To start an affiliate program, define the business result you want, set the commission and tracking rules, choose a tool that fits your store, recruit suitable partners, and give them clear disclosures and ready-to-use promotional materials. The work does not end at launch: you need to review results, handle partner questions, and monitor how promotions are presented.
1. Set a measurable goal before choosing software
Decide what the program should accomplish and how you will judge progress. For example, you might want to reach a new audience, generate first-time customer sales, or encourage repeat purchases. Choose measures that reflect that goal, such as qualified referrals, completed orders, or the contribution those orders make after commissions and other costs.
Write down the audience and products you want partners to promote, the period you will use to evaluate results, and what counts as a successful referral. Shopify’s 2026 setup guide also begins with setting clear goals, before the operational choices that follow: Shopify’s guide to starting an affiliate program.
2. Choose a tool for the work your program requires
Affiliate software should help you administer the program, not make the business decisions for you. Check whether a prospective tool supports the functions you actually need:
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- Partner applications, onboarding, and account administration.
- Unique referral links and a way to attribute qualifying activity to a partner.
- Reporting that lets you review referrals and resulting sales.
- A way to share promotions, product details, and approved brand assets.
- Payment workflows and program controls that fit your operations.
Confirm that the tool works with your ecommerce platform and checkout, and establish what its reporting does and does not count. Compare total cost and administration effort against the size and complexity of your program; available evidence does not establish a universally best platform or current comparable prices.
Impact’s partner help documentation illustrates the affiliate-facing side of the workflow: partners can create tracking links and find brand assets, product listings, and promotions, with available options varying by brand. That describes a partner workflow, not a recommendation that Impact is the right merchant-side platform for every business: Impact’s partner guide.
3. Decide the program rules before recruiting
Partners should know what they can earn, which referrals qualify, and how tracking works before they publish a link. Put the terms in writing and make them accessible during application or onboarding.
Set commissions around your economics
There is no universal commission rate established here. Work out what a referred sale can support after product costs, fulfillment, payment fees, refunds, discounts, and other variable expenses. Then decide whether the commission applies to a percentage of an order or a fixed amount, which products or transactions qualify, and how cancellations or refunds affect credit and payment.
If you use different rates for product categories or partner performance, state the conditions for each tier and how a partner moves between tiers. Avoid promising earnings that your margins cannot sustain.
Define attribution and the purchase window
Explain how a referral is credited, including what happens if a customer clicks links from more than one partner or returns later to buy. Set a cookie or other attribution window that makes sense for the product’s buying cycle and your tracking setup. Neither a universal commission nor a universal cookie duration is supported: both are business decisions that depend on margins, customer economics, purchase timing, and the written terms.
Make promotions and exclusions explicit
Specify whether partners may use discount codes, paid search, email, social posts, product reviews, or other channels, and identify any prohibited claims or promotional methods. If you offer product gifts or samples, say whether they are optional, whether the partner must disclose them, and whether receiving one affects commission. The rules should make clear what happens when a promotion falls outside the program.
4. Find partners who fit your customers and vet them
Recruit people whose audiences and content are relevant to the product, rather than selecting partners solely by follower count. Review the quality and originality of their work, the way they describe products, audience fit, and whether their promotion style is compatible with your brand and rules.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsShopify’s own affiliate program lists an active website, an established audience, original content, and relevant ecommerce or entrepreneurship experience among its applicant requirements. Those are Shopify’s criteria for its program, not universal requirements for merchants: Shopify Affiliate Program information.
5. Onboard partners and provide usable materials
Give each accepted partner a concise explanation of the program terms, how to make and use their tracking links, when commissions qualify, and where to get help. Provide accurate product descriptions, images or other approved assets, current promotions, and any claims or wording partners must avoid. Make sure links point to the intended product or landing page and that the partner can identify the correct campaign or offer.
Test the application, link, and reporting workflow before inviting partners at scale. A partner needs to be able to find the right assets and promotion, while you need to be able to resolve basic questions about attribution and eligibility without ambiguity.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.6. Require clear affiliate disclosures
In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission says publishers should clearly and conspicuously disclose their relationship to a retailer so readers can evaluate an endorsement. Place the disclosure close to the recommendation; a disclosure separated from a review or its links may not be noticed in context. The FTC gives this example: “I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.” It cautions that “affiliate link” alone may not communicate that the publisher is paid, while “paid link” beside a link can adequately convey the relationship. Read the FTC’s Endorsement Guides FAQ.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchDisclosure requirements vary by jurisdiction, so check the rules that apply in each market where partners publish or customers are reached. Some programs also impose their own terms. For example, Amazon Associates requires its participants to use a clear, conspicuous link-level disclosure and the site statement “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.” That statement is specific to Amazon’s program, not a universal affiliate disclosure: Amazon Associates disclosure guidance.
7. Monitor performance and partner conduct
Review program results against the goal you set, using the same definitions for referrals, completed sales, refunds, and commissions that appear in your terms. Look for tracking problems, unusual referral patterns, promotions that no longer apply, and partners whose content or claims need attention. Use findings to adjust recruitment, materials, or rules, and communicate changes to partners rather than leaving them to discover a broken link or expired offer.
Oversight remains the merchant’s responsibility even when an outside platform helps run the program. The FTC states: “Delegating part of your promotional program to an outside company doesn’t relieve you of responsibility under the FTC Act.” It also says advertisers may be liable when endorsements fail to disclose unexpected material connections and describes the need for reasonable programs to train and monitor influencers they pay and direct. Build training and periodic review into operations, not just the onboarding email: FTC guidance on endorsements and advertiser oversight.
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