HelpIconAdd/Modify Creative

A creative is advertising materials. Creatives are used to promote offers in a variety of ways; for example, creatives are used on websites, in social media, through email, through search or any other medium available.

Generally, these advertising materials are generated by you or a merchant and given to affiliates. All creatives entered into LinkTrust are given a unique ID called the ADID. The ADID is used in creative breakout reports, so you can view the performance for each creative.

On this help page, you learn the following:

  • Creative Details
  • How to Add a Creative
  • How to Modify a Creative
  • Clone Creative

Creative Details

Before you add a creative, make sure you understand the following components used in creating a creative:

  • Name
  • Type
  • Show creative in Affiliate Center
  • Track impressions
  • Replace all HREF links with my tracking token
  • Custom landing page URL
  • Test link
  • Propagate additional data
  • Affiliate payout
  • Merchant payout
  • Content
  • Tokens

Name

This is the name of the creative. This name is also displayed in the Affiliate Center.

Type

LinkTrust supports many creative types including:

  • Custom Banner - Custom HTML
  • File – Host your file and then place the file URL in LinkTrust.
  • Flash - Custom HTML (Flash files must be hosted on web server.)
  • HTML
  • Popup
  • Simple Banner - Enter the banner image URL and LinkTrust creates the HTML code automatically.
  • Text - Alphanumeric characters only (Non-HTML)

Show Creative to Affiliates

This option allows the creative content to be made available to affiliates in the Affiliate Center. To hide creatives from affiliates for a campaign, unmark Show Creative to Affiliates. If a creative is hidden from the affiliate in the Affiliate Center, the creative ADID still functions normally.

Track Impressions

This option allows you to track impressions for this creative. An impression is a single occurrence of an advertisement or creative displayed in a web browser. Each time an advertisement loads in a user's browser, LinkTrust counts that loading as one impression.

For more information, see Impression URL.

Replace all HREF links with my Tracking token

This option screens all HTML code and performs a search and replace of all HREF URL with the LinkTrust tracking token. If this function is performed on an email creative, make sure to replace the unsubscribe HREF with the correct URL form the merchant to maintain compliance with the CAN-SPAM Act.

Custom Landing Page URL

This field allows you to add an alternate landing page URL for the creative.

For example, you want a Spanish creative to redirect consumers to a Spanish landing page for the merchant, so you enter the Spanish landing page URL in the alternate landing page field as an alternate landing page. This allows consumers who click on the Spanish creative to be taken to a Spanish language landing page. All the other creatives for the campaign are still redirected to the landing page configured in the campaign settings.

Test Link

This option allows you to test the alternate landing page URL.

Propagate Additional Data

Any data passed through on the affiliate tracking link is appended to the end of the landing page URL when the Propagated Additional Data box is marked. If you want additional data on the tracking link to be appended to the URL of an alternate location, enable Propagate Additional Data. If you want to block any additional data from being appended to the URL of an alternate location, disable Propagate Additional Data.

Affiliate Payout

The affiliate payout is the amount of commission earned by an affiliate for each approved transaction

Merchant Payout

The merchant payout is the amount of commission earned by an merchant for each approved transaction

Content

This box is a text box rather than a WYSIWYG Editor. You can enter HTML code but you cannot manipulate how it appears in a web browser. A WYSIWYG HTML editor is a specialized HTML editor that provides an editing interface which resembles how the page is displayed in a web browser.

Tokens

Tokens are static place holders used to pass dynamic information. Tokens allow LinkTrust to pass data between affiliates and merchants with ease. They perform a variety of activities like the following:

  • Pass data to the merchant
  • Create unique tracking URLs
  • Track specific events on creatives

All tokens follow the following format [=token_parameter=]. The following are creative tokens ordered by the most frequently used:

  1. Tracking URL : [=TrackingURL=]
  2. Impression Pixel : [=ImpressionPixel=]
  3. Impression URL : [=ImpressionURL=]
  4. Campaign ID : [=CID=]
  5. Affiliate ID : [=AFID=]
  6. Creative ID : [=ADID=]
  7. Random Domain : [=RandomDomain=]
  8. UnsubCentral Unsubscribe link : [=Unsubscribe=]
  9. Date/Time: [=DateTimeStamp=]

How to Add a Creative

To add a creative, do the following:

  1. In the Name field, enter the name of the creative.
  2. From the Type drop-down field, select the type of creative you are adding.
  3. If necessary, select the creative dimensions from the drop-down field that appears next to the Type field.
  4. If you want to track impressions, mark Track Impressions.
  5. If you want to replace all your HREF links with your tracking token, mark Replace all HREF links with my Tracking token.
  6. If you want to make the creative content available to affiliates in the Affiliate Center, mark Show Creative to Affiliates in the Visibility section.
  7. If you want to add the creative to an affiliate group, select the affiliate group from the drop-down field.
  8. If you want to add the creative to an affiliate, select Search next to Affiliate; then browse to and select the appropriate affiliate.
  9. (Optional) In the Landing Page URL field, enter your custom landing page URL.
  10. Test your alternate landing page URL by selecting Test Link.
  11. (Optional) If you want to propagate additional data, mark Propagate Additional Data.
  12. If you want to override the affiliate payout, mark Override Affiliate Payout.
  13. Enter the new affiliate payout in the amount field.
  14. If you want to override the merchant payout, mark Override Merchant Payout.
  15. Enter the new merchant payout in the amount field.
  16. If you selected Custom Banner, Flash, HTML, Popup, or Text in the Type drop-down field, enter the creative content in the Content field. Note: If you selected Text from the Type drop-down field, you do not have the option of using a WYSIWYG editor. You can only use a text editor.
  17. If you selected Simple Banner in the Type drop-down field, enter the image URL in the Image URL field.
  18. To preview your simple banner creative, select Preview.
  19. If you selected QR Code, select click here to learn how a QR code works.
  20. Save your settings by selecting Update.

How to Modify a Creative

To modify a creative, do the following:

  1. In the Name field, enter the name of the creative.
  2. From the Type drop-down field, select the type of creative you are adding.
  3. If necessary, select the creative dimensions from the drop-down field that appears next to the Type field.
  4. If you want to track impressions, mark Track Impressions.
  5. If you want to replace all your HREF links with your tracking token, mark Replace all HREF links with my Tracking token.
  6. If you want to make the creative content available to affiliates in the Affiliate Center, mark Show Creative to Affiliates in the Visability section.
  7. If you want to add the creative to an affiliate group, select the affiliate group from the drop-down field.
  8. If you want to add the creative to an affiliate, select Search next to Affiliate; then browse to and select the appropriate affiliate.
  9. Under Preview, make sure your thumbnail is present.
  10. Under Thumbnail, select Auto-Generated or Upload.
  11. If you selected Upload, browse to your image file by selecting Browse next to the File (100X50) field.
  12. If you selected Upload, upload your image file by selecting Upload Thumbnail.
  13. (Optional) In the Landing Page URL field, enter your custom landing page URL.
  14. Test your alternate landing page URL by selecting Test Link.
  15. (Optional) If you want to propagate additional data, mark Propagate Additional Data.
  16. If you selected Custom Banner, Flash, HTML, Popup, or Text in the Type drop-down field, enter the creative content in the Content field. Note: If you selected Text from the Type drop-down field, you do not have the option of using a WYSIWYG editor. You can only use a text editor.
  17. If you selected Simple Banner in the Type drop-down field, enter the image URL in the Image URL field.
  18. To preview your simple banner creative, select Preview.
  19. If you selected QR Code, select click here to learn how a QR code works.
  20. Save your settings by selecting Update.

How to Clone a Creative

To clone a creative, do the following:

  1. Select Clone Creative
  2. The creative is cloned and ready to be modified.
  3. If necessary, select the creative dimensions from the drop-down field that appears next to the Type field.
  4. If you want to track impressions, mark Track Impressions.
  5. If you want to replace all your HREF links with your tracking token, mark Replace all HREF links with my Tracking token.
  6. If you want to make the creative content available to affiliates in the Affiliate Center, mark Show Creative to Affiliates in the Visibility section.
  7. If you want to add the creative to an affiliate group, select the affiliate group from the drop-down field.
  8. If you want to add the creative to an affiliate, select Search next to Affiliate; then browse to and select the appropriate affiliate.
  9. Under Preview, make sure your thumbnail is present.
  10. Under Thumbnail, select Auto-Generated or Upload.
  11. If you selected Upload, browse to your image file by selecting Browse next to the File (100X50) field.
  12. If you selected Upload, upload your image file by selecting Upload Thumbnail.
  13. (Optional) In the Landing Page URL field, enter your custom landing page URL.
  14. Test your alternate landing page URL by selecting Test Link.
  15. (Optional) If you want to propagate additional data, mark Propagate Additional Data.
  16. If you selected Custom Banner, Flash, HTML, Popup, or Text in the Type drop-down field, enter the creative content in the Content field. Note: If you selected Text from the Type drop-down field, you do not have the option of using a WYSIWYG editor. You can only use a text editor.
  17. If you selected Simple Banner in the Type drop-down field, enter the image URL in the Image URL field.
  18. To preview your simple banner creative, select Preview.
  19. If you selected QR Code, select click here to learn how a QR code works.
  20. Save your settings by selecting Update.

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: add/modify creative, creatives, page
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