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Technology and tracking

Deep link

Also called deeplink, deep linking, product link, affiliate deep link.

Short answer

A deep link is an affiliate link that points to a specific product or category page instead of the store’s homepage. The tracking is the same – the difference is that the user lands on exactly what the recommendation was about.

Definition of Deep link.

A deep link consists of two parts: the affiliate link and a destination further inside the store’s site. The click is recorded the same way as a link to the homepage, but instead of the homepage the user lands on the product, category or campaign page the text mentions.

The difference lies in the number of steps between click and purchase. If you write about a particular coffee machine and the link sends readers to the homepage, they have to find the item again themselves in a menu or a search box. Every extra step costs part of the traffic, and that part cannot convert afterwards.

Deep links are therefore the rule rather than the exception in content-driven affiliate marketing: reviews, comparisons, guides and discount code sites all point to a specific page. A link to the homepage makes sense in one situation – when the recommendation is about the store as a whole and not about a particular item.

How to build a deep link that keeps working

The destination must be a URL on the store’s own domain, and it must be able to stand alone. It must not depend on a search, a filter in an ongoing session or a basket that is already filled. Test the link in a window with no login and no cookies before publishing – that is the state a new reader meets it in.

Avoid carrying unnecessary parameters along. Session IDs, internal filters and tracking parameters from other systems make the URL fragile, and in some setups only the outermost layer of parameters survives the redirect. Keep what the destination actually needs and leave the rest.

When the destination disappears

Products are discontinued, categories are renamed and campaign pages are taken down. A deep link to a page that returns a 404 does not disappear by itself – it stays in the text and sends traffic into nothing. Review your most-visited pages regularly, or use a link checker that follows the redirect all the way to the final destination.

If the store itself redirects from the old URL to a new one, the click usually goes through. If it hits an error page, the click is spent without being able to become a sale – even though the tracking worked.

Deep links in affiliate marketing vs. deep links in apps

AspectAffiliate deep linkApp deep link
Points toa specific page on a websitea specific screen in an installed app
Purposeto tie clicks and purchases to an affiliateto open the app in the right place
Formatan ordinary https URL with tracking parametersa URL scheme or universal link
Prerequisitenothing installedthe app is installed on the device

The two are used in the same breath and do not mean the same thing – in affiliate marketing, a deep link is about the depth of the destination, not about apps.

How it goes wrong

  • 01

    Everything is sent to the homepage

    A link to the homepage puts the work of finding the product on the reader. It costs conversions, and it cannot be seen in the figures: clicks that got lost in the menu look like clicks that simply did not buy.

  • 02

    The product URL is copied without tracking

    If the address is taken straight from the store’s product page and pasted in raw, the link works for the reader and counts for nobody. After pasting, check that the affiliate part is still in the URL that actually opens.

  • 03

    The destination is on a different domain

    If the deep link points on to a marketplace or a domain other than the store’s own, the tracking does not necessarily follow. Agree with the store which domains are covered.

At Affilyflow

Deep link in practice

A deep link does not change how the click is recorded in Affilyflow. The click goes through the same route whatever the destination: rate and type are copied to the click row the moment the click happens, the attribution window is locked in the same place and decided on our server, and the click ID is passed on to the store in the URL. Depth is therefore a choice you make for the reader’s sake – not something the tracking needs special help with.

Frequently asked questions

What is a deep link in affiliate marketing?

A deep link is an affiliate link that points to a specific page inside the store’s website – a product, a category or a campaign page – instead of the homepage. The click is tracked like any other affiliate click. The only difference is where the user lands.

Do deep links convert better than links to the homepage?

A deep link removes the steps where readers have to find the product again themselves, and every step costs part of the traffic. How big the difference is depends on the store’s navigation and on how specific the recommendation is. Measure it on your own pages.

Can I make a deep link to any page?

To pages on the store’s own domain, yes. If the destination is on another domain, such as a marketplace or an app store, it is not necessarily covered by the program’s tracking. Ask the store which domains count before you build content on them.

What do I do if the product in my deep link is discontinued?

Change the link to a page that exists – the product’s replacement or the category it belonged to. A deep link to an error page uses up the click without it being able to become a sale.

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