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You can add up to five external affiliate program (referral program)
scripts. H-Sphere passes signup info (e.g. account number, amount, etc.)
to an affiliate program script so the latter can track signups and produce relevant reports.
Introduction to affiliate in H-Sphere:
- Affiliate commission is based on completed signups (physically created user accounts), not visits or clicks.
- Affiliate support is available only for credit card accounts as they are not subject to moderation.
- Affiliate support doesn't work with moderated signups (check payments, PayPal, WorldPay, 2CheckOut, and GestPay)
even when accounts are successfully moderated.
- On the other hand, a non-moderated trial registration is treated as a sales transaction,
and the affiliate is given credit for it.
How Do Affiliate Programs Work?
Affiliate programs involve four types of players:
- Affiliate Program Company/Server;
- Affiliate Site potential customers are referred from;
- your H-Sphere Server;
- Potential H-Sphere Customer.
This process is as follows:
- You place a referral link (text or banner) on an Affiliate Site.
- The Potential Customer visits the affiliate site and clicks this link.
It sends a request to Affiliate Program Server with an assortment of
variables that define the affiliate transaction (such as the unique
ID of the exchange participant).
- Affiliate Program Server sets cookies in Potential Customer's
browser about which Affiliate Site, text link, banner advertisement,
or product link was used in the exchange. This cookie will identify
the open transaction.
- Next, a new record is opened in the database of referrals on the
Affiliate Program Server. The opened record consists of two parts --
the first one is filled with customer-related data, the second one
remains empty.
- Then Potential Customer is redirected to your signup page.
- Once the signup is complete, H-Sphere sends a request to each
of the Affiliate Servers (if you have more than one). Only one
of them (depending on cookie) will start the affiliate program;
the other servers will ignore the request. For each Affiliate
Program, this request would have to pass different parameters,
which has to be configured in H-Sphere interface. At the same
time, Affiliate Program Server reads cookies from the customer's
browser.
- The affiliate program finds the related database record using
the cookie information and fills it with the received signup data.
Then, it opens a new sale transaction.
How Do I Set Up an Affiliate Program?
Different affiliate programs work differently. Please read documentation
for the affiliate program you have chosen.
- Install and configure affiliate software on your server according to the
included instructions. This software will track referrals from
affiliate websites that promote your hosting services.
- Read the instructions on how to make the signup confirmation link
for the affiliate program you have chosen. The link must contain
variables required for the affiliate program to authenticate
a sales transaction.
- Go to your Admin control panel and select Affiliate Program
in the Settings menu.
- On the page that appears, make up the signup confirmation link
as required by the instruction:

Use the drop-down box and the Insert button to add required
parameters to the URL.
Here's another example of an URL:
/cgi-bin/affiliates/sale.cgi?cashflow=${amount}&goods=${user_name}
- Click the Submit button. Now H-Sphere will execute this URL
after each customer signup for the affiliate software to track the signups.
- Have the referral link placed on affiliate sites to refer Internet users to
your signup page.
- Now your affiliate program is ready for use.
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