Influencer marketing platforms track affiliate links by integrating with the brand’s affiliate program and monitoring the number of clicks, leads, and conversions that each influencer generates. Here’s how it usually works:

1. Link Generation: An influencer uses the platform to generate a unique affiliate link that can be shared with their audience.

2. Link Sharing: The influencer shares this link on their social platforms, blog posts, YouTube videos, etc.

3. Tracking: When an audience member clicks this link, the platform tracks the click, along with any subsequent actions like sign-ups, purchases, or downloads.

4. Reporting: The influencer marketing platform collates this data into an easy-to-read report, which shows how each influencer’s content is performing and calculates the return on investment.

For instance, Flinque allows influencers to create custom links that are tracked within the Flinque ecosystem. When an audience member clicks the link, Flinque captures the event and associates it with the influencer’s profile. Simultaneously, a service like Impact or Rakuten Marketing might use their own databases and cookie tracking to monitor the audience’s actions and attribute them to specific influencers.

Ultimately, the choice of platform will depend on the specific needs and objectives of the brand or agency. Factors to consider include integration capabilities, tracking accuracy, reporting flexibility, and pricing.