What is creator code?

A discount code or link given to a creator so sales can be traced to them.

A creator code is a discount code or tracked link given to one creator, so results can be traced back to their content. It’s the most common way creator programs are measured and paid.

Codes travel. They end up on coupon sites and browser extensions, get passed around group chats, and get typed in at the last step by people who were going to buy anyway. A creator can look like a top seller because their code is the first one that turns up in a search for discounts. Links are cleaner, but they miss people who watch now and buy later without clicking.

Why it matters

Codes leak to coupon sites and get used by people who’d have bought anyway, so they need checking against your own numbers.

An example

Example (made-up numbers): a creator’s code is used 500 times in a month. 200 uses come from buyers who arrived through a coupon site, and 100 come from buyers who also clicked a paid social ad. The creator’s own audience accounts for about 200.

Where it misleads

Keeping or cutting a creator on code uses alone, without checking where those buyers came from.

How Arcus handles it

We match every code and link against your own numbers, flag uses that came through coupon sites or other channels, and count each result once, so you can see which creators bring their own audience.

More in our guide: Creator campaigns: how to tell what worked