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No, I am talking about auditing the correctness of recording stats.
We all know that a percentage of referrals gets lost in the process. Also, we all have suspected programs of shaving.
What I am thinking of is a certification process which tells us that stats function at a certain level of accuracy, and then periodic checks to assure that there is no tampering.
What DOES APCW do? I kinda thought that was one of its main objectives.
Just curious, but could you explain how you would set about doing this from a practical standpoint? How would you do the testing procedurally? Which programs, all programs? How do you account for traffic variables?
Please define “correctness” too as I am fuzzy on this. Correct number of clicks? Correct number of downloads? Complete downloads or download requests? Conversion to depositors, what’s the target number? If we get 100 downloads and 10 depositors is this good “correctness”? What if we only get 2 depositors? What if the 10 players only generate $10 in revenue? If we have program that gets 100 downloads from 300 clicks and it generates only 1 depositor but nets us $4000 is that one more correct then the previous example?
I dont mean to be a curmudgeon but I am trying to grasp how this whole process would proceed and what parameters would be used and how we interpert results….
Haha, the technical aspects need to be figured out by minds greater than mine.
I mean simply the accuracy of the tracking. One click sent is one click recorded, one download made is one download recorded, one fun player signed and that is recorded, one real player recorded and we see that too. etc.
Simply accuracy. Not effectiveness or performance or any of that.
Merely the actual recording of events.Which programs? Those who volunteer. It gives us an idea of who has nothing to hide.
I’ll let Todd speak for his organization.
Different parameters could be measured by the quality of razors on the market:
Throw away bic single blade (total crap that lasts 1/2 shave if you are lucky).
Throw away dual blade (any brand, get 1 semi-decent shave but never again).
Remington (Remington Sword the last name in razors but now MOR).
Gillette (smooth and sweet if you choose the right one).
Quad Blade (4 blades to be used wisely or 4 times the razor cuts, experienced shavers only!).That is a joke and probably out of place.
IMHO Todd Has soldiered on. I would like to hear his take on this.
Unfortunately these things take time, input and energy. The takers outweigh the givers (or the vocal, whatever fits) as can be seen on any message board. 70-90% lurkers is probably the average of any board on any subject, let alone one as competetive as ours.
I have a lot to say about helping individuals out, but will refrain.
I think that auditing affiliate programs is an excellent idea, although I have no idea how such a system would be implemented.
I think that the most difficult part would be getting the casinos to reveal their numbers.
Perhaps some sort of ‘open source’ type philosophy would be good here – similar to the DMOZ project. I think that money could taint the audits, particularily if the casinos are shelling out for it.
Wayne
I abandoned the idea based on Dean’s statement:
Unfortunately these things take time, input and energy. The takers outweigh the givers
He’s right.
I abandoned the idea based on Dean’s statement[/quote]
I never wanted to end up here where I now stand. Any business in this day and time requires networking.
Then again it does not. I and others survive in this business due to perseverance and hard yakka (work).
The beginning of co-operation was the inaugral idea of the GPWA and however that was, and is percieved, it was a mighty big step in the right direction.
Give does not exist anymore, bar in my imagination and that is sad. Very sad.
Networking – yes.
I communicate with lots of people in the industry, I have many friends, I go to conferences to network.
Volunteering a lot of my time – nope.
Been there – done that – never again.
Helping out individuals with quick fixes – sure. No problem.
But working for the better of a group is not in the cards for me anymore.
See what happens when I take a weekend away from the forums… :rolleyes:
OK, the APCW does audit programs and watch affiliate stats. We do this by playing through our members links and then keeping in private communication with them about the numbers. There are some webmasters here who can attest that this goes on and is looked at in great detail, and that we do follow up on all oddities with the casino members.
APCW does not test non-member casinos. We are funded by our member casinos, so why would I use their money to play at non-member sites? That wouldn’t be fair to those programs who are willing to pay to have their numbers independently scrutinized.
If a casino program sees no value in the service the APCW provides, then let them offer explainations as to why they choose not to participate. And whereas it’s true that there is always some degree of error with all auditing proceedures, I believe the way APCW is set up lends to accuracy and consistency is reporting.
A full explaination, and a list of FAQ, is available at the APCW website.
Thank you Todd! I kept hoping you would fine this thread!
So you test the whole thing trough – clicks, downloads, players etc?
That means then that the programs who list with you have nothing to cover up and are on the up and up.
I am a member and I didn’t even know you did that – I thought the monthly reports was what I was there for.
Actually, the APCW’s goal is to provide THREE SERVICES:
1) Performance Reports : Every member casino gets tracked every month for conversion rates, player values, webmaster earnings, and a few other variables. This means it’s in the casinos better interest that webmasters stats are as good as possible… so that other webmasters will want to promote them.
2) Audit Reports : Each full-member program is audited at LEAST twice a year without notice, using a variety of methods to hide our identity. We not only track the webmasters stats for accuracy, we also note the “player experience”… helping to indicate which programs are taking care of our hard-earned traffic and, thus, are most likely to convert and then retain those conversions.
3) Services: I am currently in the process of tracking down quality, affordable health, life, dental, and legal insurance programs for members to take advantage of. My hope is that someday APCW will be big enough to get group discounts. Additionally, I am speaking with some programs about special APCW deals for better CPA’s and percent-of-profit deals.
I like the insurance idea. I hope you will keep us posted!
Integrity for President!
If elected, I promise a public flogging of Senators Kyle & Conyers within my first 100 days in office…
