Postbacks and conversions
How conversions get back to the tracker by S2S postback, how to set the URL in your affiliate network, map statuses and test it.
A postback is a server-to-server request your affiliate network sends to the tracker when a conversion happens. It carries the click ID you passed to the offer, so the tracker can add the conversion and payout to the right click, campaign, stream, landing page and offer.
The postback URL
Copy the postback URL from the tracker. It has placeholders for three values:
- click ID: the value the tracker passed to the offer;
- payout: what you earned;
- status: lead, sale, rejected, or another conversion type.
In your network, replace each placeholder with the network's own macro, for example {clickid}, {payout} and {status}. Every network names its macros differently; network presets in the tracker show the right ones.
Setting it in the network
- Open the network's postback or S2S tracking settings.
- Paste the URL with the network's macros.
- Choose which events fire it. Many networks let you fire on lead, approval and rejection separately.
- If the network has both a global and a per-offer postback, check which one applies.
Statuses and conversion types
Map the words your network sends to the tracker's conversion types once per network. Then an approved lead and a rejected lead are counted differently, and a status change updates the conversion instead of adding a second one.
Protecting the postback
Require a token in the postback URL so only your networks can send conversions. A request without the right token is refused.
Testing
- Open your tracking link and reach the offer.
- Fire a test conversion from the network.
- Find your click in the click log: the conversion and payout should be on it.
Sending conversions to ad platforms
The tracker can forward conversions to the ad platforms' conversion APIs, so the platform can optimise on them. Connect the platform once, choose which conversion types to send, and failed sends are retried.