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Track affiliate and partner sales through unique promotion codes instead of (or alongside) referral links. Coupon-based tracking is perfect for podcasts, YouTube videos, influencer marketing, and any channel where customers can’t click a referral link.

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What is Coupon-Based Affiliate Tracking?

Coupon-based tracking assigns unique promotion codes to each partner. When customers apply these codes at checkout, Partnero automatically attributes the sale to the correct partner—even without referral link cookies.

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Why Use Coupon Tracking?

  • Offline channels—Podcasts, print media, events, word-of-mouth
  • Video content—YouTube, TikTok, Instagram where links aren’t clickable
  • Influencer partnerships—Easy-to-remember codes for audiences
  • Multi-channel attribution—Combine with referral links for complete tracking
  • Podcast advertising—Partners share codes verbally
Coupon tracking requires integration with a supported payment platform. Make sure you have one of the supported integrations connected before setting up coupon tracking.

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Supported Payment Platforms

Partnero syncs coupons and promotion codes with these platforms:
PlatformCoupon SyncAuto-Tracking
Stripe✓✓
Paddle✓✓
WooCommerce✓✓
Shopify✓✓

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How It Works

┌─────────────────┐     ┌──────────────────┐     ┌─────────────────┐
│  Partner gets   │     │  Customer uses   │     │  Partnero       │
│  unique code    │────▶│  code at checkout│────▶│  attributes sale│
└─────────────────┘     └──────────────────┘     └─────────────────┘
        │                        │                        │
        ▼                        ▼                        ▼
┌─────────────────┐     ┌──────────────────┐     ┌─────────────────┐
│  e.g. JOHN20    │     │  Stripe/Paddle/  │     │  Partner earns  │
│                 │     │  Shopify/WooComm │     │  commission     │
└─────────────────┘     └──────────────────┘     └─────────────────┘
  1. Create a coupon in Partnero (or sync from your payment platform)
  2. Assign promotion codes to partners (manually or auto-generated)
  3. Partners share their codes with potential customers
  4. Customers apply the code during checkout
  5. Partnero detects the code and attributes the sale to the partner
  6. Partner earns commission based on your program settings

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Set Up Coupon Tracking

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Step 1: Connect Your Payment Platform

Connect one of the supported integrations:
  1. Go to Program Settings → Integrations
  2. Click Connect next to Stripe
  3. Authorize Partnero to access your Stripe account
  4. Enable coupon sync events:
    • coupon.created
    • coupon.updated
    • coupon.deleted
    • promotion_code.created
    • promotion_code.updated

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Step 2: Create a Coupon

Create a coupon that will serve as the “parent” for partner-specific promotion codes:
  1. Go to Coupons in your program
  2. Click Create Coupon
  3. Configure the discount:
    • Name—Internal name (e.g., “Partner Discount”)
    • Type—Percentage or fixed amount
    • Amount—Discount value (e.g., 20% or $10)
  4. Enable Sync to [Platform] to create it in your payment system
  5. Click Save

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Step 3: Create Promotion Codes

Each partner needs a unique promotion code. You can create them manually or auto-generate them.
Create individual promotion codes for specific partners:
  1. Go to Coupons → [Your Coupon] → Promotion Codes
  2. Click Create Promotion Code
  3. Enter the Code (e.g., JOHN20)
  4. Enable Assign to specific partner
  5. Select the partner
  6. Configure restrictions (optional):
    • First-time orders only
    • Minimum order value
    • Expiration date
    • Redemption limits
  7. Click Save
Auto-generated codes are created automatically for new partners when they join your program.

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Partner Experience

Partners can find their promotion codes in the partner portal:
  1. Partners log in to their portal
  2. Navigate to Resources or My Codes
  3. View and copy their assigned promotion codes
  4. Share with their audience

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Tracking Priority

When both a referral link cookie and a promotion code are present, Partnero uses this priority:
  1. Promotion code—Takes precedence if used at checkout
  2. Referral cookie—Used if no promotion code is applied
This means a partner’s promotion code will get credit even if the customer originally clicked a different partner’s referral link.

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Best Practices

Create codes that are easy to remember and share:
  • Partner’s name + discount: JOHN20
  • Brand + partner: ACME-SARAH
  • Short and simple: SAVE15
Use a consistent format across all partner codes:
  • All uppercase or lowercase
  • Same structure (prefix-name or name-discount)
  • Standard character length
Protect your margins with sensible restrictions:
  • First-time orders—Prevent repeat discount abuse
  • Minimum order value—Ensure profitable transactions
  • Expiration dates—Create urgency and control campaigns
  • Redemption limits—Cap total discounts given

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Troubleshooting

  • Verify the integration is connected and active
  • Check that sync events are enabled
  • Ensure the coupon has “Sync to [Platform]” enabled
  • Wait a few minutes—sync may have a slight delay
  • Confirm the promotion code is assigned to a partner
  • Check that the code was actually applied at checkout
  • Verify the order was processed (not cancelled/refunded)
  • Check the transaction in your payment platform
  • Each promotion code must be unique across all coupons
  • Check if the code exists in your payment platform
  • Try adding a unique suffix or prefix

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Frequently Asked Questions

Partnero syncs coupons and promotion codes with Stripe, Paddle, WooCommerce, and Shopify. Coupons created in Partnero are automatically synced to your payment platform, and redemptions are tracked in real time.
Yes. Partnero can automatically generate unique promotion codes for every partner using customizable formats (name, discount amount, prefix, random characters). New partners automatically receive codes when they join.
Yes. Partners can view and copy their assigned promotion codes from the partner portal under Resources or My Codes. They can then share these codes with their audience.
You can set restrictions on promotion codes: first-time orders only, minimum order value, expiration dates, and redemption limits. These protect your margins while still offering partner discounts.

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Next Steps

Coupons API

Create and manage coupons via API

Promotion Codes API

Create and assign promotion codes via API