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AffiliateBase Setup, Attribution, and Payout Workflows

Understand how AffiliateBase moves a merchant from Stripe setup through affiliate attribution, commissions, payout runs, and reconciliation.

Table of Contents

This page describes the AffiliateBase operating paths for merchants and developers: setup, attribution from a referral to a payout, affiliate lifecycle, and payouts. The workflows are not a separate automation product in the current app.

Merchant setup workflow

Setup is a seven-step checklist in two groups. The Set up steps open in order:

  1. Connect Stripe.
  2. Portal and payout defaults.
  3. Create a campaign.
  4. Choose your checkout (or promo codes only).

Once those are done, the three Go live steps are all open, because they wait on real traffic:

  1. Verify tracking: open the test link and complete a checkout until Stripe returns the generated referral ID. On the promo-code path, this step is Set up promo codes.
  2. Add your first affiliate.
  3. First referred sale.

You can add affiliates before tracking is verified. Setup finishes with the first referred sale.

The Choose your checkout step supports these paths:

Setup pathHow attribution works
Stripe Payment LinkAffiliateBase adds client_reference_id to the Stripe link after a referred visit.
Buy Button or Pricing TableAffiliateBase sets client-reference-id on the Stripe element.
Custom Checkout SessionYour page submits referral_id to your server, then your server sets client_reference_id.
Promo codes only, Generate codes automaticallyAffiliateBase generates affiliate-specific Stripe promotion codes from the campaign’s selected Stripe discount.
Promo codes only, Manage codes individuallyAssign an existing Stripe promotion code or create one for an affiliate with Manage promo codes on the affiliate’s Links & codes tab; no campaign discount default is required.

If someone else edits your site, copy the Install request note under Hand this to a developer in Setup step 4 and send it to them. Both promo-code paths support attribution without a tracking script. Individual assignments apply to new qualifying redemptions after assignment; they do not import earlier redemptions. See Assign Stripe Promo Codes to Affiliates.

Attribution to payout workflow

Attribution and money state move through these records:

  1. Link tracking or a recognized Stripe promo-code redemption creates or updates a referral.
  2. Qualified activity moves the referral from visitor to lead or conversion. A browser identify call records a lead; a verified Stripe payment records a conversion.
  3. Stripe events create a sale.
  4. A qualifying paid sale creates a commission under the campaign rules. An individually assigned code on a zero-value invoice can establish a referral without earning a monetary commission.
  5. Mature commissions move from pending to due.
  6. Due commissions are grouped into payouts and optional payout runs.
  7. Payout handling moves payouts through processing to paid, or into remediation when export or payout contact details are missing.

Affiliate lifecycle workflow

Affiliates can be invited, created directly, archived, and restored. Archiving preserves historical referrals, sales, commissions, payouts, and reporting records while hiding the affiliate from active lists and portal selection.

Trackable affiliate states are pending and active. Disabled, suspicious, rejected, and banned affiliates, archived affiliate records, archived links, and archived campaigns do not drive new attribution.

Payout workflow

The account payout methods are PayPal (paypal), Wise (wise), and Stripe Connect. PayPal and Wise are chosen in Settings -> General -> Payout method. Stripe Connect is turned on in Settings -> Stripe Payouts after its checklist passes. It needs your own Stripe Connect platform with an approved platform profile.

MethodWorkflow
paypalAffiliate PayPal emails are required; AffiliateBase generates PayPal export files and tracks reconciliation.
wiseAffiliate Wise emails are required; AffiliateBase generates Wise export files and tracks reconciliation.
Stripe ConnectAffiliates connect their own Stripe account; AffiliateBase sends one Stripe transfer per payout from the merchant’s Stripe balance. Affiliates Stripe can’t pay fall back to PayPal or Wise exports. See Pay Affiliates Through Stripe.
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