Taboola bot clicks - a bad experience

[Jay81]

Hi all,

Just thought I'd share this to compare notes and share ideas.

I am not a newbie in affiliate marketing but neither am I a super affiliate - probably a "developing" affiliate marketer.

I recentely signed up to Taboola. Initially I liked the simplicity of the layout and the cheap clicks. I didn't generate much sales straight away, but at least the traffic was cheap so I was looking forward to testing aggressively.

But everything fell apart when i put in some bot traps. Nothing too fancy, just using the available tools on Google tag manager.

In the campaign in question, approximately 40%of the clicks were Bots - no doubt in my mind.

So I wrote to Taboola customer service and sent them all the evidence in the hope of getting a refund.

And heard absolutely nothing for a month!

I gave them a nudge by sending a reminder email.

Then 3 days later I was sent an email saying the case is closed and no further action will be taken.

No explanation. No discussion.

The money in question is a very small amount but it's not about the money. It's about having confidence in the platform which you can't put a price on.

As a result I will personally not use Taboola again as I have no confidence in their ability to tackle issues like this if they arise.

Would love to know what you guys think.

Cheers

Jay

 

[Graybeard]

Sorry to hear that.
There is no excuse for loads of bot traffic -- it's just too easy to filter out.

$trafficCost*1+$bot_percentage = $realCost

scale=3;.10*1.40
.140
scale=3;.88*1.40
1.232
**fixed error (brain fart)



That idea -- Is the traffic worth the real cost?
That is the way I have come to look at it
making apples==apples

 

[leidong]

Hi Jay,

I am beginner on this field.
Don't mind to share why you so confidence to judge 40% the traffic is bot.
I think here in this forum a lot of beginner ... so, the process is important to us rather than the conclusion.

Thanks

 

[Jay81]

Thanks mate.
But rather than messing about working out real cost etc. I rather just avoid dodgy platforms.

If they at least made an attempt to offer an explanation I wouldn't have minded. But it was the way my query was dismissed with contempt!!

What if a large sum was at stake?

My advice to newbies is avoid working with taboola particularly if you are scaling. Maybe for small scale testing. And even then get your tracking sorted first.

Cheers

Sorry to hear that.
There is no excuse for loads of bot traffic -- it's just too easy to filter out.

$trafficCost*1+$bot_percentage = $realCost

scale=3;.10*1.40
.140
scale=3;.88*1.40
1.232
**fixed error (brain fart)



That idea -- Is the traffic worth the real cost?
That is the way I have come to look at it
making apples==apples

 

[Graybeard]

leidong

site:affiliatefix.com 'bot traffic'
https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Aaffiliatefix.com+%27bot+traffic

About 626 results (0.96 seconds)

It's not that simple

Nothing too fancy, just using the available tools on Google tag manager.

that is one way -- there are many

https://www.google.com/search?q=google+tag+manager+bot+detection

 

[Graybeard]

Bump for bots

 

[Graybeard]

Unfortunately, this is a reoccurring problem I have seen with every ad network -- some loss for some reason. I just normalize the cost and compare that with EPC, CTR and acquisition values of all traffic close as I can get it apples to apples.

It is just a normalization ratio algorithm. I don't expect 100% performance. My servers scrub all of the bot traffic and drop the bot's connection anyway (bad bot dead bot ) but you do get billed for the useless traffic.

There is a level that is not acceptable -- when someone has no realistic reply < they admit defeat.