1. Affiliate: An individual or company that promotes products or services of another company in exchange for a commission on the sales or leads they generate.
Example: A blogger promoting a skincare product and earning a commission on each sale made through their referral link.
2. Affiliate Link: A unique URL provided to affiliates to track the traffic and sales generated through their marketing efforts.
Example: https://example.com/product?ref=affiliate123
3. Commission: A percentage or fixed amount of money earned by an affiliate for each sale, lead, or action completed through their referral link.
Example: Earning $10 for each sale of a book through your affiliate link.
4. Merchant: A company or individual that sells products or services and offers affiliate programs to promote their business.
Example: Amazon, which has an extensive affiliate program called Amazon Associates.
5. Affiliate Program: A marketing program where merchants offer affiliates a commission for promoting their products or services.
Example: The Amazon Associates program that pays affiliates for sales generated through their referral links.
6. Affiliate Network: A platform that connects affiliates with merchants and manages the affiliate programs, tracking, and payments.
Example: Commission Junction (CJ), ShareASale.
7. Cost Per Action (CPA): A type of affiliate marketing model where affiliates earn a commission for a specific action completed by the referred user, such as a sale, sign-up, or download.
Example: Earning $5 for each user who signs up for a free trial through your affiliate link.
8. Click-Through Rate (CTR): The percentage of people who click on an affiliate link compared to the number of people who view the link.
Example: If 1000 people see your link and 50 click on it, the CTR is 5%.
9. Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who complete the desired action (e.g., make a purchase) after clicking an affiliate link.
Example: If 100 people click your link and 10 make a purchase, the conversion rate is 10%.
10. Landing Page: A specific web page where visitors land after clicking an affiliate link, designed to convert visitors into customers.
Example: A product page or a specially designed promotional page.
11. Cookies: Small pieces of data stored on a user’s browser to track their activity and attribute sales or leads to the correct affiliate.
Example: A 30-day cookie window means the affiliate will get credited for sales made within 30 days of the user clicking their link.
12. EPC (Earnings Per Click): A metric that shows the average earnings affiliates make each time someone clicks on their affiliate link.
Example: If an affiliate earns $50 from 200 clicks, the EPC is $0.25.
13. Niche: A specific segment of the market targeted by affiliates, often defined by specific interests or needs.
Example: Health and fitness, technology gadgets, pet supplies.
14. Pay Per Click (PPC): A type of affiliate marketing model where affiliates earn a commission each time a user clicks on an affiliate link.
Example: Google AdSense pays affiliates for each click on ads displayed on their websites.
15. Pay Per Sale (PPS): A model where affiliates earn a commission only when a referred customer makes a purchase.
Example: Earning a percentage of the sale value every time a customer buys a product through your link.
16. Pay Per Lead (PPL): A model where affiliates earn a commission for generating leads, such as sign-ups or registrations.
Example: Earning $2 for every user who fills out a contact form.
17. Sub-Affiliate: An affiliate who is recruited by another affiliate to join an affiliate program, with the original affiliate earning a commission on the sub-affiliate’s performance.
Example: Affiliate A recruits Affiliate B and earns a small percentage of Affiliate B’s commissions.
18. ROI (Return on Investment): A measure of the profitability of an affiliate marketing campaign, calculated by comparing the revenue generated to the costs incurred.
Example: If you spend $100 on marketing and earn $300 in commissions, your ROI is 200%.
19. Two-Tier Affiliate Program: A program that allows affiliates to earn commissions on both their direct sales and the sales generated by affiliates they recruit.
Example: Affiliate A earns commissions on their sales and also on the sales made by Affiliate B, whom they recruited.
20. Affiliate Dashboard: An online interface provided by the merchant or affiliate network where affiliates can track their performance, earnings, and other metrics.
Example: A dashboard showing the number of clicks, sales, and commissions earned by an affiliate.
This glossary covers the fundamental terms and concepts in affiliate marketing, providing a comprehensive overview for anyone looking to understand or get involved in this field.