Review of ClickBank
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Updated - 05/06/2008
Go to www.clickbank.com
By and large, ClickBank has much more of a marketplace-like feel to it, because there is a low barrier to entry for the advertisers to promote their digital products. Instead of setting up their own e-store or posting multiple auctions on eBay, they can remotely host the digital product with ClickBank and have ClickBank deal with the entire purchase process. Customers can pay by credit card or PayPal, and the product will be delivered to them in digital format almost instantly.
By promoting digital products offered through the ClickBank marketplace, Internet marketers and website publishers have the opportunity to earn substantial commissions. The marketplace has over 10,000 different products to promote and they range substantially in scope, price, and quality.
Commission rates also vary considerably. Depending on the product, advertisers may be willing to pay out as much as 75% of each sale. This would be 75% of the net price.
When a digital product is listed in the ClickBank marketplace, a 7.5% + $1 posting fee is assessed. For example, if the advertiser has an e-book that has a retail price of $100, the “net” price is $91.50. If the commission rate is 75%, the person promoting the product and referring the sale would receive 75% of $91.50, which works out to $68.63. A large number of products in the ClickBank database offer a commission rate of 50% or better.
Officially, commissions can be as low as 1%, but they must be at least $0.25 for a single sale (the maximum is $100 for a single sale). These include recurring billing products (subscriptions), although the wholesale price is reduced by 9.9% rather than 7.5% when the rebill price is less than $40.
The digital products listed in the ClickBank marketplace are broken down into nine different categories: Business to Business, Health & Fitness, Home & Family, Computing & Internet, Money & Employment, Marketing & Ads, Fun & Entertainment, Sports & Recreation, and Society & Culture. For the best conversion rate and the best payouts, publishers should be careful which products they promote from the ClickBank marketplace. Some of the e-books and software offered can be of low quality.
The control panel for ClickBank is not as separate from the rest of the site as with most other CPA-based advertising networks. Publishers do not need to sign into their respective accounts in order to browse through the available digital products, nor do they need to sign in to get their specific affiliate link (which ClickBank calls a “hoplink”).
Instead, at the time of registration, account holders select a unique username. This username is used both for selling digital products and for promoting products offered by other advertisers in the ClickBank marketplace. When a publisher sees a product that they would like to promote, they simply click on the link that reads “create hoplink”. A new window will pop up that asks for a username and then the affiliate link is automatically generated.
The ClickBank website is broken down into five sections: Sell Products, Promote Products, Buy Products, About Us, and Customer Service.
Publishers will be mostly concerned with the Promote Products tab, because this is where they’ll be able to find the digital product marketplace. It is also there, as mentioned above, that they can get affiliate links. Other sections under the Promote Products tab include the FAQ, a Tools page, and a Resources page.
To adjust any profile settings, users can click on the “My Account” link near the top-right of the page. Four new tabs are created: Account Home, Account Settings, Reporting, and Resources. The reporting tool only provides information on completed sales and pending payments. There is no data for click-tracking.
Registering with ClickBank involves filling out a short application form and accounts are approved automatically. On the form, ClickBank will request information regarding where to send the payment checks (country, payee name, address), contact information (name, email, phone, website), and the selection of an account nickname.
From the Customer Support tab on the ClickBank website, users have access to an expansive FAQ library. Questions concerning the most common issues can be found in this section. For further support, ClickBank also offers contact forms for publishers and affiliates. ClickBank says that the most prompt service is offered using this contact form. Although they do not provide a phone number, ClickBank can alternatively be contacted via fax and regular mail.
On the contact form, the required fields are first name, last name, email address, account nickname, subject of request, and a field for the question itself. An assigned customer service expert answers most queries within 2 business days.
Payment from ClickBank is offered exclusively via check. There is no option for PayPal or bank wire transfer. Payments are sent out twice a month, typically on the 1st and the 16th of each month. This is assuming that the account balance has reached the minimum threshold.
Account holders can choose any minimum payment threshold between $10 and $10,000. The default setting is $100. Users should know, however, that ClickBank charges a $2.50 fee for every check they issue. In this way, an account balance of $10 at the end of a pay period will only yield a check for $7.50.
Most payments are sent to users via regular mail. US checks for over $5,000 are sent via US Priority Mail (where available) and checks for over $10,000 are sent overnight via FedEx (where available). The additional cost of these premium delivery services is at the expense of ClickBank.
It should also be noted that ClickBank charges fees for dormant accounts. Dormant accounts are those with a positive balance, but with no earnings for an extended period of time. After 90 days of inactivity, the account is charge $1 for every dormant pay period. This increases to $5 per pay period after 180 days of inactivity and $15 per pay period after 365 days of inactivity.
When someone decides to sell digital products through the ClickBank marketplace, they must pay a one-time activation fee of $49.95. A ClickBank user who refers this new advertiser earns 20% of this activation charge, which works out to $9.99.
In addition, the referring party also receives 5% of ClickBank’s commission on every completed sale. The commission is $1 + 7.5% of the retail price. So, if a product retails for $10, ClickBank’s commission on that sale is $1.75. The referrer receives 5% of that, which works out to $0.09. A $20, $50, and $100 sale would result in a bonus of $0.13, $0.24, and $0.42, respectively. This 5% bonus is in effect for the referred account’s first year following activation.
The ClickBank referral URL is the address:
http:// AFFILIATE .reseller.hop.clickbank.net
...where AFFILATE is replaced with the publisher’s account username.
ClickBank’s website is pleasing to the eye, but not having very discrete sections for account holders can make the experience a little confusing for novices. The reporting and interface are also quite weak. That said, it is nice that users are able to browse the marketplace and generate affiliate links without having to sign into their accounts. It’s too bad that virtually no ad creatives – beyond simple text links – are made available to promoters.
In the end, ClickBank is a great option for publishers looking to promote various digital products like e-books and downloadable software. Implementation is easy and the payout levels can be some of the best in the business.
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