Why Is PPC So Rare? | MagicLinks Blog

I like to call PPC the Unicorn of affiliate marketing: It’s rare, it’s expensive, and no one can ever seem to find it. Why? Read on!

What Is PPC?
PPC stands for Pay Per Click. This means that an affiliate is paid a flat fee, anywhere from $0.01 on up, for every unique visitor (typically tracked via IP address) they send to that retailer.

Why Is It Not Used Much Anymore?
Short answer: It’s really expensive and susceptible to fraud.

Long answer: It’s incredibly costly to the retailer, without a guarantee of them actually garnering lots of sales. It has a very low end value for the amount spent paying affiliates for PPC, and many affiliates have committed PPC fraud, aka “click stuffing”, to boost their commission payments. Actual purchases through affiliate links are much easier for merchants and affiliate companies to track and allocate commissions to.

PSA: Click stuffing, or click injecting, is illegal. It’s fraud. There are lots of ways for merchants and affiliate networks to check the authenticity of PPC clicks, and they WILL reverse commissions. People have gone to jail for this. Don’t. Do. It.

Merchants love influencer marketing because it is a great way to truly engage with their target audience. Consumers these days trust social media stars over regular advertisements, because influencers are real people.

Does MagicLinks Offer PPC?
MagicLinks does have some PPC partnerships that merchants will hand-select MagicLinks community members to participate in, based on our recommendations and data. Once you have earned your first $50 in commissions through the usual PPS (Pay Per Sale) model, you are welcome to contact us to discuss potential PPC opportunities.

Okay, So What Do I Do Now?
You’re probably pretty bummed out. PPC seems like easy money – and we won’t lie, it can be, but it’s so rare these days. Merchants want legit clicks, legit sales, and they want the unique insights into their customer base that only influencer marketing can provide.

Browse through our 2,000+ MagicLinks partner retailers and find some in your content vertical with high Retailer Ratings. A high Retailer Rating means that the company truly cares about creating unique, tailored influencer marketing experiences for both the influencer and their followers.