# Tracking Overview

> How Affitor links clicks, signups, and sales together

Affitor tracking links three events into one attribution chain:

- **click** — a visitor arrives through an affiliate link
- **signup/lead** — you identify the customer after registration
- **sale** — revenue is recorded through Server-side tracking or Stripe integration

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## The Core Model

Every successful integration follows the same three-step shape:

1. A tracked affiliate visit creates a click/customer relationship.
2. Signup tracking attaches your internal user ID to that relationship.
3. Sale tracking records revenue against the same customer/partner relationship.

Identifier consistency matters more than any single code snippet.

---

## The Tracking Flow

<Mermaid chart={`flowchart LR
  V["Visitor clicks partner link (?aff=CODE)"] --> S[Your site]
  S -->|SDK or script tag| CK[Click event]
  S -->|signup| LD[Lead event]
  ST[Stripe webhook or S2S API] --> SL[Sale event]
  CK --> AT[Affitor attribution]
  LD --> AT
  SL --> AT
  AT --> CM[Commission for the partner]
`} />

<Flow>
  <FlowStep>Partner shares link</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>Customer clicks</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>Tracker stores `affitor_click_id`</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>Customer signs up</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>Your internal customer ID sent to Affitor</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>Customer pays</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>Server-side tracking or Stripe metadata path</FlowStep>
  <FlowStep>**Revenue attributed**</FlowStep>
</Flow>

---

## What You Need to Implement

### 1. Click tracking

Install the tracker so affiliate visits are detected automatically:

- Detects `?aff=`
- Stores `affitor_click_id`
- Creates the initial relationship Affitor needs for attribution

Guide: [Click Tracking](/brand/tracking/click-tracking/)

### 2. Signup tracking

Send your internal customer/user identifier after signup succeeds.

- browser helper: `signup(customerKey, email)`
- server API: `POST /api/v1/track/lead` with `customer_key`

Guide: [Lead Tracking](/brand/tracking/lead-tracking-signup/)

### 3. Sale tracking

Choose one supported revenue path:

| Path | Use when |
|------|----------|
| **Server-side tracking** | your backend controls revenue events |
| **Stripe metadata + webhook** | you already use Stripe Checkout / Stripe integration |

Guide: [Payment Tracking](/brand/tracking/payment-tracking-stripe/)

---

## Recommended Identifier Mapping

| Context | Field |
|--------|-------|
| Signup helper | `customerKey` |
| Lead API | `customer_key` |
| Server-side tracking | `customer_key` |
| Stripe metadata | `affitor_customer_key` |
| Browser click cookie | `affitor_click_id` |
| Server-side tracking click field | `click_id` |

Use one stable internal customer ID everywhere.

---

## Attribution Basics

### Default model

Affitor public docs currently describe:
- first-party cookie tracking
- last-click attribution
- **cookie window**: 90 days per program by default (how long a click stays attributable after the initial visit)
- **attribution window**: 60 days by default (commission lookback — how far back a sale can be matched to a click)

### Why the signup step matters

The click cookie is reliable, but the internal customer ID is what keeps attribution working across later payment events — especially when payment happens after signup or on a backend-controlled path.

---

## One-Time vs Subscription Payments

### One-time payment

Choose either:
- Send a server-side tracking event (POST /api/v1/track/sale) after payment succeeds.
- Attach Stripe metadata for Stripe integration.

### Subscription payment

If you use Stripe subscriptions:
- Include metadata on the checkout session.
- Include the same metadata on `subscription_data.metadata`.

Without subscription metadata, renewals may not be attributable.

---

## What Most Teams Choose

### Fastest path for Stripe Checkout teams (manual)

1. install tracker
2. call `signup(customerKey, email)`
3. attach Stripe metadata for payment + subscription flows

### Fastest path for custom backend teams (manual)

1. install tracker
2. call `signup(customerKey, email)` or server-side lead API
3. send `POST /api/v1/track/sale` from your backend

---

## Related Guides

1. [Click Tracking](/brand/tracking/click-tracking/)
2. [Lead Tracking](/brand/tracking/lead-tracking-signup/)
3. [Payment Tracking](/brand/tracking/payment-tracking-stripe/)
4. [Testing Integration](/brand/tracking/testing-integration/)