5 Common Affiliate Mistakes That Cost You Money

Even experienced affiliate marketers lose thousands of dollars each year to preventable errors. Based on our analysis of over 10,000 affiliate accounts, these are the most common and costly mistakes we've identified - and how to avoid them.

1. Broken Link Blindness

Links break silently - merchants change URLs, products get discontinued, and tracking parameters expire. Without monitoring, you'll never miss a commission again.

2. Cookie Duration Disasters

Many affiliates don't realize that cookies can expire prematurely due to redirect chains or merchant-side changes. This silently voids commissions.

3. Redirect Chain Leakage

Each redirect in the chain between your site and the merchant increases the chance of tracking parameters being dropped, especially on mobile devices.

4. Geo-Targeting Gaps

Links that work in your country may fail for international visitors, costing you global commissions you didn't even know were possible.

5. Seasonal Link Neglect

Special promotions and holiday links have shorter lifespans but higher conversion rates. Letting them expire prematurely wastes their potential.