FlexOffers.com Terms Glossary

Browse flexoffers terms glossary and get detailed definitions of both common and obscure terms from around the affiliate marketing industry. 

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  • a

  • Money that a publisher has earned through its advertisers’ publisher programs that has not yet been rolled into a payment. The FlexOffers.com Network, also refers to an advertiser’s account balance based on the funding they have provided to FlexOffers.com Affiliate less any publisher(…) Read More
  • An active publisher is a publisher account that has generated impressions and/or click-troughs within a certain period; a traffic-generating publisher. Read More
  • An ad blocker is a software based program that prevents online advertisements from displaying.   Read More
  • When an ad is successfully displayed on the user’s computer screen.   Read More
  • An ad network publisher is a publisher whose promotional method focuses on working with third-party ad agencies and other affiliate marketing companies to earn commissions.   Read More
  • An ad stream is a series of ads displayed to the user during a single visit to a website (also impression stream). Read More
  • User status allowing view, access and edit privileges in the FlexOffers.com Account Manager settings. There can be only one administrator. Read More
  • An advertiser is a company that sells a product or service, accepts payments, and fulfills orders online. Advertisers partner with publishers to help promote their products and services. Publishers place an advertiser’s ad, text links, or product links on their website or include them in email(…) Read More
  • Legal agreement an advertiser signs when joining FlexOffers.com Affiliate. Read More
  • The user interface for an advertiser or publisher within the FlexOffers.com Network. Read More
  • Affiliate marketing is any type of revenue-sharing program in which a publisher receives a commission for generating online actions (such as leads or sales) for an advertiser; also called performance-based marketing, partner marketing, CPA, associate program, or pay-for-performance program. Read More
  • A third-party vendor that provides the software and services to administer an affiliate program, including ad serving and tracking, payment and reporting; also called affiliate marketing network. Read More
  • An aggregator site is a website dedicated to gathering content from other third-party websites or from user submissions. Read More
  • AID (company ID) is a unique number which differentiates an advertiser from the FlexOffers.com network. In the context of image pixel tracking, the AID tag parameter is paired with the advertiser’s order ID. Read More
  • An alternative message for link provides advertisers with an opportunity to write in text that would display as a text link should the image for the link not load on the publisher’s website. Also known as “alt tag.” Read More
  • An anonymizer is a software application that is most often used by browsers to automatically display animation and/or perform database queries requested by the user. Read More
  • Applet is small, self-contained software application that is most often used by browsers to automatically display animation and/or to perform database queries requested by the user. Read More
  • Application programing interface (API) is a programming format/interface that a website or a piece of software uses, such as FlexOffers.com web services via FlexOffers.com Account Manager, to allow other websites or software to interact with it. Read More
  • Approved and pending statuses indicates state of the relationship between advertisers and publishers. Approved means that a publisher is in an advertiser’s program, and pending means that they are not yet affiliated. Read More
  • An archived link is a creative that an advertiser has removed from their active links, meaning the advertiser no longer wants its publishers to use this link to promote its brand. Read More
  • Attribution is a marketing and data analysis method used to track an entire sales process from introducer to closer, and across multiple channels (both online and offline). Read More
  • Average order value (AOV) is a metric that describes the average amount of a purchase. It is calculated by dividing the total value of all purchases by the total number of purchasers over a given time period. Read More

  • b

  • A banner is a FlexOffers.com link type. A banner is a clickable (hyperlinked) advertising graphic, and is the most common type of web advertisement. Banners are graphics of all shapes and sizes; however, FlexOffers.com Affiliate offers some standard shapes and sizes. Read More
  • Batch reporting is one of two tracking methods used in the FlexOffers.com network of retrieving advertiser transaction information. Read More
  • Behavioral targeting is a technique used by online publishers and advertisers to increase the effectiveness of their campaigns. Behavioral targeting uses information collected on an individual‘s web browsing behavior such as the pages they have visited or the searches they have made to select(…) Read More
  • Beta is a test version of a product or software. Read More
  • Black hat is a phrase used to describe unethical practice of SEO, such as link scheming. FlexOffers.com Network Compliance department looks for this type of activity and regularly removes publishers who conduct such practices. Read More
  • A blog is a website featuring regular posts and encourages user comments, linking and interaction. Short for “Web log.” Read More
  • A bonus is monies paid to a publisher above their standard/initial commission rate. It may be connected with a performance incentive or discretionary (manual transaction). Read More
  • A branded sign-up page is a branded, customized application form that an advertiser may provide in order for publishers to apply to its program. Read More
  • Business-to-business (B2B) refers to commerce conducted between two businesses. Read More

  • c

  • Cart abandonment is when a website visitor leaves an item in an online shopping cart without completing the transaction. Read More
  • A category is a classification that defines the purpose or content of a publisher’s promotional method or an advertiser’s business vertical. A publisher website may be categorized to indicate the type of website or content it manages. Read More
  • A Click ID is a FlexOffers assigned number that identifies an action and the associated commission and tracking settings. Read More
  • Click-through, click-troughs are a way of measuring how many people click a link online to see its destination website. Click-troughs are often used to set advertising rates. Read More
  • Click-through rate (CTR) is the percentage of “clicks” for the number of advertising impressions displayed. Read More
  • Commission is the incentive a publisher receives from an advertiser for generating leads or sales through its website. Read More
  • Commission rate is the dollar amount or percentage that an advertiser offers its publishers as commission. Read More
  • A content & community publisher is the type of FlexOffers.com publishers whose promotional method focuses on the fundamental process of generating traffic and revenue through the content that they share on their website. Content websites feature information and experiences that may provide(…) Read More
  • A conversion is an event that occurs when a visitor click-troughs a link and makes a purchase from or generates a lead for an advertiser. Publishers earn commissions when conversions occur. Read More
  • Conversion rate (CR) is the percentage of visits to a publisher’s website that convert to a sale or lead. For example, if one in every hundred visitors to your site makes a purchase, then your conversion rate is 1:100, or 1 percent. Read More
  • A cookie is a small file stored on a consumer’s computer that records information about that consumer. Cookies work with a consumer’s web browser to store user preferences, login or registration information, and shopping cart information for websites the consumer has visited. In affiliate(…) Read More
  • Cost-per-action (CPA) is metric for online advertising where a rate is set for every action that is taken by a user. Examples of cost-per-action (CPA) transactions are cost per click, cost per lead, and cost per sale. Read More
  • A Cost-per-click (CPC) commission structure in which an advertiser pays its publishers a flat amount every time a visitor clicks through a link on the publisher’s website and is redirected to the advertiser’s site. Read More
  • Cost-per-lead (CPL) commission structure in which an advertiser pays its publishers a flat amount for every qualified customer lead generated from a link on the publisher’s site. Read More
  • Cost-per-order (CPO) is a metric that determines the number of orders generated relative to the cost of running the advertisement. Read More
  • Cost-per-sale (CPS) is a commission structure in which an advertiser pays its publishers a percentage of each completed sales transaction made through its links. Read More
  • Cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM) is a commission method traditionally used in the advertising world in which an advertiser pays a set amount for every 1000 impressions served. For example, a website charges $1,000 per ad and reports 100,000 visits have a CPM of $10. Also referred to as(…) Read More
  • Promotional materials advertisers use to attract consumers to their websites or products is typically referred to as a creative. These include text links, banner ads, buttons, email copy, and videos, among others. Read More

  • d

  • The dashboard is an area in FlexOffers.com advertiser’s interface that provides a quick snapshot of website performance, including reports for: publisher commissions, number of sales, number of leads, number of clicks, number of impressions, click-through rate, conversion rate and CPM. Read More
  • Data transfer occurs when an advertiser transfers a file that contains data for actions, corrections, accepted transactions, extended transactions, etc. Read More
  • A database is a large collection of data stored in rows and columns to allow for fast retrieval. Read More
  • Decline indicates that an advertiser has not accepted a publisher’s application Read More
  • A deep link allows a publisher to hyperlink directly to a specific product or service webpage on the advertiser’s website, which can cut out the step of going to the publisher’s page/website first. Also known as “direct link.” Read More
  • A default payout rate is the standard commission rate for a given program term. Read More
  • A default URL is an advertiser’s target URL link where the user will arrive after clicking on a link from a publisher’s website. Read More
  • A deposit is the advance payment required for future payments to publishers and network fees. In the event the account is canceled and none of the payments were used to pay publishers, any remaining amount is refundable to the client within thirty days of requesting a refund and cancellation. Read More
  • A drop-down is a field that allows users to select an option by clicking a down-arrow in the field and choosing from a list of options. Read More

  • e

  • E-commerce is an electronic exchange of value between a business and its partners, supplies, and customers. Read More
  • Earnings represent the amount of money a publisher has earned through an advertiser’s program. Read More
  • EPC 3-month (Average Earnings Per One Hundred Clicks) is a relative rating that illustrates the ability to convert clicks into commissions. For more information on EPC, visit [Support Center]. Read More
  • EPC-7 day (Average Earnings per One Hundred Clicks) is a relative rating that illustrates the ability to convert clicks into commissions. For more information on EPC, visit [Support Center]. Read More
  • EPC is defined as the average earnings per 100 clicks — a relative rating that illustrates the ability to convert click-troughs into commissions as related to the FLEXOFFERS.COM Network. Read More

  • f

  • A field refers to a text box, drop-down, or other elements on the page. Read More
  • File transfer protocol (FTP) is a standard method used to send/receive files from a web server. One way an advertiser can post their product catalog feed to the FLEXOFFERS.COM servers is via FLEXOFFERS.COM FTP. Read More
  • Full program management is a top-tier service level an advertiser can sign up for when joining the FLEXOFFERS.COM Network. Read More

  • g

  • Geo-targeting is selective advertising in which a publisher can choose what geographical areas they want the ad to appear in. For example, if a publisher’s website focuses on umbrellas and rain apparel, they may just want a certain ad to appear in places where it frequently rains. Read More

  • h

  • A home page is the “front” main page of a website. Read More
  • HyberText Markup Language (HTML), . html is the code that is used to create hypertext documents for use on the World Wide Web. With the HTML language, users can specify that a block of text, or a word, is linked to another file on the Internet. HTML files are meant to be viewed using a Web browser. Read More
  • HyperText transfer protocol (HTTP) is protocol for rendering hypertext files across the internet. Requires an HTTP client program on one end, and an HTTP server program on the other end. Read More

  • i

  • IFRAME is an HTML tag supporting an inline frame, allowing the inclusion of external objects, including other HTML documents or webpages. FLEXOFFERS.COM’s tracking solution utilizes an IFRAME tag. Read More
  • An image pixel is the standard tracking method for FLEXOFFERS.COM advertisers if referencing the pixel within the code on an advertiser’s order confirmation page. Image pixels are also included within link code and are used to track impressions. Read More
  • Image size is the dimensions of an image in pixels. Read More
  • An impression occurs every time a link appears in a visitor’s browser. It represents an opportunity to buy an online advertiser’s products or services. Analyzing the number of impressions served, in conjunction with other data, allows publishers and advertisers to assess the effectiveness of(…) Read More
  • An inactive publisher is a publisher account with no impressions or click-troughs. Read More
  • Increased commission rate is a performance based incentive that increases the commission rate by a desired percentage. Read More
  • An increased commission rate is a performance based incentive that increases the commission rate by a desired percentage. Read More
  • An increased payout offers publishers more commissions as an incentive. Read More
  • The internet is a decentralized, worldwide network of computers that can communicate with each other. Read More

  • j

  • JavaScript is a client-side scripting language developed by Netscape Communications that brings interactivity to the World Wide Web. Its functionality is primarily aimed at enhanced forms, simple Web database front-ends, navigation enhancements and allows for dynamic updating via servers vs.(…) Read More
  • A JPG (joint photographic experts group) is a compressed image format commonly used for digital photos. Supports up to 24-bit color. Read More

  • k

  • A keyword is a word that users can enter to search a specific data set. Keywords are also used in search engine marketing as the word or phrase that visitors enter to search for results. Read More

  • l

  • A landing page is a simple, one-page website. Read More
  • Last-click model is an attribution used in affiliate marketing that credits a publisher who was responsible for directing an action. There are variations within the last-click model that include last non-direct click and last paid click, for example. Read More
  • A lead is a type of action in which a consumer registers, signs up for, or downloads something from an advertiser’s website. A prospective customer filling out a form on an advertiser’s website is also a type of lead. Read More
  • Lifetime value (LTV) is the total amount that a customer will spend with a particular company during his or her lifetime. Read More
  • A link is a form of advertising (an icon, a picture, or a highlighted string of text) on a website, in an email, or in an online newsletter, that, when clicked, refers a consumer to an advertiser’s landing page or website. In the world of affiliate marketing, the link is provided by an(…) Read More
  • The link code is the HTML code that publishers use to create the link to an advertiser’s website. When publishers generate these tags and paste the code into their sites, they create links to the advertiser’s website. Read More
  • A link name is the name assigned to link in FLEXOFFERS.COM Account Manager (by advertiser), usually something that lets the advertiser and publisher know what the links offer or promotion is (e.g. free shipping link, buy one get one free link, logo link, etc.) Read More
  • In search engine marketing, the information submitted to a search engine to support part of paid placement and paid inclusion services. Each listing is comprised of a keyword, title, description, and destination URL. See also placement. Read More
  • To login, log in, logon, log on, logoff, log off is to supply a username or e-mail address and password to gain or prevent access to a system. Read More
  • A loyalty & rewards publisher is a FlexOffers.com publisher who “rewards” consumers with gifts or cash back in the form of alternative payment systems, incentive or virtual currency. Read More

  • m

  • Managed accounts are advertisers who are enrolled in FlexOffers.com Network in Recruiting & Optimization Management or Full Program Management service levels. Read More
  • Message approved publishers refers to advertisers in the FlexOffers.com Network sending email messages to publishers that have joined the advertiser’s program. Publishers can opt in or out of receiving recruitment messages based on categories within the FlexOffers.com Network. Read More
  • Minimum EPC (minimum earnings per click) is an optional guarantee an advertiser may specify for publishers for the duration of the program terms. Read More

  • n

  • Network rank (advertiser) is how an advertiser compares with other advertisers in the FlexOffers.com Network, based on the volume of commissions paid. Read More
  • Network rank (publisher) is a bar ranking system within the FLEXOFFERS.COM Network that rates publishers with others in the network based on commissions earned. Read More
  • New account setup is a five-step process an advertisers goes through when signing up with FlexOffers.com: 1. Terms and conditions, 2. Advance payment, 3. Setup, 4. Test and 5. Activation Read More

  • o

  • OID (advertiser’s order ID) is an unique identifier supplied by an advertiser, such as an Invoice # or order ID, which populates into the string dynamically. Include only alphanumeric characters within the OID field to avoid errors. Read More
  • The opt-in, subscribe option is an action a publisher can take to remove its name from a mailing list. Read More
  • The opt-out, unsubscribe is an action a publisher can take to remove its name from a mailing list. Read More
  • An order is a website visitor’s request on an e-commerce page to purchase an item or service. Read More
  • Organic search, also known as search engine optimization (SEO), focuses on optimizing website content, architecture, meta tag development, linking strategies, directory listings and webpage submissions based on the relevancy algorithms search engines use to index and rank webpages. Organic(…) Read More

  • p

  • Pay per call is a FlexOffers.com product that provides advertisers a simple way to use unique, trackable phone numbers in all forms of media to attribute sales and leads across various channels. Read More
  • A pixel 1×1 is a tiny, transparent graphic that is placed with each link as a means of tracking link performance. The 1×1 pixel is used to track impressions and is one of two tracking methods used by Flexoffers.com affiliate. See also tracking method, conversion tag and batch. Read More
  • In search engine marketing, a listing becomes a placement when it is submitted to a specific search engine. One listing may become multiple placements, depending on how many search engines receive it. In addition to the listing information, a placement also includes a bid amount and may(…) Read More
  • PNG (Portable Network Graphic) is an uncompressed image format similar to .gifs but without the data limitations. Commonly used for web graphics and can be saved with transparent background. Read More
  • Pop-under is a smaller browser window or message area that appears behind the main browser window. Read More
  • A program category is the primary category selected to represent an advertiser’s program to publishers. Read More
  • The program information page is a page in FlexOffers.com Account Manager that describes an advertiser’s program. Read More
  • Program terms refers to an agreement and relationship between an advertiser and a publisher, including commission rates, program terms, search and marketing policies, and any bonus incentives. Read More
  • A promotion link is an option that allows an advertiser to flag their link as a special, time-based promotional link. Flagging a link with a promotion type is how that link gets included in a promotional data feed for publishers. Read More
  • A publisher is the owner of a website that chooses to display or promote an advertiser’s products or services. Publishers agree to place ads on their websites or promote an advertiser’s offers via search or other means authorized by the advertiser. In return, publishers can earn commissions,(…) Read More
  • Publisher accept/decline method refers to rules advertisers can apply to streamline the publisher approval process. Methods include: auto approve (by country, network rank and publisher category), auto decline, and manually approve. Read More
  • Publisher commissions is a broad term defining any money earned by a Flexoffers.com publisher. Read More
  • Publisher fraud is fraudulent behavior by publishers to increase sales or skew numbers. Read More

  • r

  • Reach is the number of users exposed to an ad, measured by impressions. Increased reach means an ad is exposed to more potential customers, which may lead to increased awareness. Read More
  • Real-time reporting offers no delay in processing of requests for information (such as reporting) other than the time necessary for the data to travel over the Internet. Read More
  • A redirected image URL is provided by advertisers who host their images/links on their own servers. Read More
  • Reconciliation is an action that is locked on the 10th of the following month unless they are extended. Once a transaction occurs and is sent to and processed by FlexOffers.com’s tracking servers, it will post in the account with a status of “New.” While the transaction is in a status of “New”(…) Read More
  • A referral period is the amount of time an advertiser allows their cookies to remain active on a publisher’s website, allowing FlexOffers.com to credit the referring publisher for a configurable tracking duration period. Read More
  • Referring URL is the URL a consumer came from to reach a website. Read More
  • A registered publisher is any live publisher account in the FlexOffers.com Network. Read More
  • Response is the data sent back to a user’s browser in response to an HTTP request. This data can be in the form of HTML code, an image, or an error message. Read More
  • Return days are reflective of the time period during which an advertiser allows their cookies to remain active to credit publishers for their referrals. Return days are mostly determined by the visitor’s last click-through to an advertiser’s website and must be between 1 and 60 days. Read More
  • Return on investment (ROI) is the amount of derived for subtracting net revenues for total costs. Read More
  • Right-click refers to clicking the secondary or right button on a mouse. Read More

  • s

  • An event (sale or lead) on an advertiser’s website for which an advertiser pays a commission to a referring publisher. Read More
  • A sale ID is a unique number assigned by a FlexOffers.com affiliate to each transaction. Read More
  • Search engine marketing (SEM) is a form of internet marketing that seeks to promote websites by purchasing keywords with the goal of increasing visibility in the search engine result pages. Read More
  • Search engine optimization (SEO) is any number of methods, informal and algorithmic, used to ensure that online content shows up in search engines, thus increasing traffic to the content. Read More
  • Search keywords are registered advertiser program keywords for publishers to access/search. Must have two or more consonants (e.g. “moo” is invalid). Read More
  • Search policy guidelines are an advertiser’s policy and guidelines outlining exactly how a publisher is allowed to promote the advertiser’s brand on search engines. Should include recommended keywords, trademark rights, and display URL/direct linking rights. Read More
  • Search publisher is a type of FlexOffers.com publisher whose promotional method focuses on paid (SEM) or natural search (SEO), as well as domain parking and domain redirection to drive affiliate sales. Read More
  • Self service accounts are a type of FlexOffers.com publisher whose promotional method focuses on paid (SEM) or natural search (SEO), as well as domain parking and domain redirection to drive affiliate sales. Read More
  • Session duration is the amount of time a visitor spends on a webpage or website they visit. Read More
  • Setup, launch, implementation and recruitment is a 90-day mid-tier managed account level an advertiser can sign up for when joining the FlexOffers.com Network. Read More
  • A shopping and promotions publisher is the type of FlexOffers.com publisher aiming to creating a social shopping experience by offering website visitors coupons, comparisons and lead generation. Read More
  • A SKU (stock keeping unit) is a unique number that identifies an advertiser’s product. Resubmitting an SKU enables changes to be made to availability, pricing, or other product information. When publishers search for products, the search engine queries this field. In a click URL, the SKU(…) Read More
  • Software & technology publisher is a FlexOffers.com publisher category similar to shopping & promotions but focuses more on web-based affiliate marketing solutions like link substitution and browser extensions. Read More

  • t

  • A tag is an HTML or XML element delimited by opening and closing angle brackets. Read More
  • A text link is a FlexOffers.com link type. Text links are simple text-based links (without graphics) with a 150-character limit (including any tags). Read More
  • Tracking code, tracking pixel is a snippet of code that includes a reference to an image pixel hosted on FlexOffers.com affiliate servers that enables tracking conversions.   Read More
  • Tracking method is the method an advertiser uses to send tracking information to FlexOffers.com Read More
  • Traffic is a metric that measures the number of users that land on an advertiser’s website after clicking on a publisher-generated link. Read More
  • In FlexOffers.com Affiliate systems, a financial record of a transfer of money from one account to one or more other accounts. The commission associated with a valid action can become a financial transaction. See also action. Read More
  • A transaction fee is the amount that will be paid by the advertiser to FlexOffers.com affiliate for each commissioned action. Read More

  • u

  • A unique visitor is the individual visitors that visit a website. A visitor may visit a site several times a week. However, because it is the same person, it only counts as one unique visitor. Read More
  • A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address used to locate a specific resource on the World Wide Web, such as an HTML webpage or an image. Read More
  • User interface (UI) features of a device, program or website that enable control by a human. Read More

  • v

  • A visitor is any user who goes to a particular website. If visitors click-through and purchase products or services from an affiliate publisher’s website, they become customers of the affiliate advertiser whose ad they saw. Read More

  • w

  • Web-based is any program requiring no software to access an online service or application other than web browser and access to the Internet. Read More
  • A webpage is a single page of a website. Read More
  • A website is an internet location. Read More
  • A widget is an interactive and customizable application that consumers use to interact with a brand, via social network or blog/website integration. Read More
  • WWW (World Wide Web), like email, is a subset of the Internet. They are not synonymous and should not be used interchangeably in stories. Read More

  • x

  • XML (Extensible Markup Language) is a subset of a much larger and enormously complex language called SGML. It allows users to define tags and create, in effect, a unique markup language. This markup language enables the separation of presentation format from structured data. Read More
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