Does EPC on CJ Matter to Affiliates?

February 21st, 2005 · Comments

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I was reading a marketing message board today, and somebody was asking whether he should go with the program that had the highest EPC* in a category, even though it had a lower payout than another program.

The conventional wisdom there was that if a program is paying a lower percent commission than the competition, then that higher EPC program must be converting better to ultimately provide the more attractive return.

Some folks advised that affiliates disregard the EPC entirely, but many had a more leveled approach - test and see which is the best EPC for you.

In my opinion, that makes the most sense, because there are so many variables that can impact the EPC. For instance, if just one affiliate in a program is running tons of pop-ups, they could collapse the EPC for the program all by themselves.

That said, I frequently hear from affiliates that they place no importance at all on EPC. But I’ve seen evidence to the contrary.

In affiliate programs I manage on CJ, there is always a direct correlation betweem increases in program EPC and the numbers of affiliates that apply on a given day.

And the EPC spikes do not only seduce newbies. Rather I see affiliates across the board coming in when I move the needle on the EPC from New players to those with five bars on the Network Earnings.

So the EPC on CJ most assuredly matters to some, and it seemingly means nothing to others.

When I wear my affiliate hat, I use it as a guide, but when I match up my performance for a given program against the average EPC for that program, the only constant is that nothing is constant.

I blow away some EPCs and don’t come close to others.

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