Partner Marketing empowers Brands to work with hundreds of Publishers – hundreds of high-scale entrepreneurs and innovators that help you promote your products and increase your sales. Each Publisher type engages consumers differently, targeting various touchpoints along the customer journey.
Given that today’s consumer paths are longer and more complex, multiple Publishers often play a role in driving a single conversion. To ensure fair recognition and reward for each partner’s contribution, Partner Marketing networks use key principles - one of the most important being the cookie hierarchy.
In this article, we will dive into the concept of cookie hierarchy, explain what it is, how it works, and in which use cases it ensures a fair attribution of Publisher commissions.
What are the Primary Cookie Types in Partner Marketing?
Info Box: Cookies are small pieces of data stored on a user's browser. They carry information about the user’s online activities, preferences, and interactions. For Publishers, cookies are used to track and attribute sales or leads. |
When it comes to attribution, not all cookies are equal. In fact, three primary cookie types play distinct roles in tracking consumer behavior:
Post Click Cookies:
Post Click Cookies (or Hard Click Cookies) are the standard in partner tracking. They are used for most Publisher types, e.g., cashback sites, voucher code sites, content sites, and others. Post Click Cookies have the ability to overwrite previously set cookies.
Soft Click Cookies:
They are typically used for conversion overlays, browser extensions/ toolbars, and retargeting Publishers. Soft Click Cookies are non-overwriting cookies which means they don’t replace any previously set cookies, and they can be overwritten by Post Click Cookies.
Post View Cookies:
These cookies are used to track iLeads and iSales. Post view conversions take place following a viewed ad. At Tradedoubler, the attribution window for Post View Cookies is 48 hours by default which can be amended to suit the partner program. They can be overwritten by Soft Click and Post Click Cookies.
Why Cookie Hierarchy Matters
A well-defined cookie hierarchy ensures that attribution is fair, transparent, and consistent, especially when multiple Publishers are involved.
Let’s break it down with an example:
A user visits a cashback site and clicks through to a Brand’s website. From there, they might interact with an on-site optimization bot that offers them items to purchase based on their behavior. If both, cashback site and on-site partner, would be tracked via a Post Click Cookie, the on-site partner’s cookie would overwrite the cashback cookie, and the consumer would not be awarded their cashback, despite starting their journey on the cashback site.
In instances like this, Tradedoubler – and other networks - utilize a cookie hierarchy to ensure Soft Click Publishers “stand down”, which prevents an advantage within the user journey, and ensures commission is attributed fairly.
Tradedoubler’s Cookie Hierarchy Explained
Here’s how attribution is determined, based on the order of cookie placement:
Post Click followed by Soft Click: Post Click wins
Post Click followed by Post Click: Last Click wins
Soft Click followed by Soft Click: Last Click wins
Post View followed by Soft Click: Soft Click wins
Post View followed by Post Click: Post Click wins
In accordance with common industry standards, Tradedoubler ensures that all Soft Click Publishers are set correctly upon joining and being approved on our partner network.
The Benefits of a Clear Cookie Hierarchy
Using different cookie types maintains trust and fairness in the Partner Marketing ecosystem. It ensures that early influencers are not overwritten by Publishers that have an advantage in the user journey. Furthermore, it allows Brands to test new models and work with tech partners without disrupting existing relationships. Lastly, they drive customer satisfaction – as seen in our cashback example, where the cookie hierarchy ensures that the user gets the cashback awarded, they are expecting.
“Having this hierarchy means that Brands can run campaigns with Publishers more effectively, without fear of commissions being attributed to other Publishers unexpectedly. It ensures we can protect click attributors fairly and transparently”, explains Tom Sams, Network Quality & Compliance Manager.
If you have any questions, about our cookies hierarchy or our tracking in general, please reach out to your Tradedoubler contact or get back to us via our contact form – we’re happy to support you.