You’ve seen affiliate links before — those seemingly messy URLs that people drop in blog posts, Instagram bios, YouTube descriptions, or under a product review on Reddit. But those links are so much more than just “a way to get credit for a sale.” They’re the digital bloodhounds of the performance marketing world — sniffing out where traffic came from, what it did, and if it converted.
So let’s break it down — without getting too technical — but just enough to appreciate the beast that is affiliate tracking.
It’s just a URL, but with superpowers. Behind the scenes, it carries extra parameters — little pieces of info like who sent the traffic, which campaign it came from, which platform, ad, or even keyword. Stuff like aff_id=2847, utm_source=insta_story, subid=fb_cars_18_24, and so on. All of that gets tacked onto the end of the link and passed along like a secret note from the affiliate to the merchant.
When someone clicks, that info travels with them. That’s how the brand knows, “Hey, this sale came from YOUR link.” And that’s how you get paid.
You’re not just dumping someone on a product page and hoping for the best. A serious affiliate setup runs through a tracker — Tracknow and other tools like RedTrack, Voluum, or Binom — that intercept the click, record all the juicy details (device, browser, geo, ad placement, you name it), and then redirect the user to the actual landing page.
Think of it as a checkpoint:
🚦 Click → 🧠 Tracker logs the data → 🚀 Redirect to destination.
And the best part? Trackers can fire postbacks when a sale or sign-up happens. That’s when the merchant's system tells your tracker, “Hey, this click_id just turned into $40 revenue.” That’s how your stats get updated in real-time.
There are two main methods here:
Cookie-based — stores info in the browser. Easier to set up, but more fragile.
Server-to-server (S2S) — more accurate, uses click_id to link the journey across systems.
Most legit affiliate setups today use S2S for anything serious.
If you’re working with a smart CRM — like HubSpot, Pipedrive, or even custom-built stuff — you want those clicks and conversions flowing in both directions.
The CRM should pick up your tracking data (like click_id or utm_*), assign it to the lead, and later send a signal back once that lead becomes a paying customer. It’s how you move from just tracking clicks to actually understanding LTV per affiliate or channel-level ROI.
And if you’ve got Google Analytics or GA4 running, your UTM tags should match up. That gives you visibility into the full funnel — from ad click, to site visit, to conversion — even if the conversion doesn’t happen right away.
Want to go pro? Pipe all that into Looker Studio or Power BI, and you’ve got dashboards your CFO will cry happy tears over.
This part’s fun. With a good tracker, you can set rules like:
And since fraud is always lurking, modern systems let you detect VPNs, proxy traffic, fake clicks, or even bots. You can keep your campaigns clean — and your payouts honest.
Here’s the flow most of us in the affiliate world are running these days:
Simple on the surface. But under the hood? Beautifully complex.
Affiliate marketing isn’t just throwing links around. It’s data, logic, and a well-oiled tracking system that turns traffic into measurable revenue. Once you master the mechanics — from parameter passing to postbacks, CRM syncing to fraud filters — you’re not just a marketer anymore.
You’re the operator of a fully armed performance machine.
Let’s be real: the money’s in the affiliate tracking. The links are just how it starts.
1. What’s the difference between a regular link and an affiliate link?
A regular link just sends a user to a page. An affiliate link includes tracking parameters (like aff_id, utm_source, or click_id) that tell the brand who sent the user, from where, and why. It’s the same destination — but with metadata that gets you paid.
2. What’s a click_id, and why does everyone talk about it in S2S tracking?click_id is a unique ID assigned to every click by your tracker. It travels with the user and later gets “posted back” when a conversion happens. It’s the glue between your click and the sale. No click_id, no attribution, no commission. Simple as that.
3. Can I just use UTMs and Google Analytics to track my affiliate links?
UTMs are great for reporting — but not for attribution. GA won’t tell you which click led to a $50 payout. For that, you need a dedicated affiliate tracker with postbacks or conversions manually logged. Use UTMs for funnel analysis, but don’t rely on them alone for revenue tracking.
4. What’s the best way to protect my affiliate campaigns from fraud or bad traffic?
Use a tracker with bot filtering, IP blacklisting, and rules-based redirects. Block data centers, monitor conversion rates by source, and don’t trust free traffic sources blindly. If something looks too good to be true — it probably is.
5. Should I build my own tracking system or use a SaaS tracker like RedTrack/Voluum?
Unless you’re doing insane volume or have a dev team in-house, go with a SaaS tracker. They’re fast, reliable, and come with anti-fraud, redirect logic, split-testing, and analytics out of the box. DIY works — but it's not worth the headache until you scale big.
6. How do I pass affiliate data to my CRM?
You grab URL parameters (like click_id, utm_*, subid) on the landing page and store them in hidden fields or cookies. When the user submits a form, those values go into your CRM. From there, you can match conversions back to affiliates and fire postbacks automatically.
7. Why are postbacks more accurate than cookies?
Cookies depend on the user’s browser — which might block them, delete them, or never allow them in the first place (looking at you, iOS). Postbacks are server-to-server. No browser issues, no ad blockers, no guesswork.
8. What tools do serious affiliate marketers use for tracking?
Tracker: Tracknow
Analytics: GA4, Looker Studio, Plausible
CRM: HubSpot, GoHighLevel, custom solutions
Landing Pages: Unbounce, Swipe Pages, or custom-coded
Automation: Zapier, Make (Integromat), webhooks everywhere
9. How long does it take to set all this up?
Honestly? A day or two, max — once you know what you’re doing. You’ll spend more time planning what to track and how to structure campaigns than actually wiring things up. But trust me, it’s worth it. Tracking is the difference between a hobby and a scalable business.
Vlad Soloviev
Business Development Manager
