Affiliate / Referral
Referral commerce, one or two tiers deep.
A lightweight plan for influencer and affiliate programs: one or two tiers of referral commission, tracked links, coupon codes and instant payouts. Ideal for brands testing network sales.
Illustrative. Move the sliders to see how the plan pays.
What a affiliate / referral really is.
An affiliate or referral plan is the lightest structure DIRSL runs: members share a tracked link or coupon code, earn a commission on every sale it generates, and optionally earn a smaller second-tier commission on sales made by affiliates they referred. There are no legs, no placement and usually no monthly qualification.
It is the plan of choice for e-commerce brands, SaaS products and creators who want network-driven sales without a full MLM structure. It is also the safest plan from a compliance perspective because every payout maps to a retail transaction.
DIRSL gives each affiliate a replicated storefront, link and code tracking with cookie windows, instant or scheduled payouts, and the ability to upgrade to unilevel later without migrating.
Step by step.
Get your link and code
Each affiliate receives a unique URL and a coupon code; both attribute sales to them.
Share and sell
Sales through the link or code within the cookie window (e.g. 30 days) are credited.
Tier-1 commission
A fixed amount or percentage per sale, for example 20%.
Tier-2 override
When your referred affiliates make sales, you earn a small override, for example 5%.
Payout
Weekly or monthly via Stripe, PayPal or bank, after the return window closes.
A worked month.
A creator's month promoting a $79 product
- 48 sales via link/code, $79 each
- Tier-1 commission 20%
- Referred 6 affiliates who made 90 sales combined
- Tier-2 override 5%
- Performance bonus: $100 at 40+ sales (met)
Bonus structure.
| Bonus | Trigger | Typical | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sale commission | Tracked sale | 10–30% or fixed | Core |
| Tier-2 override | Referred affiliate's sale | 3–10% | Optional |
| Performance bonus | Monthly sales thresholds | $50–$1,000 | Tiered |
| Recurring commission | Subscription renewals | 10–20% lifetime | SaaS favourite |
| Coupon bonus | Code redemptions | Same as link | Offline attribution |
Strengths and watch-outs.
Strengths
- Simplest, most compliant structure
- Fast to launch; no training needed
- Perfect for creators and influencers
- Easy upgrade path to unilevel
Watch-outs
- Limited depth means limited leverage for builders
- No team culture or ranks
- Commission costs scale linearly with sales
Rank ladder.
Settings you control.
Questions about this plan.
Two tiers is generally treated as an affiliate program, not an MLM. Three or more tiers moves into multi-level territory.
Commissions are held for the return window (e.g. 30 days) and reversed on refund.
Yes. Each affiliate gets a replicated store on your domain.
No. Requiring purchases turns affiliates into distributors and raises compliance questions.
Yes. DIRSL keeps the sponsor tree, so switching to a deeper plan is a configuration change.
Multi-currency payouts and tax-form collection (W-8/W-9, GST) are built in.
Terms you'll hear.
- Cookie window
- Days after a click during which a sale is attributed.
- Tier-2
- Commission on sales made by affiliates you referred.
- Holdback
- Delay before payout to cover refunds.
- Replicated store
- A personalised storefront per affiliate.
- Attribution
- Linking a sale to the affiliate who drove it.
Related plans.
Referral commerce, one or two tiers deep.
Single or two-tier referral commerce.
- Structure
- 1–2 tiers · link & code tracking
- Best for
- E-commerce brands, SaaS, creators
- Category
- Core
- Ranks
- 5 ranks in the standard set
Unlimited width, paid by level or generation
What you get with Affiliate / Referral
Every bonus below is built and configurable. Nothing here is a custom build.
What it takes to run it
Affiliate / Referral is a plan pack inside the MLM Engine. Here is the stack and what is optional.
Is Affiliate / Referral right for you?
- Simplest, most compliant structure
- Fast to launch; no training needed
- Perfect for creators and influencers
- Easy upgrade path to unilevel
- Limited depth means limited leverage for builders
- No team culture or ranks
- Commission costs scale linearly with sales
We confirm scope and price in writing before anything is charged.
Your network starts tomorrow.
Create your workspace, pick a plan and invite your first distributors. If you're not live in 24 hours, your first month is free.