Link Maker Tool
The hardest working tool in the iTunes & App Store Affiliate Program is the Link Maker Tool. One of the original tools to be introduced to the program it is also the easiest way for affiliates to create custom deep links to specific content inside both iTunes and the App Store. Knowing a few tips can make your experience with the tool even more rewarding.
It is important to access the Link Maker Tool through the appropriate affiliate network and a specific program. By doing so the appropriate affiliate tracking info is passed from the affiliate network into the Link Maker Tool so that the links are generated correctly.
The very first thing you should do each time when getting to the Link Maker Tool is to check that the correct country is selected in the left most drop down menu. Failure to have the right country selected will most likely result in the link(s) you generate being incorrect.
If you are searching specifically for apps you must use the Media Type drop down to select "Apps" not "All Results."
While the Link Maker tool will only displays 50 results they are ranked by popularity so the top result is typically your best bet.
In step 3 where you are given your chunk of HTML code it may be important to find the affiliate link, the most important part of what is given. This link is found in the first HTML tag right after the href=" and continues all the way to the second quotation, right before the target=. For example:
...a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=CBIMlbgYY/8&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fitunes.apple.com%252Fus%252Fapp%2 52Fshazam%252Fid284993459%253Fmt%253D8%2526uo%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30" target="itunes_store"...
You can take this link and use it inside your App Store app, a flash based site or anywhere else you don't want to use the full HTML to generate the affiliate button.
Do you have any tricks you wish to share with the Link Maker Tool? Please email us at itunesaffiliates@apple.com to share these.
