Influencer Marketing + Detectly

The Influencer Attribution Challenge

Influencer marketing is one of the hardest channels to measure. You pay a creator $500 to post about your product, give them a discount code, and then try to figure out whether it was worth it. Some customers use the code. Others click the link in bio. Many see the post, remember your brand, and search for you later with no trackable connection to the influencer.

Most merchants measure influencer performance by counting discount code redemptions. This captures some conversions but misses the full picture. Customers who click the influencer’s link but do not use a code are invisible. Customers who see the content and search for your store later are uncounted entirely.

Detectly gives you two attribution layers: UTM-based click tracking and discount code tracking. Together, they capture a much larger share of influencer-driven revenue.

How Influencer Tracking Works

Unique UTM Links Per Influencer

The foundation of influencer attribution in Detectly is creating a unique UTM-tagged link for each influencer. When a follower clicks the link, Detectly captures the UTM parameters and attributes any resulting purchase to that influencer.

For example, if you are working with an influencer named Sarah, create a link like:

https://yourstore.com?utm_source=influencer&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=spring-launch&utm_content=sarah

Use the UTM Builder to generate these links quickly. Each influencer gets a unique utm_content value, and you can group them under the same utm_campaign to measure the overall campaign performance.

Discount Code Correlation

Many influencers share discount codes in their content — especially in Instagram Stories, TikTok videos, and YouTube descriptions where clickable links may not be available. Detectly tracks discount codes used at checkout alongside UTM data.

When you assign each influencer a unique discount code in Shopify (e.g., “SARAH15”), Detectly can show you orders that used that code. Combined with UTM tracking, you get a more complete view:

• Orders with both the UTM link click and the discount code
• Orders where the customer clicked the link but did not use the code
• Orders where the customer used the code but arrived through a different path

This dual-tracking approach captures conversions that would be missed by either method alone.

Cross-Session Tracking

A follower might tap a link in an influencer’s Instagram Story, browse your store on their phone, and then come back later on their laptop to purchase. Detectly’s cross-session tracking maintains the attribution across these visits, so the order is still attributed to the influencer even when the purchase happens in a later session.

Measuring Influencer ROI

With Detectly tracking influencer-driven orders, you can calculate real ROI for each creator:

Per-influencer revenue: Filter your Detectly orders by the influencer’s UTM content tag to see total revenue driven by each creator. Compare this against what you paid them to determine profitability.

Campaign-level performance: Group influencers by campaign to see how a product launch, seasonal promotion, or ongoing ambassador program performs as a whole.

Average order value: See if influencer-driven customers spend more or less than customers from other channels. This helps you negotiate rates and choose which influencers to continue working with.

Customer lifetime value: Because Detectly tags customers with their acquisition source, you can track whether influencer-acquired customers come back and make repeat purchases. Some influencers bring one-time buyers; others bring loyal customers. Knowing the difference changes how you value each partnership.

Building an Influencer Program

Detectly makes it practical to scale an influencer program because every creator’s performance is measurable. Here is a suggested workflow:

1. Onboard: For each new influencer, create a unique UTM link and discount code using the UTM Builder. Share both with the creator.

2. Track: As orders come in, Detectly attributes them to the correct influencer. Check the dashboard weekly to see who is performing.

3. Optimize: Double down on influencers who drive profitable orders. Pause partnerships that are not delivering. Adjust rates based on actual revenue data.

4. Scale: As you add more influencers, the UTM naming convention keeps everything organized. You can filter by campaign, influencer, or time period to manage a growing program.

Customer Tagging for Influencer Segments

Detectly’s auto-tagging feature adds the acquisition channel to each customer’s Shopify profile. Customers acquired through influencer links are tagged accordingly. This enables:

• Email segmentation for influencer-acquired customers
• Different post-purchase flows based on acquisition source
• Re-engagement campaigns targeted at influencer audiences
• Lifetime value analysis by influencer source

These tags sync with email platforms like Klaviyo, so you can build segments and automations around influencer-acquired customers.

Common Questions

What if an influencer’s followers do not click the link? Some conversions will always be untrackable — a follower sees a TikTok video, remembers the brand name, and searches directly. Discount codes help capture some of these. For the rest, consider the tracked conversions a floor, not a ceiling, of the influencer’s impact.

Can I track affiliate and influencer differently? Yes. Use different utm_source values: utm_source=influencer for paid creators and utm_source=affiliate for affiliate partners. Detectly will separate them in reporting.

How many influencers can I track? There is no limit. Each influencer just needs a unique UTM link. The dashboard handles any number of UTM content values.

Get Started

Generate unique UTM links for your influencers, assign discount codes, and install Detectly. Start measuring which creators actually drive revenue.

Install Detectly free or view pricing to compare plans.