The Myth of CPC
I wanted to talk a little bit about the myth of CPC (Cost Per Click) as related to email marketing. The theory is that you can make more money on CPC, if traffic is solid, than you would getting paid on a per lead or CPA (Cost Per Action) basis. In my experience this isn’t true.
I’ve been in the affiliate marketing business for quite some time now and have seen first hand the problems of CPC. For example, Offer A on XYZ network is paying out 20 cents a unique click on a mortgage loan application (CPC). Offer B on the same network is paying out $20 a lead on the mortage loan application (CPA). (These numbers do not reflect an actual campaign, just an easy to follow example!). So,
Offer A: .20 a unique click
Offer B: $20 a lead
Which one to choose? These days I always go with the CPA, $20 a lead. In most cases, the CPC might actually earn more but in reality you will always lose. The reason is because the advertiser and/or affiliate network is ALWAYS looking at conversion numbers. If your traffic isn’t converting to their liking they will reduce your CPC amount to reflect what THEY think should be an ideal payout. Furthermore, if your traffic is great and they are happy, you probably could have made more mailing the CPA offer in the first place. You have to remember that on the advertiser side they are always fighting different forms of fraud, click fraud representing a huge portion of their prevention efforts. Suffice to say, it hurts the legit marketer mailing CPC when the issues are beyond their control.
In conclusion always go with CPA. I reserve the right to change my mind, however. If anyone can show me tangible proof that in the longrun CPC outperforms CPA, by all means fire away! I will update this post with evidence, only the tried and true facts though. Until then, Happy Marketing!
Filed under: Affiliate Marketing, Inbox Truth