The plugin is designed for only one set of information. As it does not have geo-tracking it does not know where visitors are coming from so it always uses the information you enter.
So, this:
Amazon requires that you have a different affiliate ID for each country (aka, locale).
Realistically should be:
Amazon requires that you have a different affiliate ID for each country (aka, locale) if you will be promoting products for that locale.
It is not intended to mean that you have to sign up for each locale to use the plugin. And it is also not meant to imply that if you do sign up for each, that you can use them all in the plugin to promote products in all locales for visitors from those locales.
You can, however, use multiple locales if you need to, when using the shortcodes. You add the locale parameter and the value for that locale, and then the affiliate ID you have set up for that locale. like so:
[amazon-elements asin="XXXXXXXXXX" locale="ca" partner_id="affilIDHere" fields="image"]
That will force the plugin to look up the product for that locale. You actually do not need different Keys for each, JUST the affiliate ID.
Some users have language designations set up where you can enter content in each language for that selected language, so that is where the need to pass different locales int he shortcodes came from. But as for automated locale based on user visit, that is not yet possible.
We have discussed adding it to a future version.
Hope this helps explain it a little better.
Warmest regards,
Don
Thread Starter
Ovidiu
(@ovidiu)
OK, let me see if I got this right using a sample scenario:
lets say I am German and most of of my stuff is from amazon.de but I am writing in English so I look at the stats and my English speaking visitors are 2/3 from the UK and 1/3 from the US so I’d go and use the affiliate ID for the UK as that would yield the most benefit, right?
Assuming one day I would start a multilingual section and translate certain posts into German, there I could manually specify my German affiliate ID.
Did I understand things correctly?
###edit###
Just noticed this part: locale="ca" partner_id="affilIDHere"
Not really sure why one needs both, I mean I can hardly combine a locale with an affiliate ID from another country/locale?
That is correct.
On your comment about why you need both –
You need the locale because your default locale (the one you set in options) will be used if you do not specify it and you need the Affiliate ID for the same reason, PLUS, Amazon assigns different affiliate IDs for each locale, so you need to have the correct Affiliate ID with the correct Locale.
The plugin has just one spot for an Affiliate ID and your locale (in the general options for the plugin), so anything outside of that locale needs to have the appropriate Amazon information with it or you will not get credit for it. So in your own scenario you would be using co.uk for your locale. In the event you do want to use the amazon.de links one day for, say, a page that you were promoting for your German only visitors, you would need to tell the plugin you want to use amazon.de and provide your affiliate ID for amazon.de so you get credit in your amazon.de affiliate account.
Also note, that amazon pays out your affiliate payments only for the locales you have registered with and have made the minimum sales for, so you would not get one mass payment for all sales you had in Germany and UK in one lump sum. They would be split into payments from each as each one keeps track of its own sales (they are different affiliate accounts).
Hope that makes sense.
Warmest regards,
Don
Thread Starter
Ovidiu
(@ovidiu)
Thanks, excellent explanations.
