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Traffic and channels

Self-referral

Also called self-referral, self-purchase, self-dealing.

Short answer

Self-referral is when an affiliate uses their own affiliate link for their own purchases in order to earn commission on them. Program terms as a rule forbid self-referral, because commission is payment for winning new customers – not a discount on your own shopping.

Definition of Self-referral.

Self-referral covers the affiliate completing the conversion that triggers commission themselves: a purchase through their own link, a sign-up with their own email or orders placed by the affiliate's own business. The motive is in effect to give themselves a discount at the store's expense.

From the store's point of view, self-referral adds no value. Commission is payment for customer acquisition – a new customer the store would not have got by itself. With self-referral there is no new customer, only a cost, which is why program terms as a rule forbid self-referral, often together with rules on purchases by household members and close relations. Cashback is the open relative: the commission is shared with the customer by agreement with the store, whereas self-referral happens covertly and without any agreement.

The consequences of a breach range from rejection of the individual sale to closure of the account and loss of earned commission. The line between innocent and systematic is drawn in the terms – read them before you consider shopping in a store you promote yourself.

How it goes wrong

  • 01

    “It is just my own discount”

    Commission on your own purchase is not a discount the store has offered – it is a breach of terms. The price can be the whole account and the accumulated balance, not just the one commission.

  • 02

    Test purchases without agreement

    If you want to test that tracking works, agree it with the store or the network first. An unannounced test purchase looks like self-referral in the data – an agreed one can be cleanly cancelled afterwards.

  • 03

    Family shopping through your link

    Repeated purchases from the same household or business can look like systematic self-referral, even if the intention was good. Check how the program's terms define close relations.

At Affilyflow

Self-referral in practice

Affilyflow never credits a balance automatically – all conversions are created as pending. The store then has the program's approval period (30–90 days) to reject a sale, for example a self-referral, and a rejection requires a reason the affiliate can read. A blocked affiliate cannot earn commission, whichever way the sale comes in.

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy through my own affiliate link?

Only if the program's terms explicitly allow it. Self-referral is as a rule forbidden, because commission is payment for new customers – not a discount on your own purchases. Check the terms before you shop in a store you promote yourself.

What happens if I am caught self-referring?

The sale is rejected, and for repeated or systematic abuse the account can be closed and earned commission can lapse. The consequences are set out in the program terms you accepted when you joined.

Can I click my own link to test it?

In programs that pay per sale, a click is normally unproblematic – it is recorded but triggers no commission. If the program pays per click, however, your own clicks cost the store money and can be treated as click fraud. Otherwise the line is drawn at the conversion: a purchase or sign-up through your own link without agreement is self-referral. Agree test purchases with the store or network in advance.

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