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Run an Affiliate Program in Miva 5.5

An affiliate program is an excellent way to attract new shoppers while only paying out money if purchases are actually made. Though some affiliate programs do pay for hits (incoming traffic) this practice is rare. An affiliate program allows other people (via Web sites) to refer their own audiences to your store. When a purchase is made as a result of that referral, the affiliate (the one who made the referral) earns a commission.

MIVA Merchant 5 includes a basic affiliate program to get you started quickly.

Configuring the Affiliate Program

In order to take on affiliates, you must first enact the program.

  1. In the Admin Menu, click the Affiliate Configuration link
  2. On the right, click the Options link
  3. Set the Options for the program. Activate Affiliate Program: Check this box to activate the program

    4. Default Application Status:

    You can allow auto-approval for anyone signing up, or put them in a Pending status, which allows you to approve any affiliates before they will earn actual commissions on referrals. It is recommended that all signups are Pending until you can approve or reject them.

    Default Commission Per Referral (hit): This is the amount you will pay for each time a visitor comes to the store as a result of a referring affiliate's link. Many programs do not offer a pay-per-hit because anyone can continuously click the affiliate's link to add up. Enter this is a whole number with no currency symbols.

    Default Commission Percent of Order: Enter the commission, in a percentage amount, you will pay affiliates for orders placed in the store as a result of their referrals. Enter this as a number only (no percent sign). Also select whether the commission should be applied for the Entire Order (includes shipping and tax) or on the Order Subtotal (the order total less shipping and tax).

    Default Commission Flat Fee Per Order: You can offer affiliates a set dollar amount per order, such as $.50 or $1.00. Some stores offer just a flat commission on each order rather than a percentage, and some offer both.

    Payout Threshold: This is the total amount an affiliate must earn before he/she will be paid.

    Link Image: You can upload a graphic, such as a banner ad, for the affiliate to use on his/her Web site.

    Link Text: You can enter specific text the affiliate should use on his/her Web site, such as "Buy from the Jewel Shop now".

    Terms: Here you should outline the terms of your affiliate program. This text area input can contain HTML.

  4. Click the Update button
  5. Click the Lost Password Email link
  6. Enter the email address the lost password email will be sent FROM (and include a CC if you want someone other than the affiliate to receive it). Also enter the Subject and Header Text (which will precede the password information)
  7. Click the Update button
  8. Click the Affiliate Email Notification Link
  9. If you'd like to be notified via email when someone signs up as an Affiliate, check off the Activate New Affiliates Email box. You can also set the From and To and CC email addresses, and the Subject and the Header of the email
  10. Click the Update button

Adding Affiliates

If you have people you want as Affiliates and don't want to send them through the sign up page in the store, you can manually create them.

  1. In the Affiliate Configuration screen, click the Affiliates link
  2. Click the button to create a new affiliate
  3. Enter a unique login, email address, and password for the new affiliate. Remember, codes cannot contain spaces or special characters
  4. Select whether the affiliate is approved, rejected, or in a pending status
  5. Click the Info link
  6. Enter all information, including site name and URL, mailing address, etc
  7. Click the Commission link
  8. You can override the default program settings, so each affiliate can earn money by different methods or amounts. Make any changes on the commissions for this affiliate here. If you want the default settings to apply to this affiliate, do nothing
  9. Click the Add button.

Editing & Managing Affiliates

You can change an affiliate's status, information and/or commissions at any time. If you set all new affiliates as a Pending status, you will need to visit your Admin Area to approve or reject affiliates.

  1. In the Affiliate Configuration screen, click the Affiliates link
  2. Find the affiliate you want to modify and click the Edit button
  3. Verify the status of the affiliate—if it is Pending, you want to approve or reject the affiliate
  4. If needed, click the Info or Commission links to change affiliate information. Be sure to click the Update button if you make changes
  5. Click the Earnings link

    Here you can view the earnings of the affiliate. You'll see the date and time of the order, as well as the order number, order amount and the commission earned for that order. You can remove or void any commissions earned. For example, if an order was canceled, you may want to remove the listing. Or, if you find the affiliate is cheating the program, you may want to void the payout.

  6. When finished, click the Update button