Own online shop, retailers or both: where should the links in my creator campaign go?

“Both” makes most sense when your own shop doesn’t stock every variant, or when part of your community would rather buy where they already have an account. The trade-off: not every sale reaches you at full price, and your numbers come from several sources.

Choosing a link target assumes that someone posts. Having your product in your own affiliate programme, listed in a retail partner’s online shop that runs one, or available to pick on a platform brings no posts on its own. Many partners in a programme never place a link. And the creators you most want for your brand rarely post without a concrete reason, such as a paid collaboration or a campaign with clear goals.

Without that reason, you often don’t choose the link target either. Creators then link to wherever they are already partners and where their community shops anyway, for example a large marketplace instead of your shop.

So the real problem comes first: activating creators, many at once, and then seeing who sells. For that last part, the link target matters again. In your own shop you see orders per link or code yourself; for sales at retailers you rely on what the shop or platform reports.

So price, shipping and returns all weigh on the choice of shop. With inflation high in 2022, the same survey also found 40% using the internet more to compare prices. If your shop is pricier, or charges for shipping where retailers don’t, part of your community will compare anyway, with or without your link. The survey does not show that a price comparison next to the link leads to more sales overall.

As a rule, the only price you can bring into line is your own. A rule for retailers such as “not below my shop’s price” is a minimum resale price. Price fixing of this kind generally falls under the prohibition in § 1 GWB (Act against Restraints of Competition), and under Article 4(a) of Regulation (EU) 2022/720 it is a hardcore restriction to which the block exemption does not apply. In Germany, § 2(2) GWB applies the regulation in the same way, even where trade between EU countries is not affected.

If your community buys through an affiliate link at a retailer, the commission is usually paid by that shop from its affiliate programme, not by you. This example with assumed figures shows what one sale brings you on each route:

1. Say a bag costs €59.50 in your shop and at retailers, including 19% VAT (the standard rate under § 12(1) UStG, the German VAT Act), which is €50.00 net. Goods and production cost you €15.00 per item.
2. Sale in your shop: €50.00 net minus €5.00 commission (assuming 10% of the net value), minus an assumed €6.00 for shipping, packaging and payment, minus €15.00 for the goods. That leaves a contribution margin of €24.00, meaning what remains after variable costs per sale (returns not included here).
3. Sale at a retail partner: say you sold the bag to the retailer for €25.00 net. Minus €15.00 for the goods leaves €10.00. Any commission for the creator is paid here by the retail partner’s affiliate programme, if it has one.
4. You usually earn that €10.00 when the retailer buys from you. If the campaign sells through their stock, what counts for you is the reorder.
5. Returns, storage, discounts and any affiliate programme fees are not included. In your own shop you carry them yourself; with retailers, your contract with the retail partner decides.

1. Who posts, and what for? Decide which creators you want on board and how you pay them, for example with commission, a fee or a campaign budget. As a rule, you can only agree the link target where you pay for posts.
2. Is there enough stock? Check stock in your own shop per variant, meaning the sizes or shades people actually want, for the campaign and the weeks after it. If it falls short, send links to retailers as well, so clicks don’t end on “sold out”.
3. What is the goal? If you want new customers, newsletter sign-ups and repeat purchases in your own shop, your shop fits. If you want sell-through and visibility in retail, your retail partners’ shops fit.
4. How do prices compare? Before launch, check what the product costs with you and at retailers, shipping included. If your shop is more expensive, expect part of your community to buy elsewhere anyway.
5. What do your retail partners say? If you steer all the reach to your own shop while retailers hold the same stock, they get little out of the campaign. Agree with them beforehand on how they’ll take part, if at all.
6. How will you measure? Decide which numbers you get from each route: orders in your own shop, reports from affiliate programmes, or clicks only. Only then can you evaluate the campaign per creator.

wyrld Boost puts your budget behind creators who feature your products, starting today. You set the products, time frame and KPIs, for example sales, clicks, watch time or reach. Many creators take part at once, and the payout follows the KPIs they hit. For each campaign you also decide where people buy, which is your link target: only in your shop, on Amazon, or with a price comparison across the shops that carry your product. Creators decide for themselves if they join, and they label their Boost campaign videos as advertising.

The brand and shop subscription shows you, every day, which creators feature your products, who drives clicks and who sells. wyrld measures clicks through the links; sales are reported by the shops. You can agree your own terms with the creators who sell. Prices for the subscription and Boost are available on request.

When a creator adds your product to their storefront, wyrld looks for the same item across more than 90,000 partner shops. The community sees the offers found, with prices side by side, and buys directly from the shop at no extra cost; the cheapest new offer carries the “Best price” label. If your own online shop is connected, through an affiliate programme on one of the large networks or directly, your offer can appear next to retailers. When someone buys from you, ordering, payment, shipping and the customer relationship stay with you.