How does affiliate link work?
Affiliate links are a fundamental tool in affiliate marketing, provided to affiliates so they can share them with their audience. These links allow affiliates to earn commissions by driving traffic and sales to a merchant’s website.
How affiliate links are generated
When an affiliate signs up for your affiliate program through BixGrow, a unique default affiliate link is generated for them.
Affiliates can find their link by logging into their Affiliate Dashboard.
Merchants can also view affiliate link in the app by clicking on the affiliate’s name in the Affiliates tab.
Structure of an affiliate link
An affiliate link typically consists of two main components:
Base URL: This is the store’s URL, which can be the homepage or a specific product page that you want to promote.
E.g. https://bixgrow-demo-store.myshopify.com
Uniquie tracking ID: This is the unique identifier or tracking code that differentiates one affiliate’s link from another. It is usually appended to the base URL as a query parameter. BixGrow tracking parameters usually include bg_ref.
E.g. ?bg_ref=VQ9q75ODfg
This structure ensures that when a customer clicks on the affiliate link and makes a purchase, the sale is attributed to the correct affiliate, allowing them to earn a commission.
How does tracking and commission attribution work?
When a customer clicks on an affiliate link, a cookie is placed on their device. A cookie is a small piece of data that stores information about the customer's visit to your store. This cookie includes details like the affiliate's tracking parameter and the time of the click.
The cookie remains on the customer's device for a specified period, known as the cookie duration. If the customer returns to your store and makes a purchase within this period, the affiliate is credited with the sale, and the corresponding commission is attributed to them.
For example:
A customer clicks on an affiliate link on August 1st, and a cookie with a 30-day duration is placed on their device. The customer revisits your store on August 15th and makes a purchase. Because the purchase occurred within the 30-day cookie duration, the affiliate who shared the link will earn a commission for the sale.
Customizing Cookie Duration
As a merchant, you have control over the cookie duration, allowing you to determine how long the affiliate’s link remains valid for commission attribution. The standard duration might be 30 days, but depending on your business model, you can adjust this to be longer or shorter.
Longer cookie durations may be beneficial for affiliates, as they increase the likelihood of earning commissions from customers who take longer to decide on a purchase. On the other hand, shorter durations might be preferred if you want to ensure commissions are attributed to more recent marketing efforts.
To adjust cookie duration, you can go to the Settings tab > Affiliate link
FAQ
Who gets the commission if a customer clicks on multiple affiliate links during the cookie duration?
In the event that a customer clicks on multiple affiliate links during the cookie duration, the commission for the order will be attributed to the latest affiliate whose link was clicked.
Here's how it works:
When a customer first clicks on affiliate A's link, a cookie is placed on their device to track that affiliate's referral. If the customer later clicks on affiliate B's link before making a purchase, the original cookie is overwritten with affiliate B's information.
The commission for any resulting purchase will be credited to the most recent affiliate whose link was clicked, as their link is considered the last point of referral.
This ensures that the affiliate who had the most recent influence on the customer's decision is rewarded for the sale.
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