Troubleshooting

1. Link problems

Please confirm that you have added your affiliate tracking IDs in your Account Settings correctly. If there is a problem it is almost always because:

• You are using your account number instead of your affiliate ID
• You are using your account number instead of your LinkShare encrypted ID
• You are using your email or login instead of your ID
• You don't have an active/approved affiliate relationship with the merchant
• You have a typo in your affiliate ID that is on file
• You have an extra space either in the beginning or end of your affiliate ID on file
• Sometimes the merchant has expired their affiliate program or dropped you unexpectedly from their program

2. My links don't look like the network's links?

Our links look different only on the outside. On the inside they have been custom built for you, using the affiliate ID you gave us, the sub-ID you gave us and the affiliate network's unique link protocol. If you click the link, you'll see that it redirects to the correct landing page.

The product and deal links that you get from Rakuten PopShops provide you some protection from parasitic downloads that might be lurking on your customer's computers by redirecting through our secure "no follow" server. For this reason, your affiliate ID will not be exposed in the link. If you are feeling uncomfortable you can check the redirect link via any of the free online redirect checker utilities that are available online.

3. How can I test my links?

You can check the redirect link from Rakuten PopShops via any of the free online redirect checker utilities that are available online. Simply copy and paste the Rakuten PopShops link into a third-party redirect checker to view the resulting network link

If you would like to create a test purchase, here are our recommendations on how to do it. It is critical that you contact your merchant first - that will ensure that you have all your bases covered in case the purchase does not track correctly.

• Get permission from the merchant that you will be creating the test purchase with. This is important.
• Contact Rakuten PopShops support and let them know you are making a test purchase and point them to the URL that you plan on clicking for the purchase - we will send you the unencrypted link for your records.
• CLEAR YOUR COOKIES. You may have had a cookie set without you even knowing it (by visiting the site, through some kind of 3rd-party parasite, etc.
• After you have the go-ahead from your merchant, click the link and make the purchase.
• Some networks take longer than others. Check your network stats and see that your test purchase went through. If there is an issue, send the date, time and the unencrypted link that Rakuten PopShops sent you to the merchant for follow up.

4. Why can't I find a specific merchant on Rakuten PopShops?

You won't find every merchant in Rakuten PopShops (but you'll find a lot!). If you have a merchant request contact that merchant and tell them that working with Rakuten PopShops is free. Tell your merchant to contact merchant support and we will work with them to include their feed. Learn more.

5. I see a product on a merchant site but not on Rakuten PopShops.

Rakuten PopShops displays all active products that are supplied by the merchant feed, but that won't necessarily be identical to the online store itself. For example, some merchants might leave out products that have a very low margin or where they are contractually prohibited from promoting the products through the affiliate channel.

6. The pictures look fuzzy or are missing altogether.

Images are supplied as URLs by the merchant data feed. Unfortunately, all feeds are not created equal and some have better images than others. Some feeds have no images at all or point to broken images. We suggest that you contact us and contact the merchant as well.

7. My page is loading slowly

If you have lots of product images on one page, then your page will be heavy and take a long time to load because of the size of the images. Try reducing the number of products on a single page.