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View Full Version : Statistics question: how many users are generating Prosperent's bottom line?



nite
08-12-2011, 07:59 AM
I have an over-all economic question to pose here.

I know that Prosperent has its own expenses to deal with, such as salaries, office building, and server costs, and to cover these expenses Prosperent relies on their affiliates to generate income. But just how many affiliates are generating this income?

The reason I'm asking this question deals with the long term stability and viability of Prosperent as a company -- if the largest income is being generated by the fewest number of people, then the company's viability rests on the performance of just a handful of individuals, and these individuals have the power to determine the fate of everyone else. In other words, should "something" negative happen to these individuals, where would the rest of us be?

Prosperent has a reward program for these few individuals that includes a higher commission rate and access to special information. But isn't such a philosophy counter-productive to fattening Prosperent's bottom line using as many people are possible? Sure, high performers should be rewarded -- and they are. The size of their commission is reward enough. But for the company to further fatten the cow who is already fat in the first place seems out of place.

Prosperent has stated elsewhere that the API is the biggest earner, however, using the API also requires a special skill set that not most people have -- the ability to program in PHP. Using Performance Ads doesn't require any skill set at all; so, as one possible conclusion, it would seem that there are a handful of API developers who are earning the majority of Prosperent's bottom line. I could be wrong here.

So, what's the point of this post (for those of you who respond with thoughtful "tl;dr" remarks)? The point is that if Prosperent, as an overall company, is relying on a handful of PHP developers to bring home the bacon, then these individuals have the power to dictate Prosperent's policy ... because if these individuals get pissed off and decide to leave, then what other legs are there to stand on?

prosperent brian
08-12-2011, 08:03 AM
Leave the business decisions to us. We are not new to any of this. 10+ years in this industry. In fact, we have thousands of affiliates at this point and double every couple months. Not that I need to defend any of this. It's the same economics anywhere. The top few bring in the majority of the money. This isn't just limited to online marketing. We make affiliate marketing as simple as possible. There are still going to be big earners and people that earn nothing. Just the way of the world.

mister
08-12-2011, 08:05 AM
Hush nite. You have nothing to worry about.

nite
08-12-2011, 08:06 AM
Hush nite. You have nothing to worry about.

I'm not worried. Just inspiring some critical thinking skills is all. :)

prosperent brian
08-12-2011, 08:07 AM
So then you are suggesting that we lack critical thinking skills of our own? I don't understand these rants.

nite
08-12-2011, 08:23 AM
So then you are suggesting that we lack critical thinking skills of our own? I don't understand these rants.

No, Brian. I'm not suggesting that at all. These thoughts of mine are just that -- mine. I'm a naturally curious person, that's all. I wonder how things work, and why they are put together in the manner that they are. I know that there's an underlying logic that guides most things, and I enjoy the act of understanding. This isn't to say that my conclusions or premises are never wrong or that I'm never misguided. My thoughts are a function of my perception of the world, and since I do not have perfect perception, my thoughts will not be perfect either. I'll be the first to say that I do make mistakes, that my conclusions are sometimes wrong, and that there are times that I am misguided. If I've offended anyone, then I apologize.

mister
08-12-2011, 08:25 AM
tldr;

$imon
08-12-2011, 08:29 AM
I'm a naturally curious person, that's all.

You also appear to naturally be an annoying dick.

nite
08-12-2011, 08:41 AM
You also appear to naturally be an annoying dick.

Please elaborate.

Zaphod
08-12-2011, 09:43 AM
A few things to consider:

- every affiliate program out there has incentives for increased volume... they all pay you more when you send more, wouldn't you want to encourage proven performers to perform a bit more?

- you don't need to be a strong "PHP coder" to make money with the API. the highest earners I know hire others to do the dirty work and don't do much coding on their own.

- I have friends who work for affiliate programs and the story is always the same, the top 1% of users generate 90+% of the money... that's just how it works man :)

prosperent brian
08-12-2011, 10:00 AM
A few things to consider:

- every affiliate program out there has incentives for increased volume... they all pay you more when you send more, wouldn't you want to encourage proven performers to perform a bit more?

- you don't need to be a strong "PHP coder" to make money with the API. the highest earners I know hire others to do the dirty work and don't do much coding on their own.

- I have friends who work for affiliate programs and the story is always the same, the top 1% of users generate 90+% of the money... that's just how it works man :)

100 percent true in every aspect.

nite
08-12-2011, 10:27 AM
A few things to consider:

- every affiliate program out there has incentives for increased volume... they all pay you more when you send more, wouldn't you want to encourage proven performers to perform a bit more?

- you don't need to be a strong "PHP coder" to make money with the API. the highest earners I know hire others to do the dirty work and don't do much coding on their own.

- I have friends who work for affiliate programs and the story is always the same, the top 1% of users generate 90+% of the money... that's just how it works man :)

This is a great response! Thanks!

Prosperent Mike
08-12-2011, 10:33 AM
Prosperent has stated elsewhere that the API is the biggest earner, however, using the API also requires a special skill set that not most people have -- the ability to program in PHP.

The API responds in JSON and is platform agnostic. You can write apps that communicate with the API in any language: .NET, ASP, Ruby, Perl, Python, PHP, Desktop Applications, anything. On that note, if the demand is big enough, we could even implement a JSONP solution for JavaScript developers.

Keen
08-12-2011, 09:43 PM
In any affiliate program whether that be small ones or the larger ones like amazon or ebay, theres always the few that earns most of the income. Its actually the same for any walk of life. Whats it called again... the 80:20 rule? =P

gnarlyhat
08-13-2011, 11:24 PM
I think he wants to start a network himself and screw you guys over when he can. That is all he's asking. You just need to read between the lines.
Btw.... It was td;dr I just assumed using my 7th sense.

nite
08-13-2011, 11:37 PM
I think he wants to start a network himself and screw you guys over when he can. That is all he's asking. You just need to read between the lines.
Btw.... It was td;dr I just assumed using my 7th sense.

Thanks for the laugh.