Cafe Press powered stores?

Posts : 1 Join date : 2009-05-03

Probably already asked and answered but.....I googled my name followed by cafe press and voila, tons of my artwork in cafe press powered stores. I assume these are affiliates right? At any rate I can't say they have generated many sales for me, the bulk of my sales come from the MP. I plan on opting out at the appropriate time before June 1st on all my 3 stores, so I am assuming this will mean the designs on these cp stores will lose my artwork (as they should) unless they continue to sell with my mark up. I am very disappointed as most of you are too. I'll try to drive traffic to my own shop and open up some others on other sites. Which POD sites do you folks recommend? Thanks so much, appreciate your time. cheers

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Sun May 03, 2009 1:22 pm

Hello Dogpainter and welcome to the forum.

I think most of us on here will be either leaving cafepress completely or opting out of the market place. Plus most of us have gone over to Zazzle, I had a shop at zazzle a short while before the announcement from cafepress as I was sick of the many bugs on cafepress so I did not have to start from the begiining.

Zazzle seems good and has some nice touches like getting paid into paypal, bulk uploader, printing on both sides of black to name a few but its a LOT different to set your shop up compared to CP. There are tutorials around and I have wrote one myself on here which I hope helps (under zazzle section)

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Sun May 03, 2009 1:23 pm

How do you know those Affiliates haven't generated many sales for you?

Before the accounting stopped showing which sales were Affiliates, a GOOD MANY of mine came as a result of Affiliate work.

The Google results were more than likely due to Cafe Press' own Google Feeds. I certainly find most of the results for my work are Cafe Press' feeds rather than my own.

If you remove your image tags your designs will no longer appear in the Cafe Press Marketplace, but I intend to leave a "marker tag" on my designs that my Affiliates can find. . .I would hate to lose all the work they've put into marketing my things.

And. . .welcome to our little corner of the world! Very Happy

Ann K.

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Sun May 03, 2009 1:27 pm

OK Crew, that's TWO messages you wrote at the same time as me!!!!! We must be operating on the same wavelength today.

Your Sidewalk art appeared just as I finished responding to the "disappearing car" and my post went south.

Now the same thing almost happened here. . .but this time I looked a bit closer at the pre-posting box, and it said: "Another message is being posted in this topic at the same time as your message, do you want to alter your message as a result?" This time I re-hit SEND, the last one I must have hit "ignore" or something. . .

I still lurves ya! - - - I just feel like I'm walking rightonyourheels. . . Laughing

Ann K.

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Sun May 03, 2009 1:57 pm

MaxMuhlin Yeah great minds and all that......

"Cue X-Files music"..........

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

I intend to leave a "marker tag" on my designs that my Affiliates can find
Can you elaborate on this ? I do have some affiliates but am not intending on staying in the MP TIA

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 7:28 am

goatlady wrote:: I intend to leave a "marker tag" on my designs that my Affiliates can find
Can you elaborate on this ? I do have some affiliates but am not intending on staying in the MP TIA

HEY! Glad to see you!

How are the babies??? I've been thinking about them a lot!

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

Glad I found this I was banned from the other forum and then find that it is closed Read ONLY until After D Day June1 What a joke But I did find your link there ...so I came

Babies are fine and healthy only 7 this year a nice small number. Most with blue eyes

I gotta get things moving QUICK at Zazzle- My hay and house bills depend on it and my sales have gone to less than a fourth of what they had been with the new algorithm- My take on it? After a month of hardly ANY sales I think they figure ppl will take Any sales even at the 10%MU- I doubt it is accidental and I figure they are earmarking those of us who have had things to say and I highly doubt we will have a top spot in the MP if we would have stayed Smile

I am really freaking over this - reading and trying to learn all I can shoving a years worth of work into less than a month. Like the rest of you..

Anyhoo.. happy to be here Smile

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 8:13 am

I was wondering about them earmarking those of us that complained and threatened to leave as well. My sale are WAY down this month. I too have been moving my stuff at a frantic pace. I am right in the middle of a move out of the country and was seriously counting on the $$$ from CP to pad my money until I could get settled and and actually have a place to be able to resume my "Freelance" work again. This is scary as all get out, but you know, I have just decided that what will be is meant to be. I've done my best.

Awwww! 7 babies! With blue eyes too!!! Baby animals are just the cutest things! I can't wait till we can have a few more critters....not that I don't have a ton of them now. LOL

I think I want a couple of chickens when we get settled in, and we will for sure have a couple of horses! I haven't had my own horse since my early 20's and it is the one thing in my life I have missed every single day! Nothing fancy (I ride western) but a good horse that I can get out and explore with..... and one for my daughter too! It'll be fun to share that side of myself with her.

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

Yes babies are the best when I get all stressed at the computer I go sit on the sofa and hold Shadow- she's a tiny 3 week old solid black with blue eyes- and a love- She sleeps on the sofa while I work.. the goatyard is.. for GOATS and she decided I guess she isn't a goat LOL

I took a huge hit at the bonus snafu- lost over $3K in bonus money alone the biggest sales month of the year and I cannot take another hit like 10% I just cannot survive on it.

Are you going to Belize or was that someone else?
That's a huge move - out of the country wow

Posts : 159 Join date : 2009-04-25 Location : Mississippi

Well, I hate to say this, but this is a REALLY good month for me at CP. I am such a little seller there, I think I've just been forgotten, and just a wallflower, so they ignore me. Rolling Eyes

I'm still so confused as to what to do. I will eventually clear out, but right now I'm leaving the stuff up that Zazzle doesn't sell. I do sell lots of yard signs, and that amazes me. I sell more odd stuff than shirts, so I will miss a lot.

I do wish Zazzle would put in clocks and tile coasters and other stuff.

I think I'm just burying my head and moving and setting up new shops, and avoiding thinking about this stupid mess that CP threw at us.

Cafe Press powered stores? 187714

HELP US ALL.

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 8:52 am

Yup, that's me moving to Belize. I have become very stagnant since I made the choice to be a "mom". I am blessed that my daughter is enough like me that she thrives on adventure, so now that she is an adult and graduates next month, she and I will set out on a HUGE adventure (with my BF and her father as well). I'm really excited. We both are.

HOWEVER, CP's announcement could NOT have come at a worse time. While I'm packing up two houses and selling them IS NOT the time to have to sit down and move my stuff all over the internet. Grrrr! I have neither the time nor the energy to do this, but I guess I am left no choice. Eh, sleep is over rated anyway! LOL

Your shops are looking good! It's a lot of work! If I wasn't so stressed, I'd enjoy making the new shops and doing the "spring cleaning" as I go.

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

Cafe Press powered stores? ShadowOntheSofa-May-09

Here is the little darling Smile

She is So sweet!

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 9:15 am

Awwwww! What a cutie! . . . .

The "marker tag" quote was from my post, wasn't it???

If so. . .here's my plan. . .I have about 6,100 designs in my CP Image Basket. . .and I have Maggie Ross Designs tagged on EACH of them.
I figured I would delete all of the tags EXCEPT that one. . .then my Affiliates could still find me. . .because my Maggie Ross identity is one I've held since the late 1990s when I sold on eBay under that name. . .( it is my two dogs. . .Maggie the Westie, and Ross the Scottie. . .)

Of course that plan was hatched BEFORE I went to all the work I've now gone to - to upload designs to Zazzle and Printfection. . .and the farther away I get from Cafe Press, the less hope I have for those dearly beloved shops. . .(8 Premiums, 8 Basics Sad

)

So far, I've NOT removed any tags, because I felt I should take advantage of the May sales I will still get at my nice markups from the Marketplace.

Ann K.

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

Ann,
Yes that was from your post- and thank you This is what I thought but let me ask you.. how do the affiliates know what to key in to find your tags? I never have affiliates get a hold of me yet I know I am bring affiliated .. I thought of doing the same thing..

On a new note for those closing up shop..
You cannot delete images that are still in use- so you must close out your sections or delete each product before you can delete your images (I feel lucky I only have 4800 in my image basket )

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 10:27 am

OMG!!!! Shadow is DARLING!!! I want to pet her and cuddle with her!! What a little love. I know she is bringing you LOTS of joy. Thanks so much for sharing those pics!

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

Thanks She is a cuddle bug and she looks big in the pics but she is only 8inches tall and about 12 inches long. She is SO soft and smells so good Smile

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 10:40 am

AWWWWWWW!

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

I thought I had heard that CPShops was integrating a Zazzle ability so I went looking for it to see If I saw this correctly and while I didn't find my answer- I did fine this which I think is oddly coincidental:

This was from Last year in the CPshops update:

As has been much-publicized, on May 31st, CafePress will be turning off the internal Affiliate Program, and moving completely over to the new program, which is powered by Commission Junction.

So a year exactly from the last huge poke in the gut comes THIS YEAR'S POKE

One can't help but wonder what May31 2010 would bring if one stays.

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 10:51 am

goatlady wrote:: I thought I had heard that CPShops was integrating a Zazzle ability so I went looking for it to see If I saw this correctly and while I didn't find my answer- I did fine this which I think is oddly coincidental:

This was from Last year in the CPshops update:

As has been much-publicized, on May 31st, CafePress will be turning off the internal Affiliate Program, and moving completely over to the new program, which is powered by Commission Junction.

So a year exactly from the last huge poke in the gut comes THIS YEAR'S POKE

One can't help but wonder what May31 2010 would bring if one stays.

They are going to claim "squatters" rights to all of our work and do away with SK's completely. LOLOLOLOLOL

Posts : 20 Join date : 2009-05-11 Location : GoatLand

Quote :: They are going to claim "squatters" rights to all of our work and do away with SK's completely. LOLOLOLOLOL

I wouldn't put it past them REALLY

Subject: Re: Cafe Press powered stores? Mon May 11, 2009 11:10 am

goatlady wrote:: I wouldn't put it past them REALLY

Honestly, I wouldn't either if they thought they could get away with it.