When a click reaches an offer that can't accept it, Aftrad doesn't have to lose it: it can send the click to another offer, a smartlink or a URL. The offer fallback lets you choose that destination for each offer, or let Aftrad find the best alternative automatically.
Go to Offers → [your offer] → GENERAL → Fallback.
When is a click redirected?
A click goes to the fallback when the requested offer can't accept it:
The offer isn't accepting traffic — for example, it's paused, its advertiser isn't active, it has reached a cap or it's outside its start and end dates.
The click doesn't match the offer's targeting — for example, the offer only accepts traffic from Poland and the click comes from Spain.
The click is blocked by the offer's firewall — Datacenter, NonHTML, IFrames or Blank referer. The click counts as invalid traffic for that offer.
How Aftrad decides where the click goes
The affiliate decides first. The offer's fallback is only used when the affiliate accepts an alternative offer.
1. The affiliate's fallback policy. The default for the whole network is in Control → Configuration → General → Main setup → Affiliate fallback. You can overwrite it for one affiliate (Affiliates → [affiliate] → GENERAL → Main setup → Affiliate fallback) or for one affiliate on one offer (the offer's AFFILIATES tab):
Option | What happens |
Find alternative offer and report to the affiliate | Aftrad looks for another offer. Go to step 2. |
Return click to traffic back URL | The click goes to the affiliate's Traffic Back URL. Nothing else is tried. |
Show blank page | The click gets a blank page. Nothing else is tried. |
2. The requested offer's fallback (Offers → [offer] → GENERAL → Fallback):
Enable fallback | What happens |
On | The click goes to the offer, smartlink or URL chosen in Redirect to. |
Off | Aftrad picks the best-performing offer that matches the click's targeting, among the offers with Accept Cascade Traffic on. |
3. No alternative found: if no offer can take the click, it goes to the affiliate's Traffic Back URL if one is set, or to a blank page.
Note: ⚠️ An offer only receives fallback traffic when Accept Cascade Traffic is on in its GENERAL → Main setup. This also applies to an offer you choose in another offer's Fallback tab.
How the affiliate is paid for conversions on the alternative offer is explained in Affiliate fallback.
Set up the offer fallback
Go to Offers → [your offer] → GENERAL → Fallback.
Turn on Enable fallback.
In Redirect to, choose one destination:
Offer — pick the offer in the Offer field. It must have Accept Cascade Traffic on. If that offer can't take the click either and has its own fallback, its fallback is used next: fallbacks chain one after the other.
Smartlink — pick the smartlink in the Smartlink field. The smartlink sends the click to one of its matching offers. If it finds none, the smartlink's own fallback isn't used.
URL — enter the URL. Its parameters are listed below the field, and you can add more with Add parameter.
Click Save.
Note: ⚠️ URL fallback: the click leaves Aftrad and postbacks aren't linked to the original click, so its conversions aren't attributed. Use a URL only as the last resort.
If you leave Enable fallback off, Aftrad picks the alternative offer automatically, among the offers with Accept Cascade Traffic on.
Accept Cascade Traffic
Accept Cascade Traffic lets an offer receive clicks redirected from other offers that couldn't accept them. Turn it on in every offer you want to use as a fallback, whether Aftrad picks it automatically or you choose it in another offer's Fallback tab. An offer with this option off never receives fallback traffic.
Go to Offers → [offer] → GENERAL → Main setup. The toggle is next to Accept Smartlink Traffic.
A different policy for one affiliate
Each affiliate uses its fallback policy (the network default or its own) on every offer. To change it for one offer only:
Open the offer's AFFILIATES tab. The Fallback policy column shows the policy each affiliate uses on this offer; Inherited means it comes from the affiliate's own setting.
Click Edit on the affiliate's row.
Under When requested offer is not available, choose the option for this offer and click Save.
