CJ is Scared of PepperJam
I’ve respected Kris Jones of PepperJam for a few years now. I’ve never met him but I’ve seen his presentations on Youtube and listened to many interviews where he spoke about the online advertising and affiliate marketing industry. The man knows his stuff, is a great entrepreneur, and I get the sense that he’s a genuinely good guy.
Earlier this year, his company launched the PepperJam Affiliate Network and the market response has been nothing but positive. Apparently this upset Commission Junction. CJ, the largest affiliate network, is so upset about this that they have called Pepperjam clients, the ones who are also CJ clients, and told to either stay with CJ or terminate their relationship with Pepperjam.
If true, that’s appalling.
When Kris asked Kerri Pollard, head of CJ, about this, she responded that it’s “just business.” Wow. To paraphrase Kris, try telling his small group of employees that the Goliath in the industry, whose parent company is the publicly traded ValueClick and worth billions, wants to take food off their table because it’s just business.
I’ve heard so many bright young people say they do not want to start a business because they believe they will need to abandon their ethics. That’s nonsense and something that I’d like to change, but if this story is true, then people like Keri Pollard, or more specifically that attitude, are the reason that idea persists.
It makes me wonder how much CJ and ValueClick have invested in their own research and development. I also wonder if any of CJ’s big affiliates will say anything about this, or are they okay with hanging back and cashing CJ checks?
Go read Kris’ blog at Pepperjam for more.
Kris Jones, I’m rooting for you.
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