How To Set Up and Manage Affiliate Programs Inside Estage CRM

Estage CRM gives digital creators, coaches, and entrepreneurs a powerful built-in affiliate system that lets you grow your reach without paying for outside tools. By setting up an affiliate program, you can turn your best customers, partners, or promoters into a motivated sales force, all tracked and managed inside your Estage dashboard.

In this expanded guide, you’ll learn how to create, configure, and manage affiliate programs step by step inside Estage CRM, plus tips to keep your programs running smoothly over time.

Why Use Estage’s Affiliate Tools

Affiliate marketing is one of the fastest ways to scale your sales because you let others promote your offers in exchange for a commission.

With Estage CRM, you avoid needing separate affiliate software, keep everything linked to your products, funnels, and CRM tags, control commissions and access all from one dashboard, and track who’s performing well so you can reward them. Whether you’re launching a digital course, a membership, or a service package, having a structured affiliate program helps you tap into new audiences you couldn’t reach alone.

Step 1: Access the Affiliate Center in Estage CRM

Log in to your Estage dashboard. From the top menu, hover over Admin & Modules and select CRM. In the left-hand sidebar, click Affiliate Center. This is the main area where you’ll manage affiliate programs, offers, affiliates, and payouts.

Step 2: Create a New Affiliate Program

Inside the Affiliate Center, navigate to the Programs tab and click the + New Program button.

You’ll fill in:

• Program Name: This is what your affiliates will see when they apply
• Cover Image: A branded or eye-catching visual helps your program stand out
• Description: Write a clear and engaging explanation of what the program covers, what types of products or services it includes, and why someone would want to join

Tip: Make your description compelling, not just factual. Tell potential affiliates what’s in it for them, like “Earn up to 40 percent commission promoting our bestselling digital course.”

Step 3: Set Affiliate Access Rules

Not all programs should be open to everyone. Estage lets you control access by assigning tags to limit who can join (for example, only customers who have completed a purchase) or by setting up a redirect page for people who try to access the program without permission. This way, you keep your affiliate partnerships intentional and only allow qualified people to promote your products.

Step 4: Define Commission Settings

Within each program, you can set:

• Internal Commission Percentage: The amount Estage tracks behind the scenes
• Public Commission Percentage: The amount shown to the affiliate when they sign up

For example, you might display a public commission of 30 percent but track an internal rate of 40 percent if you plan to run private bonuses or extra incentives.

Tip: Be transparent about commissions to build affiliate trust, but keep flexibility on the backend for special deals or top performers.

Step 5: Add Offers and Creatives for Affiliates

Once your program is ready, you can create specific affiliate offers linked to products or services.

Each offer can include a descriptive title and image, a set commission rate, and ready-to-use promotional materials like banners, social media images, email templates, and prewritten posts. The more promotional content you provide, the easier it is for affiliates to get started - and the more likely they are to succeed.

Step 6: Track Affiliate Performance

After launch, visit your Affiliate Center often to monitor program activity. Inside Estage, you can see how many affiliates have signed up, individual click counts, conversions, and commission earnings, as well as pending payouts and affiliate performance over time. You can also sort and filter your data by program or offer, helping you spot top performers and underperformers quickly.

Tip: Regularly update your affiliates with news, fresh creatives, or new offers to keep them engaged and motivated.

Final Thoughts

Running an affiliate program inside Estage CRM gives you a simple but powerful way to expand your business without heavy upfront costs. With everything connected, from products to funnels to CRM tracking, you get a seamless system that helps you organize, motivate, and reward the people driving your growth.

To get the most out of your affiliate program, remember to set clear terms, provide valuable promotional resources, and check your performance reports regularly. Strong affiliate relationships can drive long-term success, turning your business into a collaborative sales machine.