EPC. Is it Useful or NOT?

[Profitistic.com]

So, we were discussing the best metrics to add to the network as a means of measuring campaign performance.

The most common one is obviously EPC. The question is, do you bother looking at a programs EPC, and if so, how much 'weighting' do yu give to it?

I realise it isn't the perfect barometer by any means, but just getting a feel...

 

[jened]

personally when i see the number, i usually cut it in half to use as a starting guide for myself.

 

[threehundred]

I think its useless when using EPC to judge a campaign BEFORE actually using it. However, EPC is one of the most substantial numbers to use when judging a campaigns performance, once the campaign is in use.

 

[bamboo]

if the program has a good epc i usually at least test it for a couple weeks

 

[ChickenHole]

apples and oranges

It is a good metric when comparing two programs that are extremely similiar.

If there are two email submit offers for a 'free ipod' or a zip sub vs. an email sub, or the true dating offer vs. the singlesnet offer, then it is a good metric for deciding which to try first.

But when you are looking at a network wide EPC, there are just too many factors for that to be relied on. One offer may have had a million clicks thrown at it from a shitty network like goclick or a third tier PPC engine, which will really drive down the EPC, while another had a lot of incentivized traffic which will convert at double the rates of usual traffic.

So it is a good metric when looking at five other metrics at the same time. But never on its own (network wide anyway).

 

[Profitistic.com]

Thanks for the feedback so far.

Anybody else?

 

[pocketrockets]

Chickenhole, pretty much summed it up.

 

[Andrew]

It depends, ever see EPCs that were more than the payout?

I am more interested in my EPC than the networks published EPC.

 

[smaxor]

as far as "Network" EPC I find it totally useless cause it totally depends on the "type" of traffic. I've had top rankings for words like "work at home" and my azg rep said this offer converts at 40 cents. Well you don't get better then sending number 1 natural search traffic and in like 500 hits not a single conversion.

However my own "Personal" EPC for programs I run, I keep very close track of and it's the ONLY thing I care about. I really don't look at a single other thing cause that takes them all into account.

1$ or 50$ per lead really doesn't matter if you leave conversion out.

Know your EPC's and test test test

 

[bitsdawg]

I'm sure that all of you experts know this - but it may help newbies - many AMs on the big programs on CJ will actually terminate affilaites with low EPC. Other programs won't accept any new advertisers with a higher EPC. So that kind of skews the results.

Can you imagine getting terminated - and having to take down 100's of links - because your EPC wasn't high enough? Maybe you spent days on a ppc campaign. I would be soooo ticked off.


You cannot look at network EPC to make a final judgement. An EPC that's too high for a merchant might even be a bad sign. It might mean that they've got a really anal AM.

 

[BarneyFife]

That's a good point about affiliates being cancelled. Sometimes advertisers will cancel low EPC affiliates and keep higher converting (PPC) affiliates to -> increase their EPC to -> attract more new affiliates.

Of course, they'd rather keep all their affiliates because they make money even on low-converting traffic. One advertiser recently called on CJ to stop keeping track of EPC:

From the affiliate's point of view, this practice can make EPC very misleading. An advertiser that dumps all its low-converting affiliates can have a great EPC, but in an A-to-A comparison it might not convert any better than an advertiser with a crappy-looking EPC.