Will any companies run PPC campaigns on commission?

[Mysteir]

Does anyone out there know whether companies or individuals out there will run PPC campaigns based on commission only (i.e. 10% of all sales from campaigns)?

I would see this method as more of a win/win for both parties as compared to monthly management fees.

[Tubby]

There are individuals that do this. but they are extremely reluctant to send traffic to a main page. or any other page that is not directly connected with the item that is being sold.

To get individuals to send visitors directly to a selling page. you need to strip everything from the page and dedicate the page to selling the item. no links to other products, no AdSense. no crap.

when you have created these pages they can be listed anywhere.

webmasters will link to a page that directly sell an item. . they get pissed of if the page is not optimized to sell, or want to use that page to show other products. Webmasters like to sell. . . merely directing traffic to another site is just a wast of time.

For a system like this to work (I think it can) you would need to ditch the 'shopfront data base program'. and create a page that webmaster will want to link to, with room on each page for a reciprocal to sites that link to this page etc.

lot of work. . . most choose the easy way. I will not do it unless the selling page has a contact form without a login requirement. I want a copy of any messages sent . . so if someone I sent to the page sends a message I can read it.
I want to read users messages like ' don't have paypal ' if someone looks at the buy now form.

if the site selling is not serious about selling. . sending traffic is a waste of time.

[incrediblehelp]

Unless the person getting paid by commission had full control of the website I dont see why they would do it. Their are far to many variables that can effect the conversion that is out of the hands of the person handling the PPC campaign

[Tubby]

incredible said (he is usually correct)
"Unless the person getting paid by commission had full control of the website I don't see why they would do it. Their are far to many variables that can effect the conversion that is out of the hands of the person handling the PPC campaign"

that is pretty well my view. I personally think the seller should man the phone, the email, and have the boxes ready to ship. . This whole concept of getting 100 page views a day in the hope that someone might buy is a bit weak.

I can make a sale from an incoming email form that has no more than a phone number on it (yes I have to make the phone call) . . If I were to partner with anyone who is selling an item . . I expect them to be able to do the same.

If a Webmaster knows that this is what is at the other end of the line. . He will create pages all day long, to send traffic to that salesman. . . website are worth absolutely nothing. . until the day they sell something.

getting yourself a shopfront in the middle of a desert, is not how to succeed. The man in the corner pub with 20 watches in his pocket and the right spiel will simply outsell you. Day in day out.

getting webmasters to sell your product Is a good idea just remember there are many millions of people out there doing the same thing. copying what the rest have done only sells good for those that make the programs.... ask yourself are you in business to buy products (programs, etc) . . or sell your own items?

test your item on ebay, see if it will sell. . then upgrade to sell more at a more cost effective price. If your item will not sell on ebay. . . FIND OUT WHY... thats the first step.

[chandrika]

I have done adword campaigns on a commission basis for one company I work for. And it worked ok, because I just used an affiliate link as the adwords url, so that all sales that came via adwords were recorded and then my commission was workedout from sales.

Using that way you can send clickers to any url and if affiliate link uses a cookie then it can record sale even if done later whatever.

The company paid for the adwords directly off their cc, so it was no risk to me and did not cost me anything as the adwords a/c was in their name, but I was most happy doing adwords on that basis.

I do an adwords campaign for another company on a non commission basis and was paid a one off fee to set it up, but of course ever since I am asked to check this and that, and wish I had worked out commission with them instead, as it is more motivating when on commission.

[Mysteir]

Originally Posted by chandrika

I have done adword campaigns on a commission basis for one company I work for. And it worked ok, because I just used an affiliate link as the adwords url, so that all sales that came via adwords were recorded and then my commission was workedout from sales.

Using that way you can send clickers to any url and if affiliate link uses a cookie then it can record sale even if done later whatever.

The company paid for the adwords directly off their cc, so it was no risk to me and did not cost me anything as the adwords a/c was in their name, but I was most happy doing adwords on that basis.

I do an adwords campaign for another company on a non commission basis and was paid a one off fee to set it up, but of course ever since I am asked to check this and that, and wish I had worked out commission with them instead, as it is more motivating when on commission.

That is exactly what I had in mind. Essentially, I as a small business owner can allocate a budget towards monthly advertising (i.e. 300$) - however in order to maximize the conversion rates, it would seem logical for me to outsource to an expert in the field would be in a better position to use cutting edge/proven techniques.

I would also have the confidence that my campaigns are being well looked after and updated due to the fait commission the "expert(s)" would receive from every add-related sale.

Do you know if working on commission alone is standard practice out there or are you an exception to the rule?

[chandrika]

Originally Posted by Mysteir

Do you know if working on commission alone is standard practice out there or are you an exception to the rule?

I am not really sure, I have not looked into it, but I would imagine that most would be open to it, because to my mind at least, it is beneficial to both parties.

[JLRZA]

Originally Posted by chandrika

I have done adword campaigns on a commission basis for one company I work for. And it worked ok, because I just used an affiliate link as the adwords url, so that all sales that came via adwords were recorded and then my commission was workedout from sales.

Hi,

Thanks for the idea. Will it also work for items and services sold offline?

J.

[JLRZA]

Hi,

The big problem with a commission-based system is to have a consequent and objective way of recording transactions, that all parties agree on. Also, add products and services that are sold off-line, and the challenge become even bigger.

Also, as a 'professional' Adwords account manager, I do not want to be at risk for how effective my client's website is at converting visitors to paying clients - that is the job of his webmaster. My job is to send the leads to the website, at the lowest possible cost to my client.

I make a living from managing Adwords for companies. What I have done (and what works well) in a couple of cases, is to charge a fee per click/referral through the Adwords campaigns. I would, for an example, charge USD1 per click, as recorded by Google, but limited to a pre-set monthly upper limit - that way my client knows that his/her costs for management will be limited to whatever their budget is.

The 'commission' I charge per click may seem high. However, this is in view of the fact that, in my case, I work primarily in the 'professional services' sector of the market, where it is a case not of drawing the masses, but finding that 300 or so good quality leads per month, out of which maybe 1% will eventually become clients of my client.

Also, I try to select my clients from "low volumes/high margin" products.

Finally, remember that my total eventual cost is limited, typically to USD100 per month. The client thus eventually may receive 500 clicks or more, but will only pay for the first 100 etc.

Hope this is of help.

I would be quite willing to help you with your Adwords, if assistance is needed. I offer a 3-month risk-free trial period to all new clients.

Regards.

J.

[chandrika]

Originally Posted by JLRZA

Hi,

Thanks for the idea. Will it also work for items and services sold offline?

J.

No, but this only really applies to products and services that are not going to be bought online. Generally if a site is offering online sales for a product or service, you are credited for the majority of sales via affiliate links..not all, but most.

I do do a campaign for a hotel, and the landing page is a "CALL US TO BOOK" and so with them I can not keep track of sales that came from my links. That is who paid me a set up fee instead of commission. I tried to persuade the hotel to let me set up an online booking system so I could track the bookings, but the manager is a bit of a technophobe and afraid of doing that.

I would do it for any site where majority of sales are online, with the understanding that a few sales may occur offline that I would not be credited for. Usually it is obvious if that is going to be a problem, by the site and services involved. If the company has a store on every High Street, that might be a problem.

If you think about Ebay driving sales, they do both. They charge a small amount to list a product (like a setup fee) and then a final value fee, which is like their commission on each sale.

The difference between our approaches is that you charge per lead and I charge per sale. And both are good, and which is more fruitive or suited to a business would probably depend on the service and products on offer and their confidence in turning leads into sales.

[doj464]

I have had people try to do that, and I've had the same reservations... I'm not in charge of your salesperson's conversions, or the site design - it's not fair if the client can't convert as well.

I have done something like this for a client (who happened to be my relative, so I didn't really care if I made too much money) in the service industry. I used 800 numbers that were trackable - using kall8.com, and recorded all leads. We reviewed all leads weekly, and he said which ones brought in sales.

I wouldn't typically do that though. If you are willing to set aside a budget for PPC, there's no reason you can't set aside a portion of that money to management.

[CompuGeneration]

Originally Posted by doj464

If you are willing to set aside a budget for PPC, there's no reason you can't set aside a portion of that money to management.

Especially if you're maintaining a respectable return on investment (ROI). Which I thought was the whole point of advertising...


This type of arrangement could work if you had control of or were able to view the site's analytics. You would also need to be able to suggest site copy and design changes. At this point you would start becoming more of a partner than an advertising consultant.

The offer would have to be pretty sweet to enter into an arrangement of this nature.