Voucher Codes, only 30% uptake

[jesss1]

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Hi Ya

This is just an observation, which may or may not affect you as an affiliate or a merchant, all really depends on the useage and offering of vouchercodes.

I have been monitoring the uptake of vouchercodes our affiliates have displayed to their visitors. What I have found is only, on average, 70% of the visitors affiliates referred to us did not use the vouchercode offered by our affiliates.

So I would advise that you take a look and see ....

1. Is the vouchercode displayed in a prominent place?

2. Fairly important, if you have explained to your visitors how to use the vouchercode.

Because affiliates promote multiple programs and multiple discount vouchers, I am assuming that this problem (if it is a problem) is not just amongst ASOS affiliates.

[qwerky]

I would like a voucher code that never expires, its a real pain deleting them all or changing them every few months


Is it possible to ahave a perm code?

[999gi]

I didnt even know there was one

[jesss1]

Does no one read their ASOS.com affiliate News Letters and the posts I do in this forum, tisk tisk

1. Any one using adeal vouchercode, this expires at the end of this month. Please remove (this code has lasted 1 year)

2. Any one wanting a vouchercode, please contact me and we can discuss terms of usage.

Querky: The reason why, I suppose vouchercodes have a short life span is because a. Affiliates nick affiliate specific voucher codes and put this on their websites(could discuss the ethics of this).
b. Customers come to our forum and tell their mates which vouchercode is out there.
ASOS.com is not a discount shop and we need to limit this.

C, which is part of b. Affiliates need to keep their visitors coming back to their website, at some point the visitor is so used to the discount voucher they know they can go past the affiliate and go directly to ASOS.com and get their discount directly. Voucher codes should be used sparingly and not really for every day usage.

At the end of the day its up to you how you want to use them, you know your visitors better then us. Also some thing else you need to take into consideration, you get more commission without the voucher.

At the moment ASOS.com are monitoring the voucher system and will come under some scrutiny at the end of next month. We wont be getting rid of them, but the long running ones like adeal may not continue.

Dont forget as our committment to our affiliates, we still have your vouchercode tdaffiliate so you and your family can get 10% off... this is perminant (or at least while I am still here)

[uklejon]

Jess,

I think a lot of it is down the visitors not reading stuff on the site properly.

I'm really dissappointed on the take up of my voucher code as i know people have bought stuff from links that have the code displayed right next to them in bold bright red letters....

You can;t miss my code when you look at the ASOS stuff plus i have a dedicated page for it and its been promoted in newsletters and emails i send out and on every sodding page on my site !!! And peple have still missed it.....

I've think people only look at the pictures.....might take off all my text and just have pics

[jesss1]

misscarolann: Yes that could be one of the factors!

But your website is meant to be read, if that makes sense...
let me ask my graphics gal, if should could work a little sme thing up in terms of visual. We can use your website as an experiment see what has the greatest up take. Up for it?

Jess

[uklejon]

Oh yes, i'm up for experimentation!!!

Email me with details......

Carol

[Stuart]

Hope this helps!!

We sent a voucher code to our affiliates, customers did purchase but did not use the code, so at a guess it this happens on other merchants as well.

[watcher]

I've mentioned this before:

Why don't you replace the voucher code with a "discount" affiliate link. Visitors coming to the site via such a link are then automatically given the relevant discount. Similar to vouchers but easier to maintain for affiliates and has some interesting potential if affiliates can control the level of discount via link parameters.

[watcher]

I've mentioned this before:

Why don't you replace the voucher code with a "discount" affiliate link. Visitors coming to the site via such a link are then automatically given the relevant discount. Similar to vouchers but easier to maintain for affiliates and has some interesting potential if affiliates can control the level of discount via link parameters.

[Gray@Figleaves]

MissCarolAnn,

Do you mean that people are still purchasing, but just not using the voucher code? If so, surely that's better for everyone - you get higher commission, ASOS get lower CPA?

Watcher, I suspect the issue with this is how to technically restrict it to specific affiliates - as Jess said that don't want to be a 'discount shop'. It's not difficult to work out how to use someone elses affiliate links.

Graham
Figleaves.com

[SillyJokes]

Hi Jess et al,

Your voucher take up stats make amazing reading but in a way I am not surprised.

People simply do not read instructions, no matter how easy and straightforward. You cannot make it simple enough no matter how hard you try. Someone will always be daft enough to defeat your logic.

I think you are right in saying that if a customer buys without using a code then merchant and affiliate wins and this is probably why the maths of doing a voucher code works. Otherwise you'd be paying % commission + % discount on everything, significantly cutting the margins, perhaps to an unsustainable level.

Presumably voucher schemes do work at driving sales though, or ASOS would'nt use them - or were you saying that perhaps you will be watching them a lot more closely in the future?

[watcher]

Graham,

I'm sure its easier restrict the discounts to particular affiliate links than it is to work out if the user is using a voucher code gleaned off a forum or from a bloke down the pub ! And its no use a non-discount affiliate nicking a discount affiliate link as the sale will then be attributed to the affiliate whose link was nicked !

The other point behind my post was that affiliates would be able to pass on discounts out of their affiliate commission based on parameters passed via the link. The affiliate would be able to pass on between 0-100& of their commission. Cashback at the point of sale !

I acknowledge that backend technical changes are required to implement these ideas.

[Gray@Figleaves]

And its no use a non-discount affiliate nicking a discount affiliate link as the sale will then be attributed to the affiliate whose link was nicked !

It does depend how the linking is integrated between the merchant and network, but it's pretty straightforward to amend links to use your own affiliate ID.

I hear where you're coming from with regard to cashback to the customer - one issue is that allowing the affiliate control over discount levels opens up the merchant to issues of controlling the brand. Also, technically restriciting the use of this would be a major headache.

Graham
Figleaves.com

[jesss1]

Asos has a very simple discount redemption proceedure and leads to other affiliates stealing this voucher code to promote on their own websites or in mail shots, they do get caught out some times as they dont know the expiry date.

if we were to use a direct link with an affiliate url, this would lead the door open for all of our affiliates to use. The discount voucher is not the way we want to work as Caroline quite rightly pointed out, it cuts into our margins. Example: If we have an affiliate on 10% commission + 10% discount, I feel a sum coming up...

Product A costs £10.00 cost price (lets assume P&P and other costs are included)

we add a further £5 at selling price = £15.00
- 10% discount = £13.50
£13.50-affiliate commission = £12.15 then network override

Our profit margin is almost gone. This is why we need to keep a tighter control over vouchercodes overall.

On the other hand, yes caroline it does drive sales and some affiliates have found that there sales have increased as a result.

On the other hand what graham says is equally true

you get higher commission, ASOS get lower CPA?

So I think my point is.... if you do have a vouchercode make sure you use it properly and make sure your visitors read what they have to do.... we are experimenting with some thing like this...


See if this has better results.

I also think my point is, that we need to find a balance...if it increases sales for affiliates this is a good thing... but if affiliates and customers keep banding the discount codes about then this is a bad thing. There is no right and wrong, its just finding a way so that every one is happy.... I am really tired, does this make sense?