Loophole in the No referral code (ref link) spam rule or not?

[logfiles]

What if a user creates a website and that website hosts a referral link or ref links to other service website(s) and then he comes to the forum and makes most of the posts while linking to the host website only?

Is he going against rule Number 4 or not?

[PX-Z]

I don't think so. Most blog articles or websites shared on Bitcointalk usually contain ads or referral links, since that's a common way for site owners to monetize their content. It's pretty normal and expected.

The only time it really becomes an issue is when the links are off-topic, irrelevant to the discussion, or when the user is clearly spamming low-quality content just to promote their site. In those cases, the best option is to report it so moderators can review and take action if necessary.

[Mia Chloe]

What if a user creates a website and that website hosts a referral link or ref links to other service website(s) and then he comes to the forum and makes most of the posts while linking to the host website only?
Is he going against rule Number 4 or not?

It says "no referral link spam" this simply means so long you are not spamming the forum with referral links then it's fine to share and I believe that is why signature campaigns are still a thing. Signature campaigns are literally referral links but they are not breaking the rules because they are not spamming posts with it instead it's in your signature space.

If you randomly pick a referral link and post here there's a high chance it will be deleted because that way you are not passing any information but rather you are just spamming. Signatures share these links by you simultaneously making posts that pass an information.

[Ivystar5]

4. No referral code (ref link) spam.

The word Spam which I bolded gave the rule number 4 a totally different meaning from what you might perceive it as.

If means when making post members are not allowed to spam the forum with referral codes or links but does mean you can't post a refer link when it's needed. You just don't spam it, link posting on every board with the link or code, for people to use it for your benefit like it is done in the good old days where refer is the most common task earn bitcoin or rewards.
For the perspective you are talking about if it's spammed then it's breaking the rule number 4

[PX-Z]

It says "no referral link spam" this simply means so long you are not spamming the forum with referral links then it's fine to share and I believe that is why signature campaigns are still a thing.

Even if you are not, if your post has referral link 90% it can be deleted by the mods if reported. The only exceptions if you made a whole new quality/thread post explaining things and recommend stuff, this happens on a freebitco.in thread with referral code on it before, idk where it is now though.
The signature is different from having referral code because it is the signature space not on post.

[Churchillvv]

What if a user creates a website and that website hosts a referral link or ref links to other service website(s) and then he comes to the forum and makes most of the posts while linking to the host website only?

Is he going against rule Number 4 or not?

I understand what your talking about, a website like (linktree) that allows you to compile links and share it in one link? Of course if referral links are prohibited it would definitely be against the rule number 4 but is referral links are not totally prohibited but only spamming it is prohibited then it’s not breaking the rule number 4.

But from what I understand from the forum if you share such link, it may not be detected fast but if finally it is noticed as spam, it will be automatically be deleted and you will probably have a punishment for it.

It says "no referral link spam" this simply means so long you are not spamming the forum with referral links then it's fine to share and I believe that is why signature campaigns are still a thing.

Even if you are not, if your post has referral link 90% it can be deleted by the mods if reported. The only exceptions if you made a whole new quality/thread post explaining things and recommend stuff, this happens on a freebitco.in thread with referral code on it before, idk where it is now though.
The signature is different from having referral code because it is the signature space not on post.

From the perspective Mia Chloe is talking about, spamming is the actual rule not the referral codes or links. He only likened approved referral links to be signature campaigns which he is correct too.

I remember that some campaigns assign signature campaign codes to each member in their PMs because they want to keep track of how many people the signature codes attract and how often people click on those links which at the end they expect new sign ups with your tracking codes, that’s mostly same thing as referral codes. If this example I gave is true because I can’t remember where exactly I read something of that nature!

[BlackBoss_]

It says "no referral link spam" this simply means so long you are not spamming the forum with referral links then it's fine to share and I believe that is why signature campaigns are still a thing. Signature campaigns are literally referral links but they are not breaking the rules because they are not spamming posts with it instead it's in your signature space.

If you randomly pick a referral link and post here there's a high chance it will be deleted because that way you are not passing any information but rather you are just spamming. Signatures share these links by you simultaneously making posts that pass an information.

Referral link is only allowed in posts if  you are a company owner, representative, a campaign manager and needs to use a referral link for tracking your business, marketing activities. Otherwise, you are not allowed to post a referral link in post, but an exception is with your profile page, where you can add a referral link in your personal text, and any space in the profile.

Generally, with forum members who are not a company representative or a campaign manager, it's prohibited to use a referral link in post.

[Alpha Marine]

If all or most of his post leads to one website, that means he is saying the same thing in different ways. post, and that is spamming, because there is hardly a way to be talking about different things on different posts, and all of them have a link to one website or webpage.
And if he's talking about different things but still finds a way to put his link in the post, when it happens in different post people will notice and report his account. He can't talk about something else and put a different link entirely in the post, same way he can't just be posting the same link in almost every post, without people noticing.

[acroman08]

What if a user creates a website and that website hosts a referral link or ref links to other service website(s) and then he comes to the forum and makes most of the posts while linking to the host website only?

Is he going against rule Number 4 or not?

I think that'll be considered as spamming(which would break one of the forum rules) if he keeps bringing up his website to any discussion he joins, even if his posts are not off-topic. As to whether he is breaking rule number 4, I am not sure. I mean, I've seen threads where the OP posted the link to their website that hosts referral links, but doesn't get deleted because the content of the website is well built, and they are not posting the link to their websie whenever they can.

[Agbamoni]

PX-Z made a good point. Considering the fact there are no limit to links which can be found on a website, if someone shares a website here he isn't going against rule no 4 because he may not have an idea on where those links will direct them to.

If it goes against the rules, then 80% of members in the forum will be offenders of the rules. However, this isn't a justification for members who will intentionally share links to website carrying scam embeded links too.

[NotATether]

PX-Z made a good point. Considering the fact there are no limit to links which can be found on a website, if someone shares a website here he isn't going against rule no 4 because he may not have an idea on where those links will direct them to.

If it goes against the rules, then 80% of members in the forum will be offenders of the rules. However, this isn't a justification for members who will intentionally share links to website carrying scam embeded links too.

Everybody who shares crypto news on this forum would basically be banned for that because crypto news sites are full of referral links.

See the problem?

That's why this proposed change does not hold water. If you want to ban nested referral links then you would have to do so in a way that doesn't implicate rule-abiding members.

[dkbit98]

Is he going against rule Number 4 or not?

No, because we can literally find a bunch of third party ads with referral links on many websites.
I would not be so strict to ban all websites like that, and this would take a lot of time from forum admins.
Some forums even have a board dedicated only for sharing ref links and codes.

[hilariousandco]

I would say no. That's just subverting the rules really, and if they've just signed up here to mostly promote their own site to shill referrals then it's still spam.

[aioc]

What if a user creates a website and that website hosts a referral link or ref links to other service website(s) and then he comes to the forum and makes most of the posts while linking to the host website only?

Those posts should be reasonable enough to include the host website, and we post outside links to verify the source of our topic.
This has been the practice of many bloggers and affiliate marketers to acquire backlinks and increase traffic.
If he discusses trading on his topic but posts a website with no relation to trading, then he's spamming.

[Upgrade00]

They will have to have content on their website and create quality enough content here on the forum to justify including the ref link. It is not easy to do this without it counting as general spam.

The major deterrent to this is that it will not really be effective. You'll need to do a really good job to get a user to click on multiple links for the referral to count.

[Cryptohygenic]

It says "no referral link spam" this simply means so long you are not spamming the forum with referral links then it's fine to share and I believe that is why signature campaigns are still a thing.

Even if you are not, if your post has referral link 90% it can be deleted by the mods if reported. The only exceptions if you made a whole new quality/thread post explaining things and recommend stuff, this happens on a freebitco.in thread with referral code on it before, idk where it is now though.

If posting a referral link and the poster did not accompany it with his own ideals or unique form of explanation probably to summarize the whole contents of the contained informations of the link, it is a spam.
The posters inputs draws a comprehensive attention in a unique form other than the original source. That way is how we effortlessly makes the post quality and there would be no spamming about it but if there is no content of the poster but just posted the link or do copy and paste from the what is already being said in the main source can be spamming and that is purely against the rules.

The signature is different from having referral code because it is the signature space not on post.

Yes, and to make it clear, neither do the signature campaigns encourages spamming while spamming is strictly a rule made of the forum itself and not even any of the monetized or other extension services that can compromise that which is why even users in the signature campaigns that spams on their posts are duly reported and Mods takes action.

[CryptoHeadlineNews]

4. No referral code (ref link) spam.

The word Spam which I bolded gave the rule number 4 a totally different meaning from what you might perceive it as.

If means when making post members are not allowed to spam the forum with referral codes or links but does mean you can't post a refer link when it's needed. You just don't spam it, link posting on every board with the link or code, for people to use it for your benefit like it is done in the good old days where refer is the most common task earn bitcoin or rewards.
For the perspective you are talking about if it's spammed then it's breaking the rule number 4

You actually spoke well regarding your view on rule number 4 and what it actually means. But however, for me, I think I think the rule goes deeper than what perceived to be. Because looking at it categorically, I could say the rule Number 4 only prohibits spamming of referral links on the forum, and not that it totally prohibits it. Because I have noticed that in some signature campaigns, members have been known to putting their ref links, and likewise some casino ANN thread and signature campaign threads. Hence on the nutshell, spamming and improper use of referral links is what the forum prohits.

[joker_josue]

What if a user creates a website and that website hosts a referral link or ref links to other service website(s) and then he comes to the forum and makes most of the posts while linking to the host website only?

Is he going against rule Number 4 or not?

My question is: why do you think this would violate this rule?
The forum rules apply only to the forum, not to what is done on it.

Nowhere does it prohibit old or new users from opening a topic promoting a website. If the site is just advertising and has tons of referral links, that's a different matter. This will only lead people to disregard it over time.

Dozens or hundreds of websites are promoted/recommended every day, filled with ads with referral codes. This doesn't cause any problems.

Of course, if someone creates a mirror site of the reference and the site is just a proxy between a common link and a referenced link, it can be analyzed a little differently. Because the destination link merely mirrors the referring link, doing so is literally misleading the reader, so the rule to apply won't even be number 4, but rather any other rule that involves spam and misleading users.

Therefore, unless something extreme happens, this type of scenario will never violate this rule.

[Bozza]

It depends on the context. If an individual spams the whole forum asking people to sign up to his referral link on his website in the bio it still breaks the rule.

The rule seems to be about spam though. If an individual makes a single post about a service in an appropriate forum section then it is most likely fine.

[AVE5]

4. No referral code (ref link) spam.

The word Spam which I bolded gave the rule number 4 a totally different meaning from what you might perceive it as.

If means when making post members are not allowed to spam the forum with referral codes or links but does mean you can't post a refer link when it's needed. You just don't spam it, link posting on every board with the link or code, for people to use it for your benefit like it is done in the good old days where refer is the most common task earn bitcoin or rewards.

If you post link to source of information without giving a description to it, it's meaningless as Mia Chloe may say that it's not informative and other members of the forum can't communicate to it because they wouldn't know your point if the post isn't explained by poster. Also as extracting informations from a source without providing its link or referral codes is spamming because it's likely that you're disguising to make the post with your own ability while the essence of the reference source link and your inputs justifies it not spam.