Comments on: Affiliate Scam Challenge

By: Jim Lillig

Jim Lillig — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 22:33:59 +0000

Sundae Station, the URL was the big tipoff. No privacy policy and no copyright. Cheesy graphics aside, it seems a little far fetched that you can dispense scoops of ice cream in an untended environment. If you search farther into the site, it also claims that elves make the ice cream. I can't believe that my tax dollars are spent on crap like this. Pork barrell is alive and well, maybe that will be their next site, Pork Barrell Pork Rinds – You don't need 'em, just shut up and eat 'em.

By: GearGuy

GearGuy — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 21:18:35 +0000

With just a quick glance I thought Sundae Station. The no copyright and privacy policy tipped me off.

By: Brad Waller

Brad Waller — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:37:10 +0000

It's obvious. Only link B has an affiliate program.

And of course, B has links to a Members Area, FAQ, Contact us, and Privacy page.

Finally, in all my years I have never heard of anything like the Sundae Factory, yet I know of many get paid for surveys "programs". So, knowing that surveys are an oft-used "scheme" and popular, this means that the site is not a fake. That said, I'm not going to say anything about how legit it is…

By: Mandy Haga

Mandy Haga — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 14:28:26 +0000

Sundae Station. It doesn't have a direct domain and the idea is , well, ridiculous. I wouldn't do Golden Survey either. Paying to join screams old school mlm and probably is a scam itself.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 23:18:16 +0000

Sundae Station is the fake. The Sub-URL is what gave it away to me. No contact data – the verbage used seemed so hype. Stating the generalized industry dollar values of the over-all. Calculators where-by you make up your own pie in the sky earnings. There is a ton of indicators within the text alone. When it seems to good to be true, it is to good to be true!

By: James Dorans

James Dorans — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 22:53:54 +0000

An addition to Carolyn Tang's comment. Also the affiliate networks should help detect affiliate scams.

By: J Mopar

J Mopar — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 22:31:30 +0000

What do I win if I get the right answer?

By: Jeff Molander

Jeff Molander — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 22:14:51 +0000

LOL. Please keep in mind, everyone, these are "merchant/advertiser" sites.

By: Carolyn Tang

Carolyn Tang — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 22:10:00 +0000

Ah-HA, very good segue. Lure me in with a fun game, and yet, there's a moral catch. Thanks, Dad.

Okay, so you're really examining how does a merchant feel about an affiliate using such terminology to drive traffic to the merchant?

At my current job, and at my prior job, we did crack down on affiliates who misled consumers. However, it needed to be a joint effort between affiliate and search channels. Search would usually discover the violation and notify us.

By: Jeff Molander

Jeff Molander — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 22:05:40 +0000

Hi, Carolyn:

you mean to tell me you've never seen those words on a merchant's / advertiser's site?