Can I Track The Amazon Affiliate Link That Product Is Purchased Or Not?

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Introduction

As an affiliate marketer, tracking the performance of your Amazon affiliate links is crucial to understanding the effectiveness of your marketing strategies. If you're using a Flutter app to showcase Amazon products and earn commissions through affiliate marketing, you might be wondering if it's possible to track whether a product is purchased or not. In this article, we'll explore the possibilities of tracking Amazon affiliate links and provide you with a step-by-step guide on how to achieve this.

Understanding Amazon Affiliate Program

Before we dive into the tracking process, it's essential to understand how the Amazon Affiliate Program works. The program allows you to earn commissions by promoting Amazon products on your website, app, or social media channels. When a customer clicks on your affiliate link and makes a purchase, you earn a commission. However, Amazon doesn't provide a direct way to track whether a product is purchased or not.

Using Cookies to Track Affiliate Links

Cookies are small text files stored on a user's device that contain information about their browsing history. In the context of affiliate marketing, cookies are used to track the user's journey from clicking on your affiliate link to making a purchase. When a user clicks on your affiliate link, a cookie is set on their device with a unique identifier. If the user makes a purchase within a certain time frame (usually 24 hours), the cookie is used to track the sale and attribute it to your affiliate account.

Flutter App and LaunchUrl

You mentioned using the launchUrl function in your Flutter app to load the affiliate link. This is a common approach, but it has limitations when it comes to tracking affiliate links. The launchUrl function simply opens the affiliate link in the user's default browser, without providing any way to track the user's journey.

Alternative Approach: Using a Third-Party Library

To overcome the limitations of the launchUrl function, you can use a third-party library that provides a more robust way to track affiliate links. One popular option is the url_launcher library, which allows you to launch URLs and track the user's journey.

Step-by-Step Guide to Tracking Affiliate Links

Here's a step-by-step guide to tracking Amazon affiliate links using the url_launcher library:

Step 1: Add the url_launcher Library to Your Flutter App

Add the url_launcher library to your Flutter app by adding the following dependency to your pubspec.yaml file:

dependencies:
  url_launcher: ^6.1.4

Step 2: Create a Function to Launch the Affiliate Link

Create a function that launches the affiliate link using the url_launcher library:

import 'package:url_launcher/url_launcher.dart';

void launchAffiliateLink(String url) async {
if (await canLaunch(url)) {
await launch(url);
} else {
throw 'Could not launch $url';
}
}

Step 3: Set a Cookie to Track the User's Journey

Set a cookie to track the user's journey from clicking on the affiliate link to making a purchase:

import 'package:cookie_jar/cookie_jar.dart';

void setCookie(String url, String cookieName, String cookieValue) async {
final cookieJar = CookieJar();
await cookieJar.save(cookieName, cookieValue, url);
}

Step 4: Check if a Cookie Exists

Check if a cookie exists to determine if the user has made a purchase:

import 'package:cookie_jar/cookie_jar.dart';

bool checkCookie(String url, String cookieName) async {
final cookieJar = CookieJar();
final cookie = await cookieJar.load(url);
return cookie.containsKey(cookieName);
}

Step 5: Track the Sale and Attribute it to Your Affiliate Account

Track the sale and attribute it to your affiliate account by checking if a cookie exists:

import 'package:cookie_jar/cookie_jar.dart';

void trackSale(String url, String cookieName) async {
if (await checkCookie(url, cookieName)) {
// Attribute the sale to your affiliate account
// ...
}
}

Conclusion

Tracking Amazon affiliate links can be a complex process, but it's essential to understanding the effectiveness of your marketing strategies. By using a third-party library like url_launcher and setting a cookie to track the user's journey, you can overcome the limitations of the launchUrl function and track whether a product is purchased or not. Remember to always follow Amazon's affiliate program policies and guidelines when tracking affiliate links.

Additional Resources

Disclaimer

Introduction

In our previous article, we explored the possibilities of tracking Amazon affiliate links and provided a step-by-step guide on how to achieve this using the url_launcher library and a third-party cookie library. However, we understand that you may have more questions about tracking Amazon affiliate links. In this Q&A article, we'll address some of the most frequently asked questions about tracking Amazon affiliate links.

Q: What is the purpose of tracking Amazon affiliate links?

A: The primary purpose of tracking Amazon affiliate links is to understand the effectiveness of your marketing strategies and to attribute sales to your affiliate account. By tracking affiliate links, you can see which products are being purchased, which marketing channels are driving the most sales, and which products are not converting.

Q: How do I track Amazon affiliate links using the url_launcher library?

A: To track Amazon affiliate links using the url_launcher library, you need to follow these steps:

  1. Add the url_launcher library to your Flutter app by adding the following dependency to your pubspec.yaml file:
dependencies:
  url_launcher: ^6.1.4
  1. Create a function that launches the affiliate link using the url_launcher library:
import 'package:url_launcher/url_launcher.dart';

void launchAffiliateLink(String url) async {
if (await canLaunch(url)) {
await launch(url);
} else {
throw 'Could not launch $url';
}
}

  1. Set a cookie to track the user's journey from clicking on the affiliate link to making a purchase:
import 'package:cookie_jar/cookie_jar.dart';

void setCookie(String url, String cookieName, String cookieValue) async {
final cookieJar = CookieJar();
await cookieJar.save(cookieName, cookieValue, url);
}

  1. Check if a cookie exists to determine if the user has made a purchase:
import 'package:cookie_jar/cookie_jar.dart';

bool checkCookie(String url, String cookieName) async {
final cookieJar = CookieJar();
final cookie = await cookieJar.load(url);
return cookie.containsKey(cookieName);
}

  1. Track the sale and attribute it to your affiliate account by checking if a cookie exists:
import 'package:cookie_jar/cookie_jar.dart';

void trackSale(String url, String cookieName) async {
if (await checkCookie(url, cookieName)) {
// Attribute the sale to your affiliate account
// ...
}
}

Q: What are the benefits of using a third-party library like url_launcher?

A: Using a third-party library like url_launcher provides several benefits, including:

  • Easy to use: The url_launcher library is easy to use and provides a simple API for launching URLs.
  • Cross-platform support: The url_launcher library supports both Android and iOS platforms.
  • Robust: The url_launcher library is robust and provides a reliable way to launch URLs.

Q: Can I use other libraries to track Amazon affiliate links?

A: Yes, you can use other libraries to track Amazon affiliate links. Some popular alternatives include:

  • flutter_webview: This library provides a web view widget that allows you to launch URLs and track the user's journey.
  • flutter_inappwebview: This library provides an in-app web view widget that allows you to launch URLs and track the user's journey.

Q: How do I handle cases where the user closes the browser or app?

A: To handle cases where the user closes the browser or app, you need to implement a mechanism to detect when the user closes the browser or app and remove the cookie. You can use the window.onbeforeunload event to detect when the user closes the browser and remove the cookie.

Q: Can I use Amazon's built-in tracking features to track affiliate links?

A: Yes, Amazon provides built-in tracking features that allow you to track affiliate links. However, these features are limited and do not provide the same level of detail as using a third-party library like url_launcher.

Conclusion

Tracking Amazon affiliate links can be a complex process, but it's essential to understanding the effectiveness of your marketing strategies. By using a third-party library like url_launcher and setting a cookie to track the user's journey, you can overcome the limitations of the launchUrl function and track whether a product is purchased or not. Remember to always follow Amazon's affiliate program policies and guidelines when tracking affiliate links.

Additional Resources