Can I Set Affiliate Marketing Campaigns?
Yes, and it is worth knowing up front that an affiliate campaign is a genuinely different thing from a paid collaboration, not a setting inside one.
Two things older guides got wrong
Affiliate is a campaign type you choose at the very beginning, on the campaign type picker, not an objective you tick at the end. And it is not a minor variation: it has its own requirements, its own payment model and its own approval behaviour, all set out below.
Before you can create one
✓
A connected Amazon or Shopify store on the affiliate side
✓
A payment card on file for commission billing
✓
Both of the above, or the Affiliate option simply sends you to the affiliate dashboard to set them up first
If you click Track sales through Ainfluencer without a store and a card, you are redirected rather than told why. That redirect is the requirement, not a fault.
Affiliate against paid collaboration
| Affiliate campaign | Paid collaboration | |
|---|---|---|
| How the creator earns | A commission on each sale they drive | A fixed fee you agree per creator |
| What you need first | A connected store and a card | Nothing |
| Team review before going live | No. It goes live as soon as you assign products | Yes, every campaign is reviewed |
| What you pay if nothing sells | Nothing | The agreed fee, regardless |
| Where commissions are set | Per product, default 15% | Not applicable |
How the money reaches the creator
Day 0
A buyer purchases through the creator’s tracked link
Day 1 to 3
The sale appears in reports once the store data syncs
Day 35
The sale becomes billable. This window covers returns
Then
A nightly run charges your card and sends the creator their share, minus the platform fee
The full money mechanics, including what is deducted and the creator’s side of it, are set out on Ainfluencer’s knowledge base under Affiliate Payout Structure.
Why this helps you
Affiliate suits you when you would rather pay for results than for reach. You carry no cost if nothing sells, which makes it a low-risk way to work with a long list of smaller creators at once. Paid collaboration suits you when you need the content itself, or a guaranteed post on a date. Many brands run both.