Managing Affiliates

The Affiliates page is your central hub for viewing and managing every affiliate partner in your program. To access it, click Affiliates in the left sidebar under Affiliate Program.

The Stats Summary Row

At the top of the page, four stat cards give you an instant snapshot of your program:

These numbers update in real time as you make changes.

The Affiliates Table

Below the stats, the table lists every affiliate with the following columns:

Searching and Filtering

Use the Search by name, email, or code… bar to quickly find a specific affiliate. Use the All dropdown filter beside the search bar to narrow the list by affiliate status (All, Active, Pending, Suspended).

Related: How to Add a New Affiliate | How to View an Affiliate's Profile

HeldSway gives you two ways to bring affiliates into your program: you can add them manually yourself, or you can enable public self-registration so affiliates can sign up on their own. This article covers both methods.

Method 1 — Add an Affiliate Manually (Admin-Created)

Manual addition lets you create an affiliate account directly from the Affiliates page without requiring any application or signup from the affiliate.

When to use manual addition:

• Directly recruited partners you have already spoken with
• Brand ambassadors or influencers you are onboarding personally
• Internal team members or contractors you want to track as affiliates

Steps:

1. Go to Affiliates in the left sidebar under Affiliate Program.
2. Click the + Add Affiliate button in the top right corner of the page.
3. Fill in the affiliate's details in the form that appears:
   • Name — the affiliate's full name or business name
   • Email — their email address (used to log in to the affiliate portal)
   • Commission Rate — set a custom rate for this affiliate as a Percent or Fixed amount, or leave it blank to apply the program default
   • Notes — optional internal notes about this affiliate (visible only to your team, not the affiliate)
4. Click Save or Create Affiliate to confirm.

HeldSway creates the affiliate account immediately, generates their unique Referral Code, and sends them an invitation email with their portal login link.

Method 2 — Enable Public Self-Registration (Affiliate-Led)

Self-registration allows anyone to apply to join your affiliate program through a public signup page — without you needing to add them one by one. This is how most programs generate a steady stream of new affiliate applicants automatically.

How to enable it:

1. Go to Business Settings in the left sidebar and click General from the submenu.
2. Scroll down to the Affiliate Registration section.
3. Check the box labelled Allow public self-registration.

Once enabled, anyone can sign up as an affiliate at your public registration URL: /affiliate/join

4. Click Save (or your settings save button) to apply the change.

What happens after someone self-registers:

• The affiliate submits their details through the /affiliate/join page.
• Their account is created with a Pending status.
• They remain in Pending status and cannot track referrals until you manually review and approve their application.
• You will see them listed under the Pending count on your Affiliates overview page.

Tip: To automatically approve self-registered affiliates without manual review, enable the Auto-Approval Rules toggle in the same Business Settings > General page — just below the Affiliate Registration section.

After an Affiliate Is Added (Either Method)

Regardless of how the affiliate joined, once their account is Active:

• They appear in your Affiliates table with their Referral Code, Commission Rate, Status, and join date.
• Their Total Earned and Pending Payout start at $0.00 and update automatically as referrals are recorded.
• They can log in to their affiliate portal to access their referral link and track their performance.

Related: Understanding the Affiliates Overview Page | How to View an Affiliate's Profile | How to Suspend or Terminate an Affiliate

Each affiliate has an individual profile page showing their details, referral code, commission rate, internal notes, account timeline, and available actions.

Opening an Affiliate's Profile

1. Go to Affiliates in the left sidebar.
2. In the affiliates table, click the affiliate's name to open their profile.

Alternatively, click the three-dot Actions menu (···) on the right side of their row and select View.

What You'll See on the Profile Page

Header section — Displays the affiliate's avatar initials, full name, email address, join date, referral code (e.g., ZZP1RYWX), and current status badge (Active, Pending, or Suspended).

Affiliate Details section — Shows the affiliate's individual Commission Rate and any internal Notes recorded by your team. Click Edit to change either of these.

Actions panel (right side) — Two actions are available:

• Suspend Affiliate — temporarily suspends the affiliate's account and stops referral tracking
• Terminate Affiliate — permanently closes the affiliate's account

Timeline section (right side) — Records key dates in the affiliate's history:

• Created — when the affiliate account was first created
• Approved — when the affiliate was approved into the program

Navigating Back

Use the ← Back to Affiliates link below the breadcrumb to return to the full affiliates list, or click Affiliates in the breadcrumb trail at the top (Dashboard > Affiliates > Affiliate Name).

Related: How to Edit an Affiliate's Commission Rate | How to Suspend or Terminate an Affiliate

You can set a custom commission rate and add internal notes for any individual affiliate directly from their profile page.

Opening Edit Mode

1. Go to Affiliates in the left sidebar.
2. Click the affiliate's name to open their profile.
3. In the Affiliate Details section, click the Edit button (top right of the section).

The Commission Rate field and Notes text area become editable.

Editing the Commission Rate

The Commission Rate field shows the affiliate's current rate (e.g., 10.00). To change it:

1. Clear the current value and enter the new rate number.
2. Use the dropdown beside the rate field to select the commission type:
   • Percent — the affiliate earns a percentage of each referred order total (e.g., 20%)
   • Fixed — the affiliate earns a flat amount per referred order regardless of order value (e.g., $15)
3. The rate you set here applies to this specific affiliate only and overrides the program default.

Adding or Editing Internal Notes

The Notes field is a free-text area for internal information about the affiliate — visible only to your team, never to the affiliate.

Use notes to record:

• How or where you recruited the affiliate
• Agreed special terms or negotiated rates
• Communication history or reminders for follow-up
• Performance observations

Saving Your Changes

Click Save Changes to apply the updated commission rate and notes. Click Cancel to discard any changes and return to the read-only view.

Related: How to View an Affiliate's Profile | How to Suspend or Terminate an Affiliate

HeldSway gives you two ways to restrict an affiliate's account: Suspend (temporary) and Terminate (permanent). Both options are available in the Actions panel on the affiliate's profile page.

Accessing the Actions

1. Go to Affiliates in the left sidebar.
2. Click the affiliate's name to open their profile.
3. On the right side of the page, locate the Actions panel.

You will see two options:

• Suspend Affiliate (orange icon)
• Terminate Affiliate (red icon)

Suspending an Affiliate

Suspending is a temporary restriction. It stops the affiliate's referral code from tracking new referrals but does not delete the affiliate or their earnings history.

Use Suspend when:

• You suspect unusual referral activity and want time to investigate before taking permanent action
• The affiliate has requested a temporary break from the program
• You are renegotiating terms and need to pause tracking in the meantime

How to suspend:

1. On the affiliate's profile, click Suspend Affiliate in the Actions panel.
2. Confirm the action when prompted.

The affiliate's status in the table changes from Active to Suspended. Their referral code stops tracking. You can reverse this at any time by returning to their profile and selecting the option to reinstate them.

Terminating an Affiliate

Termination is permanent. It closes the affiliate's account and disables their referral code. This action cannot be undone.

Use Terminate when:

• The affiliate violated your program terms
• The affiliate confirmed they no longer wish to participate
• You need to remove an affiliate with no intention of reinstating them

How to terminate:

1. On the affiliate's profile, click Terminate Affiliate in the Actions panel.
2. Read the confirmation message carefully.
3. Confirm the termination.

The affiliate's account is permanently closed. Their historical data (earnings, referral history) remains visible in your dashboard for record-keeping, but their referral code is permanently disabled and cannot be reactivated.

Note: Termination cannot be reversed. If you want to reinstate a terminated affiliate in the future, you will need to create a new affiliate account for them from scratch.

Related: How to View an Affiliate's Profile | Understanding the Affiliates Overview Page