Engage.com Turns its Back on Affiliates

(Online Dating Industry Journal) After a string of excellent marketing moves this year, Engage.com has made its first major 2008 blunder by turning its back on the Commission Junction affiliates who helped the company experience growth through lead generation over the past several months.

Engage.com, which allowed its status with Commission Junction to expire yesterday, sent a letter to affiliates that said, in part:

"We will be changing our approach acquisition strategy at Engage.com and as result we will be pausing our acquisitions efforts for the next couple months. The Commission Junction affiliate program has been very successful in driving leads for Engage and we appreciate all of the work that our partners have done on our behalf. As a new company with an entirely new approach to online dating – finding connections through the people who know you best – your friends - we’re excited by the great growth we’ve experienced to date. We’re currently pausing our efforts to acquire traffic through traditional channels and the affiliate program, so we can focus on ways to grow traffic more organically – much like you grow your own network of friends."

As of today, Engage.com does not have any affiliate program, losing a valuable resource for attaining traffic and users.

Joe's Comments
Engage.com never had a good affiliate program, only paying out $2.00 per lead. The program paled in comparison to the big online dating services. It's a shame, though, that Engage.com hasn't learned from the success of companies like Amazon.com, Match.com, and eHarmony.com who built huge databases of users through engaging (pun intended) affiliates and rewarding loyalty.