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Hi Marvyn,
I started this thread in response to a comment you made over here: http://www.casinoaffiliateprograms.com/bb/showthread.php?t=28163&page=3
@MarvynH 168426 wrote:
We don’t use cookie information when reading a tag, so this thread is a little difficult to answer. In the example given by Engineer, we would credit the tag in the link used to open the account – so the last referrer.
I checked this out, and it appears that the session you create is not overwritable while the browser remains open. If you close the browser, everything resets, but while the browser is open, the first session remains enforced.
Here is how I tested this:
From http://www.choicegambling.com/casinos/vegas-palms-casino-review.html, I clicked on the Vegas Palms link.
On the Vegas Palms website, I see my aff tag (ad_222357) in the address bar, and on all of the links on the page. So far, so good.
Next (without closing the browser), I went to http://www.gamesandcasino.com/reviews/vegas-palms.htm and clicked the Vegas Palms link. In the address bar, I see Dominique’s aff tag (ad_119312). BUT, if you mouse over the links on the page, my aff tag (ad_222357) is still in place.
Is this how it is supposed to work? It’s great for me, but not so good for Dom. If I had done the test the other way around, with Dom’s site first, then her tag would have remained in place (until I closed the browser).
Next, I closed the browser and came back to vegaspalms.com (with no aff tag in the URL). Here, the links on the page all say VPUS_Direct. At this point, if a player signed up, he would not be tagged to me, correct? 🙁
I like FA, but I wish you would use cookies instead of sessions. And if you are going to keep using sessions, you should consider changing the current setup so that the last affiliate tag overwrites the previous tags, even if the browser isn’t closed in between.
To do this, set something up that checks for an existing affiliate session. If one is present, destroy it, and then set the new affiliate session.
Sorry for opening a can of worms…. :Cry:
I’m not impressed. Session tracking is the worst of the worst. Cookie tracking is a must nowadays in my opinion.
Yeah, but how many people are going to be accessing the casino from several browsers simultaneously?
Or am I missing something here?
Of course in the above example I want the credit since my site gave the additional info that closed the sale (and enigineer could be a cookie monster
) but I doubt this will be happening very often.No, you aren’t missing anything — that scenario probably wouldn’t happen that often.
But still, FA tracks with sessions instead of cookies, which is less than ideal, IMO. With session tracking, if the player doesn’t sign up right then and there, the affiliate is out of luck. Whereas with cookies, the player can come back days, weeks, months, or years later (in the case of Brightshare, for example), and he will still be tagged to the affiliate.
I definitely agree with using cookies over sessions.
Hi there Dom and Engineer;
So we clearly have 2 schools of thought on your question Engineer.
Original affiliate versus the affiliate who “closed the deal”.
It being Friday night at around 20 minutes before Saturday, I’m going to ask that you put up with this current set of tracking at least until Monday.
How about I give you a call after I’ve emailed you the new slots info for August and we can discuss it?
If we don’t speak before then, have a fantabulous weekend.
Yeah, of course this can wait until next week — it isn’t an emergency. :3eyes: Have a good weekend; talk to you soon… :phone:
Have a good one Marvyn…:hattip:
Thanks guys,
It’s freezing down here so I’m pretty much indoors for the weekend. LOL
You guys have a good weekend too. Speak to you all on Monday.
Just to clarify the issue of first versus last referrer is an important one and kind of leaked in here from the original thread.
Once you’ve realised that cookie tracking is better for affiliates (and ultimately for you) that issue needs to be tackled as well :hattip:
Hi Goldfinger;
There’s no question of it’s importance.
From the other thread it seemed most affiliates were leaning towards the latest referrer getting the credit for the player. Which is what we achieve using the session tracking.
I am going to follow up with Engineer on Monday to hear what his comments are and then take it from there.
I can’t promise any changes obviously, but I’d like to hear what the important differences are between what we as Fortune do versus the cookie tracking you guys prefer.
Speak to all soon.
Hi Mervyn,
I trust Engineer’s wisdom so hope you’ll have a productive chat :wink-wink You’re right most people, myself included would prefer last referrer.
As Engineer pointed out with session tracking you’ve only really got one shot at converting the user and that needs to happen straight away (unless maybe he downloads). With cookies there is tracking information stored on the player’s computer and depending on the cookie duration the affiliate will still get credit for weeks or months after. In other days common values for duration are 30, 60, 90, or even 365 days.
Right — the more important issue has to do with the fact that FA doesn’t use cookies for tracking. I think my first post in this thread put too much emphasis on the “last referrer” issue.
“Last referrer” is important, whether a program uses sessions or cookies, but it isn’t as important as whether or not the programs uses cookies.
Let me see if I can break down the different types of tracking….
1. Cookies with last referrer receiving credit
The majority of casino affiliate programs use this method. Cookie lengths vary; some last 10 years, and some last only a few days. I prefer programs that use this cookies, and I like to see a cookie length of at least 1 year. The longer, the better.
With this kind of cookie tracking, if the player closes the browser and comes back later, the player remains tagged to the last affiliate who referred him to the casino.
2. Cookies with first referrer receiving credit
32Red uses this method. This method is unfair to affiliates that “close the deal.” Cookie stuffers love this tracking method because once their cookie is set, they have a permanent lock on that player, unless the player manually deletes the cookies, or unless the cookies expire and delete themselves.
3. Sessions only, with last referrer receiving credit
Cookies are not used at all. Instead, a tracking “session” is created. Sessions remain in place until the browser is closed, or until they are overwritten by another tracking session (much the same way a cookie can be overwritten). The last referrer gets the credit, as long as the browser remains open until the player signs up.
With sessions, if the player closes the browser and comes back later, the affiliate receives nothing.
WagerShare, Grand Prive, Trident Share, and Jackpot City track with overwritable sessions. (Jackpot City is the only Referback casino to track with sessions only; the other 3 track with cookies.)
4. Sessions only, with first referrer receiving credit
This is how the Fortune casinos are tracked. If the browser remains open, the first referrer gets the credit. Once the browser is closed, the connection to the affiliate disappears.
5. Combination of cookies and sessions
This is the best kind of tracking system. A small percentage of people don’t accept cookies on their computer, so the only way players in this category will be tracked is if sessions are used.
To sum up — a combination of cookies and sessions is the best method, followed by cookies alone, followed by sessions alone. And within each of those categories, the last referrer is preferred over the first referrer.
:cheers:
Yes I vote for sessions plus cookies plus last referrer and cookie expiration at 1 year+.
I actually have a fortuneaffiliatesupport cookie named “fortuneaffiliateaccount” with my affid in it and an expiry of 1 month. What exactly does that cookie do. I also have a cookie called “fortuneaffiliateemail” that actually contains my email adress I signed up with!!! This is not really ideal to say the least and poses a security risk.
