Why was I denied?

Sometimes our publisher approvals team will decide not to approve a website. We appreciate this can be frustrating. 

The below list outlines common reasons a site will not be approved to use Skimlinks.  It is not exhaustive and there are others, but these are the most frequent reasons: 

• Non-live sites: If a site isn’t live, the team can’t assess it. We need to be able to review the site in order to assess if it is appropriate to use our technology and services.
• If you are a merchant: We do not work directly with merchants and there is no login for Skimlinks Merchants.  We work with all Merchants through affiliate networks. Merchants that wish to work with Skimlinks Publishers must join an affiliate network first.  You can see a list of affiliate networks we work with here.
• Sensitive content: Merchants are sensitive about where their brand appears, so will not work with certain types of publishers, including those that feature “adult” content or copyrighted / non-original content.
• Lack of content: If the team can’t determine the purpose of a site or the typical content of articles, they can’t determine whether it can generate any revenue through Skimlinks either.
• No clear commercial opportunity: If publishers only publish articles on topics with minimal opportunities for affiliate marketing (e.g. no content about products or services available to purchase online), there will be no way for Skimlinks to monetize their content. In addition, a site must have links to Merchants on their site.  Our technology works by converting normal Merchant links into affiliate links.
• Audiences outside of our coverage: Though we have a global network, we have higher concentration in some regions than others, so the location of publishers is part of the approvals process.
• Type of Publisher: Skimlinks is optimized for content sites such as editorial sites and blogs. We also do not work with downloadable software applications, loyalty/cashback sites or mobile apps.
• URLs that include certain brand and/or product names: It is against most merchant terms to work with publisher websites that have their brand name in the publisher site URL. Brand and trademark bidding is also against our program policies.
• How much value a site brings to readers and merchants in our networks: If content is not original, does not bring obvious value to readers’ lives, and a site has not been designed with a good user experience in mind it is unlikely to be approved.  We also do not work with downloadable software applications, loyalty/cashback sites or mobile apps. Our publisher network has an excellent reputation and we are keen to uphold it.
• No proof of ownership: If it is unclear whether or not the applicant is the owner of the site that they are applying with, then the application will be denied and our Approvals team will request further information to show proof of ownership of the site.

 In the event a publisher is denied, they can re-apply at any time here and will be reviewed with fresh eyes.