How to Start affiliate program for shopify store without an app?

[jenish]

Hey, Guys 

One of my Clients wants to start an affiliate program for his Shopify Store. and he wanted it without any app or other sources!

Can you guys help me with this so I can help my clients as well?

Thank you, Solanki Jenish

[UpPromote-old]

Hi @jenish,

Working with affiliates without app is not really a good recommendation. In fact, an affiliate app supports you to build, track and manage your team effectively. It helps you do every step by automatically instead of manually. When affiliate bring orders for you: how you can track how many orders they bring BY MONTH or EVEN BY DAY? Or if when your team grown up, how you can measure and manage their performance? etc. Indeed, an affiliate marketing app do more than that and make things you have to do more simply.

1. Create affiliate program 

You can creates different comission programs with different commission structures. In here, there are 3 commission structures included Flat rates per order; Flat rates per item; Percent per sale.

Affiliate Marketing app will help you to classify affiliates per program so you can easily manage each affiliate group. Each program has one commission rate (offer). So to start working with Affiliate marketing using our app, you (the merchant) need to have an affiliate program. In the program, you need to set a commission rule and a special product commission rule (if any)

2.  Find your affiliates by listing your offers on Marketplace

You can expand your team via affiliate app. For example, you can find your qualified affiliate via affiliate marketplace. The marketplace includes top Shopify offers that are open to any affiliate to join and apply. Also, affiliates have an option to filter offers by categories, payment method, commission structure and even lifetime commission, offer format applies to all profiles, so the more information is provided, the more possibility it is that affiliates are interested in yours.

Choosing your correct category and having a competitive commission rate is a key factor to increase the chance your offer will be more noticeable than the others.

Plus, on your description, be noted to focus on how your products stand out from the rest on the market, as well as highlight some beneficial points when becoming your brand ambassadors.

Once the viewers want to know more about your brand, they will have an option to visit your website, it's halfway there to turn them into your members.

3.  Create affiliate link and affiliate coupon

Affiliate link is generated automatically by UpPrmote: Affiliate Marketing when they get activated. Affiliate will use that link to promote the merchant shop and any order made through that link will become a referral order.

Affiliate coupon: has the same purpose with affiliate link, affiliate coupon is another option for affiliates to promote the merchant's site.

3. Track referral orders 

Furthermore, with affiliate marketing app you can track track referral orders and affiliate performance. For example, any referral order made by customers thanks to affiliate will be counted as a referral order.  Affiliate Marketing app will help you track automatically via the real-time tracking system.

4. Affiliate performance: 

Through referral orders made from affiliate link and coupon, UpPrmote: Affiliate Marketing will monitor and report affiliate performance with details of  clicks/ sales

5.  Create affiliate registration form: 

In order to join your program and become your affiliates, affiliates need to sign up the Affiliate registration form. By filling the form, they will provide their detail information for you - the merchant. You can post this registration on your shop menu to invite your visitors to join your team.

6. Share your registration form on your shop menu

Think about some ways that affiliate can approach your campaign: they are scanning their social feed and see a post of your affiliate campaign, they accidentally see your product and find it could be a lucrative item to promote, they are researching some shop in the niche and find yours,...

There are many ways to catch affiliate's eye proactively or passively, but make sure whenever they enter your main site, your campaign is transparently shown, the best practice is to put your program on Shop menu or footer or pin the project on your social profiles. UpPromote: Afiliate Marketing will support you to do it by one click

Here is a real story of a success business using affiliate marketing: Armin Reischer: How we monitor all affiliates and boost our sales – Blog Uppromote

I hope my recommendation is helpful for you! Good luck with your business!

All the bests,

UpPrmote: Affiliate Marketing

Build. Manage. Succeed with Affiliate Marketing

[EddyChung · Accepted solution]

Hi @jenish, why does your client not want an app? 

An app can make onboarding and managing ambassadors a lot easier. 

If they're really don't want an app, I think using a spreadsheet such as Google Sheets is your best bet. 

You would have to manually create a discount for each affiliate and track it in the sheet. Running reports every month to calculate everybody's sales and communicate it with them.

This is usually manageable for maybe 5-10 affiliates, but quickly becomes too much work. Affiliates will also email you often to check on their own performance. 

Once your affiliate program has out grown a spreadsheet, consider trying out my app. 

Best of luck to you!