PPC Affiliates – Direct Linking and Trademark Bidding
PPC trademark bidding and affiliate direct linking are two controversial industry issues where the viewpoints vary radically depending which side of the game you are on.
Internet Retailer just released a good article that has insights for both merchants and affiliates. At 1st glance the article appears to just be about Amazon’s recent decision not to allow affiliate PPC direct linking, but as you read on it goes beyond that. Further down in the article eBags, Petco, Linkshare and Shawn Collins weigh in on direct linking, trademark bidding, keyword bidding and affiliate coupons.
Amazon takes a stand: No more non-stop links from affiliates’ paid search terms
“Nevertheless, retailers are on a constant watch to see whether the traffic that comes in through affiliates is qualified, how often clicks lead to purchases, and whether they can get that traffic and any sales that result more profitably through other marketing methods. That’s one reason most retailers prohibit affiliates from bidding on the retailer’s trademark names.”
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#1 paidmailer wrote on Thursday, October 1st, 2009:
I think the issue is pretty simple. The more affiliates are allowed to bid on the merchants keyword, the more expensive it gets for the merchant. So to me it always has been a nobrainer that virtually all affiliate programs include that no ppc bidding clause. I suppose it would make sense to allow it, if the merchant does not use ppc himself.