This is really important stuff if you promote any CJ or ShareaSale merchants that offer Google Checkout - your sales will probably not track. Here's a big fact-filled blog about it with too many quotes and links for me to copy over here. "Google Checkout Eats Affiliate Holiday Sales" http://affiliate-blogs.5staraffiliateprograms.com/2006/12/04/google-checkout-affiliate-tracking/ Oh and also if you do any PPC Google is probably sticking a Checkout logo into your ads so the comsumer gets turned onto Checkout, but if they use it to buy, you probably will lose your commission. Only a few CJ merchants are paying through Checkout.
Yesterday I blogged about a huge issue that is impacting affiliates this Holiday season. See Google Checkout Eats Affiliate Holiday Sales above. Since then I have had time to calm down, do some more digging and have come up with some new information. I woke this morning to find a thread over at <a target="_new" href="http://www.webmasterworld.com/ecommerce/3179902.htm">WebmasterWorld</a> about the whole Checkout issue. Marcia brought up the affiliate tracking problem by saying: A Big part of this whole issue is that Googles offer of free transactions through December was VERY effective and lots of merchants jumped onboard quickly. Networks and merchants should have been prepared and should have already figured out a solution to the tracking issues. Most didn't have a clue. Just found out the Google is extending the FREE transaction processing offer til the end of NEXT year. Now tons more merchants will be jumping on Checkout. We need to find the solution and get this fixed. Too long too post here. Tons more info for anyone that's interested in finding out what they can do about this. Google Checkout Affects Affiliate Tracking - New Info Part 2 http://affiliate-blogs.5staraffiliateprograms.com/2006/12/06/google-checkout-affiliate-sales/
UPDATE: Ahhhhh the power of the blogosphere! Matt Cutts from Google just let me know over at ThreadWatch that he jumped in to help as soon as he heard. Matt said: "Linda, as soon as I heard people saying that there were tracking issues, I escalated it to the Google Checkout folks. I know they're looking to see if there's anything they can do pretty quickly to help on this issue." I of course, asked him if using the cute cartoon of him pushing Checkout I used in my 2nd blog helped get his attention! LOL