Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?
There is no question that the launch of Pepperjam Network has created a lot of positive buzz within the affiliate marketing community. Thousands of affiliates and advertisers have contacted us and congratulated us on advancing the industry by offering an alternative affiliate network that addresses many or most of the shortcomings that have existed for years on the other major affiliate networks.
In fact, most networks have reached out to Pepperjam and want to work more closely and strategically with us, while others, such as Commission Junction, has decided to conclude that we are now competitors that pose serious potential harm to the Commission Junction business and decisive action must be taken against us.
Before I get into the facts of the recent vicious attacks calculated by Commission Junction against Pepperjam, let me start with some brief background information.
I founded Pepperjam in 1999 as an online gourmet food business. With a lot of hard work I was able to quickly realize the power and value of online marketing to grow my own business. In fact, we were so successful that the “Pepperjam” business started getting quite a bit of attention from the media, including an appearance on QVC, which led to other businesses approaching me about helping them grow their business with online marketing, including pay-per-click, search-engine optimization, and affiliate program management. In early 2000, while still in graduate school, I left the gourmet food business in favor of building an online marketing business.
Aside from finishing up a few college degrees along the way, that’s what I’ve been doing since 2000 - building Pepperjam as a full-service internet marketing agency. I remain the only investor in Pepperjam since inception. Early on and still to this day I dreamed of building a company that makes a difference. A company that sets the standard. A company that innovates. A company that inspires others to create companies.
I am proud to call myself an entrepreneur.
The focus of Pepperjam from 2000 through January 15th of this year (2008) has been on providing businesses with professional outsourced management services in the areas of search and affiliate marketing. Pepperjam has made some really great decisions and we have hired some exceptionally smart, talented people. As a result, Pepperjam has experienced solid growth and we now find our company on the radar of many companies that are much larger and better funded than we are. For example, Commission Junction.
I mention January 15, 2008 because on that day we launched Pepperjam Network, a next generation affiliate network. We launched Pepperjam Network because we felt that many of the other major affiliate networks, including Commission Junction, Linkshare, and Performics were failing to address the two most pressing issues effecting the affiliate marketing industry, namely (1) lack of affiliate transparency, and (2) poor communication tools. I will also mention that we launched Pepperjam Network with absolutely no outside funding - we built the product in-house and as part of the development process we creatively used the collective insight (i.e., do this, don’t do that) of over one hundred top advertisers and affiliates.
First, understand that Commission Junction is part of a publicly traded company called ValueClick (VCLK). As a publically traded company Commission Junction is required to follow the laws and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). As such, there are numerous federal securities laws in place, including the Sherman Antitrust Act, that protect businesses from the financial and decision making power of publically traded companies.
My question to you before I get started with the facts is whether or not Commission Junction is acting fairly, breaking the law, or simply overstepping its power by requiring existing Pepperjam clients who use Pepperjam affiliate program management services on Commission Junction to immediately terminate agreements with Pepperjam or get kicked off Commission Junction?
Let me start by saying that I’m not a licensed attorney and I’m only going to share with you the facts as they happened.
From Sunday through Wednesday of last week nine members of the Pepperjam Team, including four executives, attended Affiliate Summit in Las Vegas. On Tuesday (2/26/08), we were having a great time until members of my team started receiving calls, one after another, from our clients. Our clients told us that they were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum - either stay with Commission Junction or terminate all agency business with Pepperjam.
Not surprisingly, Pepperjam clients were confused and most were incredibly angry.
To say that Pepperjam was blindsided and surprised by what I believe to be extremely unprofessional and potentially illegal actions on the part of Commission Junction is an understatement. We were personally outraged, especially considering for the last several years we have worked wth Commission Junction very closely and considered them one of our primary strategic partners. Prior to reaching out to each and every one of our affiliate program management clients Pepperjam was not contacted by Commission Junction. We were ambushed, most likely strategically, while my executive team was at a conference on the other side of the country from where we manage our business. By the way, from what we’ve been told by clients, Commission Junction told some of them that they had to consider terminating relations with us immediately, while others were told they had seven days to decide between Pepperjam and Commission Junction. Regardless, Commission Junction delivered ultimatums to advertisers that had existing contractual relationships with Pepperjam.
Commission Junction, with all their financial and decision making power, had single handedly stifled Pepperjam’s core affiliate program management service offering. At the same time, Commission Junction placed dozens of Pepperjam clients in a position where they either had to break an exisiting contractual relationship with Pepperjam or submit to their demands. How’s this for maintaining professional customer and client relations? Pepperjam has roughly 20 dedicated full-time employees that do nothing but manage affiliate programs on Commission Junction. What are we to do with all these incredibly talented, hard working employees if our clients decide to submit to Commission Junctions demands?
While stuck in Vegas at Affiliate Summit the severity of the above fact pattern started to set-in and my executive team and I started to consider our available options. To say the least, Commission Junction successfully scared the hell out of us. With us flying back to Pennsylvania the next day, which would require a full day of travel, how would we be able to set-up meetings with all the clients Commission Junction contacted?
Fortunately, we learned that the head of Commission Junction, Kerri Pollard, and one of her executive colleagues, David Osmond, were attending Affiliate Summit. Once Pepperjam’s COO, Michael C. Jones, and myself located Kerri Pollard and David Osmond we nervously asked what was going on. The response we got was twofold: (1) Sorry guys, it’s just business, and (2) Commission Junction wants “that” business. By “that” business I imagine Kerri was presumptively referring to Pepperjam’s business in the form of affiliate marketing technology (Pepperjam Network) and affiliate program management. I think this assumption on my part is accurate because as part of Commission Junction’s cold calling of Pepperjam’s client base it was found that they were actively seeking our management services, as well as aggressively discouraging clients from leaving their network in favor of Pepperjam Network.
I don’t know about you, but hearing that “it’s just business” and “we want that business” from the head of a company with the size and strength of Commission Junction is very unsettling. Commission Junction generates hundreds of millions of dollars per year in business - Commission Junction’s publicly traded parent company, ValueClick, is worth billions of dollars. Pepperjam has achieved nowhere near the level of success as Commission Junction, let alone ValueClick. As some might say, we are David and they are Goliath.
I will also mention that I asked Kerri Pollard point blank - Has Pepperjam done anything wrong that would necessitate Commission Junction taking action against Pepperjam. Kerri’ answer was clear - the answer was NO.
Another part of this story is that there appears no question that Pepperjam has been singled out. For instance, other companies, such as Forge Corporation, work as an outsourced affiliate program management company on Commission Junction, and also maintain an affiliate network. Keep in mind also that Pepperjam has done nothing wrong. As I mentioned, when we asked Kerri Pollard and David Osman what we did wrong they simply said, “nothing, it’s just business.”
Yes, I know what you’re thinking. How can this happen? Yep, that’s the same thing I thought and with my legal background I couldn’t help thinking shortly thereafter the legal implications of Commission Junction reaching out to all of Pepperjam’s clients and potentially interfering with the existing legal contracts we had in place with them. The contracts in question were between Pepperjam and each of our clients to provide affiliate program management services. To me this appeared to be basic contract law - in Pennsylvania we call it tortious interference with contracts.
My understanding of business like most people is that competition is fair game. In this respect, I guess Commission Junction can claim that all they were doing was attempting to compete with Pepperjam Network.
However, when you are a publicly traded company there are rules and I would assume a high level of professional courtesy. Not only professional courtesy to your strategic partners, but also to existing advertisers on your network. In this situation, Commission Junction paid absolutely no respect to Pepperjam (an existing strategic partner) and complete and utter disrespect to its existing advertisers (Pepperjam’s client’s).
For every affiliate marketer, advertiser, and business owner out there I have a question:
What would you do if a publically traded company used all their power and might to interfere with your exisiting business contracts?
What does Commission Junction’s actions mean for the future direction of the affiliate marketing industry?
I will conclude by expressing clearly that this post is not an attempt by Pepperjam to rekindle our relationship with Commission Junction. Nor is this post a formal legal action against Commission Junction. Instead, the purpose of this post is that I felt I had a duty as a respected member of the affiliate marketing and broader business community to share this story and express my opinion so that other similar innovative companies might be better protected in the future. I also hope that this situation allows all of us to carefully consider whether this is the type of corporate behavior that we are going to accept within our community.
I believe that Commission Junction’s actions ultimately work to minimize innovation within the affiliate marketing industry. To all of the outsourced affiliate program management companies out there that one day dreamed about launching your own network (just like we did at Pepperjam) keep in mind that you apparently can’t do so if you work with Commission Junction or other similar companies that intend to use their power to stifle you, especially if you are innovative and successful in the process.
Thanks for your time.
commission junction Next Generation Affiliate Marketing pepperjam Pepperjam Network Uncategorizedcommission junction Next Generation Affiliate Marketing pepperjam Pepperjam Network Uncategorized
March 6th, 2008 at 12:16 am
[…] Original post by Kris Jones […]
March 6th, 2008 at 12:41 am
Well regardless of whatever happen Kris I certainly am finding Pepperjam Network easier to work with and use than CJ. Maybe they dont like that
March 6th, 2008 at 1:32 am
Fire up the grills, you shouldn’t have left the gourmet food industry. Business is dirty and CJ is protecting their market share. Shoemoney and your blogger pals can’t bail you out of this one.
March 6th, 2008 at 2:28 am
Well it’s certainly not something I’ve ever seen outlined in their agreements, or did they put an exclusivity contract in to play when we were not looking.
CJ have also been calling around other OPMs that handle more than a couple CJ clients, though I’ve not heard back on what those calls were about, but it doesn’t take much to imagine.
I certainly like the new network set up Kris. Smooth interface and easy to use. Good Luck with this new challenge!
March 6th, 2008 at 5:34 am
I’m in Europe, but since you’re in the US, can’t you just sue them for a couple of million? You could at least get some media buzz out of it.
March 6th, 2008 at 10:23 am
Kris, I’ve used both CJ and your network and I have to say as an affiliate, your network wins hands down. That being said, you should really work on moving ALL of your client base over to the PJN. If you get the best advertisers on your network, the affiliates will show up. Don’t let CJ get you down. They’re big, but they’re also a dinosaur, waiting for the final meteor to strike(so to speak). If I’ve learned anything since I got in this business is that all the innovation is coming from places like PJN, Azoogle, and other up and coming companies.
Circle the Pepperjam wagons, get your clients on board, and grow your network! That’s the key to success.
Also, just by you being open and honest about the situation speaks volumes about your business compared to CJ’s.
March 6th, 2008 at 11:07 am
Kris -
Whatever you need, we’re here for you! You’ve taken the time and effort to build something you (and other marketers) believe in.
March 6th, 2008 at 11:13 am
Without commenting on the legal aspects of requesting that a client to break a contract with another vendor, I think CJ is simply playing hardball and flexing its muscle.
You asked if they acted fairly…that’s subject to interpretation. Thing is, neither life nor business is always “fair.” You tick off an elephant, sometimes you get squooshed (like I how I use a lot of business jargon?).
You asked if they broke the law…again, not a lawyer, but I don’t think this breaks any laws. Could be wrong, of course.
You asked if they overstepped…regrettably, I don’t think so. I know that’s a bitter pill to swallow, but as you said, it’s David vs. Goliath. They feel like you’ve thrown a rock and hit them in the eye.
You’ve come this far by doing the right things. Dust yourself and work around this.
You yourself called this a David and Goliath story…remember how it turned out for Goliath.
Get out your slingshot and some more rocks.
March 6th, 2008 at 11:46 am
I can’t speak to any legal aspects of this, but I’ve been a CJ affiliate for a good number of years, and this kind of think just makes them look bad. CJ really should use their financial advantage to either out-shine or buy the competition, instead of pulling stunts like this. “You can attract more flies with sugar” and all that.
Blackbeard made a great point, though. You should definitely work on getting those programs over to the PJN.
March 6th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Frankly, I’m outraged. As a competitor of Pepperjam and also an admirer of what they have accomplished, I am just totally outraged that CJ would be the least be worried about a brand new network and take such drastic, bullying action! Who’s next? Me-PartnerCentric? Forge? AvantLink? AMWSO? They don’t like something we do, and they tell our clients they can’t work with us?!?!! How many OPMs in the space, including Pepperjam have generated millions in revenues for CJ by proactively running excellent affiliate programs, increasing sales and thereby increasing CJ’s transaction fee revenue?!?!? Yes, PJN is competitive network, BUT folks CJ is a 10 year old global company earning millions a year and owned by a giant conglomerate worth billions, and they are SO worried about Pepperjam they do such a underhanded, aggressive and boneheaded move?
The fact is I’m sure that many if not most of PJ’s clients WILL choose PJN just because who likes to be bullied by a vendor who tells them who they can and cannot work with? Especially if it is not contractually binding! As far as I know CJ still is a non-exclusive network which has been one of the most attractive features for merchants for their entire history!
So, when 30+ of CJ’s clients leave to join the PJN, they just overnight lost all that revenue and helped PJN become successful faster! Not to mention, the top affiliates of any of those top brands will follow the brand, and that means doing business with PJN! This means they will generate lots of transaction fees for who? PJN not CJ!
The boneheaded of this move is SO wrong on so many levels, that whoever orchestrated this fiasco at CJ ought to be fired.
Now I might be worried about how they feel about me making this post, and perhaps try to hurt me in some way, but I have already made my feelings known in no uncertain terms to CJ executives, and I currently still have a good working relationship with them and a preferred agency status.
I can only hope that someone there will see the light, and make whatever amends can be made, though I fear it may be too late to repair the good will damage done between PJ and CJ, and the fallout of disappointment and mistrust from the rest of the affiliate community.
Good luck Kris, Michael, Brock and the whole PJ team. You guys are the “David” and everyone loves an underdog.
March 6th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
[…] A new story just broke out by Pepperjam’s CEO, Kris Jones, regarding Commission Junction and Pepperjam business relationship. I cant get into the details of this story because it is long, but you can read the full story here. […]
March 6th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Kris, I really appreciated your detailed response. I am an outsourced affiliate manager / affiliate on PepperJam and other networks and really like the new model you created for affiliates and managers. The experience working with your team has been refreshing and you should feel good that you are shaking up the industry in a positive way. In reading the comments, I also don’t want to interefere with my relationship with CJ but that path they are heading down will lead to some recommendations that will ultimately cost them more business. However, it may be better for your network in the long run if they stick to the current strategy as that would isolate both CJ & Linkshare for merchants and cause them to evaluate other networks as alternatives.
The story reminds me of a competitor of ours who pulled a similiar tortious interference style manuever and I feel in the end that you will prevail through the high ground. Keep up the good work and stay positive! Michael
March 6th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
I see this as an outrageous act on CJ’s behalf, but I am not at all surprised.
In my eyes, CJ has proven time after time over the past few years that they are anything but a trusted third party as for affiliate-related issues. To see them unethically attacking management firms and OPMs seems to be the natural progression.
As for Linda’s comment on whoever orchestrated this…I have never seen one person at CJ ever take responsibility for anything. No accountability whatsoever in that organization.
I have serious issues with CJ program management these days and their manipulation (and influence on the merchant) of merchant terms to unfairly bolster their own affiliate marketing efforts.
This prompted me to sign up for PJN yesterday and migrate all CJ links possible, before knowing about this round of BS. This story only confirms that my decision was the correct one.
Bring on the merchants, Kris. I’ve switched the ones I could and have joined all programs on your network that fit into any of my sites. Give me more!
March 6th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
[…] In three words that total only 9 letters, “I THINK NOT”. As you probably know by now, Pepperjam recently started an affiliate marketing network. Read for yourself how CJ acted terribly unprofessionally (at best) and possibly very illegally in attempting to interfere with Pepperjam and their management clients. They waited for a day when they knew PJ management would be busy for their ambush. […]
March 6th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
[…] Thanks for visiting the Affiliate Tip blog. Subscribe to my RSS feed or enter your e-mail on the top right to get updates by e-mail.I came across a post on the pepperjamBlog where Pepperjam CEO Kris Jones posted a nearly 2,000 word rant about Commission Junction. […]
March 6th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
[…] It seems Commission Junction feels threaten by Pepperjam’s new affiliate network. Commission Junction is requiring existing Pepperjam clients who use Pepperjam affiliate program management services on Commission Junction to immediately terminate agreements with Pepperjam or get kicked off Commission Junction. It that legal? You can read the full story here. […]
March 6th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
[…] Klik hier om het hele relaas van Kris Jones President & CEO van PepperJam lezen: […]
March 6th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Absolutely unethical. CJ doesn’t blog so we may not hear anything from them, but what about their clients that do blog? Will any of their big affiliates come forward with their thoughts? I’d like to hear from a few of the Pepperjam clients that got called.
March 6th, 2008 at 9:52 pm
[…] If you haven’t already read about Commission Junctions’ actions with regard to the new Pepperjam network, follow this link: http://pepperjamblog.com/2008/03/05/did-commission-junction-act-fairly-break-the-law-or-simply-overstep-its-power-against-pepperjam/ Frankly, I’m outraged. As a competitor of Pepperjam and also an admirer of what they have accomplished, I am just totally outraged that CJ would be the least be worried about a brand new network and take such drastic, bullying action! W […]
March 7th, 2008 at 3:08 am
[…] So how does it look for a perspective of a “nobody”. And by nobody I mean myself. Because when I look at both CJ and PepperJam, I feel like I am less than nobody. […]
March 7th, 2008 at 8:03 am
[…] Miscellaneous Ramblings - 3/6/2008 Winner of The Waterman PenCongrats goes out to Amanda of Mommy Mandy for winning the $80 Waterman pen from the promotional pens maker, 1234Pens.com. Now Amanda can stay at home and have a nice pen to write with. Congrats again. Thanks to everyone who entered. Look for a new contest soon. Want To Make An Easy $20? My buddy Scott Wainner is trying to help people live longer by promoting longevity research. He came up with a very novel way to do it - he’ll give you $20 if you blog about it. The first 100 bloggers who do a blog post about this issue to voice their demand for serious research to stop the aging process, and who write me to give me a link to their post, will each earn $20 paid via Paypal by yours truly - don’t delay to write your post and claim your easy $20! I just took the first $20. There’s 99 more to go. Better get on it if you want a piece! Union Gospel Mission’s Website Launch Party Over at the Union Gospel Mission (one of the charities I support and donate to), they’ve just finished up work on their brand new website. There are lots of exciting new features, including a groundbreaking new blog maintained by the front-line workers. To celebrate the new site, the UGM would love to have you come down to their headquarters for their official Website Launch Party. Where: 616 E Cordova St., Vancouver, BC (Drop by the front desk) When: Wednesday, March 12, from 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm (It’s an open house; Come and go as you please). Short speeches start at 3:30 pm. I can’t say no to a party. See you there! Commission Junction Tries To Beat Up Pepperjam It seems Commission Junction feels threaten by Pepperjam’s new affiliate network. Commission Junction is requiring existing Pepperjam clients who use Pepperjam affiliate program management services on Commission Junction to immediately terminate agreements with Pepperjam or get kicked off Commission Junction. It that legal? You can read the full story here. This Post Was Brought To You By Best Credit Card Offers Get up to $250 or even FREE round-trip plane tickets by signing up for hot credit card offers and bank deals! WordPress Tutorials Blog - Discover how to use WordPress as a marketing weapon. Subscribe to our blog to win free themes every month. Pharmacy affiliate program - Earn up to 70% lifetime commissions with MedStore.biz Or you can add link details as you suppose should be better for your blog. From http://www.johnchow.com/ […]
March 7th, 2008 at 10:19 am
I just have to throw this out there.
We’ve entered a new era in affiliate marketing, as of 2006 I think the majority of big time affiliates have moved in to the micro networks of Azoogle, PepperJam, and Neverblue, etc… I didn’t talk to a single affiliate that was working with CJ at affiliate summit.
STOP WORKING WITH CJ.
March 7th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
[…] Wednesday night, Kris Jones from Pepperjam wrote on their corporate blog that they’re being acted against by Commission Junction. You can read all the details at Pepperjam’s blog, but Kris sums up the issue in a few paragraphs: “There is no question that the launch of Pepperjam Network has created a lot of positive buzz within the affiliate marketing community. Thousands of affiliates and advertisers have contacted us and congratulated us on advancing the industry by offering an alternative affiliate network that addresses many or most of the shortcomings that have existed for years on the other major affiliate networks. […]
March 7th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
[…] More info at pepperjamBlog. […]
March 7th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
[…] More info at pepperjamBlog. […]
March 7th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
[…] All this sounds illegal right? Since CJ.com is a Corporation and should abide by certain laws. You can read up more on this from Kris jones blog and from an active discussion at reve news […]
March 7th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
they just fear you is all so t hey need to act now before you get to big. Blogged about it for you.
http://www.gasmoney.net/make-money-online/cjcom-acts-against-the-pepperjam-network/
March 7th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
keep up the good work and think out of the box! Keep acting as un underdog like you did when you started the company.
March 7th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
[…] On Wednesday night, PepperJam founder Kris Jones made a very long rant (2,000+ words) on his PepperJam blog on about recent activities between CJ and the newly released PepperJam Network. The post was titled “Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?“. With the release of their new network, it seems many networks have wanted to start working more closely with PepperJam, while others (specifically CJ), see them as being a major competitor. Within the post Kris talks briefly about his past, how he got started, built up the PepperJam Network and more importantly, how merchants/advertisers on the PepperJam network “were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum“. So what Kris wants to do, is let everyone aware of the situation and let you decide if CJ was acting fairly, break the law, or act outside of it’s boundaries. […]
March 7th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Platform your code and recruit your top affiliates to launch advertising networks of their own. The PepperJam Platform will encompass thousands of PepperJam like networks before long. CJ won’t be able to compete or blacklist all the networks your platform will be running.
Once the top affiliates are cranking on their networks, open the platform to all.
So, keep doing what you’re doing now and also take it to the next level by launching the platform.
Let me know if you need any more advice or help writing the code.
March 7th, 2008 at 10:20 pm
I run have a personal blog about online marketing and though I would post my thoughts which appear on http://www.marcporcelli.com
Pepperjam and Commission Junction Feud Rings A Bell
March 7, 2008 – 9:13 pm
Affiliate marketing is a highly competitive business; the key phrase here being “business.” So what happens when you have a larger business that is threatened by the growth of a smaller business? In my experience it generally equates to one business being threatened and turning to protective measures. Take for instance the feud that occurred between AzoogleAds and Commission Junction (CJ) in the later half of 2005.
That feud reminded me of what I read today in Pepperjam founder Kris Jones blog post when addressing the question relating to CJ “requiring existing Pepperjam clients who use Pepperjam affiliate program management services on Commission Junction to immediately terminate agreements with Pepperjam or get kicked off Commission Junction?”
I recall the AzoogleAds feud as I was working there at the time. There was a lot of back and forth, but the bottom line was that AzoogleAds was a threat to the business that CJ had dominated. CJ made a business decision which lead to the termination of the partnership with AzoogleAds. There appears to be a similar correlation with CJ’s recent business decision with Pepperjam.
In the long term, AzoogleAds benefited tremendously from the termination of the relationship. As someone in sales at the time with AzoogleAds, I knew I had to step it up, as did the rest of the company. AzoogleAds as a whole stepped up, bringing in more offers while the affiliate side grew with more top-notch publishers.
Often times the argument about ethics and morals is presented in the context of terminating or pressuring a partnership. At the end of the day businesses are formed to be profitable. If profitability is threatened or business partnerships evolve into competitive threats, relationships inevitably will change.
We emphasize that this business of online marketing revolves around relationships. These relationships though are never clear-cut. I can not attest to the intricacies of the relationship between Pepperjam and CJ, only that one can be sure there is a lot more to this story than we ever know. The same holds true for when I worked with AzoogleAds.
Perhaps Pepperjam with their recent release of their own affiliate network was a threat to CJ just as AzoogleAds revenue sharing offering at the time, M-port was to CJ. When these partnerships go south generally there are press releases form both organizations. The one that breaks off or applies pressure to the partnership emphasizes their reasons and the one that is on the receiving side inevitably emphasizes theirs.
Generally reasons publicly disclosed relating to friction in a partnership are those around quality and control. Whether quality and control issues occurred in this instance or not, all partnerships in the affiliate space have these issues! Perhaps a reason Pepperjam became a threat was when they released their own affiliate network by going direct with publishers and advertisers, some inevitably that were with CJ.
Regardless of the reasons, Pepperjam likely has no choice at this stage other than to push harder to work with advertisers and publishers to regain any lost revenues they inevitably will incur. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges for the Pepperjam executive team would be to channel any anger and resentment into a motivational tool. Now is not the time to loose focus, but to hunker down and align the team around focused growth.
When it comes down to it, this is a business decision that appears to have been made to protect CJ’s business interests similar to the occurrence with AzoogleAds. Kris points out in his blog that he approached CJ executives who were attending the recent Affiliate Summit in Las Vegas about why CJ was taking the actions it had. The response Kris received was that they were sorry but, “it’s just business.” Regardless of the reasons this is the business we are in.
March 8th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
Kris, I am new to affiliate marketing and even newer to Pepperjam. I just started putting your creatives on my sites a few days ago. But let me say this. I dealt with Commission Junction for a few months, and it was not a very pleasant experience. The website is not very user friendly, and I made a total of $8.61 - not even enough to meet the minimum payout. I’ve been hearing a lot about Pepperjam lately, so I decided to give it a try. In less than a week, I have generated four leads (all for Pepperjam Network Affiliate program) and am very excited and hopeful about my future as an affiliate.
Frankly, I think Commission Junction has stooped pretty low to contact your clients and give them an ultimatum. And I for one wouldn’t stand for that kind of bullying. I hope that your clients will choose to stick with Pepperjam and sever ties with CJ.
By the way, I blogged about Pepperjam Network and inserted my affiliate links, and that tactic seems to be working well. I recommend it for your other affiliates. I’ve gotten a lot of clicks from the banner and text link ads, but sharing your experiences leads to a better conversion rate.
I know that this situation with CJ is frustrating and scary, but think about the reason behind it. Obviously, they consider Pepperjam Network a real threat to their business. And I can see why. So as crazy as it may sound, consider that a compliment.
Best of luck to you and Pepperjam Network!
March 9th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
[…] $500 Cash from PepperJam Network Pepperjam is a brand new affiliate network founded by Kristopher Jones, a guy who really knows what he’s doing in Internet marketing. This system is truly unique in that it offers reliable communication tools and strives to provide complete transparency for affiliates. Pepperjam is AWESOME and they are really taking things to a new level. It’s no wonder bigger networks like CJ feel threatened. […]
March 10th, 2008 at 6:57 am
Wow. This is really huge news. Maybe Commission Junctions feels threatened you might convince the affiliate programs you manage under their network to move over to Pepperjam Network, and this is why they told them they must terminate any business relationship with your company? If you think about it logically, as soon as you created your affiliate network there is a conflict of interest because the two companies now are competing for the same clients. I know in the business industry usually when you are employed by a firm before they hire you they require that if you quit the company you can’t work for a competing company in the same industry for 1 year. So it is sort of a similar situation. I do feel for Pepperjam Network over what happened, but it really is just the shady side of business and this happens even with Fortune 500 companies.
March 11th, 2008 at 12:26 am
[…] On Wednesday night, PepperJam founder Kris Jones made a very long rant (2,000+ words) on his PJ blog about recent activities between CJ and the newly released PepperJam Network. The post was titled “Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?“. With the release of their new network, it seems many networks have wanted to start working more closely with PepperJam, while others (specifically CJ), see them as being a major competitor. Within the post Kris talks briefly about his past, how he got started, built up the PepperJam Network and more importantly, how merchants/advertisers on the PepperJam network “were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum“. So what Kris wants to do, is let everyone aware of the situation and let you decide if CJ was acting fairly, break the law, or act outside of it’s boundaries. […]
March 12th, 2008 at 12:07 am
[…] On Wednesday night, PepperJam founder Kris Jones made a very long rant (2,000+ words) on his PJ blog about recent activities between CJ and the newly released PepperJam Network. The post was titled “Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?“. With the release of their new network, it seems many networks have wanted to start working more closely with PepperJam, while others (specifically CJ), see them as being a major competitor. Within the post Kris talks briefly about his past, how he got started, built up the PepperJam Network and more importantly, how merchants/advertisers on the PepperJam network “were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum“. So what Kris wants to do, is let everyone aware of the situation and let you decide if CJ was acting fairly, break the law, or act outside of it’s boundaries. […]
March 12th, 2008 at 3:45 am
[…] On Wednesday night, PepperJam founder Kris Jones made a very long rant (2,000+ words) on his PJ blog about recent activities between CJ and the newly released PepperJam Network. The post was titled “Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?“. With the release of their new network, it seems many networks have wanted to start working more closely with PepperJam, while others (specifically CJ), see them as being a major competitor. Within the post Kris talks briefly about his past, how he got started, built up the PepperJam Network and more importantly, how merchants/advertisers on the PepperJam network “were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum“. So what Kris wants to do, is let everyone aware of the situation and let you decide if CJ was acting fairly, break the law, or act outside of it’s boundaries.This is a very long post, so I advise you to go and read it yourself, or you can head over to Scott Jangro’s blog, where he did an excellent recap on the original blog post, which makes it easier to read and more understandable. For more opinions and responses this article, you can also read Search Engine Journal, AffiliateTip and Revenews. I’m sure this will be a heated topic over the next couple of weeks, as more and more blogs cover the story and more information is released. […]
March 12th, 2008 at 3:45 am
[…] On Wednesday night, PepperJam founder Kris Jones made a very long rant (2,000+ words) on his PJ blog about recent activities between CJ and the newly released PepperJam Network. The post was titled “Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?“. With the release of their new network, it seems many networks have wanted to start working more closely with PepperJam, while others (specifically CJ), see them as being a major competitor. Within the post Kris talks briefly about his past, how he got started, built up the PepperJam Network and more importantly, how merchants/advertisers on the PepperJam network “were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum“. So what Kris wants to do, is let everyone aware of the situation and let you decide if CJ was acting fairly, break the law, or act outside of it’s boundaries.This is a very long post, so I advise you to go and read it yourself, or you can head over to Scott Jangro’s blog, where he did an excellent recap on the original blog post, which makes it easier to read and more understandable. For more opinions and responses this article, you can also read Search Engine Journal, AffiliateTip and Revenews. I’m sure this will be a heated topic over the next couple of weeks, as more and more blogs cover the story and more information is released. […]
March 15th, 2008 at 8:27 pm
[…] On Wednesday night, PepperJam founder Kris Jones made a very long rant (2,000+ words) on his PJ blog about recent activities between CJ and the newly released PepperJam Network. The post was titled “Did Commission Junction Act Fairly, Break the Law, or Simply Overstep its Power Against Pepperjam?“. With the release of their new network, it seems many networks have wanted to start working more closely with PepperJam, while others (specifically CJ), see them as being a major competitor. Within the post Kris talks briefly about his past, how he got started, built up the PepperJam Network and more importantly, how merchants/advertisers on the PepperJam network “were being aggressively contacted by Commission Junction employees and delivered an ultimatum“. So what Kris wants to do, is let everyone aware of the situation and let you decide if CJ was acting fairly, break the law, or act outside of it’s boundaries. […]
March 16th, 2008 at 6:35 pm
[…] $500 Cash from PepperJam Network Pepperjam is a brand new affiliate network founded by Kristopher Jones, a guy who really knows what he’s doing in Internet marketing. This system is truly unique in that it offers reliable communication tools and strives to provide complete transparency for affiliates. Pepperjam is AWESOME and they are really taking things to a new level. It’s no wonder bigger networks like CJ feel threatened. […]
March 19th, 2008 at 11:31 pm
[…] Add to the list any merchant you know is with both MYAP and CJ as well as a drop-dead date for MYAP if you know it. (See http://pepperjamblog.com/2008/03/05/did-commission-junction-act-fairly-break-the-law-or-simply-overstep-its-power-against-pepperjam/) […]
April 2nd, 2008 at 9:00 pm
[…] Think about it. In light of the recent fallout between Pepperjam and Commission because we launched a competing affiliate network technology, I don’t think CJ is gonna want Pepperjam to be the only real alternative (i.e. full service model with a network) to Performics. I imagine the stage would be set for some fierce competition between Commission Junction and Pepperjam if indeed ValueClick purchases Performics. […]
April 17th, 2008 at 7:10 am
[…] What the heck is Pepperjam? We think that it has something to do with the fact that the company was originally founded as an online gourmet food business. They were so successful that other companies kept coming to them asking them how to be great online marketers. Realizing that this was a business opportunity of its own, Pepperjam shifted its focus in 2000 to “online marketing, including pay-per-click, search-engine optimization, and affiliate program management.” That’s led to their being featured in Inc. Magazine’s list of the 500 fastest growing companies due (their 550.2% 3-year growth rate ranks them 293rd). If you’re not familiar with Internet marketing, you should know that it’s a completely different beast from traditional marketing, but it’s just as exciting - if not more so. Somewhere along the way Pepperjam also launched a comparison shopping site that doesn’t seem to have panned out. For more on their history, you can read this post on the Pepperjam Blog (there’s also some controversy about their latest business move). […]
May 13th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Hello my friends
;)