Affiliate links are special hyperlinks that allow the tracking of user traffic between websites and make it possible to assign a commission for a sale or the performance of a specific action to an established partner responsible for distributing them. Properly prepared, they make it possible to increase the revenue generated. What is important to know about them?
Affiliation - what is it?
Affiliation is a process in which one company, e.g. a publisher, enters into partnerships with other entities, e.g. musicians, to promote their products or services. As part of this, affiliates receive special affiliate links that enable:
- tracking user traffic between different websites;
- assigning a commission for the performance of a specific action (e.g. the provision of personal data or a purchase by a person who has clicked on a link).
With an effective affiliation, a company can increase its online presence and gain new customers by harnessing the marketing power of its contractors. These in return receive additional revenue or benefits, such as access to exclusive offers or promotional material.
In Poland, this method is often used by organisers of online shows such as Pay2View, in which influencers participate - they get a special personalised link to buy a ticket, which they share with their viewers. The benefits of such an activity are two-sided:
- implementers - to increase the publicity of the event (marketing), i.e. to reach a larger audience;
- Influencers - the opportunity to earn more money, regardless of the speech itself and its outcome.
Affiliate programme - what is it?
An affiliate programme is a set of defined activities between business partners. It can be run by the company on its own or through affiliate platforms that enable project management and tracking of activity results, such as Admitad, Aff44, Awin, Bankier or Adtraction.
As part of the programme, the company determines the amount of commission and the terms and conditions of the relationship, and affiliates gain access to promotional material and performance monitoring tools.
Affiliate links - what are they?
In practice, an affiliate hyperlink looks and works like a normal one: when clicked on, the user is redirected to a new website. However, it differs in that it contains a special identifier that gives the possibility of precise tracking of activity. In this way, if the user performs a specific action, this allows commissions to be automatically assigned to the account associated with the affiliate.
In some cases, they may include additional parameters such as a promotional code or the development of information about the advertising campaign, which will allow the advertiser to more closely monitor the results of the action taken.
How to make money from affiliate links?
Affiliate links are not in themselves a means of earning money, but merely a tool for this purpose.
For the company, the benefit is increased sales by using the marketing power of its partners. As it only pays when there has been a concrete action on the part of users, it is not exposed to unnecessary costs and unprofitable use of the advertising budget.
For the affiliate, the advantage is to earn a commission, which often does not even require time-consuming action. Usually, it is enough for him to place a link on his account created on, among others:
- Facebook (fanpage);
- Instagram;
- Pinterest;
- TikToku.
However, if he wants to increase his earnings, he can reach out to further information (opinion) channels such as his own website, blog or emails.
In other words, to make money from affiliate links, you need to know your target audience well and then find someone who is able to reach them.
How do you make an affiliate link?
How do you generate an affiliate link? Is it a simple task in the same way as creating a regular one? Unfortunately not, more often than not you will need to use an external platform. You should:
- select an affiliate programme company;
- log in using the panel on the website;
- select the option usually called "Generate affiliate link";
- in the "Destination link" field, enter the address of the website to which users are to be redirected;
- enter a unique identifier in the "Affiliate ID" field, which will be assigned to the link and make it possible to track activity;
- confirm your selection by clicking "Accept";
- copy the generated link and promote it in the manner of your choice.
Affiliate campaigns - what are they?
Affiliate actions are specific actions that a user must take after clicking an affiliate link in order for a commission to be charged. These most commonly include:
- making a purchase (cost per sale - applies to online shop);
- registration on the landing page;
- downloading the application;
- leaving your personal data;
- subscribing to the newsletter.
For example, the time an internet user views a web page or even the visits themselves (cost per click) can also be important. This is a good way of introducing a wide audience to a new company logo or an important message that will be able to encourage future repeat business. One of the biggest advantages of affiliation is that it can be completely tailored to individual goals and objectives. 
The principle of affiliate links
Affiliate links actually work on the basis of referrals, one of the oldest marketing methods. The trust inducers used for such activities are, for example:
- actors;
- influencezy;
- vlogerzy;
- musicians.
They introduce the solution, services or products provided by the company and then, based on their authority and popularity, encourage others to do the same. This is why it is so important to know your target audience in detail, i.e. their needs, role models and financial capabilities - this will allow you to personalise your action in a way that brings the greatest benefit.
One example is InPost, which is entering into a partnership with a well-known environmental activist. Their common goal is to raise public awareness of environmental action and recycling. Together, they generate a link as a reference to the EkoBox and the partner effectively promotes it via their social media accounts. The benefits of such an action are as follows: InPost gains new customers who decide to use the EkoBox service, and the activist gains a commission. Consequently, together they manage to encourage new consumers to use solutions that generate less waste than would be possible, for example, when using traditional single-use cartons.
Affiliate links - which network to choose?
When choosing an affiliate network, it is worth looking at its reputation, the commissions offered, the tools and support for affiliates, as well as its availability in the country in which they operate. Carefully read the affiliate programme's terms and conditions to avoid misunderstandings and non-compliance.
Some of the most popular affiliate networks at the moment are Partnerize (fashion, travel, finance and technology), Awin (e-commerce, finance, media and telecommunications) and Tradedoubler (e-commerce, travel, finance, media).
Affiliate links - how do you generate them?
The affiliate link needs to be generated via the website of the selected affiliate network right after selecting a suitable ally and agreeing to the terms and conditions. The whole thing does not take much time, so you can treat this process as the penultimate one - the final one is to complete the transaction by paying out the commission due.
Where to promote your affiliate links?
Where to place affiliate links? Is there one correct answer? Unfortunately, no. It all depends on many individual factors. In addition, the affiliate programme must be strictly tailored to the venture.
If the audience is made up of young people, it is a good idea to ask your partner to include a link, for example in the text of the description underneath a video posted on YouTube, in a testimonial on Instagram or in a comment underneath a short video shared on TikTok. It also seems to be a good idea to use the US portal Pinterest.
It may be pointless in the context of adolescent consumers to include links in newsletters. As research shows, adolescents are not interested in checking their electronic mailbox on a regular basis. A better idea, therefore, would be to use it when creating advertising campaigns aimed at adults (mainly those over 40).
Other interesting places to promote your links include newsgroups and forums. However, these should be used thoughtfully. Internet users are vigilant, so if an affiliate, for example, pretends to be someone they are not and users find out, not only will the programme not be successful, but there is a good chance that it will be counterproductive, including the loss of hard-earned trust in the brand.
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