Rakuten Marketing FAQs

When you sign up as a publisher in the Rakuten Affiliate Network, you are asked to provide some basic information about your website, including your website URL, when it was established, number of visitors and pageviews each month, a short description of your business, and links to your sell sheet or marketing information. Learn more about the sign-up process in our step-by-step guide.

Your website information gives advertisers more opportunities to learn about your site and target offers that match your business. Please be truthful and keep this information up to date. Providing advertisers with complete and accurate information maximizes your chances of being selected for private offers.

To edit your site info in the Publisher Dashboard, select Marketing Channels from the My Account drop-down menu and click Edit.

Once you have signed up as a publisher with Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Netowrk, you will have the opportunity to create an account profile, providing advertisers with greater detail about your website, how you drive traffic, whether or not your offer paid placements, and more. To learn more about creating your account profile, please see Account Profile: An Overview.

When you sign up as a publisher in the Rakuten Affiliate Network, you are asked to select a business model to describe your business. Ultimately, this decision is up to you, your accountant, and legal team. Though Rakuten Affiliate doesn't make individual recommendations, we provide general information below to give your team some basic context. Learn more about the sign-up process in our step-by-step guide.

A business model, as we are using the term here, is a general description of the way you plan to generate revenue and earn profits from your website or affiliate marketing channels. Publishers are finding unique ways of using and combining business models. You may want to ask your business advisers for help in developing your business plan and deciding which business model best fits your website and affiliate marketing channels.

We will outline some of the main business models our publishers are employing to help you decide where yours best fits.

complete step-by-step instructions to sign up

Here is a list of the most common types of affiliate websites and types of business models they support, for use in signing up as a publisher in the Rakuten Affiliate Network.

Loyalty/Rewards - Select this option if your primary business model is based on loyalty or rewards. For example, your site offers points, donations, or other rewards for purchasing at selected merchants. Loyalty/reward sites give something back to the consumer in exchange for purchasing through the advertiser’s site. A percentage of the advertiser commission is used to pay a reward to the end user. Rewards come in many forms including cash, airline miles, credit card points, or a percent of sale given to an organization.

Coupons (Vouchers)/Deals - Select this option if your primary business model is based on offering coupons and deals to your customers.

General Shopping - Select this option if your primary business model is shopping. Shopping sites can be thought of as a virtual mall. The consumer can shop for various products and brands without ever having to leave the site. This type of publisher is not focused specifically on coupons and deals.

Search - Select this option if your primary business model is based on search. Search publishers promote advertisers via search engine marketing (natural or paid).

Price Comparison - Select this option if your primary business model is based on price comparison. Comparison shopping sites sell items where some comparison is made before the purchase. Many times the publisher will have direct product links of the same product from different advertisers.

Content/Niche - Select this option if your primary business model is based on content, such as news stories, media, music, or video. Content sites focus on a specific area of interest. This type of site is normally not a shopping site but users go to the site because they are interested in relevant content on site. Content sites that do well with performance-based marketing blend their area of expertise with product recommendations.

Social Shopping - Select this option if your primary business model is based on social shopping. Social shopping sites usually combine shopping with user recommendations, reviews, lists, and other social network features.

User Generated - Select this option if your primary business model is based on user-generated content such as communities, forums, and social networks.

Other - Select this option if your primary business model does not fall into any of the other categories.

For more information, read the as a publisher.

Why do we need your income tax information?

When you sign up to become a publisher in the Rakuten Affiliate Network, we need to collect information in order to pay you for your commissions earned. Income tax details are part of the information we are required to get from you. Learn more about the sign-up process in our step-by-step guide.

What income tax information is needed?

Rakuten Affiliate Network provides a list of income tax forms (or tax status) in the online registration page to help you choose the appropriate one when you sign up a publisher with our network. Regardless of which country you are based in, you must select one of the forms. All US-based publishers are required to select the W-9 form. Publishers from all other countries can select either a W-9 form (effective January 21, 2015) if they are liable for paying taxes in the United States, or a W-8 form if not. Please consult a tax expert or the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) if you need additional information. You do not need to mail or upload the income tax form to us, however. You only need to enter the requested information in the registration form online.

FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions and answers you may find helpful:

Which legal entity should I select on the registration form?

Review this article for more information about legal entities (business types).

Do I need to mail or upload a tax form to Rakuten Affiliate?

No. During the registration process, we ask you to enter your company name and income tax identification information (social security number or employer identification number in the US) so that you do not have to submit a physical document.

Will I have to pay taxes on my Rakuten Affiliate earnings?

It is the responsibility of each publisher to understand and follow the appropriate tax laws.

Rakuten Affiliate is required by US tax laws to collect certain tax-related information from our publishers. However, we are not able to provide you with tax advice. You should always consult a tax adviser to help answer specific questions regarding how tax laws apply to you and your business.

Note onFormW-8 for Publishers Outside of the United States

As a Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Publisher based outside of the United States, you have the opportunity to partner with and earn income from US advertisers. As such, we are required by the IRS to obtain and maintain documentation to certify your non-US status. If we do not have this certification on file, we are required to apply the applicable withholding tax (currently 30\%) when commission payments are made to you on behalf of US advertisers. Backup withholding is not applicable to an entity that is properly documented as not subject to US taxation (that is, you have selected a form W-8 of any kind). Backup withholding is only relevant to a US-taxable entity.

This certification is referred to as your W-8 status. You must have formW-8 selected in your company information, you do not need to fill out or send us a physical form. There are multiple W-8 forms, and for most publishers the W-8BEN is appropriate, as it is the form used primarily by entities and individuals to claim foreign status.

If you need help choosing the appropriate form, please consult a tax expert or the IRS. A brief description of each form is listed below. Please refer to the instruction forms for specific details about each W-8 form.

Publishers should contact a tax, legal, or professional adviser to understand the impact of form W-8 reporting on their business. Information herein does not constitute tax, legal, or other professional advice and must not be used as such.

The following income tax form resources are provided for your information only. You do not need to send us the tax form.

1. W-9:Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification

Find the form here, and instructions here.

2.W-8BEN:Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding

Find the form here, and instructions here.

3. W-8IMY- Certificate of Foreign Intermediary, Foreign Flow-Through Entity, or Certain U.S. Branches for United States Tax Withholding

Find the form here, and instructions here.

4. W-8ECI- Certificate of Foreign Person’s Claim That Income Is Effectively Connected With the Conduct of a Trade or Business in the United States

Find the form here, and instructions here.

5. W-8EXP- Certificate of Foreign Government or Other Foreign Organization for United States Tax Withholding

Find the form here, and instructions here.

When you sign up as a publisher in the Rakuten Affiliate Network, you are asked to select a legal entity (or business type). Ultimately, this decision is up to you, your accountant, and legal team. Though Rakuten Affiliate doesn't make individual recommendations, we provide general information below to give your team some basic context. Learn more about the sign-up process in our step-by-step guide.

Individual - Select this option if your business is not incorporated. This option is typically for independent contractors, consultants, or freelancers. Registering as an individual business will require that you provide a valid US social security number.

Sole Proprietorship - Select this option if your business is not incorporated and youreportyour business income and expenses on a Form 1040 Schedule C. This option is typically for independent contractors, consultants, or freelancers. This is the easiest form of business to set up and the easiest to dissolve.

Partnership - Select this option if your business is incorporated as a partnership and you report your business income and expenses on form 1065. Partnerships are incorporated businesses. Like corporations, partnerships are separate entities from the shareholders. Unlike corporations, partnerships must have at least one general partner who assumes unlimited liability for the business. Partnerships must have at least two shareholders. Partnerships distribute all profits and losses to their shareholders without regard for any profits retained by the business for cash flow purposes.

Corporation - Select this option if your business is incorporated and you report your business income and expenses on form 1120 (C-corporation) or 1120S (S-corporation).Corporations are incorporated businesses. Every form of business besides the sole proprietor is considered a separate entity, and this often provides a measure of legal and financial protection for the shareholders. The shareholders of corporations have limited liability protection, and corporations have full discretion over the amount of profits they can distribute or retain. Corporations are presumed to be for-profit entities, and as such they can have an unlimited number of years with losses. Corporations must have at least one shareholder.

Foreign (businesses outside the US) - Select this option if you receive commission in a country other than the United States. Please note: if you are located outside the US and do not select this option, it will cause a delay in your signup process.

LLC - Select this option if your business is incorporated as a Limited Liability Company (LLC). The LLC is a state designation. At the federal level, an LLC is taxed as a partnership. If an LLC chooses, it can be taxed as a corporation at the federal level.

LLP - Select this option if your business is a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP). A Limited Liability Partnership is a type of partnership recognized in a majority of states in the US that protects a partner from personal liability for negligent acts committed by other partners or by employees not under their direct control. Many states restrict this type of partnership to professionals, such as lawyers, accountants, architects, and healthcare providers.

Nonprofit - Select this option if your business is a nonprofit organization and you report income and expenses on form 990. Nonprofits are corporations formed for a charitable, civic, or artistic purpose. Nonprofits are generally exempt from federal and state taxation on their income, and so they are often called "exempt organizations." Nonprofits have substantial responsibilities for reporting their activities, income, and assets to ensure that they are in compliance with federal and state laws governing charities.

Other - Select this option if your organization does not fall into any of the business type choices.

[email protected]

What is the CCPA?

The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is intended to enhance privacy rights and consumer protection for residents of California in the United States. (We expect other states to follow with similar legislation in the future.) The CCPA provides consumers with the ability to opt-out, the right to ask advertisers to disclose what data they possess on the user, and the right to request deletion of that data.

Review the CCPA legislation background and text here.

Review a Wikipedia overview of the legislation here.

Download a PDF version of the key information in this article.

Review CCPA Q&A with our general counsel

What does CCPA require?

Unlike the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), there is no opt-in notice required so consent management platforms(CMPs) are not the prevailing solution for CCPA. The law requires that consumers from California have the right to:

Opt-out of the "sales" of their personal information

Access what information has been collected on them

Request to have their data deleted

What do publishers need to do?

Publishers will need to make their own determination on whether CCPA applies in their situation. However, regardless of a publisher’s assessment of their status under CCPA, Rakuten Marketing has determined that it, (Rakuten Marketing), qualifies as a business that collects information that may be sold to third parties. As such, Rakuten Marketing is required to provide explicit notice and an opportunity to opt-out at, or before, the point of data collection. This means that a California resident needs to be presented with explicit notice and an opportunity to opt-out of Rakuten Marketing tracking on the page that the publisher places Rakuten Marketing provided tracking.

The Publisher Membership Agreement has been updated to include the CCPA requirements, and you will need to accept the new agreement to continue as a publisher in our network, or decline and delete your publisher account.

Beginning January 1, 2020, Rakuten Marketing will require that publishers implement a privacy rights link to a page (either Rakuten Marketing provided or Digital Advertising Alliance [DAA] provided) that provides the necessary disclosures and the opt-out.See the mock-up image of the privacy rights link and page below.

In addition, if a publisher has implemented Rakuten Marketing tracking pixels, we will require that the publisher also send signals indicating the consumer’s opt-out status consistent with the IAB Signals Framework.

A publisher will be relieved of this obligation if they can demonstrate that they geo-block California-based traffic or otherwise suppress California-based traffic from Rakuten Marketing’s tracking processes.

Publisher Rollout and Enforcement

CCPA laws go into effect on January 1, 2020 with enforcement beginning July 1, 2020. Given this timeline, the Rakuten Marketing network quality team will begin auditing implementation in Q1 2020. Failure to meet compliance requirements may result in:

Suspension of payments for publishers with California user transactions.

Potential termination of publisher relationship.

Publishers Have Three Options for CCPA Compliance

Option 1: Affiliate Link Opt-Out Signals (Preferred Option)

Include a link to your company privacy policy on each page of your website; your company privacy policy must reference Rakuten Marketing’s data collection as well as a link to the Rakuten Marketing privacy policy.

SAMPLE LANGUAGE: “We partner with Rakuten Marketing, who may collect personal information when you interact with our site. The collection and use of this information is subject to the privacy policy located here.

Publishers must also collect an opt-out signal from the consumer and pass consent information to Rakuten Marketing using the consent parameter “cnst.” Instructions are available in the attached technical document, " Passing CCPA Opt-Out in Affiliate Links ".

Mock-up of Privacy Rights Link and Page

Option 2: CMP Integration

If you are already using a consent management platform (CMP) for GDPR, there may be integration opportunities with your existing tool, depending on your CMP. You can contact the publisher support team at [email protected] to determine if there are integration opportunities with your existing CMP tool.

The quick reference chart below may help you understand how your CMP tool handles CCPA requirements.

Option 3: Rakuten Marketing Disclosure and Opt-Out Link

Include a “Your Privacy Rights” link on each page of your website, which directs to a page that provides the following disclosure:

“The below companies may collect personal information when you interact with our digital property, including IP addresses, digital identifiers, information about your web browsing and app usage and how you interact with our properties and ads for a variety of purpose, such as personalization of offers or advertisements, analytics about how you engage with websites or ads, and other commercial purposes. For more information about the collection, use and sale of your personal data and your rights, please use the below links.”

Mock-up of Privacy Rights Link and Page

Custom Option: This is a Rakuten Marketing-provided option and has some flexibility to be adjusted to a publisher’s preferences. You can use or adapt the text and table format below on your website:

"The below companies may collect personal information when you interact with our digital property, including IP addresses, digital identifiers, information about your web browsing and app usage and how you interact with our properties and ads for a variety of purposes, such as: personalization of offers or advertisements; analytics about how you engage with websites or ads; and other commercial purposes. For more information about the collection, use, and sale of your personal information and your rights, please use the below links."

Company

Link to privacy policy/rights

Rakuten Marketing

https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/services-privacy-policy/

Company 2

Link to privacy policy/rights

Company 3

Link to privacy policy/rights

As well as a link to our user rights / opt-out page: https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/subject-requests

Download a PDF version of the key information in this article.

Please reach out to with any additional questions.

Brands have until July 1, 2020 to ensure full compliance with the latest data privacy law, California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) that went into effect January 1, 2020. The following is a question and answer session with our Rakuten Marketing general counsel about how brands can ensure they are CCPA-compliant. Learn more - read an overview of CCPA Compliance Options for Publishers.

What is CCPA?

The California Consumer Protection Act is a law designed to give California residents additional rights over the use and sale of their personal information. This means that consumers will have specific rights over any of their personal data that a brand has collected, such as:

The right of access: This means consumers will be able to access their collected data as well as inquire on how their data will be used.

The right of deletion: Consumers will be able to request deletion of any collected data. However, there are exceptions that may allow brands to do business. For example, a brand offering a coupon would be able to use this information in order to complete a transaction for the consumer, or a financial company needing to complete a transaction would be permitted to retain consumer data, as would a firm that requires this information for security or legal compliance purposes.

The right to opt-out of “sales”: This right is what we expect will impact brands the most. Consumers will have the ability to opt-out of their data being “sold” from a business to a third party.

When does CCPA go into effect?

January 1, 2020, but brands will have a six-month grace period on enforcement.

Q: Who is impacted by CCPA?

Any brand doing business in California that collects, sells or buys personal information from online consumers are going to be impacted in some way. What brands do with this data will designate the requirements they must follow to be compliant, and each brand will fall under one of three categories: “business,” “service provider” or “third-party.”

How do brands know which category they belong to?

As I mentioned earlier, these categories are based on the use of consumer data. While each company should consult their legal department to determine where their business sits, I’ve outlined the definitions below.

“Business”: A for-profit entity doing business in California that collects consumers’ personal information itself or on the behalf of others (either alone or jointly) and:

Has gross revenue above $25 million; or

Annually buys, sells, receives or shares personal information from more than 50,000 consumers, households or devices for commercial purposes; or

Has more than 50\% of annual revenue derived from selling personal information.

“Service Provider”: A for-profit entity that processes information on behalf of a business. A “service provider” is a business that receives information for business purposes or pursuant to a compliant contract.

“Third Party”: Neither a business that collects personal information from the consumer nor is a service provider.

Something to note here, adtech companies can fall into different categories at different times depending on what they’re doing with the data at any given moment. Also, it’s suggested that if brands use collected personal information for advertising purposes, it’s best that they categorize themselves as a “business” or the value of their advertising will be limited (see Q6 for more detail).

How will CCPA impact brands?

CCPA will have a large impact on digital advertising as it brings new regulations that restrict how brands collect and manage consumer data that is used to drive relevant advertising. Most immediately, brands will need to ensure that:

They’re prepared to serve the required “opt-out” option to California residents by January 1, 2020 when CCPA takes effect.

They’re able to pass on any required signals (i.e. a consumer has opted-out, requested deletion, etc.) to their partners/tech companies.

Will this negatively impact brands’ advertising efforts?

The way we see it, no. But, being an attorney, I must beg your patience for a two-part answer.

Part 1: If a consumer does choose to opt out of sales, then advertising to that consumer will obviously be affected because they have chosen to negate their data being collected or sold. Delivering relevant advertising requires the collection of data from consumers when they visit a brand’s website. This collected data is used to better understand brands’ ideal consumers’ shopping habits. Once identified, this data can be used to create advertising that will attract other consumers with similar shopping habits meaning consumers that are more likely to engage and convert. Without this data, relevant advertising cannot be accomplished.

Part 2: CCPA can ultimately improve the advertising ecosystem for both the consumer and business. For brands, it eliminates consumers who aren’t really interested or engaged with advertising promotions meaning brands will now more easily know which consumers are open to personalized advertising or offers. In the end, we see CCPA as a way for brands’ ad dollars to reach more of the “right” consumer; therefore, increasing their ROAS.

Ultimately, it is our hope that CCPA will bring more transparency and rights into the use and sale of consumers’ personal information, while allowing businesses to get more bang for their advertising buck.

What can a brand do and not do with a user’s personal information if they opt out of sales?

If a user opts out of sales, that does not mean that a company is required to delete this information or refrain from its use it (unless the consumer exercises their right to ask for their collected data to be deleted). What it does mean is that their personal information cannot be further used or repurposed for a commercial gain. For example, if a brand advertises 20\% off a pair of shoes, it can still complete the consumer transaction, as well as pay the commission to the company that presented the ad; however, neither the brand nor the commissioned company may use any personal information of that consumer beyond fulfilling this transaction.

What are the impacts of non-compliance?

As is the case with many laws, the action taken will depend on the severity of the infraction. Here’s a run-down of the enforcement mechanisms in the CCPA.

Private enforcement: CCPA empowers consumers to file their own lawsuit in the event of a data breach allowing consumers to recover up to $750 per incident or actual damages, whichever is greater.

Governmental enforcement: The State’s Attorney General can also file a civil case. Businesses have 30 days to fix their non-compliance or be liable to pay fines up to $7,500 per violation.

What is required for advertisers to fulfill the CCPA requirements?

Advertisers will need to determine what category they fit best under (see question four), but any advertiser collecting and providing information to a partner will likely be considered a “business.” These advertisers will also need to provide explicit notice and an opportunity to opt-out to consumers. This way, the CCPA requirements have already been fulfilled before consumer data is collected and sent off to another party for advertising purposes.

We have seen some advertisers choose to geo-block California-based traffic or suppress California-based traffic when passing the collected data to another party.

On a high level, the following are solutions brands can take to ensure compliance:

CMP integration: For advertisers already using a CMP tool previously created for GDPR, there may be integration opportunities.

Pass signals via JavaScript tag: Advertisers can leverage an existing tag to pass consent information to partners. Advertisers must collect an opt-out signal from the consumer to be passed as variables in a JavaScript tag.

Disclosures and opt-out link: Advertisers can include a “Your Privacy Rights” link on each page of their website which will lead users to a disclosure revealing what companies may collect their personal information when they interact with their digital property. In our disclosure, we’ve included what kind of personal information is being collected (IP addresses, digital identifiers, etc.) and what this information will be used for (personalization of ads, analytics on how they engage with websites and ads, etc.).

Regardless of what option advertisers take, we recommend that advertisers include a link to the company’s privacy policy on each page of their website, and for their privacy policy to reference Rakuten Marketing’s data collection and a link to our privacy policy.

For Rakuten Marketing advertisers, an email has been sent with more information about how new CCPA requirements affect them.

What is required for publishers to fulfill the CCPA requirements?

For publishers that categorize themselves a “business,” they will need to disclose privacy rights through a link on their site and give users the option to opt-out of tracking or prevent the sale of their personal data.

Publishers will be relieved of this obligation if they block traffic via IP addresses for users in California. The options we’re suggesting for our publishers are:

Affiliate link opt-out signals: Include a link to the company’s privacy policy on each page of their website. This privacy policy will reference Rakuten Marketing’s data collection and a link to our privacy policy. Publishers will also need to implement some way to collect an opt-out signal from the consumer to pass consent information to partners.

CMP integration: For publishers already using the CMP tool created for GDPR, there may be integration opportunities.

Disclosures and opt-out link: Publishers can include a “Your Privacy Rights” link on each page of their website which will lead users to a disclosure revealing what companies may collect their personal information when they interact with their digital property. In our disclosure, we’ve included what kind of personal information is being collected (IP addresses, digital identifiers, etc.) and what this information will be used for (personalization of ads, analytics on how they engage with websites and ads, etc.).

In response to the requirements of CCPA, we have updated our publisher membership agreement (PMA), and this updated PMA went into effect on January 1, 2020. The biggest substantive change to our PMA is the language, which was updated to meet the notice and opt-out requirements needed to comply with CCPA.

For Rakuten Marketing publishers, an email from us communicating this information with a link to the new PMA has been sent. For any further questions, publishers can always reach out to their publisher development manager or our publisher support team at [email protected].

How will brands pass on proper signals to their partners?

There is still work to be done and some ambiguities around how companies can ensure compliance. Yet, similar to the industry work behind the CMP tool for GDPR, groups like the IAB and ANA are working to create a universal set of signals to allow partners and clients to pass along opt-out and delete requests. There is currently a compliance framework for CCPA the IAB/IAB Tech Lab has drafted that has a standardized contract for use between publishers and their partners and a series of technical specs so companies can follow through on the contract. Additionally, the digital advertising alliance (DAA) is offering a compliance tool that will allow publishers, brands, agencies and adtech companies in the digital supply chain to provide consumers a clear and recognizable mechanism to opt out of sales. We will be looking towards these groups to assist in providing tools and other material to guide the industry on best practices for compliance.

What does Rakuten Marketing require of its advertiser and publisher partners to be compliant?

Any partner that has Rakuten Marketing providing tracking on their site will need to include a “your privacy rights” link on any page where data is collected. This link will take consumers to Rakuten Marketing’s privacy policy and an opt-out page. For brands that are collecting opt-outs on their own, we require that they implement a way to pass opt-out signals to us via the IAB’s CCPA compliance framework. We also require that brands who don’t have a pixel on their site, but are directly providing us with conversion information (e.g., API) implement a way to pass opt-out signals to Rakuten Marketing via the IAB’s framework.

In May 2018, to assist brands to comply with GDPR, Rakuten Marketing developed a consent management platform (CMP), but we didn’t stop there. We also created “wrappers” that work with other third party CMPs to help support the compliance efforts of brands. While CCPA does not require upfront consent from the consumer, Rakuten Marketing is committed to promulgating transparency in what is often considered the opaque world of adtech. As such, we are working closely with publishers and brands in our network to provide access to our privacy policy and opt-outs to consumers at the first opportunity.

How does CCPA affect brands outside of the US?

Any brand that does significant business with consumers who reside in California are required to be complaint with CCPA, regardless of their location, and the requirements to ensure Rakuten Marketing campaigns are complaint are the same as outlined above. Significant is defined by business that “annually buy, receive, sell or share personal information of at least fifty thousand California residents.”

Is there a chance of this privacy policy advancing to a federal level?

Most say that if there is a chance, it’s a long way away. However, there are already many other states adopting similar privacy regulations. Nevada already has one in place, while Hawaii, Maryland, New Mexico, Washington and others have similar laws under draft. Brands should, if they haven’t already, accept that privacy regulation is becoming not only a federal concern, but a global one as well. GDPR has already gone into effect and new international laws are being made in Brazil, New Zealand and Bahrain, among others.

Thank you for joining the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network!

Review these affiliate marketing requirements and recommendations before getting started with your affiliate marketing efforts.

It is important to understand that affiliate marketing is a marketing channel that requires time, effort, creativity, communication, and relationship-building with your advertiser partners and your consumer followers.It isnot a "get rich quick" scheme.

In order to begin a successful affiliate marketing channel, you must have, at a minimum, the following:

Your own live(not under construction), high-quality website, blog, or customized social media site

Lots of unique, quality content(not copied from another site or source)that adds value to the users

A well-designed business plan to support your affiliate marketing efforts

From Google Webmasters Support quality guidelines for affiliate programs :

"Added value means additional meaningful content or features, such as additional information about price, purchasinglocation, or product category.

"Google believes that pure, or "thin," affiliate websites do not provide additional value for web users, especially (but not only) if they are part of a program that distributes its content across a network of affiliates. These sites often appear to be cookie-cutter sites or templates the same or similar content replicated within the same site, or across multiple domains or languages. Because a search results page could return several of these sites, all with the same content, thin affiliates create a frustrating user experience."

Read the entire quality guidelines for affiliate marketing programs from Google Webmasters Support for more tips and best practices.

(If you haven't registered as a publisher yet, learn how to sign up now. It's free and easy to do in about 10 minutes!)

Since our beginnings in 1996 as LinkShare, we have grown to become one of the largest affiliate networks and part of the Rakuten family of companies with offices in New York City, San Mateo, Seattle, Chicago, Tampa, London, Sydney, Sao Paulo, Paris, Berlin and Tokyo. We are very proud that Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network (formerly Rakuten LinkShare) has been ranked #1 affiliate network by our customers in the mThink survey many years in a row!

As a Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network publisher, you have access to many of the leading brands, latest tools and technology and outstanding support that we strive to provide every day.

In this quick start guide, you'll learn how to:

Understand what affiliate marketing is all about

Decode affiliate marketing terminology

Set up your publisher account so you're ready for business

Find and join advertiser programs so you can promote their products and services on your site

Get affiliate links to publish and start generating commissions

Use deep linking for better results

Use reports to see how you're doing and get actionable insights

Understand the commission payments system

Click on any of the links above to jump directly to the topic in which you're most interested. Continue reading down the page for the entire guide.

PLEASE NOTE: Some of the links in the article below will require you to log in to your publisher account to be able to view them.

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing that rewards affiliates (publishers) for sales or other actions brought to the merchant (advertiser) website by the affiliate’s actions. You are now empowered to earn commissions from your website. We’re here to help you get up and earning as quickly and easily as possible!

If you’re not already familiar with how affiliate marketing works, you can watch this two-minute video for a quick overview (in English):

Affiliate marketing terminology

As with most industries, affiliate marketing has its own set of terms. Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network has put together a comprehensive glossary of common affiliate marketing terms in our Publisher Help Center.

To get you started, here are a few of the key terms you should know:

Account related terms

Advertiser, Merchant, Brand:A person or organization selling products or services on the web and is a member of the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Publisher, Affiliate:A publisher is a person or organization running a website that partners with one or more online advertisers. The publisher places links on their site to promote the merchant's products or services. In exchange, the publisher receives a commission for all valid transactions referred.

SID:The site ID (SID) is a unique number used in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network to identify different marketing channels. Our support team can use your SID to locate your record, so please include it in all communications with us.

MID:The merchant ID (MID) is a unique number used in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network to identify the advertiser’s affiliate program.

Key performance metrics

CTR:Click Through Rate or CTR is obtained by dividing the number of clicks by the number of impressions (An impression is a single instance of a link shown to a user.) CTR is a good way of measuring the effectiveness of a campaign. For example, if your banner ad received 100 impressions and one person clicked on it, then the resulting CTR would be 1 percent.

Orders/Click:Orders per click (also known as conversion rate) is the percentage of clicks on an affiliate link that lead to a sale or other commissionable item.

EPC:Earnings per Click are obtained by dividing the commissions earned by the number of clicks (click-throughs) that generated these commissions. Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network uses Earnings per Hundred Clicks as it is easier to read. EPC is useful for measuring the revenue potential and conversion of your links. For example, if a link received 1000 clicks and generated $5.00 in commissions, EPC would be shown as $0.50.

AOV or AOS:Average Order Value or Average Order Size represents the sum of sales divided by the number of orders.

Let's get started! Log in to your account now and follow along.

Navigate to this URL: https://rakutenmarketing.com/affiliate and click Login at the upper right corner of the page. Enter your username and password and click Log In. (You should have received these credentials in your welcome email message when you registered for the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.) If you encounter any login difficulties, review the related Help Center articles or contact Customer Support for your location.

5 Easy Steps to Get Started with Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network

1. Set up your publisher account and be ready for business!

It is important to take a few minutes to set up your account in the publisher dashboard so we can connect you with advertisers to create a mutually beneficial partnership. Make sure you fill this information out completely and keep it up to date. You can watch a short video tutorial on how to update your contact information and account profile.

When you are setting up your account, you will want to be pay particular attention to selecting your payment method so you can receive your commissions. Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network offers various methods of publisher payment, depending on your location.

To confirm your eligibility for the different payment methods by country and network, please see the Payment Options table .

Learn more about setting up direct deposit.

We also have an option for PayPal to receive commissions in certain countries.

2. Select and join advertiser programs

You’ll probably want to work with advertisers in the categories of content you already have and promote on your website. In order to start promoting advertisers on your site, you’ll first need to be approved into their programs. You can use several different tools to find advertiser programs that would be a good fit, then you will apply and receive an email notification letting you know when you’ve been approved and how to get affiliate links to use on your site.

How to find advertiser programs:

You can find advertiser programs in your publisher dashboard and in the Help Center in various ways to suit your needs. Here's how:

a. Use the Advertiser Search box to find a specific advertiser by name.

b. Go to the Programs tab on the publisher dashboard. There you can find advertiser programs in several ways:

Click New Advertisers to see a list of advertisers who recently joined Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Click Categories and then select a category to see a list of advertisers with programs of that type.

You can also click See All Advertisers at the bottom right of the categories list page to view an alphabetical list of all available advertiser programs.

weekly planner

Refine your search in the list of all advertisers with the filters to search for advertisers with certain characteristics such as Premium Advertisers, advertisers with mobile optimized sites, advertisers who offer our Merchandiser product data feed, advertisers who offer RSS feeds or who offer Media Optimization Report, or advertisers who ship to certain countries.

c. Go to the Publisher Help Center and find lists of:

advertisers who automatically approve all applications

advertisers who pay commission on gift cards

advertisers with flat fee offers, advertisers with pay-per-call offers

advertisers who offer Merchandiser product data feed

advertisers who offer UPC in Merchandiser data feed

d. If you prefer to work with advertisers in a particular geographic area, you can further filter your list by network:

After selecting an advertiser, you will see a summary of its program. To see the offers an advertiser has available, select the Offers tab and Available Offers.

You can watch short video tutorials on how to find and join advertiser programs.

From time to time, advertisers may also extend a private offer to you. These are special program terms the advertiser makes available to you. You have the choice of accepting or rejecting these offers. Learn more about the various types of offers from advertisers.

How to apply for advertiser programs:

To apply to an advertiser's program, select the radio button next to the offer you want to join and clickUpdate at the bottom of the page. To apply to several advertiser programs at once, return to the listing of advertiser programs, click the check-boxes next to the programs you wish to join, and click Apply at the bottom of the page. By applying to the advertiser's program you are agreeing to the advertiser's terms and conditions (these vary from advertiser to advertiser), so be sure to read and understand them thoroughly.

To refine the list of advertisers, click the Filter button, select specific attributes you would like to filter by, and click Apply Filter.

The advertiser will email you to let you know when you are approved, or if there is some reason they are unable to approve your application at this time. Read more about the approval process.

3. Get affiliate links and publish them to your website

Once you have been approved into an advertiser’s program, you’ll be able to access their various affiliate links to use on your website. To use the advertiser's pre-generated links, go to Links > Get Links on your publisher dashboard.

Then, click on an advertiser in the list to see their details. From the advertiser home page, click Links to see the link types they offer.

Link types: Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network offers advertisers a variety of link types to use in their programs. These links contain the affiliate code and other information that will ensure that you receive proper commissions for any sales generated when one of your site visitors clicks through to the advertisers’ website. Learn more about the behind the scenes tracking technology in this video tutorial. Advertisers may choose to provide one or more of the following link types for your use:

Text/email

Banner/image

Individual product

Search box

Dynamic rich media

Flex Links

Once you've found the link type (such as text link), you can filter by category (such as coupon) to be more specific to your needs. This will generate a list of links to choose from in that category. From the list, select the link you wish to use and click Get Link at the far right of the page.

From there, you'll see a pop-up with the HTML code with your tracking code included so you can copy and paste it onto your website.

You can learn more about each link type and watch a short video tutorial on how to copy and paste links to your website

If you can't find the products you are looking for in the pre-generated list from the advertiser, you can create your own links using our deep linking tools. Deep links are links that direct your site's visitors to a specific page on an advertiser's site rather than to the advertiser's homepage. They are links that go deeper into a site, such as a product page. These links tend to convert to sales much better than linking to an advertiser's home page because they direct the visitor to the product of interest. Not all advertisers allow deep linking. The Deep Linking page in the Links tab lists all of your advertiser-partners enabled for Deep Links in one place.Learn more in the Guide to Deep Linking.

One deep-linking tool is built into the publisher dashboard. Go to Links > Deep Linking.

Select one of your advertiser partners. Input the URL of the page from that advertiser's website you wish to link to. Make sure there is only one "http://" in the URL.

Select the output format of the link. For text links, you will need to input the text you want the page URL to link to, such as "Buy Here." For images you will need to input the URL of the image.

A U1 value is used only by specialized publishers for Signature transaction level tracking, so you can leave this blank if it doesn't apply to your program. This value can be used for tracking transactions by member ID for loyalty, fundraising, or charity sites, and for campaign level tracking of ads and links.

Click Create Link and your tracked URL or HTML code will appear in a pop-up, ready for you to copy and paste it onto your site.

Another great time-saving deep linking tool that you can use from your browser is the LinkGenerator Bookmarklet, available from Links > Bento Box > Get Links > Bookmarklet. Learn how to install and use the bookmarklet.

4. Run reports on your affiliate program progress

In your publisher dashboard, go to Reports > Reporting for our powerful pre-designed reports. The Sales and Activity report is a good one to run regularly, as it gives you an idea of what revenue you're generating. You can also create your own custom reports that suit your needs. Learn more about our latest reporting tools.

5. Get paid commissions

Here are a few helpful pointers about how our payment system works.

We have a process set up to ensure weekly payments are processed swiftly and correctly for you, and it can take a few months to get your first payment. We also have a minimum threshold your earnings must meet before generating a payment. Here's an overview of how it works:

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network issues four publisher payments per month on behalf of the advertisers, based on the payments that advertisers send to us. With consolidated payments,Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network includes all advertiser payments received and cleared as of the day the payment file is authorized.

As part of the service we provide at the Rakuten Affiliate Network, we gather all the relevant billing information, prepare and send an invoice to the advertisers each month with the payments due to the publishers in their programs. (There is no invoicing that needs to be done by publishers for this purpose.)

Our standard payment terms require advertisers to review and close invoices by the end of the calendar month once the invoice is posted to them. Payment is due to Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network 30 days after the invoice date. For example, commissions earned during the month of October (which are invoiced in early November) would be authorized by the advertiser by November 30th with payment due to Rakuten Affiliate Network by December 30th. Publishers would then be issued payments by Rakuten Affiliate Network in the following week.

The Advertiser Payments History report in the publisher dashboard is a great report for keeping track of your advertisers' payments progress. Go to My Account > Payment Info to find this report and all things relating to your payments. You can send a payment inquiry directly to an advertiser from this area. You can also contact Customer Support for help with your payments questions.

Congratulations on your choice to join thousands of publishers who are successfully monetizing their websites with Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network!

For a more detailed plan to get started, check out the .

Please review these affiliate marketing requirements and recommendations before joining the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network and getting started with your affiliate marketing efforts!

Your destination: Ultimately, become one of our Platinum Publishers.

On our road map to success for publishers, there are several phases. Ideally, the first few steps in Phase I belowshould be completed before you join the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network. Preparing your business plan and your website in advance will help ensure your success in affiliate marketing. You should develop a regular, daily following or consistent monthly traffic to your website first. This is an exciting, fast-growing and changing area of e-commerce that will require your time and attention. Detailed guidance about how to complete these steps is outside the scope of the service we currently provide. However, we realize these initial steps are critical to your success. Below are some of the many resources available to help you.

Phase I: Build your site, your business model, branding, following, and website traffic

Choose your market niche & focus

Determine your business model & plan

Build your website, blog, or custom social media site with original, quality content and add to it frequently

Generate traffic to your site & build your audience

Understand basic affiliate marketing monetization & how it fits your site

Some suggested "getting started" resources for publishers from external sources (available in English only):

Learn How to Build High Quality Affiliate Websites (paid course from Udemy)

Extra Money Answer: How to Create, Promote, and Monetize an Affiliate Site (eBook by Shawn Collins)

Affiliate Marketing Fundamentals (course on Lynda.com [you can start with a free trial and then join the service for a low monthly fee for continuing education])

How to Write Your Own Money Making Websites (paid course from AWAI)

FTC Affiliate Disclosure Guidelines

Google Webmaster Blog, Google Webmaster Tools Help Center, SEOMoz Blog, Bruce Clay SEO Blog and free SEO tutoria l, Search Engine Land

Google search results algorithm - the importance of a mobile-friendly website

Conversion Rate Optimization, Tim Ash SiteTuners.com free resources; Landing Page Optimization Podcasts ; Optimizely

Optimize Landing Pages for Conversions, free eBook from HubSpot

This list is not all-inclusive and is not intended as a recommendation or endorsement of these outside resources.

Phase II - Become a Rakuten Affiliate Network Publisher

Review the requirements & recommendations for new publishers

Join Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network & set up your account

Decide which advertiser products to promote

Build partnerships with advertisers

Get affiliate links for your site

Promote affiliate products on your website

Provide transparency & compliance to terms

Track earnings & manage your affiliate program

Phase III - Grow your program and your revenue

Identify additional revenue opportunities & optimize

Consider email marketing

Become one of our top publishers: a Platinum Publisher

Once you've registered (it's free) and have been accepted into the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, you'll find more resources in the Help Center to help you with the rest of the steps in the road map. In addition, there are some resources you can use immediately, including our Publisher Support team for technical support, Global Deal Dispatcher, and Publisher Newsletters. You can also reach out to our Customer Education team for additional questions about the Help Center content and getting started in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

View the Publisher Membership Agreement for the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network . Publishers who wish to promote advertisers (brands) in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network must comply with the terms and conditions of this agreement.

Summary of changes (EFFECTIVE January 1, 2020):

Rakuten Marketing has revised its Publisher Membership Agreement (“PMA”) and has consolidated parts of our agreement. The PMA and updated Network Policies and Guidelines will be effective at 5:00 p.m. (EST) onJanuary 1, 2020 (“Effective Date”).

You can find the revised agreement at https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/publisher-membership-agreement and a summary of the major revisions to the PMA, below:

Because there are emerging laws and regulations that use varying terminology (e.g., personally identifiable information, personal information, personal data), we made a global change to create a definition using the term “Personal Data” to generally address this type of protected information.

PrivacySection 7.5 We have added language to ensure that both you and we are meeting the notice and opt-out requirements needed to comply with the California Consumer Privacy Act.

More than 1,000 premiere online advertisers use the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network to build, manage, and track the success of their pay-for-performance marketing programs.

See some of Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network's advertisers at the bottom of the linked page.

FEBRUARY 2020

USA

UK

AUSTRALIA

CANADA

FRANCE

Back to Global Deal Dispatcher

USA'S NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

Blink Fitness is a premium quality, value-based fitness brand with more than 100 locations open or in development throughout New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Texas and California.

Flat Fee Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Welcome to your one-stop-shop for Bushnell promotions and affiliate marketing opportunities. Find everything from our popular riflescopes, binoculars, rangefinders & spotting scopes to our laser aiming, trail cams, telescopes, and night vision optics.

7\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Inspired by the pages of the magazine, the Casa Cabana collection is designed in-house and hand-crafted by artisans. Home products range from tabletop and to one-of-a-kind vintage pieces collected from flea markets and antique shops around the world.

5\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Each Original Ring Candle comes an exciting surprisea ring! In every Ring Candle you will discover a RINGREVEAL slip that tells you if you’ve won another ring worth $100, $1000, or $5000! It’s an exciting experience to share with friends and family.

6.5\% Commission

21 Return Days

Apply Now

Fully is a modern workplace furniture company helping to create spaces where everyone can bring their full self to work.

2\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

GeoZilla is your family safety app. Locate loved ones on a map and keep each other safe even when miles apart.

5\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Health IQ is an innovative insurance startup that uses science and big data to offer special rates for Health Conscious individuals. Our mission is to improve the health of the world by celebrating the health conscious with social and financial rewards

Flat Fee Commission

7 Return Days

Apply Now

JetBlue Vacations offers exclusive deals on elevated vacation packages to over 100 destinations throughout the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean. JetBlue Vacations is your one-stop shop for saving time, money and getting the most out of your getaway.

2\% Commission

14 Return Days

Apply Now

KRKC&CO is a global brand specializing in unique and innovated male/female hip-hop/urban/street jewelry at a very affordable cost. We have Cuban, tennis, pendants, earrings & rings, custom jewelry and as well precious jewelry gifts for her/him.

20\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Established by NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) in 2016, LIFEASE pioneered a new e-commerce business model in China which connects quality manufacturers to customers directly & eliminates the extraneous costs and third-party layers of distribution and retail.

6\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Founded in 2013, Nadine West sends personalized outfits to your doorstep every month. No subscription fees. Pay for only what you like and hassle free returns for items you don't want! Shop Now

7\% Commission

15 Return Days

Apply Now

Royal + Reese is a women and children's brand with inclusive sizing S-3XL and children's 6M to 6T. We provide a well rounded range of styles from classic, trendy, and boho to your everyday basics with a mid range price point to serve all budgets.

5\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Scotch Select: A Scotch & Soda subscription service that allows you to rent your wardrobe. Dutch fashion brand ‘Scotch & Soda’ loves to make great garments that suit every individual. Our products are rich in detail, high quality and affordable.

10\% Commission

14 Return Days

Apply Now

Tax services company comprised of tax and financial professionals. We specialize in providing solutions to businesses and individuals who find themselves in owing $10,000+ to the IRS and/or State Taxing Authorities.

Flat Fee Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

UK'S NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

CARAT* London is a fine and fashion British jewellery brand that offers beautiful and affordable everyday jewellery

10\% Commission

60 Return Days

Apply Now

Tateossian London was founded by Robert Tateossian in 1990 with the aspiration of offering men and women a distinctive way to express their personality and style through unique, refined and meticulously crafted accessories.

7\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

AUSTRALIA'S NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

Garbo & Kelly is an award-winning colour cosmetics make-up company that provides a high-end, edited product range that enables women to create beautiful brows and superstar looks through products specifically designed for brows and contouring.

10\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Luxe.It.Fwd is Australia’s premier online re-seller for buying and selling authentic pre-owned luxury handbags (eg. Louis Vuitton, Chanel etc), jewellery and shoes at accessible price points, without compromising on the high-end shopping experience.

6\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Travel with Jane puts women first with plans to suit all types of travellers and budgets. Choose from 4 levels of cover so you only pay for the insurance you need. And 10 extras including pregnancy and device cover.

10\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Travel with Kit believes in the transformative power of travel, offering affordable and flexible travel insurance for all Australians. By unbundling its policies, Travel with Kit empowers a broader range of travellers to buy only the cover they need.

10\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

CANADA'S NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

HOKA shoes were initially distinguished by their oversized midsoles; today they are designed to meet the needs of a wide variety of users. With a bold and often unexpected approach, HOKA empowers athletes of all levels to feel like they can fly.

4\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

FRANCE'S NEW ADVERTISERS

ANNONCEUR

OFFRE

DTAILS DE L'OFFRE

POSTULER

Avec plus de 275 millions d’utilisateurs sportifs dans plus de 50 pays dans le monde, Decathlon est aujourd’hui l'un des leaders de la vente et fabrication d’articles sportifs.

8\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

FEBRUARY 2020

Nouveaux annonceurs

NOUVEAUX ANNONCEURS

ANNONCEUR

OFFRE

DTAILS DE L'OFFRE

POSTULER

Avec plus de 275 millions d’utilisateurs sportifs dans plus de 50 pays dans le monde, Decathlon est aujourd’hui l'un des leaders de la vente et fabrication d’articles sportifs.

8\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Haut de page

Retour la page Global Deal Dispatcher

FEBRUARY 2020

Neue Advertiser

Keine aktuellen Angebote

Zurck zur Global-Deal- Dispatcher-Seite

FEBRUARY 2020

New Advertisers

Consumer Promotions

NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

Garbo & Kelly is an award-winning colour cosmetics make-up company that provides a high-end, edited product range that enables women to create beautiful brows and superstar looks through products specifically designed for brows and contouring.

10\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Luxe.It.Fwd is Australia’s premier online re-seller for buying and selling authentic pre-owned luxury handbags (eg. Louis Vuitton, Chanel etc), jewellery and shoes at accessible price points, without compromising on the high-end shopping experience.

6\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Travel with Jane puts women first with plans to suit all types of travellers and budgets. Choose from 4 levels of cover so you only pay for the insurance you need. And 10 extras including pregnancy and device cover.

10\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Travel with Kit believes in the transformative power of travel, offering affordable and flexible travel insurance for all Australians. By unbundling its policies, Travel with Kit empowers a broader range of travellers to buy only the cover they need.

10\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

CONSUMER PROMOTIONS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

VAILD UNTIL

DETAILS

Sitewide Summer Sale - Additional 10\% off - use checkout code: SUMMER. Ends midnight 2nd February 2020 (AEDT).

02 Feb 20

Learn More

Back to top

Back to Global Deal Dispatcher

FEBRUARY 2020

New Advertisers

Consumer Promotions

NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

HOKA shoes were initially distinguished by their oversized midsoles; today they are designed to meet the needs of a wide variety of users. With a bold and often unexpected approach, HOKA empowers athletes of all levels to feel like they can fly.

4\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

CONSUMER PROMOTIONS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

VAILD UNTIL

DETAILS

Sweet Savings for You, Valentine! Use code VDAY18 for up to $18 off our fees on flights Book now

15 Feb 20

Learn More

Brighten Up with Winter Savings! Save Up to $36 off our fees on flights with code SUN36 Book Now!

29 Feb 20

Learn More

Back to top

Back to Global Deal Dispatcher

FEBRUARY 2020

New Advertisers

Consumer Promotions

NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

CARAT* London is a fine and fashion British jewellery brand that offers beautiful and affordable everyday jewellery

10\% Commission

60 Return Days

Apply Now

Tateossian London was founded by Robert Tateossian in 1990 with the aspiration of offering men and women a distinctive way to express their personality and style through unique, refined and meticulously crafted accessories.

7\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

CONSUMER PROMOTIONS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

VAILD UNTIL

DETAILS

Spend 50 and receive a free Revive Body Gel (Worth 37) use code: REVIVEBODY

02 Feb 20

Learn More

Spend 35 and recieve a free Revive Roller Ball (Worth 18) use code : REVIVESENSES

09 Feb 20

Learn More

Baukjen Final Reductions | Now up to 70\% off

28 Jan 20

Learn More

Free shipping coupon: runhappyshipping20 Winter sale: 30\% off best sellers like the Adrenaline GTS 19, Launch 6, & more!

29 Feb 20

Learn More

Save 10\% on the elegant Blue Asiatic Pheasants 12 Piece Place Setting - Originally 172, Now 154.99

23 Aug 21

Learn More

Huge savings with the Burleigh Outlet - Save up to 30\% Off!

23 Aug 21

Learn More

Extra 15\% off ALL Maternity Sale with code: 15MORE | Isabella Oliver

28 Jan 20

Learn More

Shop La Coqueta's New Pre-Spring Collection!

29 Aug 21

Learn More

The La Coqueta Final Reductions Sale - Save up to 60\%!

29 Aug 21

Learn More

10\% Off Your First Order with Code WELCOME10

29 Feb 20

Learn More

FREE UK Shipping on all online orders over 10

29 Feb 20

Learn More

Last days winter sale up to 30\% off

05 Feb 20

Learn More

Free shipping coupon: runhappyshipping20 Winter sale: 30\% off best sellers like the Adrenaline GTS 19, Launch 6, & more!

29 Feb 20

Learn More

Back to top

PUBLISHER INCENTIVE

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

VAILD UNTIL

DETAILS

In an era of high-tech, a new TASCHEN book explores environmentally conscious design. Enter the sustainable world of LoTEK

Ongoing

Learn More

Back to top

Back to Global Deal Dispatcher

FEBRUARY 2020

Featured Promotions

New Advertisers

Consumer Promotions

Publisher Incentives

FEATURED PROMOTIONS

Rodd & Gunn is synonymous with quality, while taking inspiration from

New Zealand's picturesque landscape. Winter Sale, 50\% OFF Selected Styles

(No Loyalty Tier Available On Top of Promotion).

Rodd & Gunn offers 10\% commissions!

Offer is ongoing

Banner size: 300 x 250

Learn More

Back to top

NEW ADVERTISERS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

OFFER DETAILS

APPLY

Blink Fitness is a premium quality, value-based fitness brand with more than 100 locations open or in development throughout New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Texas and California.

Flat Fee Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Welcome to your one-stop-shop for Bushnell promotions and affiliate marketing opportunities. Find everything from our popular riflescopes, binoculars, rangefinders & spotting scopes to our laser aiming, trail cams, telescopes, and night vision optics.

7\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Inspired by the pages of the magazine, the Casa Cabana collection is designed in-house and hand-crafted by artisans. Home products range from tabletop and to one-of-a-kind vintage pieces collected from flea markets and antique shops around the world.

5\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Each Original Ring Candle comes an exciting surprisea ring! In every Ring Candle you will discover a RINGREVEAL slip that tells you if you’ve won another ring worth $100, $1000, or $5000! It’s an exciting experience to share with friends and family.

6.5\% Commission

21 Return Days

Apply Now

Fully is a modern workplace furniture company helping to create spaces where everyone can bring their full self to work.

2\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

GeoZilla is your family safety app. Locate loved ones on a map and keep each other safe even when miles apart.

5\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Health IQ is an innovative insurance startup that uses science and big data to offer special rates for Health Conscious individuals. Our mission is to improve the health of the world by celebrating the health conscious with social and financial rewards

Flat Fee Commission

7 Return Days

Apply Now

JetBlue Vacations offers exclusive deals on elevated vacation packages to over 100 destinations throughout the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean. JetBlue Vacations is your one-stop shop for saving time, money and getting the most out of your getaway.

2\% Commission

14 Return Days

Apply Now

KRKC&CO is a global brand specializing in unique and innovated male/female hip-hop/urban/street jewelry at a very affordable cost. We have Cuban, tennis, pendants, earrings & rings, custom jewelry and as well precious jewelry gifts for her/him.

20\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Established by NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) in 2016, LIFEASE pioneered a new e-commerce business model in China which connects quality manufacturers to customers directly & eliminates the extraneous costs and third-party layers of distribution and retail.

6\% Commission

10 Return Days

Apply Now

Founded in 2013, Nadine West sends personalized outfits to your doorstep every month. No subscription fees. Pay for only what you like and hassle free returns for items you don't want! Shop Now

7\% Commission

15 Return Days

Apply Now

Royal + Reese is a women and children's brand with inclusive sizing S-3XL and children's 6M to 6T. We provide a well rounded range of styles from classic, trendy, and boho to your everyday basics with a mid range price point to serve all budgets.

5\% Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Scotch Select: A Scotch & Soda subscription service that allows you to rent your wardrobe. Dutch fashion brand ‘Scotch & Soda’ loves to make great garments that suit every individual. Our products are rich in detail, high quality and affordable.

10\% Commission

14 Return Days

Apply Now

Tax services company comprised of tax and financial professionals. We specialize in providing solutions to businesses and individuals who find themselves in owing $10,000+ to the IRS and/or State Taxing Authorities.

Flat Fee Commission

30 Return Days

Apply Now

Back to top

CONSUMER PROMOTIONS

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

VAILD UNTIL

DETAILS

Celebrity Cruises: Free Gratuities, Unlimited Drinks + 50\% Off Extra Guest & More Free Bonuses!

31 Mar 20

Learn More

MSC Cruises | Unlimited Drinks + Free Wifi & Up to $100 Free Cruise Cash!

31 Mar 20

Learn More

Free Two-Day Shipping on orders of 3 bags of coffee at www.cafebritt.com. No code needed. *Continental US only

Ongoing

Learn More

Free Standard Shipping On All Orders

10 Feb 20

Learn More

Free Travel Ring Box On All Orders Over $130 - While Stocks Last!

14 Feb 20

Learn More

Get a Free Ring ($20 Value) with purchase of an Original Ring Candle. (That's two rings!)

14 Feb 20

Learn More

Winter warm-up: use code DKSALE20 for an additional 20\% off sale styles.

11 Feb 20

Learn More

Winter warm-up: use code DKSALE30 for an additional 30\% off sale styles.

25 Feb 20

Learn More

Edureka's Exclusive Sale: Flat 25\% OFF on All Live and Self Paced Programs at Edureka, Use code: LIMITED25!

Ongoing

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PUBLISHER INCENTIVE

ADVERTISER

PROMOTION

VAILD UNTIL

DETAILS

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We are often asked for help in getting started in affiliate marketing. Here are some requirements, recommendations and resources for you if you're just beginning your program.

Review these affiliate marketing requirements and recommendations before joining the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network and getting started with your affiliate marketing efforts!

First, it is important to understand that affiliate marketing is NOT a "get rich quick" scheme for "passive income."

It is a marketing channel that, like any other successful business effort, requires time, planning, effort, creativity, commitment, quality, integrity and communication, and relationship-building with your advertiser partners and your consumer followers.Our Network Quality team screens and monitors publishers to ensure the quality of our Network. If you don't meet the requirements below, your publisher account will be terminated.

Please note that some of the external resources recommended may be available in English only.

At a minimum, you will need to:

Sign up on the Publisher Registration form, as your primary website information, you will need to include your own live(not under construction) website, blog, or customized social media page URL.

As an example for a website, you will need to include your own domain, such as https://fashionistaheaven.com, not https://google.com. If you wish to use a social media page, then you will need to have a URL like: https://www.facebook.com/momshoppingtips/, not https://www.facebook.com.

Read carefully and agree to all Publisher Membership Agreement terms and conditions, including but not limited to following all applicable laws and privacy regulations.

Read carefully and agree to all Network Policies, including but not limited to FTC Endorsement Disclosure Requirements for affiliate marketing, and compliance testing and approval for any DSAs (Downloadable Software Applications).

Provide unique, quality content(not copied from another site or source)that adds value for your visitors.

"Google believes that pure, or "thin," affiliate websites do not provide additional value for web users, especially (but not only) if they are part of a program that distributes its content across a network of affiliates. These sites often appear to be cookie-cutter sites or templates [with] the same or similar content replicated within the same site, or across multiple domains or languages. Because a search results page could return several of these sites, all with the same content, thin affiliates create a frustrating user experience. Added value means additional meaningful content or features, such as additional information about price, purchasinglocation, or product category."*

*From Google Webmasters Support quality guidelines for affiliate programs.

There is a two-step process to using affiliate marketing in your business efforts:

1. Join the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

2. Apply and be approved into each advertiser's affiliate program. After you join the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, you will then apply to join the specific advertisers' affiliate programs. Each advertiser has certain criteria that you need to meet in order to be approved into the program. Your website content must also be relevant to the advertiser's products and meet brand guidelines.

Read about the road map to success for new publishers, and some resources to help you get started.

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network supports Google Chrome version 18 and up, but we recommend that you use Internet Explorer 9 when accessing your account.

If you are using Chrome and having problems registering with or logging in to Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, you may need to adjust your browser settings. Please take these steps:

If you have trouble registering:

Click on the How to Enable Third Party Cookies button in the upper right corner of your browser screen and select Settings.

Scroll down and click Advanced.

Under Privacy and Security, click Content settings

If "Allow local data to be set" is selected, click Manage Exceptions and make sure that linksynergy.com is not among the blocked sites. If it is blocked, set its Behavior drop-down to "Allow".

If "Block third-party cookies and site data" is checked, click Manage Exceptions and in the "Hostname pattern" field, add linksynergy.com and set the Behavior drop-down to "Allow".

If "Block sites from setting any data" is selected, consider switching your settings to "Allow local data to be set" and "Block third-party cookies and site data" and follow the instructions in Step 5 above.

Click OK when you're finished and restart your browser.

If you are having trouble logging in:

I.

II. Clear the browsing data:

Under Privacy, click Clear the browsing data.

Select the desired time range to clear.

Make sure the "Cached images and files" box is checked.

Click Clear browsing data.

III. Adjust Advanced Settings:

Under "Network," click Change proxy settings.

Select the Advanced tab

Scroll down to the Security section and check "Use SSL 3.0" and "Use TLS 1.0"

Lastly, close Chrome and restart it. You will now be able to access your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network account.

Affiliate marketing is a method of selling products or services by marketing them within the content of publisher websites. Publishers (affiliates) earn a commission from their advertiser partners (merchants) for every sale or other pre-agreed action, such as subscriptions, delivered through their efforts.

This method is called performance-based marketing or pay-per-action marketing (PPA). It is a modern variation of the practice of paying finder's fees to individuals who introduce new clients to a business. Compensation can be based on generating sales, completing forms, or signing up new customers.

You can also watch an introductory video about affiliate marketing below.

Watch this 2-minute video to get a behind the scenes look at affiliate marketing. You'll learn about the relationship between advertisers, publishers, consumers, and affiliate networks, and what happens when a consumer clicks on a link and makes a purchase on an advertiser's site.

Video transcript:

Hi! I'm Raul Sinclair, Creative Specialist at Rakuten and I'm here to explain to you how affiliate marketing works. Affiliate marketing has four main participants, the merchant, the affiliate, the network and the consumer. A merchant is a retailer or brand that allows a commercial entity or person referred to as an affiliate the opportunity to market products and services to consumer. At Rakuten our merchants are called advertisers and our affiliates are known as publishers.

When a consumer clicks an affiliate link, banner, or product on an publisher site they are taken to the advertiser's website to buy, pay and receive the product or service. But what really happens behind the scenes is how affiliate marketing works. When the consumer shops on the publisher's website a cookie is placed in the consumer's browser. This cookie tracks the transaction from start to finish providing business data to the advertiser. The advertiser receives payment and sends a commission to the publisher based on a previously set percentage. Typically, an affiliate network provides technology to manage the transactions between Publishers and Advertisers.

And that is how affiliate marketing works.

Thank you.

This has been a Rakuten Campus video, empowering your success!

Chat Support is now available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. Simply click on the support icon that will appear in the bottom right corner of your screen.

[email protected]

Get more information on what Customer Support can help you with.

While the publisher help center is here to provide immediate self-service assistance with general technical information and best practices around the clock, sometimes you need more personalized help. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Customer Support team stands ready to answer your specific technical and product questions and to resolve technical issues to your satisfaction.

Help us to help you with these tips for getting the fastest and best results from contacting Customer Support:

Whitelist rakuten.com

So our response to you doesn't end up in your spam folder, please be sure to add the rakuten.com domain to the safe senders list in your email program. Check your spam or junk mail folder for our reply before re-contacting Customer Support.

Include your SID

To help us provide faster support, please include your Site ID (SID) which can be found at the top right corner of the page when you log in to your publisher account. The site ID (SID) is a unique number used in the Rakuten Affiliate Network to identify different marketing channels. Our support team can use your site ID to locate your record, so please include it in any communications you send us. Here's an example of where to find your SID:

Provide as many details as possible

If you are experiencing a technical issue, it will save you a great deal of time in problem-solving with Customer Support if you will also provide as many relevant details in your email request as possible, such as:

Which browser(s) you are using (for example, Chrome or Safari or Firefox)

Which operating system you are using (for example, Windows 7)

What steps you are following before you have a problem

What error message you are receiving (if any)

Attached screenshots of the error message or the problem, if possible

Customer Support Contact Information

Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

If no toll-free number is listed for your country, you may email and request us to call you.

For publishers located in the US, Canada, Australia, and non-European countries not listed below (in English):

Email: [email protected]

Call us: toll-free: +1-888-880-8430 or call: +1-646-943-8200 and select option 7.

For publishers located in the UK and other European countries not listed below (in English):

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +44 (0) 800 011 6169

For publishers located in France, or French-speaking (in French or English):

Email: [email protected]

For publishers located in Germany, or German-speaking (in German or English):

Email: [email protected]

For publishers located in Brazil, or Brazilian Portuguese-speaking (in Brazilian Portuguese or English):

Email:

This article defines the acronyms CPM, CTR, CPA, and CPC, which are different ways for measuring performance in affiliate marketing.

CPM: Cost per Mille (Thousand)

When used in online advertising it relates to the cost per thousand page impressions. CPM is usually referred to the number of clicks registered in a website by the readers. Ad Networks, such as AdSense, calculate ad revenue for websites based on CPM.

CTR:Click-Through Rate

This is a way of measuring the success of an online advertising campaign. A CTR is a percentage obtained by dividing the number of users who clicked on an ad on a web page by the number of times the ad was delivered (impressions). For example, if a banner ad was delivered 100 times (100 impressions) and one person clicked on it (clicks recorded), then the resulting CTR would be 1 percent and be displayed as 1.00.

CPA: Cost per Action or Cost per Acquisition

Advertising is performance based and is common in the affiliate marketing sector of the business. In this payment scheme, the publisher takes all the risk of running the ad, and the advertiser pays only for the amount of users who complete a transaction, such as a purchase or sign-up. This is the best type of rate to pay for banner advertisements and the worst type of rate to charge.

CPC: Cost per Click

This is a payment option that compensates a publisher whenever their referred customers click on a link for an advertiser's offer. CPC is also an internet-marketing formula used to price banner ads. Some advertisers will pay publishers based on the number of times a banner is clicked.

Got 10 minutes? Follow these 10 simple steps to sign up as a publisher and start earning money from your website!

When you're finished, check out our Quick Start Guide to getting your new affiliate program going fast.

Signing up (registering) as a publisher in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network is as easy as buying something online. There is one key difference: Joining the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network as a publisher costs nothing. Instead, you'll have the opportunity to earn money online from your website, email marketing, and social media promotions!

Review these affiliate marketing requirements and recommendations before joining the Rakuten Affiliate Network and getting started with your affiliate marketing efforts.

In the steps that follow, we will ask you to enter some information about your business and your website. And in just 5 to 10 minutes you’ll have completed the first step toward using Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network to earn money with your website. After your application has been reviewed and approved (usually within a couple of business days), you'll receive a welcome email with instructions on how to get started. You will automatically be opted into all the international networks for which you are eligible.

The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network supports all major browsers. For more information, see specifics about browser settings .

Click here to go to the Publisher Registration page.

1. Company Info

Start by selecting the country in which your business is located.

Quick Start Guide

Select a legal entity type

You should consult with your accountant and legal team on this. For a definition of each type, please see What legal entity type should I select?

Enter your business name

This must not exceed 45 characters.

Choose the tax form

If your business is in the US, a W-9 will be preselected. If your business is in another country, you’ll have a few forms to choose from.

NOTE: You do not need to send your tax form to Rakuten Marketing. During the registration process, we ask you to enter your company name and income tax identification information (social security number or employer identification number in the US) so that you do not have to submit a physical document.

For more information on these forms, please see Publisher Tax Information.

Businesses based in the United States, must enter a Social Security Number (for an individual or sole proprietor tax identification) or an IRS Employer ID Number (EIN)

Both of these are 9-digit numbers. Please enter them without dashes or spaces. Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network is required to collect this information for tax purposes. This field is optional for business not based in the United States.

Enter your address and phone number

Our address can contain up to 35 characters on each line and include letters, numbers, symbols, and spaces.

2. Contact & Account Info

Enter your name, email address, and username and password. Your username can be up to 12 alphanumeric characters. Your password must be 8 to 12 characters and include at least 2 numbers and 2 letters.

Select a security question and enter an answer for it.

3. Language Preference

The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Publisher Dashboard and the email communications we send to you are currently available in five languages: English (U.S.), Spanish, French, German, and Brazilian Portuguese. Please select your preference here.

4. Membership Agreement

Review the entire global publisher membership agreement. Be sure you scroll down to the bottom of the document.

If you agree to the terms, click the box to indicate this. Also click to confirm you are 18 years of age or older. You will be automatically opted-in to all global Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networks for which you are eligible .

Enter the CAPTCHA characters to confirm that you are a human. If you have trouble reading the characters, click the sound icon to hear them read.

Read the Information Certification. If it is all true, type your name in the Signature field and click Continue.

If you receive an error message here, please see signup troubleshooting.

5. Primary Website Info

Enter the name of your website and the URL, including https://

Select your primary business model. For definitions of these models, please see What business model should I select ?

Enter the month, day, and year your business was established using the format MM/DD/YYYY.

Select a range for how many unique visitors your site gets a month and for the number of page views you get a month.

Provide a short description of your website.You can include a URL to link to your Sell Sheet on your website or elsewhere for advertisers to download.

If you want to know more about what your website information is used for, please see What is my website information used for ?

6. Vertical Category

Select the primary vertical that your business fits into. You can select up to three.

7. Your Customer Demographic

Select the gender and age range of your customers. Note: you may select more than one age range.

8. Payment Threshold

Enter the amount of commissions you would like to trigger a payment. The amount must be at least the minimum payment threshold for your country of residence. Please do not include decimals, spaces, commas, or currency symbols in the field. The minimum is 50 USD, CAD, GBP, EUR, & AUD for all payments.

9. Email Subscriptions

Check the boxes if you’d like to receive the Rakuten Affiliate Network newsletters and be notified of new promotions offered by advertisers.

Click Continue .

Click Continue again.

You’ll receive an email from Rakuten Affiliate Network asking you to validate your email address. Simply click the link and your email address will be validated. If you don’t receive an email from us, please be sure that your spam software is set to accept email from @linkshare.com. For more on validating your email, please see Validating Your Email Address.

If you run into a problem while signing up, see Signup Troubleshooting .

10. After you submit your completed application, it will be reviewed by our team. When it's approved (usually within a couple of business days) you'll receive a welcome email with instructions for you to follow to get started with Rakuten Affiliate Network!

When you're finished, check out our to learn how to get your new affiliate program going fast.

What You Need to Know

Disclaimer: The information and opinions within this content are for information purposes only. Guidance is based on personal interpretations and in no way represent legal advice.

See notes below the infographic for clickable links to additional resources and summaries.

https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/publisher-membership-agreement/

Compliance Policy//Blog

Why is a Disclosure Important?

It is important to incorporate disclosures as a publisher to not only be compliant with Rakuten policies, but also to ensure you are compliant with government agencies (FTC, ASA, etc...). Disclosures are required if there is a 'material connection,' meaning someone makes money from promoting/advertising a brand. This includes influencers, blog writers, coupon sites, etc anyone who is using affiliate links! Essentially, the disclosure's purpose is to help visitors/consumers understand that by clicking on the link, the publisher earns a commission.

Rakuten Marketing Policies

Affiliate Network Policies

Click Here

Publisher Membership Agreement

Click Here

Recommended Articles

.com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising

Click Here

An Influencer's Guide to making clear that ads are ads

Click Here

FTC Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking

Click Here

Government Bodies

FTC - Federal Trade

Commission - US

ASA - Advertising

Standards Authority - UK

CAP - Committee of

Advertising Practice - UK

Four Standards of Publisher Disclosure

1. Frequent

Disclosures must be on every page of your site that promotes a product for which you receive any form of compensation.

2. Clear

The disclosure must make it clear to the reader that you are compensated for your review - it should not be hidden in legalese.

3. Conspicuous

The disclosure must be conspicuous and easy to see on your site. It has to stand out from other text on the page so that it is immediately evident to all visitors. The disclosure text must be as large or larger than the main text and must be colored/contrast with both with its background and the main text.

4. Require No Action

Your disclosure must be immediately visible to anyone who visits your reviews or endorsements. The visitor should not be required to take any action to view it.

Example Disclosure

DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning when you click the links and make a purchase, we receive a commission.

Do's & Don'ts

Social Media

Do

Use hashtags like #ad, #advertisement, #sponsored, or #promotion - these terms are commonly understood by consumers and marketers alike

Place at the very beginning of your post

Use #ad, #sponsored, or #promotion on your stories

Youtube: Include written disclosure at the beginning of the video description

Don't

Put disclosure at the bottom of the post or mix in middle of other hashtags

Only rely on tagging the advertiser

Make it difficult for your visitor to know you're being compensated for your post

Youtube: Only include a disclosure on your video content

Blog | Editorial | Content Site

Do

Ensure your disclosure appears ‘above the fold,’ meaning the visitor doesn’t have to scroll down to see it. Placing your disclosure ‘above the fold’ makes it easy for the visitor to identify

Make your disclosure stand out

Explain what an affiliate link is make it clear to the consumer/visitor what clicking on the link will do

Put your disclosure on every page that contains affiliate link(s)

Make sure your disclosure is easy to read- i.e contrasting colors (black text on white background)

If hyperlinking to a disclosure page- be sure link is in a color that stands out to consumer. All the other elements above still stand for this option. (Example: We earn a commission when you follow the link to make a purchase. Click here to learn more about how we make money.)

Don't

Put at the footer of your site, or in an inconspicuous spot (i.e. middle of the page on the side, bottom of post, etc)

Put in color or font that is difficult to read (i.e. light grey on white background)

Only put a disclosure on your home page, on a disclosure page, or a link to one in your footer

Make your disclosure tough to understand

Only state ‘we use affiliate links’

DISCLAIMER:

The information and opinions within this content are for information purposes only. Guidance is based on personal interpretations and in no way, represents legal advice.

Recap

Disclosure is important not only to be compliant with our Rakuten Marketing and advertisers' policies, but to ensure you are compliant with all relevant governmental regulations. Disclosures are required for anyone who is making money from these ads -- including using affiliate links. The purpose is to help consumers understand that the publisher may earn money from clicking on a link.

Disclosures should be:

Frequent

Clear

Conspicuous

Require No Actions

Other key elements of disclosure guidelines:

Disclosing your relationship to the brand is another way you can be sure you are compliant.

The disclosure guidelines apply to influencers as well as publishers.

Disclosures in “About Us,” “General Info,” “Terms of Service,” or “Privacy Policy” sections do not meet the criteria for clear and conspicuous.

A “Buy Now” button might not be understood that the person placing the link is getting paid for purchases through the link.

If a publisher's affiliate links appear on someone else’s website or in user comments, a disclosure should be included anytime a product is endorsed and the publisher receives compensation.

A disclosure is not required if there is no material connection.

For example, if you want to promote a brand’s product on your own, and you are not partnered with that brand, and only share it simply because you love it, you don’t need to add a disclosure.

Posting an image of an advertiser's product on social media could be seen as a material connection and would require a disclosure to accompany it.

It is important to include both an audible and visual disclosure on videos or live streams as consumers can enter and exit a video/live stream as they please; therefore, a clear and conspicuous visual disclosure should be available.

All the above information for disclosure guidelines applies to mobile sites and apps.

Digital marketing and disclosure guidelines will continue to change and evolve, so it is important to be aware of any changes and be sure you are always being transparent with consumers.

Follow the suggested guidelines above and do your own research about other guidelines that may apply to your specific site content.

Additional Information and Resources

Federal Trade Commission Guidelines:

https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking#affiliate

How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/press-releases/ftc-staff-revises-online-advertising-disclosure-guidelines/130312dotcomdisclosures.pdf

Advertising Standards Authority:

https://www.asa.org.uk/advice-online/affiliate-marketing.html

Influencer's Guide to making clear that ads are ads: https://www.asa.org.uk/uploads/assets/uploaded/3af39c72-76e1-4a59-b2b47e81a034cd1d.pdf

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Policies:

https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/affiliate-network-policies/

FTC and CAP Code are not the only regulatory agencies enforcing the rules. Other countries will have their own marketing and advertising laws and regulatory bodies that publishers will need to adhere to. We highly recommend that you refer to the rules and guidance applicable to each jurisdictionas this will allow you to make sure that you are not breaking rules on advertising.

What You Need to Know

Disclaimer: The information and opinions within this content are for information purposes only. Guidance is based on personal interpretations and in no way represent legal advice.

See notes below the infographic for clickable links to additional resources and summaries.

https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/publisher-membership-agreement/

Compliance Policy//Coupon

Why is a Disclosure Important?

It is important to incorporate disclosures as a publisher to not only be compliant with Rakuten policies, but also to ensure you are compliant with government agencies (FTC, ASA, etc...). Disclosures are required if there is a 'material connection,' meaning someone makes money from promoting/advertising a brand. This includes influencers, blog writers, coupon sites, etc anyone who is using affiliate links! Essentially, the disclosure's purpose is to help visitors/consumers understand that by clicking on the link, the publisher earns a commission.

Rakuten Marketing Policies

Affiliate Network Policies

Click Here

Publisher Membership Agreement

Click Here

Recommended Articles

.com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising

Click Here

An Influencer's Guide to making clear that ads are ads

Click Here

FTC Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking

Click Here

Government Bodies

FTC - Federal Trade

Commission - US

ASA - Advertising

Standards Authority - UK

CAP - Committee of

Advertising Practice - UK

Four Standards of Publisher Disclosure

1. Frequent

Disclosures must be on every page of your site that promotes a product for which you receive any form of compensation.

2. Clear

The disclosure must make it clear to the reader that you are compensated for your review - it should not be hidden in legalese.

3. Conspicuous

The disclosure must be conspicuous and easy to see on your site. It has to stand out from other text on the page so that it is immediately evident to all visitors. The disclosure text must be as large or larger than the main text and must be colored/contrast with both with its background and the main text.

4. Require No Action

Your disclosure must be immediately visible to anyone who visits your reviews or endorsements. The visitor should not be required to take any action to view it.

Example Disclosure

DISCLOSURE: We may earn a commission when you use one of our coupons/links to make a purchase.

Do's & Don'ts

Social Media

Do

Use hashtags like #ad, #advertisement, #sponsored, or #promotion - these terms are commonly understood by consumers and marketers alike

Place at the very beginning of your post

Use #ad, #sponsored, or #promotion on your stories

Youtube: Include written disclosure at the beginning of the video description

Don't

Put disclosure at the bottom of the post or mix in middle of other hashtags

Only rely on tagging the advertiser

Make it difficult for your visitor to know you're being compensated for your post

Youtube: Only include a disclosure on your video content

Coupon | Rewards | Shopping | Comparison

Do

Ensure you have a disclosure at least on the footer of your site so it is clear to the consumer/visitor that you are compensated

Put your disclosure on every page that contains affiliate link(s) putting the disclosure on the footer of your site will solve for this!

Make sure your disclosure is easy to read- i.e contrasting colors (black text on white background)

If hyperlinking to a disclosure page - be sure link is in a color that stands out to consumer. All the other elements above still stand for this option. (Example: We earn a commission when you follow the link to make a purchase. Click here to learn more about how we make money.)

Don't

Put in color or font that is difficult to read (i.e. light grey on white background)

Only state 'we use affiliate links'

Make your disclosure tough to understand

Rely only on a single disclosure on your 'about us' or homepage

DISCLAIMER:

The information and opinions within this content are for information purposes only. Guidance is based on personal interpretations and in no way, represents legal advice.

Recap

Disclosure is important not only to be compliant with our Rakuten Marketing and advertisers' policies, but to ensure you are compliant with all relevant governmental regulations. Disclosures are required for anyone who is making money from these ads -- including using affiliate links. The purpose is to help consumers understand that the publisher may earn money from clicking on a link.

Disclosures should be:

Frequent

Clear

Conspicuous

Require No Actions

Other key elements of disclosure guidelines:

Disclosing your relationship to the brand is another way you can be sure you are compliant.

The disclosure guidelines apply to influencers as well as publishers.

Disclosures in “About Us,” “General Info,” “Terms of Service,” or “Privacy Policy” sections do not meet the criteria for clear and conspicuous.

A “Buy Now” button might not be understood that the person placing the link is getting paid for purchases through the link.

If a publisher's affiliate links appear on someone else’s website or in user comments, a disclosure should be included anytime a product is endorsed and the publisher receives compensation.

A disclosure is not required if there is no material connection.

For example, if you want to promote a brand’s product on your own, and you are not partnered with that brand, and only share it simply because you love it, you don’t need to add a disclosure.

Posting an image of an advertiser's product on social media could be seen as a material connection and would require a disclosure to accompany it.

It is important to include both an audible and visual disclosure on videos or live streams as consumers can enter and exit a video/live stream as they please; therefore, a clear and conspicuous visual disclosure should be available.

All the above information for disclosure guidelines applies to mobile sites and apps.

Digital marketing and disclosure guidelines will continue to change and evolve, so it is important to be aware of any changes and be sure you are always being transparent with consumers.

Follow the suggested guidelines above and do your own research about other guidelines that may apply to your specific site content.

Additional Information and Resources

Federal Trade Commission Guidelines:

https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking#affiliate

How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/press-releases/ftc-staff-revises-online-advertising-disclosure-guidelines/130312dotcomdisclosures.pdf

Advertising Standards Authority:

https://www.asa.org.uk/advice-online/affiliate-marketing.html

Influencer's Guide to making clear that ads are ads: https://www.asa.org.uk/uploads/assets/uploaded/3af39c72-76e1-4a59-b2b47e81a034cd1d.pdf

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Policies:

https://rakutenmarketing.com/legal-notices/affiliate-network-policies/

FTC and CAP Code are not the only regulatory agencies enforcing the rules. Other countries will have their own marketing and advertising laws and regulatory bodies that publishers will need to adhere to. We highly recommend that you refer to the rules and guidance applicable to each jurisdictionas this will allow you to make sure that you are not breaking rules on advertising.

Watch this 25-minute video tutorial with a step-by-step walk through of how to install a Consent Management Platform (CMP) on your site to help you gather consent from your EU visitors. In addition, we will walk you through how the CMP tool works, how to customize your settings, and how to install our wrapper solution (which allows you to gather consent from another CMP and pass it to RM). Contact: [email protected] for questions.

Learn more about GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and what it means to publishers.

For the optimal viewing experience, we recommend you watch the video in the HD setting, if possible, and use headphones.NOTE: You can view the video with subtitles in English, or auto-translated into many other languages. Click "CC" on the video view screen below to turn on closed captions/subtitles. Click "gear" icon to change the settings to your preferred language.

Please note: The information and opinions within this video content are for information purposes only. They are not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice, and should not be relied on or treated as a substitute for specific advice relevant to particular circumstances.

Here are some links to additional resources for GDPR information:

For questions: [email protected]

For assistance with CMP and CMP wrapper: https://rakutenmarketing.com/content/consent-management-platform/

Rakuten Marketing GDPR Resource Centre: https://rakutenmarketing.com/en-uk/resource-centre

Rakuten Marketing Blog: https://blog.rakutenmarketing.com/insights/the-gdpr-faqs/

ICO GDPR Regulations Information: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/

Download the slides as a PDF

The amount of revenue can vary widely. The best way to find out how much you’ll earn is to sign up, start joining advertisers’ programs, and testing the various link formats on your site. As a publisher, you’ll be able to see your commission earnings by clicking on the Reports tab in the publisher dashboard.

The links you display on your pages generate commissions based on each advertiser’s terms. Most advertisers pay a percentage of the sales you generate. Review the terms of each advertiser you join for details.

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network provides in-depth reports enabling you to view the number of impressions, clicks, orders, sales, and commission you generate for each advertiser.

To cancel or close your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network account completely, you must be the administrator (or master user) on the account. Please note that if you cancel your account, all of your advertiser relationships will be severed. You can reopen your account at a later date by contacting Customer Support.

Follow these instructions if you have only one marketing channel on your account. (Click here for instructions if you have more than one marketing channel.)

On the Home page of the publisher dashboard, go to the My Account tab, and select Account Info from the drop-down menu.

Scroll down to the bottom of the Account Info page.

Click the Cancel My Account link.

Follow the online prompts. An email will be sent to you. Click on the link in the email to confirm.

We're sorry to see you go! Please contact Customer Support if there is anything we can assist you with.

No, it is completely free to become a publisher through Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network and there is no cost in joining any affiliate program.

We are often asked for help in getting started in affiliate marketing. Here are some requirements, recommendations and resources for you if you're just beginning your program.

!Review these affiliate marketing requirements and recommendations before joining the Rakuten Affiliate Network and getting started with your affiliate marketing efforts !

First, it is important to understand that affiliate marketing is NOT a "get rich quick" scheme for "passive income."

It is a marketing channel that, like any other successful business effort, requires time, planning, effort, creativity, commitment, quality, integrity and communication, and relationship-building with your advertiser partners and your consumer followers.Our Network Quality team screens and monitors publishers to ensure the quality of our Network. If you don't meet the requirements below, your publisher account will be terminated.

At a minimum, you will need to:

Sign up on the Publisher Registration form, as your primary website information, you will need to include your own live(not under construction) website, blog, or customized social media page URL.

As an example for a website, you will need to include your own domain, such as https://fashionistaheaven.com, not https://google.com. If you wish to use a social media page, then you will need to have a URL like: https://www.facebook.com/momshoppingtips/, not https://www.facebook.com.

Read carefully and agree to all Publisher Membership Agreement terms and conditions, including but not limited to following all applicable laws and privacy regulations.

Read carefully and agree to all Network Policies, including but not limited to FTC Endorsement Disclosure Requirements for affiliate marketing, and compliance testing and approval for any DSAs (Downloadable Software Applications).

Provide unique, quality content(not copied from another site or source)that adds value for your visitors.

"Google believes that pure, or "thin," affiliate websites do not provide additional value for web users, especially (but not only) if they are part of a program that distributes its content across a network of affiliates. These sites often appear to be cookie-cutter sites or templates [with] the same or similar content replicated within the same site, or across multiple domains or languages. Because a search results page could return several of these sites, all with the same content, thin affiliates create a frustrating user experience. Added value means additional meaningful content or features, such as additional information about price, purchasinglocation, or product category."*

*From Google Webmasters Support quality guidelines for affiliate programs.

There is a two-step process to using affiliate marketing in your business efforts:

1. Join the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

2. Apply and be approved into each advertiser's affiliate program. After you join the Rakuten Affiliate Network, you will then apply to join the specific advertisers' affiliate programs. Each advertiser has certain criteria that you need to meet in order to be approved into the program. Your website content must also be relevant to the advertiser's products and meet brand guidelines.

Read about the road map to success for new publishers, and some resources to help you get started.

Overview

Now that you've decided to become a Rakuten Affiliate Network publisher to earn money from your website, you're in business! And that means in addition to knowing and following business, accounting, marketing and legal best practices, you also need to understand and follow Network and advertiser policies, terms and conditions. We consider the Rakuten Affiliate Network to be a community. As such, we all need to be open, honest, caring, and sharing with each other. After all, our network was originally founded with the name "LinkShare"--sharing is in our DNA, you might say.

Like any healthy, vibrant community, there are benefits to belonging and there are expectations and guidelines to follow to maintain your membership in good standing. The benefits of belonging to our outstanding community are many:

Association with the #1-ranked affiliate network for six years running

Top-quality advertisers and brands available for partnerships

Opportunity to earn commissions by becoming an 'adjunct salesperson' to help consumers make buying decisions

Innovative technology and tools for your affiliate marketing needs

Self-service customer assistance 24/7 here in the publisher help center

High-quality email and phone customer support

Live monthly publisher webinars where you can enhance your affiliate marketing skills and get your questions answered

There are also responsibilities associated with your Network membership. We take network quality very seriously because it is in the best interest of all community members. Here's a checklist of expectations and guidelines to get you started. It's not intended to be all-inclusive, but key issues and resources are highlighted for you to investigate further. It's your responsibility to ensure that you comply with all relevant laws, policies, terms and conditions so that you can be a trusted and valued partner in our Network and start earning commissions. We're here to help!

For more detailed information and discussion, watch our recorded webinar Network Policies & Compliance: What You Need to Know

Four Key Areas of Compliance

Transparency and integrity in community relationships

Webmaster guidelines and best practices for online marketing

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network policies

Advertiser-specific policies, terms and conditions

1. Be open and transparent

In disclosing to Rakuten Affiliate Network and to each advertiser partner who you are, how you are driving traffic to advertisers' sites using your affiliate links, and how you are maintaining compliance to all required terms and policies. The strength and the value of our network is built upon good partnerships between publishers and advertisers, partnerships that are built and maintained with trust and integrity.

To illustrate this concept, you may recall the childhood story told in many variations around the world of Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. In one (less scary) version of this story, the girl walks through the woods to deliver food to her sickly grandmother. A Big Bad Wolf wants to eat the girl and the food in her basket. When the girl arrives, she notices that her grandmother looks very strange. Little Red Riding Hood then says, "What a deep voice you have!" ("The better to greet you with," responds the wolf), "Goodness, what big eyes you have!" ("The better to see you with," responds the wolf), "And what big hands you have!" ("The better to hug you with," responds the wolf), and lastly, "What a big mouth you have" ("The better to eat you with!" responds the wolf), at which point the wolf jumps out of bed to try to eat the girl. However, a Hunter comes to the rescue, kills the wolf and saves Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother, who had been locked in the closet.

In this story, Little Red Riding Hood represents our innocent consumer, on her way through the internet woods to accomplish what she needs. Grandmother's house represents the friendly, trusted website that the consumer thinks she is visiting. We could liken the "bad" publishers to the Big Bad Wolf in the story. He is misrepresenting himself as the trusted grandmother, when in fact, he wishes to do great harm to Little Red Riding Hood. The Hunter in the story represents the Rakuten Compliance team, who finds out about the wolf's tactics and comes to the rescue by terminating the wolf ("bad" publisher), protecting Little Red Riding Hood (the innocent consumer) and restoring the grandmother (online shopping experience) to her trusted place.

find the advertiser's policies in the Publisher Dashboard

Image credit: Walter Crane - http://fyama.livejournal.com/609412.html, Public Domain, Link

2. Follow "White Hat" (not "Black Hat") webmaster best practices

Photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/fauxto_dkp/

A good place to start is Google's Webmaster Guidelines and Google's quality guidelines for affiliate website s to help search engines find, crawl, and index your site in the search results. This is called SEO ( Search Engine Optimization ). Review the entire guidelines document carefully, and pay particular attention to the quality best practices, such as these basic principles:

Make pages primarily for users, not for search engines. Google's guidelines caution specifically against creating " doorway pages " and " thin affiliate sites ", among other concerns for publishers.

Don't deceive your users.

Avoid tricks intended to improve search engine rankings. A good rule of thumb is whether you'd feel comfortable explaining what you've done to a website that competes with you, or to a Google employee. Another useful test is to ask, "Does this help my users? Would I do this if search engines didn't exist?"

Think about what makes your website unique, valuable, or engaging. Make your website stand out from others in your field.

3. Understand and follow Rakuten Affiliate Network Policies

You can review and download the current Publisher Membership Agreement and the Network Policies online. Read them completely and carefully and make sure you understand everything in the policies. You may also wish to have your legal consultant review and advise you where you are unsure. The policies cover these important areas of your affiliate marketing efforts in our Network, and others:

FTC Endorsement Compliance: For making required disclosures when reviewing products and using affiliate links. Also review the PMA (Performance Marketing Association) Blogging Disclosure Update - 2016.

FTC CAN-SPAM Act Compliance: When using email marketing

Using Adware, Plug-ins, Pop-up Engines and Other Downloadable Technology

Using Network Communication Tools

Distributing Affiliate Links

Participating in Advertisers' Affiliate Programs

Generating Invalid Tracked Activities

Taking Advantage of Return Day Features

4. Understand and follow advertisers' policies, terms and conditions when you join their affiliate programs

Carefully and thoroughly read the advertiser's terms and conditions and policies before joining the affiliate program. Pay particular attention to advertiser-specific policies about:

Paid Search Marketing: Such as whether trademark bidding is allowed

Social Media: Allowable use of social media postings for affiliate links

Coupon Usage:Including the use of non-affiliate coupon codes on your site

Gift Cards: Including whether gift cards and e-gift cards are commissionable

Downloadable Software: Including whether the advertiser allows toolbars, browser plug-ins, and other downloadable software applications (DSAs)

Resale of Products: Allowable purchase of advertiser's products for resale, if any

Violations:How the advertiser will handle violations of their policies

You can, in the advertiser information for each advertiser you're partnered with. It will look something like this:

Please note: Advertiser policies are subject to change. It's always best to check the advertiser's terms & conditions and confirm the policies with the advertiser directly.

Summary

By following the rules and being a Rakuten Affiliate community member in good standing, you will continue to enjoy all the benefits and opportunities for income generation. However, you should be aware that we have a team of Network Quality & Compliance folks who constantly and diligently monitor our publishers for any signs of fraud, misrepresentations or non-compliance. Serious violations can lead to termination or removal from the Network, and you may not be allowed to rejoin.

There are many reasons why we may terminate newly registered publishers in our Network including: 1) incomplete or false contact information, 2) invalid business, 3) lack of website content, 4) unacceptable website content (including promotion of activity considered illegal in the United States), and 5) an inability to verify website(s), phone number(s), and email, etc. We may also terminate publishers associated with known fraudulent publishers.

Other causes for termination or investigation are spelled out in the various policies referenced in this article. It is your responsibility to read and understand all the relevant policies to make sure you are following them. If you have questions, please contact your legal consultant for guidance. We cannot provide legal counsel for you.

We want you to continue to be a valued, trusted member of our community. So let's all work together to keep it clean!

You can find the most up-to-date general contact information on our website here:

https://rakutenmarketing.com/contact-us/

If you know your username and password but are still have problems logging in there are a few possible reasons.

Usernames and passwords are case-sensitive, be sure your Caps Lock key is not on.

Check your inbox and/or spam folder in case you were contacted by our Network Quality team. If your account has been suspended, please reply to the NQ team directly for more information.

For additional information, please see the Username and Password Errors FAQs. Note that the FAQs page is only accessible once you have completed the sign-up process.

Please contact customer support available via the chat support widget at the bottom right of your screen for further assistance.

Deal Dispatcher is a digital publication containing opportunities for publishers to take advantage of incentives from Rakuten Affiliate Network advertisers. The Publisher Promotions page provides publishers ways to increase commissions or earn more bonuses by promoting advertisers' special offers and promotions. Consumer Promotions targeting consumers are listed for publishers to promote on their sites. Publishers can learn more about New Advertiser programs and create new partnerships by clicking the Learn More buttons next to the deals.

Deal Dispatcher is posted in the Find Offers & Promotions section of the Publisher Help Center. It's also available in the left hand side of the publisher dashboard homepage. There are two buttons: one for Consumer Promotions and the other for Publisher Promotions. When you click on either of these buttons, a new window will open up with offers from our advertisersthat willhelp publishers earn even more commissions with Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network. A ticker with publisher incentives is positioned at the top of the publisher dashboard for convenience. A monthly Deal Dispatcher announcement also reminds publishers of these opportunities.

Deals aredivided into two main categories: Consumer Promotions and Publisher Promotions. ANew Advertiser category introduces publishers to new advertisers in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

The Consumer Promotions category is a list of deals from advertisers that will benefit your website's visitors; for example, free shipping or $10 off of a purchase. These offers can be very helpful for turning clicks into sales and increasing your conversion rate.

The Publisher Promotions category is a list of deals from advertisers that will benefit you directly through your commissions. These awards can be anything from sign-up bonus offers for new publishers to increased commission rates or return days for loyal supporters.

Explore Deal Dispatcher for each of our global networks today for great promotions that will help you earn big bucks!

Channel type is the method you use to promote offers. Website category is your site’s main focus.

IAB consent mechanism

TheGDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)went into effect on25thMay2018. Due to the importance of complying with the regulation, we want to ensure you receive clear guidance and a consistent message from Rakuten Marketing.

What is the GDPR?

The European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the new legal framework governing the use of personal data across all EU markets. Think of it as a new set of data laws fit for the digital age.

It replaces current national data protection laws and the existing EU data protection framework. The GDPR is designed to give consumers more control of their personal information and applies identically across the EU (including the UK). Significantly, the GDPR introduces increased sanctions; organizations can be fined up to 20m or 4\% of annual turnover (whichever is greater) if they breach the law.

The New Rules

We’ve selected the areas of the GDPR we believe are most relevant at the present time for the digital advertising industry. However, it is important to familiarize yourself with the full details as there are many more implications that need to be understood. In addition, we have provided useful links at the end of this communication.

Personal Data

Consumers’ personal data sits at the heart of the GDPR and the classification of personal data is broadened under the GDPR. This means data the digital advertising industry relies on that is not currently considered personal data may under the GDPR now be classified as such. While a definitive list of personal identifiers does not exist for marketers, we can safely assume it will include information such as cookie IDs, customer numbers, IP addresses, device IDs, etc. These are identifiers that many networks and platforms capture as part of their standard tracking and retargeting efforts.

Advertisers using tracking will therefore have an obligation to ensure they are legally compliant with the new regulation.

Legal Basis for Processing Personal Data

Businesses will require a legal basis to process personal data. There are six legal bases available; the two most commonly used in the digital advertising sector are consent and legitimate interest.

Legitimate interest is distinct from consent. According to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO),“It is likely to be most appropriate where you use people’s data in ways they would reasonably expect and which have a minimal privacy impact, or where there is a compelling justification for the processing.”Should a business choose legitimate interest they have to be confident in demonstrating this as an appropriate legal basis.

Where consent is considered necessarythe ICO states,“Consent means offering individuals real choice and control. Genuine consent should put individuals in charge, build customer trust and engagement, and enhance your reputation.”

“Contract” is also a legal basis which may be applicable in some cases. It refers to instances where there are specific contract agreements in place between a business and its customers (data subjects) which allow the business to collect and process personal data.

Click here for details of all the legal bases.

The ePrivacy Directive (cookie law) is largely associated with the banners and pop-ups seen when viewing websites that inform consumers about the use of cookies to track online activity. The Directive also applies to email, SMS, and call marketing consent, which are applicable to some businesses.

The ePrivacy Directive is alex specialis(Latin for law governing a specific subject matter)to the GDPR. This means that the ePrivacy Directive has to be applied where the rules are more specific than in the GDPR. The ePrivacy Directive obliges the controller to obtain consent for cookies and direct marketing. The ePrivacy Directive is currently under review and will be replaced by a regulation within the next year or so.

A focus of the revision is to improve transparency to consumers and introduce stricter consents for cookies (and similar tracking technologies). Under the existing ePrivacy Directive, the ICO has made clear consent is necessary for “cookies and similar technologies.” Thus, regardless of which legal basis is used for processing personal data under GDPR rules, the ePrivacy Directive remains in place meaning thatunambiguousconsent is required for the use of many cookies becausethe GDPR only considers consent sufficient if it is unambiguous. This means that marketers should be reviewing their consent mechanisms along with ICO guidance and making changes accordingly.

An Industry Consent Solution

Given the potentially significant impact on all forms of online advertising, the industry has collaborated to create general standards and approaches. In November 2017 the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Europe announced a technical standard for online consent and industry stakeholders are building a consent tool which is intended to ensure GDPR and ePrivacy Directive compliance.

Rakuten Marketing will be recommending a consent solution in the coming weeks; however, you may be able to use a version of your own. There are a variety of options and tools available online and we advise that solutions should be assessed to ensure they can be implemented to comply with the regulations.

5. Next Steps Checklist for Publishers

Publishers should assess how GDPR impacts their business and document the measures taken to comply with the rules.

Publishers should pay attention to ensuring transparency to consumers and decide the most appropriate legal basis for collecting and processing personal data from site visitors.

Publishers should assess and upgrade privacy policies and cookie notices to provide transparency and upgrade consent capture.

Publishers should seek their own legal advice. This communication should not be read as legal advice.

Publishers should refer to their individual affiliate networks and platforms for any specific guidance or requirements to comply with GDPR.

The GDPR signifies changes that all businesses will have to make and the impact on the industry at this stage is uncertain. However, these impacts can be mitigated with demonstrable understanding, effort, and measures to comply with the rules. The deadline of 25thMay 2018 marks the start of this new age of data privacy.

It is important that you understand your obligations as a business for the GDPR and make any necessary amendments to be compliant. Rakuten Marketing is available to help support our partners through the GDPR process to ensure that they are in compliance. Please do review the links below for more information and consider following our advice above.

Useful links:

GDPR: CMP Installation Demo for Technical Managers (Video)

GDPR FAQs & Key Considerations

GDPR Key Changes

GDPR and Your Business

GDPR Links and Resources

ePrivacy Directive IAB factsheet

IAB GDPR Hub

ICO Guide to the GDPR

ICO Guidance on Data Controllers and Data Processors

What are return days?

Return days are the number of days that can elapse between a referred customer's initial visit from your site to the advertiser's site and a return visit to the advertiser's site in which they make a purchase (also known as "cookie life"). If a customer makes a purchase within the return days period, the referring publisher receives a commission on the sale, even if the visitor returns directly to the advertiser’s site.

What steps do I need to take in order to be entitled to benefit from the return days offered by an advertiser?

Each advertiser, for the most part, sets its own rules for publisher participation in its affiliate marketing program, so the answer to this question will obviously vary from advertiser to advertiser. Our suggestion is that you carefully review the terms of your engagements with each of your advertiser partners, and when in doubt, contact the advertiser or Rakuten Affiliate directly with your questions. With that said, there are a few basic rulespertaining to return days that apply to your participation in all Rakuten Affiliate advertiser programs. Those guidelines are as follows:

Add value by delivering the consumer

In order for you to benefit from Return Day Benefit Policy offered by an advertiser, you must have actually delivered the consumer to the advertiser's site. You will be deemed to have delivered a user to an advertiser if, after receiving a clear indication from that user that they are interested in viewing an advertiser's offerings, you direct that user to the relevant page on the advertiser's site. Examples of this include, but are not limited to:

Direct Link to Advertiser Site:Displaying an advertiser's link on your site such that when a user clicks on that link he or she is redirected to the advertiser's site.

Direct Link Within Publisher Site/Indirect Link to Advertiser Site:Displaying the advertiser's link on your site so that when a user clicks on that link, they are redirected to another page on your site devoted to the advertiser and, at the same time, a fully visible window displaying the relevant page of the advertiser's site opens over or under your web page.

Search Link Within Publisher Site/Indirect Link to Advertiser Site:Permitting the user to use the search features integrated into your site to conduct a search of your site in order locate an advertiser's offerings and then redirecting the user to or opening a fully visible window displaying the specific advertiser's site as part of the search results. In this example, the user's search query must include some specific reference to the advertiser, like the advertiser's name or its products, as opposed to generic search terms.

Search Link to Publisher Site/Indirect Link to Advertiser Site:Acquiring search placement on third-party search engines on behalf of a specific advertiser such that when a user clicks on your listing in the search results, the user is redirected to a page on your site devoted to that advertiser or the advertiser's products and, at the same time, a full-sized window displaying the advertiser's relevant page pops over or under the window containing your page. In this example, the user's search query must include some specific reference to the advertiser, like the advertiser's name or its products, as opposed to generic search terms.

To the extent that you engage in search marketing, please be aware that some advertisers regulate the purchase of keywords based on their name, brands, and trademarks, so you should consult with those advertisers before attempting to acquire search placement on their behalf.

Don't try to beat the system

The concept of return days is built around the fundamental assumption that you have actually referred to the advertiser a userwho has expressed a clear indication that they are interested in the advertiser's offerings.In doing this, you haveadded value that you should be rewarded for. If you have delivered a user who has not indicated in some clear manner any desire to be referred and delivered to an advertiser's site, you have not actually delivered the user in a manner warranting a commission. Worse, if you attempt to "beat the system" by simulating the referral and delivery of a user to an advertiser, then, not only should you be denied the benefit of return days, but you will also not be entitled to any commissions. You may even be required to return commission payments that you have already received.

By way of example, if you:

Program your site to open a 1x1 pixel of the advertiser's site or Web page without actually making the advertiser's site or page visible to the user then you have not delivered the user.

We consider these kinds of business practices deceptive. Please be advised that Rakuten Affiliate takes the integrity of its Network very seriously and will terminate you from participation in the Rakuten Affiliate if you are found by us to be gaming or trying to beat the system.

By establishing these very basic guidelines, we are in no way attempting to discourage you from optimizing and ever-improving the ways you promote the products and services of your advertiser-partners. We do, however, want to make sure that you act in an ethical and responsible fashion, with your primary focus being on adding value to the advertiser's affiliate marketing program.

We are serious about maintaining the integrity of the Network and expect you, as a valued member of the Network, to act with the same values. We understand that you may have questions or concerns as to whether one of your current or proposed promotional strategies is consistent with these guidelines. If you do, then please do not hesitate to contact Customer Support for your country. You can find their contact information in the Support tab at the top of the page. When emailing us, please be as descriptive as possible in identifying the promotional strategy in question, include an example path or search for us to review, and feel free to include diagrams and screenshots, if applicable.

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network supports Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8, and 9, and in general we recommend publishers use Internet Explorer.

If you are using Internet Explorer 8 and are having problems registering with, or logging into, Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, you may need to adjust your browser settings. Please try these steps:

If you have problems registering:

Click on the Tools button: How to Enable Third Party Cookies

Select Internet Options

Click on the Privacy tab

Click on Sites

If "linksynergy.com" is blocked then remove it from the list.

Type in "linksynergy.com" and click Allow

Click OK

Click OK once more to close your Internet Options

Restart your browser

If you have problems logging in:

I.

II. Clear the Cache:

Click on the Tools button:

Click Internet Options

Click the General tab

Under Browsing History, click Delete (This may take time if you have never done it)

Click OK

III. Adjust Advanced Settings:

Click on the Tools button:

Click Internet Options

Click the Advanced tab

In theSettings window, scroll downto the Security section and check off the following boxes:

Use SSL 2.0

Use SSL 3.0

Use TLS 1.0

Click OK

IV. Adjust SecuritySettings:

Click on the Tools button:

Click Internet Options

Click Security

Click Internet

If "Security Level for this Zone" is set to something other than Medium-High, click Default Level

Click Restricted Sites

Be sure linksynergy.com is not listed. Delete if present.

Click OK

This completes your browser adjustment. Please exit all open windows and restart Internet Explorer. You are now ready to log in to your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network account.

1x1 pixel

A pixel (short for Picture Element) is a single point in a graphic image. A 1x1 pixel is a tracking device that is one pixel long by one pixel wide and records the number of impressions generated by a particular site. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network uses 1x1 pixels to track all text link impressions and banners not served by the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

ACH

Automated Clearing House (ACH) is the name of an electronic network for financial transactions in the United States. Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network uses the ACH service for its direct deposit transactions. Therefore, ACH is synonymous with direct deposit on the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Active publisher

The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network defines an active publisher as one who has had a click in the network in the past 30 days. Each affiliate program may chose to define active using their own criteria.

Actual commissions

The net commissions earned by a publisher after adjustments such as cancellation and returns.

Ad Network/Sub Affiliate Network

A publisher with its own network of distribution partners.

Adjusted Commissions

Commissions that are revised due to cancellations, returns, manual bonuses, paid placement fees, or other reasons.

Ad tracking

Calculating the number of impressions and click-throughs generated by ads, typically banner ads. Companies like DoubleClick that serve ads on thousands of web sites track those ads and then provide that information to their clients. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network also tracks ads through to a sale so that advertisers can determine their customer-acquisition cost.

Advertiser

Within the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, this is a company or organization selling products or services online that participates in affiliate marketing. Formerly known as merchant or brand.

Advertiser Dashboard

The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networkinterface that advertisers see when they sign into their account. Advertisers use the dashboard to manage every aspect of their affiliate program.

Affiliate

A person or organization running a website that partners with one or more online advertisers. The affiliate places links on its site to promote the advertiser's products or services. In exchange, the affiliate receives a commission for all valid transactions it has referred. Also referred to as a publisher in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Affiliate ID

The 11-character alphanumeric code unique to a publisher. This can be found in your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networklinking code, following “id=” and before “&offerid=”. Also known as the encrypted ID or tracking ID Please note: the tracking code is not your Rakuten Markerting Affiliate Network user name or SID.

Affiliate link

A special URL in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network that contains a publisher's tracking information. When a consumer clicks on a link on a publisher's site it directs the user to an advertiser's site. It may be represented as a text link, banner, or product image.

All products offer

A commission structure in which all referred orders are paid out at the same rate. Formerly know as an All Goods offer.

Amount

The sum of the transaction.

Approval

The acceptance of a publisher into an advertiser's affiliate program. Once a publisher has been accepted into an advertiser's program, the publisher will have access to links and can start placing links on the publisher's site. In the publisher dashboard that advertiser’s name appears on the publisher’s Links and My Programs pages. Advertiser may choose to either automatically accept a publisher's application or manually review it before approval.

Auto-approve

A method of allowing publishers to join an advertiser's affiliate program without waiting for site review and manual acceptance.

Auto-Redirect

A method of sending a user or redirecting the user through another website or link without the user's consent. This is often associated with downloadable software applications (DSAs). This practice is not acceptable in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Automatic Approval

"See Auto-Approve"

Average Order Size or Average Order Value (AOV)

A reporting metric that represents the sum of sales divided by the number of orders.

Banner

A Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network link type in the form of a digital ad that is available in many sizes, that publishers place on their site to promote an advertisers product or brand.

Baseline Commissions

Baseline commissions represents commissions you’ve earned from advertiser’s baseline programs. These do not include special offers, and other adjustments such as cancellations and returns.

Black Hat Tactics

Techniques for violating eCommerce processes or internet security, including cookie stuffing and bidding on keyword search terms against a company's policy.

Brick and mortar

A store that exists in physical reality as opposed to an e-commerce web site, which exists in virtual reality. A retail store is constructed of brick and mortar.

Browser

A software application such as Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome or Safari that is used to view websites.

Cache

An area of space on a computer that temporarily stores web pages for display. This speeds up page viewing because pages are downloaded from a local computer instead of from the Web.

CAN SPAM Act of 2003

The CAN SPAM (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing) Act of 2003 makes it legal to send certain unsolicited commercial email communications, provided that they meet all the criteria of the Act. Unsolicited commercial email must include certain information of the sender, include an “opt out” mechanism, not be deceptive or misleading, and meet other criteria.

Cancellation

Reversal of a processed transaction in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network. Advertisers can either send these via their tracking method or manually through the advertiser dashboard. Cancellation reasons vary by advertiser.

Channel email

Email address associated with a publisher's marketing channel

Click-through

When a website user clicks on a link on a publisher site and is taken to an advertiser's site.

Click-through rate

Also known as CTR, the number of visitors who click an ad on a publisher's web page (click-throughs) divided by the number of times the ad is delivered to them (impressions). For example, if a banner ad is delivered 100 times and one person clicks on it, the CTR is 1 percent. This is a common performance metric.

Clickstream

The electronic path a user takes while navigating from site to site, and within a site, from page to page.

Commission

The amount of compensation paid to a publisher participating in an advertiser's affiliate program for referring leads or generating sales.

Commissionable Transaction

A customer action, generated by a publisher, that meets an advertiser's affiliate offer terms.

Consumer promotion

Promotions that are ultimately directed to the consumer: coupons, free shipping, etc.

Conversion rate

The number of orders divided by the number of clicks. For example, if you received 1000 clicks and 10 orders, the conversion rate is 1 percent. This metric is found in several of the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networkreports and is a good way to measure program performance. Also known as orders/click.

Cookie

A small file on a consumer's computer that records information such as where the user has been on the web. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networkuses cookies to track a customer's purchase and identify the publisher involved in a specific transaction in order to receive the commission, as well as determine whether the action occurred during the return day window.

Cookie Stuffing

The action of publishers setting tracking cookies on a site causing the web browser to produce a click on a link and set a return day cookie on the computer regardless of the (known or unknown) action taken by the user to generate fraudulent affiliate transactions. Also known asForced Clicks. This activity may be cause for removal from the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Cost per action (CPA)

Also known as CPA. A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher every time a visitor to their site makes a purchase, signs up for a service, or completes some other commissionable action on the advertiser's site.

Cost per click (CPC)

A commission structure that compensates a publisher whenever their referred customer clicks on a link for an advertiser's offer. CPC is also an Internet-marketing formula used to price banner ads. Some advertisers will pay publishers based on the number of clicks a banner gets. Also known as CPC.

Cost per form (CPF)

A commission structure in which publishers are paid a set amount every time a customer fills out a form, essentially paying them for a qualified lead. Also known as CPF

Cost per lead (CPL)

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher for every qualified lead delivered to the advertiser. Typically, commission is set as a flat fee for each lead delivered. Also known as CPL.

Cost per mille (CPM)

Cost per mille (mille is the Latin word meaning thousand) is a commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher for banner impressions. The amount paid per impression is calculated by dividing the CPM by 1,000. For example, a $10 CPM equals $.01 per impression. Also known as CPT (cost per thousand).

Cost per sale (CPS)

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher by giving them a percentage of each sale that they drive to the advertiser's site. Also known as CPS.

Cost per thousand impressions

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher for banner impressions . The amount paid per impression is calculated by dividing the CPM by 1,000. For example, a $10 CPM equals $.01 per impression. Also known as CPT or CPM (mille is the Latin word meaning thousand).

CPA

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher every time one of their site's visitors makes a purchase, signs up for a service, or completes some other commissionable action on the advertiser's site. Also known as cost per action.

CPC

A commission structure that compensates a publisher whenever their referred customer clicks on a link for an advertiser's offer. CPC is also an internet-marketing formula used to price banner ads. Some advertisers will pay publishers based on the number of clicks a banner gets. Also known as cost per click.

CPF

A commission structure in which publishers are paid a set amount every time a customer fills out a form, essentially paying them for a qualified lead. Also known as cost per form.

CPL

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher for every qualified lead delivered to the advertiser. Typically, commission is set as a flat fee for each lead delivered. Also known as cost per lead.

CPM

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher for banner impressions. The amount paid per impression is calculated by dividing the CPM by 1,000. For example, a $10 CPM equals $.01 per impression. Also known as CPT or cost per thousand.

CPT

A commission structure in which an advertiser pays a publisher for banner impressions. The amount paid per impression is calculated by dividing the CPM by 1,000. For example, a $10 CPM equals $.01 per impression. Also known as CPM or cost per thousand.

Creative categories

Groupings created by advertisers to help publishers better find banners, text link and other creative in both the publisher dashboard and through the Merchandiser data feed.

Credit Card Fraud

Any theft or fraud implemented using a credit card or any other payment method that is not approved by the true user. Advertisers are responsible for implementing measures to verify transactions. Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network immediately terminates any publisher that it identifies as being a conduit for credit card fraud.

CTR

The number of visitors who click an ad on a publisher's web page (click-throughs) divided by the number of times the ad is delivered to them (impressions). For example, if a banner ad is delivered 100 times and one person clicks on it, the CTR is 1 percent. This is a common performance metric. Also known as click through rate.

Deep Link

Linksthat direct visitors of a publisher's site to a specific page on an advertiser's site beyond the advertiser's homepage. An advertiser must enable this feature for a publisher to be able to build deep links.

Default creative

Creative that is displayed if an advertiser's links expires in order to avoid a poor user experience. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networkrequires advertisers to haveone text link and one bannerin place.

Direct Deposit

Direct deposit is a method of payment allowing publishers to receive their commission through a direct transfer into their banking account.

Downloadable Software Application (DSA)

A program that is downloaded onto a user's computer and is designed to help promote an advertiser’s offers to the user. This can include a toolbar, a bookmarklet, or a browser plug-in that is installed on a users’ computer to remind the user to take a specific action when arriving at a website.

Dynamic Rich Media (DRM)

A link type that supports advanced technologies such as HTML JavaScript, video, and more. Advertisers can automatically update this link across all publisher sites as often as needed.

Email Link

Text links with special tracking code that allows publishers to place unique links in their email communications to consumers. From a user experience perspective, there is no difference between a text link and an email link.

Encrypted ID

The 11-character alphanumeric code unique to a publisher. This can be found in your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networklinking code, following “id=” and before “&offerid=”. Also known as the affiliate ID or tracking ID Please note: the tracking code is not your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network user name or SID.

Encryption

The encoding of data in order to prevent anyone but the intended recipient from reading it. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networkencrypts all sensitive transmitted data, such as the numeric string of the site ID.

EPC

A metric that is used for measuring the revenue potential and link conversion. It is calculated by dividing the commissions earned by the number of clicks (click-throughs) that generated these commissions. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network uses earnings per hundred clicks as it is easier to read. For example, if a link received 1000 clicks, and generated $5.00 in commissions, EPC would be shown as $0.50. Also known as earnings per click.

Forced Clicks

The action of publishers setting tracking cookies on a site causing the web browser to produce a click on a link and set a return day cookie on the computer regardless of the (known or unknown) action taken by the user to generate fraudulent affiliate transactions. Also known ascookie stuffing. This activity may be cause for removal from the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

GIF

Graphic Interchange Format, a common format for image files, especially suitable for images containing large areas of the same color. GIF is the most common file compression format for banner ads and most other pictures on the web. Most graphic images on the Rakuten Affiliate Network Web site are in GIF (or ".gif") format.

Hosting/Hosted

The business of housing, serving, and maintaining files for one or more websites. In the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network banners may be hosted by either the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network or on the advertiser’s servers. Also known as website hosting, web hosting, and webhosting.

HTML

HyperText Markup Language - the coding language used to create webpages. In the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, the advertiser recruitment page, home page and newsletters support HTML.

IAB standard sizes

The sizes for banners and other creative that have been standardized by the Internet Advertising Bureau. See the IAB Web site for a list of sizes. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network supports all IAB-size creative as well as creative that is nonstandard in size.

Image URL

Web address of any image. In the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, this can be found in the affiliate link code. This is usually different from the URL of the web page where the image is found. Publishers have the ability to replace the advertiser's image URL with their own hosted banner.

Impression

An impression is a single instance of a link shown to a user.

JPEG

Joint Photographic Experts Group; JPEG is most commonly mentioned as a format for image files. JPEG format is preferred to the GIF format for photographic images.

Landing page URL

The web address of a specific web page a visitor reaches after clicking on an affiliate link.

Marketing Channel

A method for publishers to manage multiple sites as independent publisher programs. Each channel has a unique SID as well as unique website attributes, reports, and user permissions.

MID

Merchant identification number, a unique ID that the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network assigns to each advertiser in the network.

Nexus laws

Laws passed in a number of states that require advertisers to charge a tax on internet retail sales. Though the law differs by state, typically they require advertisers to collect sales tax when sales from publishers reach a certain level. For more information visitthe Performance Marketing Association's website. Also known as affiliate tax laws and internet tax laws.

Non-Commissionable Transaction

A transaction which is inelligible to earn a commission. This may occur for a number of reasons, including, but not limited to: a transaction that is not associated with an offer, an invalid affiliate ID is detected, or if return days have been exceeded.

Offer

An offer represents the terms of an advertiser program available to publishers. Advertisers on the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network set their own offers, and these offers vary from one advertiser to the next. Offers can include commissions based on a set percentage of sales, on the number of impressions or click-throughs, or on a combination of these. You can review advertiser’s offer terms by clicking on an advertiser’s name, from the Programs or Links area.

Order ID

The unique identifier used to refer to a specific order. It is usually an alphanumeric value. Each advertiser uses their own order ID format.

Orders per click

The number of orders divided by the number of clicks. For example, if you received 1000 clicks and 10 orders, the conversion rate is 1 percent. This metric is found in several of the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networkreports and is a good way to measure program performance. Also known as conversion rate.

Organic Search Results

Links that appear on a search results page because of their relevance to the terms searched (placement varies by search engine), as opposed to paid search (or pay-per-click) ads.

Paid Search Ads

Links that appear on a search engine results page because an advertiser paid for placement in those spaces, as opposed to appearing organically.

Pay per call

A form of performance-based advertising that tracks calls like clicks.

Pixel

A pixel (short for picture element) is a single point in a graphic image. A 1x1 pixel is a tracking device that is one pixel long by one pixel wide and records the number of impressions generated by a particular site. The Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network uses 1x1 pixels to track all text link impressions and banners not served by the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Pixel tracking

A browser-to-server tracking method using a 1x1 pixel.

PNG

Portable Network Graphics - PNG, like GIF and JPEG, is a file format for images. PNGs are used in a similar manner as GIFs (eg, banners), but offer greater color precision than GIFs. Older browsers, notably IE6, offer limited support for PNG files.

Premium Advertiser

Advertisers who satisfy a set of best practice benchmarks set by Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network and are denoted with a star symbol next to their name throughout the publisher interface.

Private Offer

An offer that is available only to a select publisher or group of publishers in an advertiser program. Typically, aprivate offer includes a higher percentage of sale or CPC, or other more favorable terms than the baseline offer.

Process Date

The date a transaction is received by the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network.

Product image URL

The web address where the image of a product is located.

Product Link

A type of creative which features a product in an advertiser's inventory and takes a user to the page on which it is featured on an advertiser's site.

Public offer

An offer that is available to all the publishers in an advertiser's program.

Publisher

A site managed either by an individual or organization that partners with one or more online advertisers and earns a commission for all valid clicks, leads or sales it has referred. Also known as an affiliate.

Report

A document showing the performance of various data points such as impressions, clicks, sales, and earnings, used to identify trends and patterns, and to improve campaigns effectiveness.

Return Days

Return days are the number of days that can elapse between a referred customer's initial visit and a return visit in which they make a purchase. If a customer makes a purchase within the return days period, the referring publisher receives a commission on the sale, even if the visitor returns directly to the advertiser’s site.

RSS Feeds

RSS stands for real simple syndication, which is a computer readable format for syndicating information on the web. The feed itself is written using XML, which can be read by a RSS reader or application server (e.g., a PHP server) and parsed into a user readable form or database.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

Also known as paid search. The process by which advertisers increase their visibility in search engine results. This includes bidding on and winning placement for the links that appear on the top or right-hand side of a search results page.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Also known as organic search. The process by which website owners improve their ranking in a search engine's unpaid search results.

Search Overlay

Icons on a search engine results page (SERP) that are designed to flag and present offers on search results. Often this feature is activated by a publisher's downloadable software.

SEM

Acronymn for search engine marketing. Also known as paid search. The process by which advertisers improve their visibility in search engine results. This includes bidding on and winning top placement for the links that appear in the paid ad sections of a search results page.

SEO

Abbreviation for search engine optimization. Also known as organic search. The process by which advertisers improve their ranking in a search engine's unpaid search results; the links that appear in the center of a search page.

Signature

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Signature allows publishers to track and generate detailed reports on the commerce activity generated by its site down to the transaction level of each individual member, organization, or sub site. Using Signature makes tracking, managing, and optimizing internal programs efficient and cost-effective for publishers.

Site ID

The site ID (SID) is a unique number used in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network to identify different marketing channels. Our support team can use your site ID to locate your record, so please include it in any communications you send us.

SKU List

A list of product SKU numbers in text format that a merchant uploads to Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network, so that we can keep track of publisher referrals, products and commissions. publishers should be sure to study the SKU list that's linked to product-specific offers and become aware of which products are included.

SKU number

Stock keeping unit (SKU) number is a unique identifier, used most commonly to refer to a specific product in inventory. It is usually an alphanumeric number set by advertisers.

Special Offer

Special offers can be public or private offers that are available for a limited time, or at increased commission, or for a particular product, or some combination of these.

Terms & Conditions

The agreement between an advertiser and its publishers will differ from advertiser to advertiser. publishers are bound by each advertiser’s terms when they enter into the agreement, so it is important to review these terms in each instance when joining an advertiser’s program.

Text Link

A text link is a hot link that is not accompanied by a graphical image. Publishers can use text links rather than graphical links on their sites. They are easy to use, they save download time, and they are the best-performing type of link available.

Tiered Offer

Tiered offer (or progressive tier) is a commission structure where commission rate increases as total transaction amount increases. Only the portion that is over the threshold of each tier is subject to higher commission rate.

Tracking Code

The 11-character alphanumeric code unique to a publisher. This can be found in your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Networklinking code, following “id=” and before “&offerid=”. Also known as the affiliate ID or encrypted ID Please note: the tracking code is not your Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network user name or SID.

Trademark Bidding

When publishers attempt to gain revenue by bidding on specific words or phrases via search engine marketing that are protected by an advertiser’s trademark.

Transaction

An agreement between a buyer and a seller to exchange a product or service for a payment. Usually, this refers to placing an online order or performing a qualifying event, such as registering or completing a form.

Transaction Date

The date the customer purchased the product or service.

Typo-squatting

Purchasing misspelled domain names of an advertiser to redirect traffic. This is dependent upon a hand-typed URL being misspelled.

Web Service or API

An application program interface (API) that can be accessed over a network, such as the internet, and executed on a remote system hosting the requested services. Web services typically communicate using XML messages that follow the SOAP standard.

A DSA (downloadable software application) is software such as a toolbar or a plug-in that an end user installs on their computer. DSAs can earn users points or rewards from loyalty sites, provide them with publisher promotions and coupons, allow them to donate to charity, and perform other actions. They often work to increase a publisher's sales.

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network strives to make it easy for publishers to implement innovative tools and applications. In order to maintain the high-quality of our network, we do have specific guidelines on how these tools are implemented and used.

All DSAs must conform to Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network'sGuidelines and be tested by Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network. It is the responsibility of the publisher to notify Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network about their DSA. See more information on the testing process .

The DSA testing process is a two-step process. To begin,please send an email to us at rm- [email protected] with this information:

Publisher name

Site ID (SID)

Website URL

DSA name and Version Number(s)

Download URL for your software

Browsers your DSA is compatible with

Operating systems (i.e., Windows, Mac OS, etc.)

Does your software activate and overwrite (your Rakuten affiliate cookie is placed) on the following? (Y/N)

Paid Search

Rakuten Links (linksynergy)/Afsrc

Organic Listings

Direct Type In

Email

Detailed descriptionofthe expected behavior of your DSA. Please include details of click action and screenshot(s) of the software in use.

How does the user opt out? Please provide detailed description of the new behavior.

Distribution method for your software (please include specific URLs) including all third parties distributing your tool. Please make sure to provide a complete list of third parties.

Benefit to the end user

How easily and quickly the DSA can be updated if needed

A copy of the DSA software with 10 to 15 Rakuten MarketingAffiliate Network advertiser feeds (software must not be publicly available to download until approved)

A list of Rakuten MarketingAffiliate Network advertisers included in the DSA launch

Provide technical details of your software:

Pop-up injection name (iframe/shadow root)

DOM ID for the iframe or base shadow root

Xpath for the close button

DOM ID for the SERP for each SEO pages (google, bing, yahoo)

The xpath for the coupon activation button.

Log in required to activate coupons/offers (Yes/No)

Log in form input fields (xpath for username, password, submit button, and any additional input fields)

Once your DSA is approved, the second step is to contact your advertisers alerting them of this new distribution and marketing channel that you will be promoting them through. As our policies state, Rakuten MarketingAffiliate Network does not allow the auto-redirection of advertisers' natural traffic and paid traffic unless you have specific documented permission from each individual advertiser. Your DSA should become inactive on the sites of any advertisers who opt out or stand down on those that don't want you to redirect their traffic. Publishers who fail to comply with this rule willjeopardize their relationship with Advertisers as well as with Rakuten MarketingAffiliate Network. For more information, please see: Have Your DSA Approved by Advertisers.

Important: If you make changes to your DSA after it has been approved,you must notify Rakuten MarketingAffiliate Network, as we will need toretest it.

Japan Deal Dispatcher can be found here.

Please note that the Japan Deal Dispatcher site is in Japanese.

In Australia, a goods and services tax (GST) of 10\% is charged on the supply of most goods, services, and other things. If you are an Australia-based publisher, you may be required to collect GST from certain advertisers that you provide services to.

Factors to consider in determining whether you are required to collect GST include your total annual revenue, the location of your servers, where your content is produced, and whether you have a physical presence in Australia. In general, only Australia-based businesses with total annual revenue over $75,000 AUD are required to collect GST. In addition, if the services you provide as a publisher are delivered directly from a server located outside Australia and contracts are concluded, payment is processed, and content is produced outside Australia, it is likely that your supplies are not subject to GST.

Please note: As a publisher in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Australia Network, it is your responsibility to determine whether you are required to collect GST from your advertisers. Please consult with your accounting and legal professionals regarding this.

If you are required to collect GST, as part of your GST registration process, you will receive anAustralian Business Number (ABN). The ABN is a tax identification number. Please provide this number to Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Australia either directly to a Network Development Manager (if you are working with one to get set up in the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network) or in response to the email we send out asking you to notify Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Australia of your ABN status. If you do not have an ABN when you launch your program but acquire one later on, it is your responsibility to provide your ABN to us.

If you are subject to GST, Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Australia will include a 10\% tax in the Affiliate Statement provided to advertisers on your behalf. In certain cases, even if you are subject to GST, if you are partnering with an advertiser physically located outside of Australia, your taxable supply is considered an export, and therefore is not taxed. If you are not subject to GST, Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Australia will not collect this tax from any advertiser on your behalf.

Itemized tax invoices are available upon request and will be provided to you within 30 days. If you require an itemized tax invoice, please contact [email protected].

Please read the following article for more information on the payment process for the Australia Network .

As a signed-in help center user, you can rate the articles as helpful or not helpful with the thumbs up or down icon at the end of the article, and/or you can leave comments below the article to help us improve it.

You can also email the Campus team to give us your comments, suggestions or questions about the Help Center content. We love to hear from you!

Thanks for visiting the Publisher Help Center!

Rakuten Affiliate is required by US tax laws and the Internal Revenue Service to collect a social security number (SSN) or employer identification number (EIN) for tax purposes. Without this information, Rakuten Affiliate will be unable to issue payments.

Per the IRS, Rakuten Affiliate is required to collect and report annually the information for individuals to whom commissions are paid. Without either an SSN or EIN, Rakuten Affiliate would be required to do a “backup withhold” of 24\% on publisher commission payments for tax purposes.

For more information about IRS requirements please see these resources:

About Form W-9, Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification

Instructions for the Requester of Form W-9

We love to hear from you. Simply contact us and let us know how we can make Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network work better for you. We'll make sure your suggestions reach the appropriate members of our product team.

If you notice a site that you believe is in violation of our terms & conditions, please let us know and we will investigate the issue.

Simply send us an email.

Make sure to include:

The URL of the suspected web site or page

A description of the violation

Any other information that may help us investigate

Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Publisher Support will respond within one business day.

We encourage you to use the Chat Support function for immediate help 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

If you are not able to find the information you need immediately here in the help center, the Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network Customer Support team is happy to respond to all of your inquiries or you may submit a support request via phone or email.

We strive to respond to all email inquiries within one business day. Our chat support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We cannot respond to specific questions about your account or technical issues here in the Help Center comments.

Our key area of support is for technical issues. Technical issues we can assist you with include items such as:

Signing up as a publisher

Publisher account login difficulties

How to use features in the publisher dashboard

Questions about getting started with Merchandiser product data feed

Questions about using APIs and web services

Questions about advertiser's programs information in the publisher dashboard

Problems with running reports in the publisher dashboard

Questions about your commission payments

There are certain, often requested, services and areas of advice that are not offered to you by Customer Support; however we understand these areas are important to you. You can find information on these topics in a variety of ways including information here in the publisher help center, on our monthly publisher webinars and Office Hours, and additional outside resources we can direct you to.

Website or website design support. Customer Support generally advises publishers that do not yet have a website to seek the services of a web developer or look into various website builder platforms to build a website from a template.

Coaching in affiliate marketing best practices. When possible, Customer Support may provide broad advice about how to start building your advertiser relationships. However, we do not provide in-depth support to you regarding the following and similar concerns:

For helpful tips and best practices, check out the Grow - Best Practices & Tips section of the Help Center. Our monthly publisher webinars feature Office Hours Q&A time and coaching for new publishers. You can participate in the live event, or submit your question in advance and watch the recording afterward for the answer, plus keep up-to-date with your professional education in affiliate marketing. Also be sure to follow our Rakuten Marketing blog and attend Symposiums for the latest insights and tips.

In order to log in to the publisher dashboard, go to the Rakuten Marketing website: http://marketing.rakuten.com/affiliate-marketing.

You can find the log-in box on the top right corner of the home page. Click LOGIN and select Affiliate. You'll see this log-in screen:

Publisher Support

Enter your username and password that you created when you first joined our network. If you have any difficulties logging in, contact for assistance.

The Germany Network is Rakuten Marketing Affiliate Network's group of advertisers in Germany. All transactions in the Germany Network take place in EUR.

If you’re interested in joining the Germany Network, please read this overview article on the France and Germany Network as well as this article on Germany’s VAT Tax first, and then follow the steps in How do I apply to an international network article.