So what is a tracking solution, and why do you need one?
In essence, it is a server-side script that passes traffic through itself. You give the tracker’s link to the traffic-buying platform, and all traffic goes through it. The tracker can then do GEO redirects, cloaking, and split redirects to different offers. And of course it records everything that happens and shows different reports.
As for a particular tracking solution, I am not ready to recommend one right now. There is Parabum, there is Prosper202, and there are paid and free solutions. I have tried a little of several trackers, including a couple of private ones. They are all tools, and to one degree or another they do everything necessary. Their workflows, interfaces, hardware requirements, and feature sets differ within certain limits. But the result they produce is usually enough for analysis, while analysis itself is done with your head. Broadly speaking, it does not matter which tracker you choose. What matters is how you use it. You need a tracker, but the tracker itself will not make money for you.
I have my own tracking solution, which overall is no better or worse than the others. I am used to it, it has several unique features that I need, and a very cool reporting system. A major update for serious loads and additional analytics cuts is now being finished, effectively rewritten. Maybe I will sell it afterward, and maybe I will not.
So choose a tool to your taste. The main thing is that it has the analytics you need and supports postback / S2S / pingback, or can receive an XML export from the affiliate network.
Literally yesterday someone suggested that I look at systems for automating Facebook ad management that also do tracking. Once I take a look, I will write something.
The Tracker of Your Dreams
What would you like to see in an ideal tracker?
Which trackers have you used? What did you like or dislike? What is missing, and which features did you never use?
Which affiliate-network dashboards have you used, and what did you like or dislike about them?
Which is better: flexible settings, or simple and understandable use?