What is Tracking?

When a visitor clicks your affiliate link, the tracking platform assigns the click a unique click ID and remembers it, either in a cookie in the browser or on the server. When the visitor later buys, signs up or installs, the merchant reports the conversion with that ID and the commission is credited to you.

There are two common methods. Pixel (cookie) tracking places a small script on the merchant’s thank-you page; it is easy to set up but breaks when cookies are blocked. Server-to-server tracking sends a postback from the merchant’s server and does not depend on the browser, which makes it more reliable.

Affiliates add sub IDs to their links (for example campaign, ad or keyword) to see which traffic actually converts. Good tracking is the basis for every optimisation decision.