If you have developed a digital product and you are looking to get it out there through affiliate marketing, you’re probably thinking of trying out some affiliate software.
For today’s article, we’ve prepared a LinkMink review where we look at the features that this platform can offer, what the plans cost, and whether or not it might make a good choice for small businesses or large SAAS companies.
As you might have been able to tell from our intro, LinkMink is an affiliate software that pretty much anyone can use to promote their products and more importantly, manage their associates.
While we will go into more detail regarding the features of the platform, we have to note right off the bat that this one does not resemble the likes of ShareASale, Awin, CJ Affiliate, or any other such similar networks.
What we mean by this is that you can’t really use LinkMink for affiliate discovery. Marketers cannot create an account on this website where they look for various programs that they can join and promote the products directly using this method.
To that end, you can use LinkMink for creating your very own affiliate program, which you will have to somehow manage on your website, too. You will utilize the LinkMink interface to manage your affiliates in terms of payments and commissions and also check where you’re getting your leads from, what clicks you’re registering, and more info in this sense.
From what we have gathered, the ideal LinkMink user is a marketing manager who works for a startup, a medium company, or a large affiliate marketing business. It also seems to address the requirements of eCommerce businesses and other sites heavily focused on online sales.
Once you create an account and get a plan, you will gain access to the dashboard that LinkMink uses for managing its users.
Apparently, it is quite easy to use and rather minimalistic, which means that even folks that don’t have a lot of experience with affiliate software in general can still understand what they can do with it.
The dashboard provides you with all of the information you may need to improve your performance and also have a good grasp of what your affiliates are doing — from metrics and graphics, you’ll find everything there.
What we like the most about the LinkMink site is that it has a very detailed FAQ section and a separate one that includes guides on how you can make the most of its features. There’s also pretty good support, from what we managed to tell from the reviews that the LinkMink affiliate software has acquired over time.
If you’re having a hard time telling whether this might make a good choice for what you are selling or for how you intend to manage your associates, you’ll be happy to know that there is a 14-day trial available.
We’ve already mentioned that you can look at your reports using this piece of software, but let’s see what else it can assist you with.
There are four main features that LinkMink prides itself with, and they are called Pro Tracking, Integrated Payouts, Automated Control, as well as Detailed Reports.
The reports make it possible for you to check all of the info of the traffic you are getting from other websites — not from organic search — so that you can tell which affiliates are doing a good job, which people in which countries are purchasing your services/products and more. Real-time data is also available if you feel that it’s more relevant.
The Pro Tracking feature gives you much of the same information, but it also includes aspects such as the time users spend on your site before and after making a purchase, what traffic conversions you’re getting, if there are any variables, and more.
Integrated Payouts make it possible for you to manage everything through Stripe. The way this works is like this: an identifier is stored in the Stripe system and then sent out to LinkMink, which then processes the webhook and makes it possible for you to keep track of the commissions, referrals, and the revenue that you need to pay to your associates.
And finally, the Automated Control feature makes it possible for you to save as much time as possible by creating tasks that can be performed each time you log in, for example.
If you’ve just developed a product or you’ve just set up an eCommerce business, every penny counts, so you need to know exactly what you are spending your investments and revenue on.
Well, LinkMink is one of the most affordable affiliate marketing software options that we have come across and we don’t mean this lightly. As you will notice in the section below where we compare it to various other networks and software choices, this one clearly does not break the bank.
There are three main plans and all of them have a 14-day free trial.
The Starter one sets you back at $39 per month and makes it possible for you to have any number of associates. It supports most of the integrations available in the other plans, but you will have to log in and do the manual payments yourself — there’s no automation with this one. It’s also worth noting that the maximum threshold in terms of referred revenue is $1,000 and once you go beyond that, you’ll require the next plan.
The Growth plan is billed at $65 per month and as you may expect it to, it includes several additional features. For one, even though it’s not considerably more expensive compared to the Starter plan, it allows you to have up to $8,000 in monthly revenue.
Other features you can enjoy with this plan range from priority support (which always comes in handy) to concierge migration, as well as automatic payouts.
Finally, the biggest plan now available on LinkMink costs $149 per month and makes it possible for you to enjoy all the perks that this affiliate software truly includes. You get all of the features that are already integrated in the first two plans we have talked about and you are also allowed to have up to $25,000 in referral revenue. Naturally, this one addresses the needs of slightly larger businesses.
Since you may ask yourself whether that is the maximum limit for all users, we’ll say that no, it is not. There isn’t any specific information about the Enterprise plan on the site in the sense that you need to do your best at negotiating the cost with a LinkMink representative if you intend to get the best bang for your buck.
Naturally, this plan would make it possible for you to have more than $25,000 in revenue per month.
All in all, LinkMink is a pretty cost-effective option, particularly for businesses that are just starting out and that might feel less confident about the referral revenue they may have every month. There’s nothing stopping users from upgrading to larger plans once their needs call for it.
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Any type of affiliate marketing software you may be interested in trying comes with perks and drawbacks, so it is important to analyze them before deciding on a specific option.
The main reason for this is that sometimes migrating your affiliates to a different platform if you reach the conclusion that the one you’re using no longer addresses your requirements can be very complicated.
And when you have a thousand or more associates, you may have to deal with some pretty unpleasant conversations.
In terms of pros, we’d say that the fact that LinkMink really doesn’t cost much is at the top of the list. Then, there’s the fact that you can benefit from a live chat customer service and that the service integrates with pretty much anything you may need, including Google Analytics and Excel.
The site itself is pretty helpful if you have no prior experience using the dashboard, so you can check out the resources made available by the brand. Everything is also mobile-friendly, so you can manage your affiliates even when you’re on vacation.
Of course, the fact that a 14-day free trial is available for all of the plans listed on the website is another advantage that we have to note. In case you decide that this isn’t the right option for you in terms of features, you can simply cancel your plan before that 2-week period ends.
On the downside, LinkMink works with fairly traditional payment options. From what we have gathered credit and debit cards seem to be accepted, but things like PayPal or crypto may not be available options (at least not at the time we’re writing this).
LinkMink is also kind of the underdog of the affiliate marketing software space in the sense that not a lot of people know about. The fact that it also does not have a feature where it appeals to affiliates so that they can join the platform and then find you may be another drawback.
You will have to reach out to people like influencers or bloggers yourself or even use PPC to get the word out about your affiliate program — and that can be a significant con for seasoned marketers.
Read more: SurfShark affiliate program review
There’s no clear answer to this question because it all depends on your specific needs and how you want to market your business. We’d say that very, very large (corporate) businesses may find that working with affiliates is much easier with other platforms.
It also depends on the products and services you are selling. While physical ones may be OK to use with LinkMink due to its Stripe integration, the platform just isn’t as well-known when compared to real full-feature networks like Awin, AvantLink, JVZoo, ClickBank, ShareASale, or any other.
If you truly have nothing against finding affiliates on your own, LinkMink does make a more than decent choice, though.
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This one resembles LinkMink in the sense that while you can’t use it for affiliate discovery, it does allow you to benefit from most of the same features — you can also create various affiliate programs for various websites, which is a neat addition.
Tapfiliate is also quite generous when it comes to its integrations in the sense that it works with virtually any type of digital marketing software and eCommerce services you may ever want to use. Try the 14-day trial if you’re having a hard time making a decision.
This one is more of a mix between a traditional network where affiliates can actually find programs that they can join and a platform that you, as a business owner, can use for affiliate management.
The downside is that even the most basic plan starts at $89 per month, so it’s not as affordable as LinkMink. There is a 14-day free trial available, though, so you can at least give it a shot. Also, you can pay your affiliates via PayPal with this one — something that’s not available with LinkMink.
Read more: What affiliate management software should you try?
There are both good things and less good ones when it comes to picking SamCart over LinkMink. We’d say that the fact that with SamCart, you can use Venmo or PayPal, as well as cheques to pay your affiliates would be a significant advantage.
On the downside, SamCart is slightly more expensive compared to LinkMink. It does have great features in terms of affiliate management, but it’s a good option only if you can afford it.
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