I still don’t see anyone posting why AFF links themselves are bad. I see a lot about scumbags abusing the AFF link system. And, I see people generalizing that everyone who uses AFF links is inherently a scumbag abusing the system. By the way, that’s called prejudice and bigotry. I’ve seen people use AFF links responsibly on this site. Not every insurance salesman is looking to plaster your house with business cards. And not every Affiliate member is looking for ways to plaster every thread with AFF links.
So, Boaz, let’s say the new boyfriend happens to work for the best, cheapest, yet most responsive and caring insurance company in the world. He is excited about his association with them, because he knows they’re so great. In fact, he never wanted to be an insurance salesman. But, they were so good to him in his time of need, that he wanted to join them in helping the rest of the world get good insurance for a low price. He comes to your house for dinner, and DOESN’T plaster cards all over the place. He contributes to the conversations at the table. Everyone generally likes him. Some, more than others.
After a while, in the course of good conversation, he reveals that he is selling insurance for this truly amazing and awesome company that really helped him in his time of need. At that point in the conversation, he offers to give anyone who wants one, his business card. What do you think of him as a person at this point? To me, it is entirely appropriate to offer someone a deal for something you yourself believe in, so that they can benefit from it. I don’t see anything wrong with this scenario. Yet, these polite and helpful people are summarily lumped together with the scumbags as if they are all of the same lot. I submit that they are not.
I’ve seen lots of business models in my life. Most of them are good ways to do business, but there is always room for abuse. I’ve seen door-to-door salesmen who were polite, not pushy. And, when I turned them down, they stayed polite and wished me a good day. I’ve also heard horror stories of people in my own family who were basically overrun by pushy door-to-doors who invited themselves in and wouldn’t leave until there was a major purchase made. I’ve had pushy, rude sales calls over the phone. But, most of the tele-marketers I’ve talked with were very polite. Even though I don’t appreciate this particular sales method, I can appreciate that the person on the other end of the line is not necessarily a villain for choosing to work in a call center. I’ve seen salesmen at an auto-mechanic shop who will try every trick in the book to add more things that must be replaced on your car or else it will crash and kill you. Then, I’ve also seen mechanic shop owners that were beyond honest, who tried to find the cheapest and best method of getting you back on the road safely, and would even go out of their way to make it easier on your finances. I’ve seen shop owners throw stuff in for free just because they liked helping people.
The truth is, there are scumbags everywhere. A lot of effort goes into moderating forums in a way that discourages scumbags and yet encourages polite members to stick around. I don’t envy SB one bit. It truly is a balancing act at times (maybe all the time). But, the occasional presence of scumbags doesn’t mean that everybody is a scumbag. There is no “guilt by association”. Affiliate members are not scumbags by default. Affiliate links are not inherently evil.