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Brand Bidding Detection & Fraud Prevention

Endorsely's Brand Bidder Detection feature helps protect your affiliate program investment by identifying potential affiliate fraud, particularly brand bidding activities. This guide explains what the alerts mean and how to handle them effectively.

Understanding Fraud Alerts​

Any conversion that comes from a paid ad in Endorsely is given a "⚠️ Possible fraud detected: Referral visitor comes from an ad" tag on hover.

Important: This doesn't mean there is definitely affiliate fraud taking place—it's an alert that you should investigate further.

Legitimate Ad Activities​

Affiliates may legitimately run ads for:

  • Comparative reviews ("Best alternatives to YourSaaS")
  • Meta ads, Taboola, and other traffic sources for your brand
  • Educational content ("How to choose the right SaaS for...")
  • Industry-specific targeting (not your brand name)

Problematic Activities​

It's only a problem if they're:

  • Brand bidding (which may break your Terms & Conditions)
  • Sending very low-quality traffic that may negatively impact your brand
  • Using false claims to sell your product that could lead to bad reviews

What is Brand Bidding?​

Brand bidding occurs when affiliates run paid ads, usually Google Ads, targeting people who search for your brand name.

Instead of creating genuine content or bringing new customers through your funnel and customer journey flow, they're intercepting people who were already searching for your company.

Example Scenario​

  1. Customer searches "Endorsely" on Google
  2. Affiliate's paid ad appears above your organic listing
  3. Customer clicks the affiliate ad and purchases through their link
  4. You pay 30% commission for a customer who was already yours

Result: They're taking the commission as an affiliate for a customer that was coming to you already, and you should have earned 100% of the revenue.

What to Do When You See an Alert​

Step 1: Investigate the Traffic Source​

  1. Check the alert details in your Endorsely dashboard
  2. Note the affiliate who generated the conversion
  3. Contact the affiliate—multiple alerts from the same affiliate indicate a pattern

Step 2: Contacting Your Affiliate​

Send a professional message to investigate:

Subject: Question about recent referral traffic

Hi [Affiliate Name],

I noticed some recent conversions from your affiliate link came from paid advertising. Could you help me understand:

1. Are you currently running ads to promote our product?
2. If so, what keywords/targeting are you using?
3. Can you confirm you're not bidding on our brand name "[YourBrand]"?

We want to ensure all promotional activities align with our affiliate terms. Thanks for your partnership!

Best regards,
[Your Name]

Step 3: Evaluate Their Response​

If they confirm brand bidding:​

  • Remind them this violates most affiliate terms
  • Ask them to stop immediately, or remove them from the program
  • We recommend disapproving all these transactions

If they deny brand bidding:​

  • Ask for clarification on their ad strategy
  • Request screenshots of their ad targeting
  • Monitor future conversions from this affiliate

If they don't respond:​

  • Send a follow-up within 48 hours
  • Consider pausing their affiliate account pending investigation

For Future Prevention​

Update Your Affiliate Terms​

Update your affiliate terms to explicitly prohibit brand bidding (you can do this in your Settings within Endorsely):

  • Add specific language about keyword restrictions
  • Include consequences for violations
  • Require acknowledgment of updated terms

Sample Terms & Conditions Language​

Add this to your affiliate agreement:

PROHIBITED ADVERTISING PRACTICES

Affiliates are strictly prohibited from:
- Bidding on our brand name or any variation thereof
- Using our company name in paid search ads
- Creating ads that could confuse customers about our official presence
- Running ads on trademark-protected terms

Violations may result in immediate termination and forfeiture of unpaid commissions.

Key Takeaways​

  • Brand Bidder Detection is designed to help you protect your affiliate program investment
  • Use it as a tool for informed decision-making, not automatic punishment
  • This feature is available to all Endorsely users at no additional cost
  • It automatically activates with your affiliate tracking setup

Remember: The goal is to maintain a healthy affiliate program where affiliates bring genuine new customers rather than intercepting existing ones.