Affiliate Marketing Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield Affiliate Marketing facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. What does EPC (Earnings Per Click) measure in affiliate marketing? → The average earnings an affiliate generates for every 100 clicks on their links
2. Which metric measures the percentage of clicks that result in a desired action (such as a sale)? → CR (Conversion Rate)
3. What is an 'affiliate manager' responsible for in a network or in-house program? → Recruiting affiliates, providing support, and optimizing the program's performance
4. Which of the following is a major advantage of digital products for affiliate marketing? → They typically offer higher commission rates since there are no manufacturing costs
5. Which of the following is a key feature that distinguishes ShareASale from other affiliate networks? → It offers real-time tracking and a large variety of merchant niches
6. Why might a merchant impose a 'reversal' on a previously approved affiliate commission? → The customer returned the product, the transaction was fraudulent, or the lead was invalid
7. Which of the following is considered a 'white-hat' affiliate marketing practice? → Writing honest, in-depth product reviews with clear affiliate disclosures
8. Which metric best indicates the overall profitability of an affiliate campaign when accounting for ad spend? → Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)
9. An affiliate is building an email list to promote affiliate offers. Which practice violates the CAN-SPAM Act in the US? → Sending promotional emails without a physical mailing address
10. Which of the following best describes 'multi-touch attribution' in affiliate marketing? → Distributing conversion credit across all affiliate touchpoints in the customer journey
11. What is 'cookie stuffing' and why is it prohibited? → Fraudulently dropping affiliate cookies on users without a genuine click
12. What does 'cookie duration' mean in affiliate marketing? → The time window after a click during which a commission can be credited
13. What is a 'sub-ID' used for in affiliate marketing? → To track which specific source, campaign, or placement drove a conversion
14. An affiliate program uses 'first-click' attribution. Which affiliate type benefits MOST from this model? → Top-of-funnel content sites and review blogs that introduce the brand
15. What does 'EPC' stand for in affiliate marketing? → Earnings Per Click
16. What does 'chargeback' mean in the context of affiliate marketing? → When a previously earned commission is reversed due to a return or fraud
17. Which metric best measures how well an affiliate's traffic converts into sales? → Conversion rate
18. An affiliate promotes a SaaS product and earns a commission every month a customer stays subscribed. This model is called: → Recurring commission
19. What does 'chargeback' mean in the context of affiliate commissions? → A reversal of commission when a referred sale is refunded or fraudulent
20. Awin is a major global affiliate network. Which two well-known networks did it acquire to grow its US presence? → ShareASale and Commission Factory
21. Which criteria is typically used to purchase paid search marketing? → PPC
22. Which type of affiliate content typically achieves the highest commercial intent and conversion rates? → Product comparison and 'best of' review articles
23. The term "paid advertising" used in a per-click paradigm is ______. → Sponsored search-engine advertising
24. Which tool is most commonly used by affiliates to analyze organic search traffic and keyword performance on their content sites? → Google Search Console
25. Which practice violates most affiliate program terms of service? → Bidding on the merchant's branded keywords in PPC campaigns without permission
26. Which of the following are examples of online advertising strategies used by marketers to promote websites? → SEO
27. An affiliate notices their click volume is high but their conversion rate has dropped sharply. What should they investigate FIRST? → Whether the merchant's landing page or offer has changed
28. What does 'cookie duration' mean in affiliate marketing? → The length of time a tracking cookie follows a referred visitor before it expires
29. Which metric best measures how efficiently an affiliate converts clicks into sales? → Conversion rate (CR)
30. What is a 'pixel' in the context of affiliate conversion tracking? → A snippet of code placed on the confirmation page that fires when a conversion occurs