How the ranking system works
As product reviews work, I think it’s important that to normalize how the ranking system works. Its one thing to just give my opinion, but I wanted more. I’ve been in the business and technical world for some time.
It became important for me, if I was going to provide honest reviews, how would I rank a site that gives even consideration and balances the playing field.
I use a weighted scale. Here is my matrix and break down.
| Ranking | Weight | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Supports Affiliate Marketers (Marketing & other stuff) | 5 | No support | Some banners and links | Banners, video promotions | Updated promotions, no community | Community, promotion materials, very active |
| Experience/History of Success | 2 | No experience brand new | seems small time, no real history | Has been around for a while, seems like a successful, updated program | Strong following | Repeat, and strong business or a lot of small successes |
| Commissions | 3 | < 10 % | 10-20% | 20-30% | 30-40% | > 40% |
| Attrition Rate | 3 | > 80% | 60-80% | 40-60% | 20-60% | < 20% |
| Recurring Revenue Commissions | 5 | No Recurring Revenue | <1 Year | 1-2 Years | First 3 Years | Forever |
| Upgrade Options | 3 | No-Upgrade | Some Upgrades, but hard to convert | Upgrades | Upgrade Options, configurable | Upgrade options, they do the work |
| Large Affiliate Network | 2 | Can’t find people selling product | Only finding a few sites selling, or they tell us there is are people. | Can find review sites or prove other 1000 people selling | Can find many people selling products, in websites and youtube videos, or other media | Large following, vacations and big contests for winners |
How I fill it out
Some of the research I can’t just be found. That’s when I use a bit of common sense. For example, if I just can’t find attrition rates, but I do find an active, positive community, I may rate it as a five for that category. If I find that site is old and not updated, but they do have some support, I may rank that a 4.
The scale gives me a specific way to logically consider each program. I do want to be optimistic, but at the same time, if someone, like yourself, is reviewing, I want to try to remove optimism to replace as much honesty as possible.
Why a Star System?
Quite frankly, it’s easier than decimals so I just round to the nearest half point, and call it a day.
Do reviews get updated?
Absolutely! If the program owner or operator asks, I’ll update the review or if the review is older than 1 year. Or if someone asks directly. The goal isn’t to downplay a program, but it’s to provide guidance to you, the customer on which program should be seriously considered.
The best a program can get is to be 5-stars!
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