Affiliate links appear in product roundups, video descriptions, newsletters, and social posts. Some product links are affiliate marketing referral links, meaning the creator or publisher may earn a commission if a reader makes a purchase through the link.
Creator recommendations can influence purchase decisions. Traackr's 2025 report says 53% of Millennial and Gen Z consumers were at least somewhat likely to purchase because of a recommendation from an influencer they follow.
This guide covers how to generate affiliate links for your partners, and how creators and publishers can use those links in their content.
What is an affiliate link?
An affiliate link is a URL with a unique ID that allows brands to attribute traffic and conversions to pay commissions to marketing partners.
When an affiliate partner—the creator, influencer, or publisher posting the link—signs up for a brand’s affiliate marketing program, they receive a unique link to the brand’s website. These links contain the partner’s affiliate ID.
When a potential customer clicks on the link, their visit to your site is attributed to the affiliate. If someone buys a product using the affiliate link, the brand pays the affiliate marketer a commission on the sale.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires affiliate partners to disclose their connection to your product or service, which means your affiliates will need to note when they receive commission on links.
Affiliate link example
Brands and creators use affiliate links in many industries, from fitness to makeup. For creators, these partnerships often start as side hustles that eventually generate reliable passive income.
In this example, creator and affiliate marketer @camifromtheinternet posts fashion content like outfits of the day on Instagram.
In this Instagram video, she shows a few of her favorite outfits from April. When viewers navigate to her profile homepage and click on her link in bio, they see a list of pages that include affiliate links.
In her product roundup on the affiliate marketing platform ShopMy, viewers can shop the individual products she highlights in her videos.
When you click on a product in the roundup, you’re redirected to the brand’s website.
If you check the browser bar after clicking an affiliate link like this, you’ll see tracking information in the form of UTM parameters. It can include labels for the campaign, the referral source, and content placement.
What is affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a referral marketing technique in which affiliate partners earn a commission by promoting a product or service on behalf of a business—typically a retailer—through affiliate links.
Amazon Associates follows this model: creators, publishers, and bloggers use linking tools to recommend products and earn from qualifying purchases.
The company rewards the affiliate partner with a payout for achieving specific results, like clicks and conversions (for example, when website visitors sign up for a newsletter or become paying customers).
Affiliate marketing takes place on various channels, including TikTok video content, email marketing, blogs, and podcasts.
How to make affiliate links in 4 steps
Here’s how to make your own affiliate links in a few key steps:
1. Log in to your affiliate tool
Log in to your affiliate management app or tool. Here, you can set affiliate commission rates, generate links, and track each creator’s performance.
Check out our tutorial to learn how to set up an affiliate program for your brand.
2. Add affiliates
Add affiliates to your program. Affiliate management platforms like Shopify Collabs and UpPromote offer extensive affiliate networks, which you can browse to find new partners.
Search by name and market niche to select affiliates who are suitable ambassadors for your products or services.
The affiliates you choose to work with have access to an affiliate dashboard to keep both parties aligned on your affiliate marketing strategy.
3. Create unique affiliate links
The link generator in your affiliate marketing platform will automatically create links for each partner.
You’ll decide whether you want affiliate links for specific products or for your entire store (which means deciding which products are commissionable).
4. Customize the URLs
Your links automatically include affiliate-specific information, but to capture additional analytics, you can add UTMs. For example, you could add “utm_source = campaign name" to track the success of a particular campaign or a specific landing page.
Common UTM parameters for affiliate tracking include:
- utm_source=affiliate (identifies traffic as affiliate-driven)
- utm_medium=influencer or utm_medium=blog (distinguishes partner types)
- utm_campaign=summer2026 or utm_campaign=[affiliate_name] (tracks specific campaigns or partners)
- utm_content=instagram_bio or utm_content=youtube_description (shows where the link was placed)
The complete affiliate URL might look like this:
yourstore.com/products/bestseller?utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=influencer&utm_campaign=jane_smith&utm_content=instagram_story
Most auto-generated URLs for product pages look like random strings of letters and numbers, and UTM parameters can make them even longer.
When possible, use branded, consistent URLs so partners and shoppers can recognize the link destination.”
Long URLs with multiple UTM parameters can look cluttered. Tools like Bitly or Pretty Links let you create clean, branded short links while preserving all tracking data.
For example, the athletic wear company Gymshark could use the link “gymshark.com/john20” for a creator named John offering a 20% discount to customers who purchase through his link, and “gymshark.com/lindsay20” for a creator named Lindsay.
4 benefits of using affiliate links
Affiliate links can benefit your brand through:
- Increased brand trust
- Performance tracking
- Opportunity for relationship-building
- Ease of use and efficiency
1. Increased brand trust
Successful affiliate marketing accelerates the process of building brand trust, since a relationship already exists between the affiliate partner and the consumer.
When customers see someone they trust promoting your brand, they may be more likely to make the leap to buy your products.
2. Performance tracking
Affiliate programs can provide access to metrics that you might not be able to source through standard influencer marketing partnerships, in which you simply gift affiliate products to influencers or pay them upfront to promote your brand.
With affiliate marketing, brands can capture sales analytics and traffic data from affiliate links. For example, an affiliate marketing platform shows you the campaigns’ return on investment (ROI). This lets you track your affiliate sales against the commissions and gifts you’re offering, helping you ensure you’re setting the right rates.
Affiliate programs give you insight into the performance of individual affiliates.
“It’s very important that you monitor your top creators,” says Lizzy Masotta, senior product lead at Shopify. “If there is a creator who’s very high performing for you, it’s a good idea to retain that creator and make sure you can continue to give them the incentives that they deserve, so they keep promoting your brand accordingly.”
3. Opportunity for relationship-building
Custom links make it easier to attribute sales to individual partners and pay commissions accurately. That data can help brands decide which partnerships to continue.
This helps strengthen relationships between brand partners and can lead to long-term partnerships with top creator talent. It can also incentivize creators to continue posting about your products, as they earn a commission on each sale.
4. Ease of use and efficiency
Affiliate programs are often performance-based, so brands pay commissions after a tracked action, such as a sale.
They don’t always need to buy ad placements for affiliate campaigns, but costs can include commissions, software, discounts, samples, and partner management.
Many companies use a software-as-a-service (SaaS) tool like Shopify Collabs to handle the sourcing, management, and payments. This can make the process easier for teams managing multiple partners.
Is an affiliate program right for your business?
Affiliate programs can help ecommerce businesses track partner-driven traffic and sales. They work best when the brand has clear commission terms, suitable partners, and a way to measure performance.
Use an affiliate platform with recruitment features, such as Shopify Collabs, or join an affiliate network that connects merchants with publishers.
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How to make affiliate links FAQ
How can I create an affiliate program?
If you’re ready to start affiliate marketing for your business, follow these steps:
- Set goals for your affiliate program.
- Choose an affiliate marketing tool.
- Recruit affiliates.
- Choose the right products.
- Determine commission rates.
- Set cookie durations.
- Decide on a gifting strategy.
- Create promotions.
- Manage affiliate relationships.
- Track and measure performance.
What’s the difference between a referral and an affiliate?
Referral marketing involves rewarding customers when they invite friends and family to try your product or service. A referral program doesn’t require participants to have a platform like a blog or social media following. Affiliate marketing refers to third-party brand ambassadors who promote your products and send customers to your business in exchange for a commission.
What is a good strategy for recruiting affiliates?
Here are some strategies for recruiting affiliates:
- Join an affiliate network like UpPromote.
- Promote your affiliate marketing program on your website.
- Promote your program on social media platforms.
