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Understanding Click Tracking

Learn how AffRank tracks affiliate link clicks and helps you measure performance.

How Click Tracking Works

AffRank uses server-side click tracking to accurately record every affiliate link click:

  1. User clicks link on your website
  2. Click request sent to AffRank server
  3. Data recorded (time, user info, link ID, keyword)
  4. User redirected to affiliate URL
  5. Data displayed in your analytics dashboard

What Gets Tracked

Click Data

When someone clicks an affiliate link, AffRank records:

FieldDescription
TimestampExact time of click
Link IDWhich link was clicked
KeywordWhat keyword generated the click
Source URLPage where click happened
User IDYour user account
Device TypeMobile, tablet, or desktop
BrowserChrome, Firefox, Safari, etc.
Session IDUnique visitor session

Privacy-First Approach

AffRank does NOT track:

  • ❌ Individual user identities
  • ❌ Personal information
  • ❌ Browsing history beyond clicks
  • ❌ Sensitive user data

Data is aggregated and anonymized for your reports.

Enabling Click Tracking

Click tracking is enabled by default. To verify:

In Dashboard

  1. Go to Affiliate Links
  2. Click on a link
  3. Look for Tracking Status: Should show Enabled
  4. If disabled, click Enable Tracking

In Script

Check script parameter:

<!-- Tracking enabled (default) -->
<script src="https://affrank.io/script/YOUR_USER_ID.js"></script>


<!-- Tracking disabled (if needed) -->
<script src="https://affrank.io/script/YOUR_USER_ID.js?tracking=disabled"></script>

Viewing Click Data

Real-Time Analytics

See clicks as they happen:

  1. Go to Analytics Dashboard
  2. View Live Clicks section
  3. See recent clicks with details
  4. Updates every few seconds

Detailed Reports

Generate comprehensive reports:

  1. Date Range: Choose time period
  2. Filters: Filter by keyword, domain, link
  3. Metrics: View clicks, CTR, revenue
  4. Export: Download as CSV

Monitor individual links:

  1. Go to Affiliate Links
  2. Click a link name
  3. View link-specific analytics:
    • Total clicks
    • Click trend
    • Audience info
    • Performance vs. other links

Click Attribution

Understand which links drive traffic:

Click Attribution Models

Last-Click Model (Default)

  • Credits the final link clicked
  • Most intuitive
  • Standard across platforms

First-Click Model

  • Credits initial link that started session
  • Useful for awareness campaigns
  • Shows discovery source

Multi-Touch Attribution

  • Credits all links in user journey
  • More complex analysis
  • Shows complete picture

Setting Attribution Model

  1. Analytics Dashboard → Settings
  2. Select Attribution Model
  3. Choose model type
  4. Report updates automatically

Common Issues

Clicks Not Recording

Possible causes:

  1. Script not installed

    • Verify script in browser console (F12)
    • Look for “AffRank loaded” message

  2. Link not configured

    • Check link exists in dashboard
    • Verify link is active (not paused)
    • Ensure keyword matches content

  3. Tracking disabled

    • Check tracking=disabled parameter
    • Enable in settings if disabled

  4. Browser blocking

    • Check browser extensions
    • Try different browser
    • Try incognito mode

Clicks Delayed

Why there’s a delay:

  • Real-time processing takes 10-30 seconds
  • Data aggregation: 5-10 minute batches
  • Report generation: Hourly updates
  • API: Real-time (within 1 minute)

To reduce delay:

  • Use API for real-time data
  • Refresh dashboard for latest
  • Check “Live Clicks” for immediate feedback

Duplicate Clicks

To prevent duplicates:

  • Each click gets unique session ID
  • System deduplicates within 30 seconds
  • Multiple clicks = separate events
  • Check click timestamp for duplicates

Missing Click Data

Troubleshooting:

  1. Verify time zone - Check dashboard time zone matches
  2. Check date filters - Ensure date range is correct
  3. Verify domain - Confirm right domain selected
  4. Check link status - Link might be archived
  5. Contact support - Report missing data

Understanding Performance

Click Rate Analysis

Measure engagement:

Click Rate = (Total Clicks / Page Views) × 100
  • Low CTR (<1%): Link visibility or relevance issue
  • Medium CTR (1-3%): Average performance
  • High CTR (>5%): Strong interest, well-placed links

Best Practices

Accuracy

✅ Best Practices

  • Verify script is installed on all pages
  • Use same script ID across domain
  • Keep tracking enabled
  • Don’t modify click tracking code
  • Monitor for anomalies

❌ Avoid

  • Multiple tracking scripts
  • Manual click manipulation
  • Simulating clicks artificially
  • Disabling tracking on some pages

Performance

✅ Best Practices

  • Use aggregated reports (faster)
  • Filter to relevant date ranges
  • Archive old links (cleaner data)
  • Review daily summaries
  • Export for deeper analysis

❌ Avoid

  • Querying massive date ranges
  • Real-time dashboards constantly open
  • Requesting data too frequently
  • Analyzing incomplete data

Privacy Compliance

AffRank complies with:

  • ✅ GDPR (EU data protection)
  • ✅ CCPA (California privacy)
  • ✅ HIPAA (Health data)
  • ✅ SOC 2 (Security)

Your click data is:

  • Encrypted in transit
  • Secured at rest
  • Never sold to third parties
  • Owned by you exclusively

FAQ

Q: Is click tracking 100% accurate? A: Nearly (99%+). Very minor data loss may occur in edge cases due to network issues.

Q: How long is click data retained? A: Depends on plan (30-90 days standard, unlimited on Enterprise).

Q: Can I track conversions? A: Yes, with affiliate program integration or UTM parameters.

Q: Can I use click data for compliance? A: Yes, reports can be exported for audits and compliance verification.

Q: How do I prevent click fraud? A: AffRank detects suspicious patterns and flags anomalies automatically.

Q: Can I see individual user clicks? A: No, only aggregated and anonymized data for privacy protection.

Next Steps