How do I do a test join?

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How do I do a test join?

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Doing a test join helps ascertain if referred sales are being attributed correctly.

To perform a test join it is essential to follow the same steps a customer you refer would. Here’s how we suggest you do it.

  1. Consider using an “incognito” / private browser instance
    1. This will keep the process separate from your normal work, and make the test more like a real customer
  2. Clear all GMB and CCB cookies.
    1. If already set, these will confuse the result of this test.
  3. Get the referrer cookie set in the same way a potential customer would
    1. That is, by GMBill (and, if using merged links, a CCBill)
    2. Access your promotional method the same way your traffic does
    3. Click on the affiliate link that sends the potential customers to the merchant you’re promoting (this will set the affiliate cookie)
  4. Choose to sign up
  5. Identify what biller you are using for the test join – GMBill or CCBill
    1. Check the URL on the page for entering credit card details
    2. Before this page, most GMB Clients have an option for the customer to choose which biller is used; if not, ask the Client how to “force” a join by CCB or GMB (let them know it’s for testing purposes)
  6. Go through the entire join process, like a customer would
    1. Enter a username that includes your four-digit Aff ID – this helps find and refund your test join later
  7. Check the sale was logged correctly
    1. If joining by GMBill: Log into your GMB Affiliate account, and check if the sale shows up in the ‘Summary’ menu, (stats are updated hourly, so you may have to wait a bit, or time your join carefully).
    2. If joining by CCBill: Log into your CCBill Affiliate Dashboard, and look for the new sale
  8. Repeat the test for the other biller
    1. That is, if you made a test join by GMBill, do the test again via CCBill, to make sure sales are tracked in both billers
    2. We recommend starting this process from the start – why risk missing sales?
  9. Get refunded
    1. Once you have seen the results, contact the Merchant and ask them to refund your purchase(s) – advise that you’re an Affiliate performing a test join, quote the username(s) you chose, and the unique GMBill or CCBill subscription ID allocated to the account upon creation.

If the sale does not show in your GMB / CCB account, there’s a deeper problem somewhere – contact us, and we’ll help you solve it.

If the sale does show up, you’ll know everything is working as it should!