Guides · For creators: getting started and earning
Do I need to join every affiliate network separately?
If you work with networks directly, yes. Each network runs its own accounts, so you need one with every network that carries a shop you want to link to. There, you often also apply to the individual shop, although some programmes accept you straight away. Statements come from each network separately. A creator platform bundles this: one account, links for many shops, one combined payout. Platforms have their own entry rules too.
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With wyrld you get your own creator storefront with products from 90,000+ partner shops, and wyrld creates the affiliate links for you. Free for creators.
How joining works when you do it yourself
An affiliate network is a marketplace where shops offer their affiliate programmes. Many shops go this way. Some run their programme themselves, for example Amazon with Amazon Associates. There you sign up directly, and according to Amazon its associates team reviews your application once at least three qualifying sales have come through your links within the first 180 days. Your own orders do not count.
- Find out where the shop offers its programme. Search its site for “affiliate” or, on German shops, “Partnerprogramm”; some shops link to it at the very bottom of the page. The partner page often says which network the programme runs on.
- Create an account with that network. You enter your channels or your website and, for payouts, your tax details and your bank account.
- Apply for the shop’s programme within the network. Some programmes accept you straight away; with others, the shop reviews your profile and can turn you down.
- Once you are approved, you create the link to each product in the network and add it, labelled as an affiliate link, to your Story or video description.
- If the next shop runs on a different network, you start again at step 2.
One outfit from four shops: what your own accounts involve
| Your own accounts | Creator platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Sign-ups | 2, one per network | 1, with the platform |
| Applications to shops | up to 4, depending on the programme | usually none, the platform has access |
| Tax and bank details | in both networks | once |
| Links | 4, created yourself in each network | 4, via the platform |
| Statements | from 2 networks, each with its own dates and thresholds | from the platform, on its own dates and thresholds |
| Earnings | set by the shop’s programme | on the platform’s terms |
Say you show a four-piece outfit in a Reel, each piece from a different shop. Two of the shops run on one network, the other two on a second one. With your own accounts, you need both networks and up to four approvals before all the links are live. The example is made up. How many networks it really takes depends on the shops.
The work carries on after that. If a piece sells out or a programme ends, you swap the link yourself. Your earnings arrive in two statements, and each network pays out by its own rules, for example only above a minimum amount. You can combine both: your own programme for the shop where you regularly sell a lot, and a platform for the rest.
Platforms have rules too
A creator platform has access to many shops itself, but it also decides whom it accepts and how it pays out. There are also services that bundle access to many networks in one place. Read the terms before you sign up. Two examples from the platforms’ own pages, read on 20 October 2026:
- Entry: According to the German LTK FAQ, you need at least 5,000 followers for LTK. Stylink’s terms (August 2026) require at least 1,000 followers on Instagram or TikTok.
- Earnings: According to its FAQ, LTK pays commission when your community buys through your LTK shop. Under its terms, Stylink pays per genuine click from a follower.
- Payouts: According to its terms, Stylink draws up your statement when you request one and currently pays out from €25 in the DACH region. Each platform sets its own payout timing and minimum.
How it works on wyrld
On wyrld, you don’t join any network or apply to individual shops yourself. You paste the link to a product or pick it from the catalogue. wyrld identifies the brand, name and variant, looks for the same item across more than 90,000 partner shops and creates an affiliate link for each offer it finds. For the outfit in the example, you paste four product links. If wyrld finds a piece in several shops, your community sees the offers with prices side by side.
Depending on the shop, you earn per click, per sale or both. Instead of separate statements from each network, you get a Gutschrift (self-billing credit note) at the start of the following month. Sales commission is only paid out after the shop or affiliate programme has paid wyrld. The creator terms set no minimum follower count, but wyrld only works with businesses (Unternehmer under § 14 BGB). wyrld is free for creators and takes a share of what shops pay.
Frequently asked questions.
Do I need a website to join an affiliate network?
Not necessarily. Some programmes accept social media profiles too. Amazon, for example, says it reviews all the sites you list, including social media pages such as Instagram, YouTube or TikTok. Each network and each shop sets out in its terms which profiles it accepts, so read them before you apply.
Can a shop turn me down on an affiliate network?
Yes, if its programme reviews applications. The shop then looks at your channels and decides if they fit its brand. So give the exact addresses of your profiles in the network and describe how you show products. Some programmes, on the other hand, accept you without a review.
Do I earn less through a creator platform than going direct?
That depends on how much of the commission the platform keeps and what terms it has with the shops. So less may reach you per sale, but it doesn’t have to. In return, you skip the accounts with several networks and the applications to individual shops.
Can I use my own affiliate programmes alongside a creator platform?
That depends on the platform’s terms. The wyrld creator terms do not require exclusivity, so you can keep your own programmes running alongside your wyrld storefront, for example with a shop you already work with directly. What § 6(2) of the terms rules out is directly continuing a business relationship with a brand you met through wyrld, bypassing wyrld, to earn commission outside the platform.
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Sources
This page explains in general terms how joining affiliate networks works and is not legal advice. Details about other providers come from their own pages and may change; their current terms are what counts. Accessed on :