How to Manage and Track Your Affiliate Links Properly

What is an affiliate link, and why must you disclose it?

An affiliate link contains an ID that ties a purchase to you. If a reader clicks and then buys, you earn a commission. The reader does not pay more, but you have a financial interest in the click.

In France, the law of June 9, 2023 on commercial influence requires paid promotion to be flagged with an explicit mention, such as “Advertising” or “Commercial partnership,” and a 2024 ordinance later adapted that framework. Industry professionals recommend applying the same transparency to affiliate links. Rules differ from country to country. For your exact situation, check the official texts or ask a lawyer: this guide is not legal advice.

How do you write a proper “affiliate link” notice?

A good notice is visible, close to the link and easy to understand. A hashtag lost among fifteen others does not do the job.

• Place it before the link or right next to it, not at the bottom of a long text.
• Use plain words: “Affiliate link: I earn a commission if you buy,” or “Advertising,” depending on the case.
• In a video, say it out loud and show it on screen, not only in the description.
• Repeat it in every post that applies, not just once in your profile.

How do you organize your affiliate links?

Once you have more than five or six programs, finding which link is where becomes a chore. Keep a list with, for each link, the program, the product, the creation date, where it is published and when the offer ends.

Sort your links by program or by topic, and note in the link’s name what it promotes. Review the list every quarter: an ended offer, a withdrawn product or a closed program leaves dead links, which earn nothing and annoy readers.

Why use a short link for your affiliate links?

Affiliate addresses are long, full of parameters and often unappealing. A short link on your brand’s name looks cleaner, and above all it gives you control. If the program changes its address or the offer ends, you change the destination once, without editing twenty articles.

One important point: some programs forbid or restrict the use of third-party link shorteners, or require a specific link format. Read the program’s terms before you shorten. If in doubt, ask the affiliate network.

How do you track clicks on your affiliate links?

The affiliate platform gives you its own numbers: clicks, sales, commissions. Those are the ones that count for your payment. Your short link tool brings something else: what happens before, meaning where people click, from which piece of content and at what time.

Create one link per placement (article, video, newsletter). By crossing your tool’s clicks with the platform’s sales, you see where the conversion rate is good and where you lose readers. Do not expect identical numbers: the two tools count differently.

What can Qlynk do for affiliate links?

With Qlynk you can create one short link per program, sort it into categories and subcategories, change the destination later and read the clicks (bots filtered out). The Pro plan adds link expiration, handy for a dated promotion, and a CSV export. Qlynk does not measure sales: that tracking stays with the affiliate platform.

Which good habits should you keep over time?

An affiliate link first serves your audience. Only recommend what you have used or examined seriously, and simply say so when you have not tested it. Your credibility is worth more than a commission.

Respect each program’s terms. Some limit where links can appear, forbid sending them by email or impose their own notices. Read them before you publish, and keep a record of the version you accepted.

Check from time to time that your links still work and still lead to the right product. Replace expired offers, and do not leave old articles online that point to ended promotions. Finally, keep the commission statements from your platforms: you need them for your bookkeeping and for reporting your income, and the rules depend on your status.