BEST affiliate Program for Cubecart??

[Guest huaren]

Hello, i'm thinking about adding affiliate program to my cubecart. but dont know which one to use.

i would like it to have the following feature:

different commission rate for different affiliates

i'm new to this, and dont know how this works. your help is really appreciated.

Thank you for your inputs!

[Guest]

There are several affiliate software programs that will allow you to set different commission rates for different affiliates. The software I use is Post Affiliate Pro, and I feel that it's the best available at this time.

[Guest stebal4]

Is it easy to integrate Post Affiliate Pro with CubeCart and is it reliable? I was going to use iDevAffiliate but noticed the recent pinned post.

Thanks

[Guest]

I created an integration module for Post Affiliate Pro, so the integration is as easy as with any affiliate software. This module is available at cubecart.org.

After you have Post Affiliate Pro installed and working, the integration process goes like this:

You add a bit of javascript to the index.tpl file so that it will track all clicks coming in to any of your store pages. PAP gives you this code through it's administration interface, so it's just a copy and paste affair.

Next, you configure the integration module, which is nothing more than simply telling CubeCart where Post Affiliate Pro is installed.

That's it!

I've never had a problem with clicks or sales not being tracked, so I'd have to report that it's been very reliable for me. My only issues with it are on the skinning side (not as easy as I'd like) and in wanting to customize some of the reports.

[Guest Garbanzo]

I just bought PostAffiliatePro, It looks great. I just had a couple of question maybe you could answer.

I had them install it on my server,

From AlanT's module I then installed tracker.inc as /www/shop/modules/affiliate/PostAffiliatePro/tracker.inc

1. Where do I need to put the index.php file that came with the module download.

2. Should I still go thru with the integration wizard in PAP and do the General integration option or skip it altogether?

3. And lastly, could I add the Clicks tracking code onto my home page thru the CC control panel homepage editor or does it need to go elsewhere?

Thanks in advance for any help and Sorry for all the newbie questions but I hate to screw things up at this point.

[Guest]

The ZIP file for the integration module contains the directory structure for the files included, so all you have to do is extract the files (maintaining the directory structure) and then upload them to your store directory. The index.php file goes into: admin/modules/affiliate/PostAffiliatePro/index.php.

The integration wizard in PAP will give you the javascript code that you'll place into the index.tpl template file to track the clicks coming into your site.

If you include the javascript into the homepage through the admin panel, you'll only be able to track clicks coming into that page, and not the individual product pages or the Site Docs pages.

By placing the javascript code in the index.tpl template, your affiliates can link to ANY page of your site and promote individual products, which is more effective than just promoting the home page.

[Guest steve fightnightlive.co.uk]

hi i too are having trouble installing the post affiliate script, carnt seem to find how to get the instalation wizard working, can you help me plz, would be very grate full

steve

[Guest]

This question really belongs on the QualityUnit forum as it is a question about how to use the affiliate software, but here's the information.

Once you have PAP installed and working on it's own, and have set all of your configuration options the way you want them, the Integration Wizard will give you the code you need to add to the CC global index.tpl file.

The link to the Integration Wizard is the 2nd link in the Tools menu on the left of the screen, near the bottom.

After you click that, you'll see a page with 3 steps. Step one is there in case you want to rename the variables identifying which affiliate and which banner the referral is coming from. Only change these is you have no previous affiliates with established promotional links. If you're just setting things up, you can change these to whatever you want.

Step two is to set up the click tracking, which you need to set up separately from the CC integration module I created. Click the Step 2 link and you'll see a page asking you which URL style you want to use, a place to indicate what URL goes to the "main site", and a textbox where you can copy the tracking code. Set the first 2 to whatever is right for your situation and then copy the code in the final textbox.

Now, just paste that code somewhere in the global index.tpl file between the Body tags.

Step 3 of the Integration wizard is not needed when using the CC integration module freely available at cubecart.org.

[Guest buddygift]

Hi Alan:

Does your wizard also do what is needed for sale based rather than click based setup?

Thanks

[Guest]

It's not MY wizard - it belongs to Post Affiliate Pro.

All affiliate referrals need to be tracked as they come in to the website. That's the purpose of the click tracking code. Whether you offer a commission for the clicks, or just need to track them for potential sales is defined in the configuration settings of PAP.

[Guest Jim Guinn]

Alan,

Will your integration module work for PAP and CC 3.0.15?

I also have Estelle's Category Descriptions and Sir William's Custom Category and Product Order Mods installed. Any conflict with these?

Jim

[Guest]

Hi Jim,

Yes, the integration module works with the current versions of cubecart. I've tested it with all versions from 3.0.10 to 3.0.16. It also works with PAP versions 2 and 3 (including the current 3.1.0).

I haven't tested it with the two mods you asked about, but I see nothing that would interfer with them. The integration module works just like the default ones, so there shouldn't be any issues.

[Guest Jim Guinn]

Thanks Alan. I appreciate your help. When I get some time over the next week, I'm probably going to give it a try. I'll let you know how I make out.

Jim

[kinetic]

PostAffiliate pro is an excellent program

having said that it DOES REQUIRE YOU to read the documentation that Quality Unit Provides

you MUST read and understand Postaffiliate pro to make good use of it otherwise it will do you no good...

PAP is a LARGE program and does alot of things and has alot of settings not knowing what you are doing will just frustrate you so read the docs

PostAffiliatePro is SEPARATE application with AlanTs module making it easier to integrate into CubeCart stores

Read the DOCs!!!

and you will be cookin with gas

Kinetic

[Guest Jim Guinn]

I just ordered PAP earlier this evening, but did not receive my download link. I imagine I will get it tomorrow once they confirm the sale. I'll let you know how I make out.

Jim

[Guest Jim Guinn]

Well, I got PAP installed, but the configuation is difficult. I have installed and configured a good many scripts, but this one is driving me crazy. I consider my ability to accomplish such a task "above average".

The installation went without a hitch, but the configuartion has revealed bugs in this latest version - version: 3.1.1 - released 4-30-07. (Simple Example: Change a field from optional to mandatory in the affiliate signup form, but the change does NOT take effect in the form.) I have written to Support, but I cannot understand the answers I get from their support team. There is definaitely a language problem going on here. The company is located in Eastern Europe, and they have a stellar reputation as an affiliate script. The documentaion is weak at best (62 page manual that does not go into detail....probably written by someone who was "intimate" with PAP so there are "assumed" parts left out.) The poor manual and incomprehensibly Support is making this quite a task.

And....I have not even gotten close to using AlanT's Mod yet.....still trying to configure!

So, getting all this to work is going to take some doing...Is anyone else experiencing similar problems or is extremely frustrated with the latest PAP paid script, support, and manual?

Forgot to mention, the manual has NOT been updated since an earlier version. There are "terms" when referring to the merchant panel that have "changed names" in later updates.

Just venting.......

Jim

[Guest]

I understand how you feel. Even though I feel that PAP is the best affiliate program available, I still have issues with how some things are done. Yes, the configuration screens present a TON of choices, which makes it somewhat confusing.

I hadn't tried changing the required fields on the signup form, so I hadn't run into that bug. I can offer that there have been no bugs in the tracking and reporting of commissions, which are the most important functions of the software.

(You have 3.1.1? The last I saw was 3.1.0. Ahhh, I see that patch 11 came out yesterday. Time for another upgrade.)

One thing I've noticed with upgrades is that you have to watch certain files, such as the one for the resource page menu. Always a good idea to do a backup with any script you upgrade.

From what I've seen, support with them took a downturn about a year ago. I'll do my best to answer whatever questions you have about it, though.

[Guest Jim Guinn]

Sorry....I just logged into my admin panel. I am using 3.1.0.

It is not so much the choices being so many, it is that the choices, when chosen, do not work as the manual says.

I will continue to program.....another day.

Thanks for your offer of help. I'll take you up on it if I get totally stuck.

Jim

[Guest Jim Guinn]

Well, after working on this for a few more hours, I have decided it is not worth it. The PAP manual is useless. I wrote to Quality Unit support about another bug (there's a bunch) and got the most bizarre answer in return. It is very hard to get support when their support people can barely write English. I have asked Quality Unit for a refund. Let's see if they understand that...LOL

Jim

[Guest]

At some point (it doesn't have to be right away), if you could jot down a list of the bugs you found, I would like to know what they are.

Sorry it didn't work for you. The next 'best' affiliate software I know of is AllAffiliatePro, but it's written in Perl and there's not yet a CubeCart integration module for it. It also costs $450 (unless you want my copy, which I can sell at a discount).

Following that, iDevAffiliate isn't too bad. I used that one for a while and I only had 2 problems with it - very hard to customize the look and feel, and I couldn't do performance bonuses in it. And CubeCart has an integration module as part of the default installation.

Considering how easy it was to create an integration module for PAP, it shouldn't be too difficult to create one for practically ANY affiliate program. I've heard a lot of good things about the GroundBreak Ultimate Affiliate software, but never used it myself. My memory is a bit fuzzy, but I think that the reason I never went with it had to do with perfomance bonuses or something like that. Worth a look.

[Guest Jim Guinn]

Right now, I am so fed up with PAP I don't even want to talk about it. The main thing that frustrated me were the varibles (choices) that I could choose/check off in the admin area, but never took affect in the front side. I would also like to purchase software that comes with a manual that is up to date and makes sense....and, support that can write English that is comprehensible. Is that asking too much?....LOL

I was reading around on CC and I have seen there are problems with integrating iDev as well.

What I would really like is just a simple (no frills) affiliate program for my site with a % based on sales...that's it! No clicks, no performance bonuses, no tiers, no recurrings, no fireworks, etc.

At this point, I am shopping around for a new cart that has a built in affiliate program. I would be willing to pay a one time fee for something that has already been developed, integrated, is not as frustrating, and works the way it is advertised.

Jim

[vokf]

I used to use an ASP based cart, which had an affiliate module built-in - I was fairly surprised to find that CC didn't have one.

Perhaps someone should ask over at cubecartforums.org - if there is enough interest, someone may code it as a commercial mod.

Jason

[Guest]

I've posted a request for this periodically, including a few days ago.

Having a built-in affiliate program makes a lot of sense, as you can then set different commission rates for individual products.

After all, it's easy to offer 50% commissions on digital products, but not as easy for tangible goods. And sometimes you want to encourage the promotion of a single product, so you want to offer higher commissions on that one product for a period of time.

From what I understand, even though there are myriad of details for most affiliate programs, the basics are quite simple - track the customer from ad to sale, and calculate commissions based on a few criteria.

[Guest]

OK...

CC is returning from PayPal fine....with this link:

http://mydomain.com/store/confirmed.php?tx...j1SR9lks%2bM%3d

I THINK that it looks good... has price and id etc...

But in the confirmed.php page, I get this....

<!-- begin PostAffiliatePro Affiliate Tracker -->

<img border='0' src='/affiliates/scripts/sale.php?TotalCost=0.00&OrderID=' width='0' height='0' />

<!-- end PostAffiliatePro Affiliate Tracker -->

No TOTAL transfers....this makes it impossible to pay a %...hmmmm NO order ID either....HMMMMM

Any clues??

Have tried the "fixes" out there....but still coming up short.

[Guest Devon Wilson]

Integrating Post Affiliate Pro into CubeCart can be as easy as uploading a couple of files and adding the javascipt click tracking to a single template.

http://www.PowerKeysPub.com/PostAffiliatePro.zip

Once you upload the contents of the above zip file to your CubeCart installation, you will find that PAP is now an option in your CC admin panel. Simply enable the module and set the URL to your base PAP directory, such as "/affiliate". No need for a trailing slash.

After this is done, PAP will track all sales from your CubeCart store. ;)