Affiliate Manager — StudioM Platform Guide¶
Who this guide is for: Business owners who want to run a referral or affiliate programme — rewarding people for sending new clients your way. Time to read: Approximately 8 minutes
What Is the Affiliate Manager?¶
The Affiliate Manager lets you run a formal referral/affiliate programme where you recruit other people (affiliates) to promote your business, then automatically track referrals and pay commissions when they result in sales.
Instead of manually tracking who referred who and calculating payments in a spreadsheet, the platform handles it all: unique tracking links, real-time reporting, and commission records in one place.
Common uses: - Rewarding existing clients who refer new clients - Running a formal affiliate programme with content creators or business partners - Building a referral network for your services or products
Need StudioM Support for This? Initial setup of the Affiliate Manager — including connecting your payment processor and configuring your commission structure — is done by StudioM. Contact us when you're ready to launch your programme.
How to Get There¶
Navigate to: Marketing (left sidebar) → Affiliate Manager
Key Concepts¶
| Term | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Affiliate | A person who promotes your business and earns commissions on referred sales |
| Campaign | A specific programme with its own commission rules and tracked offers |
| Tracking Link | A unique URL each affiliate uses — when someone buys via this link, the sale is attributed to that affiliate |
| Commission | The payment owed to an affiliate for a successful referral |
| Payout | The actual transfer of earned commissions to the affiliate |
| Cookie Duration | How long after clicking an affiliate's link a purchase still counts as their referral (typically 60–90 days) |
Commission Types¶
When setting up an affiliate campaign, choose how affiliates earn:
| Commission Type | How It Works |
|---|---|
| Flat Rate | A fixed dollar amount per sale (e.g., $50 per new client) |
| Percentage | A percentage of the sale value (e.g., 20% of the first payment) |
| Recurring | Commission paid on repeat billing — first payment only, first 3 months, first 12 months, or lifetime |
| Tiered | Higher commission rates for affiliates who refer more volume |
For digital products or courses, percentage commissions (20–50%) are standard. For services, flat rate commissions ($50–$200) are more common.
How Affiliates Get Their Links¶
Each affiliate gets a unique tracking URL (their referral link). When someone clicks the link and then makes a purchase within the cookie window, that sale is automatically attributed to the affiliate.
Affiliates can access their links and track their performance through the Affiliate Portal — a dedicated dashboard showing: - Their unique referral link - Clicks and conversions in real time - Commissions earned - Payout history - Marketing materials you've provided
Need StudioM Support for This? The Affiliate Portal URL and sign-up page are configured by StudioM. Contact us to get these set up.
Inviting Affiliates¶
Option 1: Send an Invitation¶
- Navigate to Marketing → Affiliate Manager → Affiliates
- Click + Invite Affiliate
- Enter the person's name and email
- They receive an email invitation to join and access their portal
Option 2: Via Contact Record¶
- Open the contact record of the person you want to make an affiliate
- Find the Affiliates section
- Add them as an affiliate directly
Option 3: Public Sign-Up Page¶
Set up a page where people can apply to become affiliates themselves. Applications come to you for approval before they're activated.
Managing Affiliates¶
Affiliate Statuses¶
| Status | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Pending | Applied but not yet approved |
| Active | Approved and can generate referrals |
| Suspended | Temporarily deactivated |
| Rejected | Application declined |
Approving or Rejecting Applications¶
- Go to Affiliate Manager → Affiliates
- Find affiliates with "Pending" status
- Click to review and approve or reject
Suspending an Affiliate¶
If you need to pause an affiliate's participation: 1. Find the affiliate → open their record 2. Change status to Suspended 3. Their tracking links stop generating commissions until reactivated
Tracking Performance¶
The Campaign Dashboard¶
Navigate to Affiliate Manager → Campaigns → click a campaign to see: - Total clicks on affiliate links - Total conversions (sales attributed) - Total commissions owed - Top-performing affiliates
Per-Affiliate Reports¶
Click on any affiliate to see their individual stats: click counts, conversions, earnings, and payout history.
Exporting Data¶
Export commission and affiliate data as a CSV for your accountant or records.
Managing Commission Approvals¶
When an affiliate earns a commission, you can choose to approve payouts automatically or manually review each one:
Auto-approval: Commissions are approved as soon as a sale is confirmed. Best for straightforward programmes with clear refund policies.
Manual approval: You review each commission before approving. Useful if you want to verify sales haven't been refunded before paying out.
Commission statuses: - Pending — awaiting approval - Approved — ready to be paid out - Paid — payout processed - Rejected — commission declined (e.g., due to a refund)
Processing Payouts¶
Once commissions are approved, process the payout to the affiliate: 1. Navigate to Affiliate Manager → Payouts 2. Select the approved commissions to pay 3. Process via your connected payment processor (e.g., Stripe)
Affiliates receive their payment and the payout is recorded in the system.
Need StudioM Support for This? Payment processor connection for affiliate payouts requires configuration. Contact StudioM Support if payouts aren't processing correctly.
Providing Marketing Materials to Affiliates¶
Make it easy for affiliates to promote you by giving them ready-to-use assets: - Banner images (various sizes) - Email copy templates - Social media captions - Promotional graphics - Video scripts
Upload materials in Affiliate Manager → Settings → Resources — they appear in each affiliate's portal for download.
Automating the Affiliate Programme¶
Connect your affiliate programme to workflows for seamless automation:
Trigger: Affiliate Sign-Up → Send a welcome email with their portal link and marketing materials
Trigger: Conversion Recorded → Notify you when an affiliate makes a sale → Send the affiliate a congratulations message
Trigger: Commission Approved → Notify the affiliate their commission is approved and payment is coming
Best Practices¶
- Set competitive commission rates — research what similar programmes offer in your industry; being notably lower will make recruiting difficult
- Set a reasonable cookie window — 60–90 days is standard; shorter windows feel unfair to affiliates
- Communicate regularly — update affiliates on new offers, promotional periods, and their performance
- Provide quality marketing materials — the easier you make it to promote you, the more actively your affiliates will do so
- Screen affiliates — not everyone is the right fit; review applications and only approve people whose audience aligns with your business
- Pay on time — nothing damages an affiliate relationship faster than delayed or inconsistent payments
Common Questions¶
Q: Do I need to pay GST on affiliate commissions? Affiliate commissions may have tax implications depending on your business structure and jurisdiction. Consult your accountant.
Q: Can one person be both a client and an affiliate? Yes — existing clients are often your best affiliates. They can be in your CRM as a contact and also have affiliate status.
Q: What if a referred person doesn't buy immediately — do cookies still track it? Yes — if someone clicks an affiliate's link and makes a purchase within the cookie window (typically 60–90 days), the sale is still attributed to that affiliate.
Q: Can I run multiple affiliate campaigns simultaneously? Yes — create separate campaigns with different commission structures for different products, services, or audiences.
Q: What's the difference between an affiliate and a referral partner? Functionally the same in this platform — both get a tracking link and earn commissions. "Affiliate" tends to be used for external promoters; "referral partner" for trusted personal referrals. The mechanics are identical.
Need Help?¶
Contact StudioM Support any time.
- Email: support@makoa.us
- Live Chat: Available inside the platform
Related guides: Payments and Invoicing · Workflows (Automations) · Contacts and CRM