates to explain to their visitors what was going to happen rather than address the rights and wrongs of what they were doing. Click here to reveal code in bright neon with flashing arrows folowed by some grey text beneath. Please.

As for stopping the scraper sites, I'm faily sure someone could knock up a script to search through the source code of the most popular vc sites to get their codes. After all the codes are in the html source, just hidden from visitors using a style sheet.

[City_Tiger]

an abuse which the IAB addressed with the code of conduct. Cookie stuffing is defined as consciously misleading the customer or him being unaware of what is happening - not the case when the guidelines are followed.

As an affiliate I have nothing to do with voucher code sites. I do not promote using them and do not directly compete with them so my opinion is purely from an end-user point of view as I do regularly use them.

I think that Click to Reveal is not also a questionable practice for affiliates but it is also plain annoying for the end user. I hate it when I have to click to reveal a voucher code and then get a pop up window with the merchant in there unexpectedly. The vast majority of VC sites I have used that have CTR either do not pre-warn you that you will be opening a retailers store at all or they do but not very clearly at all.

There is no real benefit to the user of CTR therefore it pretty much only exists to plant the cookie - often without the surfer being aware. For me it is cookie stuffing - perhaps not as underhand as other methods but still very questionable.

[Leeky]

i'm not defending anyone, but you don't accept any opinion that's different than yours.

Thats your opinion.. of which I don't accept

Lee

[hpops]

There was broad consensus that the guidelines were sufficient. Personally I am fundamentally against click-to-reveal.
But, to be frank we are stuck with it.
I totally see that people want to be rewarded for their hard work, and that is acceptable but I don't see that it takes more work to source a voucher (particularly now) than it does to source a content piece, or design a price comparison script, or anything else. None of those industry sectors would have got away with a "you can only see our content once you have our cookie" mentality.
I don't think its cookie stuffing - I do think its wrong

[Leeky]

My code site doesn't use 'click to reveal' and I don't want it banned.

Site's have to differentiate somehow and they can't all just be a feed of the same content presented in the same way.

Click to reveal is nothing to do with making sites different, and a feed is nothing to do with how its presented, you could just get a feed of codes and dates, these are the same from a feed or manually inputted. (this is another topic anyway about being against feeds, nothing to do with 'click to steal')

Lee