Troubleshooting

Testing Sandbox Transactions Before Going Live

You can fully test Insert Affiliate using the following environments:

  • Local builds
  • TestFlight
  • Google Play Internal or Closed testing tracks

Attribution and purchases work across all of these environments and will appear on your Insert Affiliate dashboard.

If you use RevenueCat, sandbox transactions are clearly labelled as such.

Creating a Test Affiliate

You can easily create test affiliate accounts using email aliases.

Example: if your email was michael@insertaffiliate.com

You could use michael+testaffiliate@insertaffiliate.com

Debugging Guide

Verbose Logging

Verbose logging is an optional setting in our SDKs that outputs additional diagnostic information.

Enable this when investigating issues with your integration.

My Affiliate Transactions Aren't Showing Up

Follow these debugging steps in order. Only move on once you've confirmed the previous step works.

Step 1 — Test with a Short Code (instead of a Deep Link)

This helps you verify whether the issue lies with Insert Affiliate or with your deep-linking provider.

  1. Set up a method in your app to manually enter a short code before checkout.

  2. Run the app locally, via TestFlight, or via Google Play internal/closed testing.

  3. Enter the short code of your test affiliate (e.g. michael+testaffiliate@insertaffiliate.com).

  4. Check your logs for confirmation that the short code has been received.

  5. Make a purchase and verify that it appears on your Insert Affiliate dashboard.

If short-code attribution works but deep linking does not → the issue is your deep-linking integration.

Verifying Your Deep-Linking Integration

Use extensive logging to confirm each step.

  1. Log the link the app receives on launch.

    • Ensure it matches what you expect.
    • If not, consult your deep-link provider's documentation.

  2. After passing the link to our SDK, log the stored affiliate short code.

    • This should match the short code visible on your dashboard.

If all of the above works, your deep linking is fine.

Your issue is instead with passing the affiliate identifier into your purchase/receipt verification platform (e.g. RevenueCat).

My Integration Works, But Only If the App Is Already Installed

If attribution only works on fresh installs, the issue is almost always one of the following:

1. Deep Linking Isn't Set Up Correctly

Log the link the app receives after installing via the app store from a clicked link.

If this logs correctly, proceed to step 2.

2. You Are Not Using the "Short Code Set" Callback

Our SDKs provide a callback that fires once a short code has been stored.

You must use this to forward the affiliate identifier to your receipt verification platform (e.g. RevenueCat).

My Deep Linking Works, But Transactions Still Aren't Tracked

If you can see the link, can retrieve the correct short code, and attribution appears correct - but no transactions show - check:

1. Attribution Timeout

If you have set an attribution timeout, it may have expired.

Remove it during testing and validate again.

2. Affiliate Short Code Isn't Passed to Your Receipt Verification System

Depending on your setup (RevenueCat, Iaptic, direct StoreKit / Play Billing), you must pass the short code during purchase or receipt validation.

Review the GitHub SDK ReadMe and documentation for your chosen purchase platform.

If you are using RevenueCat for receipt validation, the following steps are mandatory. Missing any of these will prevent Insert Affiliate from receiving purchase events, even if deep linking and short-code attribution are working correctly.

1. RevenueCat Webhook → Insert Affiliate (Required for All SDKs)

You must configure RevenueCat to send purchase events to Insert Affiliate via webhook.

2. Webhook Setup

Go to RevenueCat and create a new webhook:

  • Configure the webhook with these settings:
    • Webhook URL: https://api.insertaffiliate.com/v1/api/revenuecat-webhook
    • Authorization header: Use the value from your Insert Affiliate dashboard (you'll get this in step 4)
    • Set "Event Type" to "All events"

3. In your Insert Affiliate dashboard settings:

  • Navigate to the verification settings
  • Set the in-app purchase verification method to RevenueCat

Back in your Insert Affiliate dashboard:

4. Locate the RevenueCat Webhook Authentication Header value

  • Copy this value
  • Paste it as the Authorization header value in your RevenueCat webhook configuration

App Store / Play Store → RevenueCat Server Notifications

RevenueCat requires server-to-server notifications from the App Store or Play Store so it can relay subscription and purchase updates.

Make sure you have set up:

  • Apple App Store Server Notifications
  • Google Play Real-Time Developer Notifications (RTDN)

View RevenueCat Server Notifications Documentation →

Without these, RevenueCat won't receive full or timely purchase data — meaning Insert Affiliate won't either.

3. Confirm the Insert Affiliate Attribute Inside RevenueCat

  1. Open a purchase inside your RevenueCat dashboard.

  2. On the transaction detail page, look for the Attributes panel on the right-hand side.

  3. You should see: insert_affiliate: <affiliate_short_code>

If this attribute is present and correct → RevenueCat is receiving the affiliate code successfully.

If it is missing → the short code is not being passed to RevenueCat.

  • This means the issue is before RevenueCat (deep link → app → SDK → attribute step).

This single check determines immediately whether the fault is in:

  • Deep linking
  • Your Insert Affiliate SDK integration
  • Or your RevenueCat setup

4. If the Attribute Exists but You Still Don't See Sales in Insert Affiliate

If insert_affiliate is visible inside RevenueCat but the sale does not appear on your Insert Affiliate dashboard, then the issue is one of:

a) Webhook not firing or misconfigured

Double-check the webhook URL and ensure:

  • It is active
  • It has not been changed
  • No authentication/headers are missing

5. If the Attribute Is Missing

If you do not see the insert_affiliate attribute:

  • Deep linking may not be passing the correct link into your app
  • The short code callback may not be handled
  • You may not be setting the RevenueCat setAttributes at the right moment
  • The user might not be attributed before the purchase occurs
  • The attribute may be overwritten elsewhere in your code

Proceed with:

  • Deep linking debugging
  • Short-code testing
  • Verifying SDK callbacks
  • Checking runtime logs to confirm when the attribute is set

With Insert Links, yes you can.

With other providers, you need to check their documentation.

To test locally using Insert Links:

  1. Tap the affiliate link with the app uninstalled.

  2. When taken to the app store page, do not install the app.

  3. Install the app locally instead.

  4. If your Insert Links setup is correct, attribution will behave exactly as it would if you had installed via the app store.