Delving into the Ethical Issue of Cloaking Affiliate Links
Of late, one issue that seems to constantly crop up is the fact that many people are claiming that it is unethical to cloak affiliate links. Numerous points have been raised for and against this issue, but the fact that such an argument exists in the first place probably means that you should stop for a moment and think about what you're doing. By the time you're done reading this article, you should have a firm understanding of the ethical issue that lies behind cloaking affiliate links.
Most commonly, the protest against cloaked affiliate links lies in the fact that it is alleged that you're going to be 'hiding' the fact that it is an affiliate link from your customer. Honestly, there is a point to this - after all, you are 'hiding' the fact that your link is an affiliate link from potential customers. Still, you're not doing so to mislead them, but rather you're doing so simply due to the fact that affiliate links are lengthy and unappealing.
End of the day, you aren't going to be 'tricking' your customer into buying an affiliate product simply by cloaking the affiliate link itself! Sure, you're not publishing it for all to see - but that is a long way from actually 'tricking' a customer into making a purchase and so the issue of ethics really doesn't come into play at all.
In fact, the one area in which the ethical issue of cloaking affiliate links is justified is when it goes against the stipulations of the affiliate product itself. Some affiliate products do not permit their affiliate links to be cloaked - and if you do so by going directly against this requirement, then there is definitely an ethical issue that needs to be addressed.
On one hand, it is undeniable that cloaking your affiliate links is necessary in order to protect your links, and your sales. However on the other hand if you're promoting an affiliate product that has made clear that cloaking affiliate links is not permissible, then going against that would mean that you're expressly violating the wishes of the owner of the affiliate product.
At the end of the day, if you wish to avoid any ethical dilemmas, simply remember to check the conditions under which you became an affiliate. If that permits link cloaking, then you're in the clear. If it doesn't however - then it is up to you whether or not you want to stay on the right side of ethics, or not!
All said and done, the ethical issue of cloaking affiliate links isn't really as complicated as some may make it appear to be!
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