Understanding Quality Score
Understanding and Using Quality Score to Your Advantage
Quality Score is Talroo's performance measurement that evaluates publisher traffic quality based on metrics we collect, such as conversion rates relative to a network baseline. It directly impacts your referral fee earned and impacts what jobs your affiliate_id is eligible to receive.
What is Quality Score?
Quality Score measures how well your traffic performs compared to the Talroo baseline for similar campaigns and contexts. It is expressed as a percentage:
| Score | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0% | Average (baseline) performance |
| > 0% | Above baseline |
| < 0% | Below baseline |
The Quality Score can be seen from the publisher dashboard, expressed as a difference from the baseline.
Warning Signs and Shutdown Risks
- Low content: Poor quality score will result in declining job content
- Shutdown: The account might be suspended due to consistent low quality
- Talroo may set an automatic quality score floor, below which shutdown occurs
- Confidence: Low volume with poor performance leads to faster interventions
Early Warning Indicators
- Downward quality score trend week-over-week
- Extremely low conversion rates
- High bounce behavior (e.g., bounce rates above 80%)
- Geographic mismatches and irrelevant traffic patterns
Best Practices to Maintain High Quality Score
| DO | DON'T |
|---|---|
| Send genuine, high-intent job seekers | Use incentivized or misleading traffic |
| Target relevant geographies and job categories | Send international traffic to US-only jobs |
| Filter bot/automated traffic | Allow automated/low-quality clicks |
| Align landing experience with job content | Misrepresent job content |
Recovery Strategies if QS Drops Below -50%
Immediate
- Audit sources: cut low-quality channels, check for bots
- Verify geographic targeting and job relevance
Medium Term
- Simplify apply flow: fix UI/UX bottlenecks that hurt conversion rate
- Introduce checking user qualifications where appropriate
Long Term
- Build a returning audience and email lists
- Establish an optimization cadence (review, test, iterate)
tip
See T-Values for more details on tracking and optimizing your traffic sources.