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Turn on your affiliate programme

Updated

Turn on your affiliate programme (0:25)

An affiliate programme lets other people promote your forms with their own link and earn a commission on each sale. You switch it on once for your account, set the default commission, and then choose which forms affiliates can promote.

Switch on the programme

Section titled “Switch on the programme”

You need the Admin or Super Admin role to change these settings.

  1. In the sidebar, go to Affiliate → Settings.

    The Affiliate menu in the BCL sidebar, with Settings highlighted

  2. On the Affiliate Settings tab, under Global Settings, turn on Enable Affiliate Program.

    The Global Settings box with the Enable Affiliate Program switch turned on and highlighted

  3. Optional: turn on Private Affiliate Program so only people with your invitation link can join, and Require Manual Approval so new affiliates stay pending until you approve them.

    The Private Affiliate Program and Require Manual Approval switches highlighted

  4. Under Affiliate Program Link, click Copy on the Sign-up link to share with new affiliates. The Sign-in link is for people who already have an affiliate account.

    The Affiliate Program Link box with the Sign-up link and its Copy button highlighted

  5. Under Tracking Settings, set Cookie Expiration Days, the number of days after a click that a sale still counts. Turn on Direct Link Attribution instead if only sales made straight from the link should count.

    Tracking Settings with Cookie Expiration Days and Direct Link Attribution highlighted

  6. Under Additional Settings, choose the Commission Base Amount, the amount the commission is worked out on:

    Option Commission is worked out on
    Total Amount (includes shipping, tax, fees, coupon) What the customer paid in total
    Subtotal After Coupon (excludes shipping, tax, fees) The items’ price after the coupon discount
    Subtotal Before Coupon (excludes shipping, tax, fees) The items’ full price, ignoring the coupon

    Additional Settings with the Commission Base Amount field highlighted

  7. Under Regular Affiliate Settings, choose the Commission Type (Flat Rate or Percentage) and enter the Commission Rate.

    Regular Affiliate Settings with Commission Type set to Percentage and a Commission Rate of 10

  8. Under Payout Settings, set the Minimum Payout Threshold and the Payout Schedule (Weekly or Monthly), then click Save Affiliate Settings.

    Payout Settings and the Save Affiliate Settings button highlighted

The Sign-up link opens the Create your affiliate account page, where your affiliates register. See Invite affiliates to join.

The public Create your affiliate account page that the Sign-up link opens

Enable affiliates on a form

Section titled “Enable affiliates on a form”

Affiliates only see forms that have affiliates enabled. The Affiliate Settings section appears on payment, event and booking forms once the programme is saved as on. On a new payment form, Enable Affiliates is already on.

  1. Open the form, for example under Payments → Forms, and click Edit.

  2. Scroll to the Affiliate Settings section, just above Embed Code, and turn on Enable Affiliates.

    The Affiliate Settings section of a payment form with Enable Affiliates highlighted

  3. Optional: turn on Show Affiliate Information to show customers who referred them.

  4. Optional: to pay a different rate on this form, turn on Override Commission Settings and choose the Commission Type and Commission Rate. The Global Rate from your settings is shown next to the field.

    Commission Settings on a form after turning on Override Commission Settings, with the Global Rate shown

  5. Click Update Form.

Affiliates cannot be enabled on a form that uses Direct Debit.

Tips

Section titled “Tips”

A few things make the programme easier to run:

  • Switch forms on and off from the list. Once the programme is on, the Payments → Forms list has an Affiliate column with a switch for each form, so you do not need to open every form.
  • Pay commission per item or across levels. Forms with Multiple Items or Items with Variations can pay a rate on each item: see Set commission per item. To reward affiliates for people they recruit, see Multi-tier commission.
  • Keep the threshold realistic. Affiliates can only request a payout once their unpaid commission reaches the Minimum Payout Threshold, so a high figure can keep new affiliates waiting months.

Common issues

A customer bought through an affiliate link but the affiliate got no commission. What should I check?

Check that the link ends with the affiliate's ID, the affiliate is Active (not pending), and Enable Affiliates is on for that form. Free orders and forms using Direct Debit earn no commission. If the sale is valid, add it under Affiliate → Referrals with Add Referral.

The Referral Record page with the Add Referral button and the status tabs highlighted, above four referrals from one sale: Direct, Tier 2, Tier 3 and Tier 4
I turned on Show Affiliate Information but the affiliate's name does not appear on the form.

Both Enable Affiliates and Show Affiliate Information must be on for the form, the affiliate must be active, and the link must contain their ID. Also check "Referred By" Display Control in the affiliate settings: if affiliates control it, they may have hidden their name.

The Affiliate Settings section of a payment form with Enable Affiliates highlightedSee it in the steps
Can I review affiliates before they start promoting?

Yes. Turn on Require Manual Approval. New affiliates join as pending and earn nothing until you approve them under Affiliate → Affiliates.

The Private Affiliate Program and Require Manual Approval switches highlightedSee it in the steps

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