Hey everyone,
I never thought I’d be here writing this, but I’m officially giving CPA marketing another shot—this time with real intent and a better mindset. This thread will be my raw and honest journey as I explore push traffic via Propeller Ads combined with MaxBounty offers.
If you’ve ever struggled to get started or had a rocky first campaign, this one’s for you.
I first discovered CPA marketing way back in 2018. Like many others, I got deep into research, downloaded guides, watched endless tutorials, and read forums religiously. The only problem? I was broke. The best I could do was throw $10 into PopCash. Unsurprisingly, I saw zero conversions and got discouraged. I quit before I had the chance to even learn anything meaningful.
Fast forward a few years: I’ve since worked stable jobs, learned a lot about digital marketing in the background, and now I’m finally in a position where I can invest both time and a bit of money into giving CPA a proper shot.
Here’s what I’ve started with:
So I launched my campaign. Within the first hour, I got around 2,000 impressions and just 1 click according to Propeller Ads.
Seems low… but things started getting weird.
When I checked my BeMob tracker, it said I had over 40 clicks on that same campaign. That’s a huge discrepancy — Propeller says 1 click, but BeMob shows 40+. I assumed maybe these were delayed or “ghost” clicks that would even out later, so I waited.
Eight hours later? Still stuck at 1 click on Propeller, 40+ on BeMob. No change.
Thinking maybe I missed something, I went over to MaxBounty to see if there was anything registered. And here’s where things got even more confusing.
MaxBounty showed clicks coming in from 4 different GEOs — all versions of the same campaign, but from countries I never selected or built links for. I literally only created the tracking URL for the Netherlands campaign. I never even touched the others. Yet somehow there were clicks recorded from GEOs I wasn’t targeting at all.
Now, I did test the campaign myself (a few clicks), and it's possible the moderation team at Propeller clicked it too. But that doesn't explain the other countries showing up or the tracker showing wildly different data from the ad network.
Despite the messy start, I’m not backing down. This thread will be my running journal. I’ll keep testing, adjusting, and learning. I plan to:
I’ve got more campaigns lined up, and I’ll post updates frequently — good or bad. If anyone has had similar issues with click tracking mismatches or strange GEO behavior, feel free to chime in. Let’s troubleshoot together!
Here’s to figuring this thing out — the right way this time.
I never thought I’d be here writing this, but I’m officially giving CPA marketing another shot—this time with real intent and a better mindset. This thread will be my raw and honest journey as I explore push traffic via Propeller Ads combined with MaxBounty offers.
If you’ve ever struggled to get started or had a rocky first campaign, this one’s for you.
Background
I first discovered CPA marketing way back in 2018. Like many others, I got deep into research, downloaded guides, watched endless tutorials, and read forums religiously. The only problem? I was broke. The best I could do was throw $10 into PopCash. Unsurprisingly, I saw zero conversions and got discouraged. I quit before I had the chance to even learn anything meaningful.
Fast forward a few years: I’ve since worked stable jobs, learned a lot about digital marketing in the background, and now I’m finally in a position where I can invest both time and a bit of money into giving CPA a proper shot.
The Current Setup
Here’s what I’ve started with:
- Ad Network: Propeller Ads (Push notifications)
- Affiliate Network: MaxBounty
- Offer Type: Paid Online Surveys
- Payout: $1.80 per lead
- Geo Targeting: Netherlands (NL)
- Tracker: BeMob
- Targeting: Very broad — I didn’t use any audience filters or interest targeting for now. My assumption is that survey offers have wide appeal, so I wanted to test mass targeting first before narrowing down.
First Campaign Results – Strange Stuff Happening
So I launched my campaign. Within the first hour, I got around 2,000 impressions and just 1 click according to Propeller Ads.
Seems low… but things started getting weird.
When I checked my BeMob tracker, it said I had over 40 clicks on that same campaign. That’s a huge discrepancy — Propeller says 1 click, but BeMob shows 40+. I assumed maybe these were delayed or “ghost” clicks that would even out later, so I waited.
Eight hours later? Still stuck at 1 click on Propeller, 40+ on BeMob. No change.
Thinking maybe I missed something, I went over to MaxBounty to see if there was anything registered. And here’s where things got even more confusing.
MaxBounty showed clicks coming in from 4 different GEOs — all versions of the same campaign, but from countries I never selected or built links for. I literally only created the tracking URL for the Netherlands campaign. I never even touched the others. Yet somehow there were clicks recorded from GEOs I wasn’t targeting at all.
Now, I did test the campaign myself (a few clicks), and it's possible the moderation team at Propeller clicked it too. But that doesn't explain the other countries showing up or the tracker showing wildly different data from the ad network.
What I’m Wondering
- Why does Propeller only register 1 click while BeMob sees 40+?
- Where are the other GEO clicks coming from if I never built or ran those offers?
- Is this just a tracking issue? A cloaking misstep? Or is Propeller’s data lagging severely?
What’s Next?
Despite the messy start, I’m not backing down. This thread will be my running journal. I’ll keep testing, adjusting, and learning. I plan to:
- Run tests with more controlled tracking links
- Add device/OS targeting to see if that helps quality
- Possibly switch offers or tweak landers if needed
- Contact both BeMob and Propeller support for clarity
I’ve got more campaigns lined up, and I’ll post updates frequently — good or bad. If anyone has had similar issues with click tracking mismatches or strange GEO behavior, feel free to chime in. Let’s troubleshoot together!
Here’s to figuring this thing out — the right way this time.