30Sep
Affiliate Marketing Explained: What Happens After the Click?
You’re reading a guide to hiking backpacks and click a link to a recommended model. The link takes you to an online store. If you buy something there, the website that recommended the backpack may earn a commission. Here’s how the purchase can be linked to the recommendation and when the publisher earns a commission.The click connects the recommendation to the store
A hiking blog reviews three backpacks and explains what kind of trips each one is suited to. One of the reviews includes an affiliate link. The link contains an identifier that lets the program tell which publisher sent the visitor. In this partnership, the blog is the publisher and the store is the merchant. If the program runs through an affiliate network, the network can record clicks and attributed orders for both sides.
A click can turn into a commission
A reader clicks the link and orders the backpack for €100. In this example, the purchase is attributed to the blog and the program pays a 5% commission on the full purchase price. Once the order is approved, the blog earns €5.
There’s often a gap between the order and the commission being approved. If the reader returns the backpack, the commission may be cancelled. If she comes back to buy later, the program’s rules determine how long after the original click the purchase can still be attributed to the blog.
What actually earns a commission?
In the backpack example, the program pays for an approved sale. That’s called pay per sale. Other programs may pay for a qualifying inquiry or sign-up (pay per lead) or for a valid click (pay per click). Each program’s terms explain which action qualifies and what conditions apply.