In order to understand how affiliate marketers make money, you need to know something about the terminology. Whenever you are calculating your earnings as an affiliate, you’ll want to be aware of the following definitions:
- A Qualified Referral: This is set by the Advertiser, who predetermines what constitutes a “Qualified Action.” An Affiliate receives compensation only upon these conditions being met.
- A Payout Reversal caused by a customer. Happens when:
- A customer’s payment authorization fails
- A customer conducts a fraudulent sale
- An order is returned or unclaimed by the customer
- A repeat/duplicate order is recorded
- An order is cancelled
- A Payout Reversal caused by the Affiliate. Happens when:
- An Affiliate puts through a fraudulent transaction
- A test transaction is reversed by the advertiser
- Self-referral transactions are conducted (if they are prohibited)
- A Payout Reversal caused by the Merchant. Happens when:
- Test transactions are conducted
- Orders are not fulfilled
- Orders are adjusted (corrected)
- A “Waiting” or “Locking Period” – An affiliate commission only becomes irreversible once the “Lock Date” has been reached. Until then it could be reversed. This Lock Date is predetermined by the Advertiser and can typically be up to–and sometimes more than–60 days.
You should now have a much better idea of how affiliate marketers make money!