Network-Wide Domain Settings – TUNE

Customize the domain of your network, your tracking domain, and your SMTP email domain. To access your network-wide domain settings, go to Company > Customize Application > Settings > Domain.

This article is part of our Background & Setup series.

Application Domain

This allows you to host your partner network on a custom domain. Example: affiliates.yourcompany.com

Before you update the custom application domain setting, you will need to update the DNS for the domain. Add the CNAME to your TUNE subdomain for your application.

Example CNAME for application domain: NETWORKID.hasoffers.com

After DNS has resolved for the custom application domain, then specify the custom application domain in your application. Specifying the custom application domain before the DNS resolves will prevent you from accessing your partner network until the DNS update resolves.

Tracking Domain

This allows you to host your offer tracking URLs on a custom domain. Example: tracking.yourcompany.com

Before you update the custom tracking domain setting, you will need to update the DNS for the domain. Add the CNAME to your TUNE subdomain for your ad server.

Example CNAME for tracking domain: NETWORKID.go2cloud.org

If your TUNE account was created before January 1st, 2011, the CNAME needs to use the domain go2jump.org like NETWORKID.go2jump.org

After DNS has resolved for the custom tracking domain, specify the custom tracking domain in your application. Specifying the custom tracking domain before the DNS resolves will cause tracking links and conversion recording to stop working until the DNS update resolves.

Note: Changing your tracking domain from one custom tracking domain to another will cause any current partner tracking links and advertiser pixels that use the old custom tracking domain not to work. Only one custom tracking domain can be used at any given time.

Base Redirect URL

Normally, when you visit the root tracking URL for your network, you will be taken to a blank page. This is because, by default, the system looks for a valid offer and partner ID to initiate the session. Partners that advertise in PPC ad platforms, such as Google Ads and Facebook, have to verify their links first with each platform, and that requires hitting the root domain (for example, http://example.go2cloud.org) to verify the website running this ad.

With the Base Redirect URL feature, you can specify a URL that will HTTP 302 redirect to if the user visits the root domain. This will only take effect when you hit the root domain; only tracking links will still work as intended and won’t be affected.

For example, if you want people to go to http://example.com if someone goes directly to http://example.go2cloud.org, then in this setting, put http://example.com and save.

You can set this for the default tracking domain (http://yournetwork.go2cloud.org) and leave the custom tracking domain field blank. When a custom tracking domain is applied, this redirect will be targeted to that domain instead.

“What happens if I change my custom tracking domain?”

If you don’t have a custom tracking domain enabled and are enabling it for the first time, old tracking links will continue to operate normally. Requests for old tracking links and offer conversion pixels are forwarded seamlessly to the new custom tracking domain. Any new tracking links, tracking codes, or offer conversion pixels / URLs will also use the new custom tracking domain.

If you have a custom tracking domain already enabled and are changing it, old tracking links, tracking codes, and offer conversion pixels / URLs will stop working immediately after the change. Changing your custom tracking domain once it's set up is not recommended.

If partners are running a go2cloud.org or go2jump.org tracking domain and not a custom tracking domain for your network, they won’t have to change tracking links when you switch tracking domains.

“What if my tracking domain is flagged?”

It’s possible that a service like Site Advisor or Spamhaus may flag tracking domains. If you are using a shared tracking domain and not a custom tracking domain (setup instructions above), it’s likely your shared domain will be flagged by one of these services. Many clients use our shared tracking domains go2jump.org and go2cloud.org, so it’s difficult for us to keep them off every list. Using a custom tracking domain will allow you to resolve these issues. Contact your account manager or sales representative to learn more.

Custom SSL Certificate

If you have a custom tracking domain but no SSL certificate set up for it, HTTPS pixels will still use go2jump.org or go2cloud.org as the URL. This is because these default domains have valid SSL certificates set up for them.

Without a custom SSL certificate for your tracking domain, tracking works like this:

Tracking link: http://www.customdomain.com/aff_c?offer_id=1&aff_id=1

Redirect to the shared tracking link to set tracking cookies: http://yournetworkid.go2cloud.org/aff_c?offer_id=1&aff_id=1

Then the conversion pixel will have a URL like this: https://yournetworkid.go2cloud.org/aff_l?offer_id=1

If you want the conversion pixels to have your custom tracking domain, you need to have us set up an SSL certificate. Having a custom SSL certificate is an additional charge. Contact your account manager to add this feature to your account.

With a custom SSL certificate for your tracking domain, tracking works like this:

Tracking link: http://www.customdomain.com/aff_c?offer_id=1&aff_id=1

Conversion pixel URL: https://www.customdomain.com/aff_l?offer_id=1

Multiple Tracking Domains

Multiple tracking domains can be enabled. This feature allows you to set up offers to use one of these additional tracking domains or partners. First, follow the same steps as setting up a tracking domain outlined above so the DNS information is pointed to the TUNE platform. Once the DNS information is updated, you can add additional tracking domains. These will only be used when you specify a partner or offer to use one of them.

Like the default tracking domain, you can apply a Base Redirect URL to each tracking domain in your system. Just enter the redirect URL and save. This is an optional field for all custom domains in your system.

Email Domain

Allow your network to use a custom SMTP email server for sending all email communications. Enable a custom email domain to send emails from TUNE using custom SMTP settings. Here are the required settings:

Alternate SMTP Host: Address of SMTP server.
Alternate SMTP Port: Port on SMTP server to send mail.
Alternate SMTP Type: Method SMTP server uses to send mail.
Alternate SMTP Username: The Username of the account on the SMTP server.
Alternate SMTP Password: Password of account for username.
Alternate From Name: The name you want to be displayed when others receive the email
Alternate From Address: The address you want these emails to come from

Settings for Gmail

To use Gmail as your SMTP server, first, you need to turn on the “Access for less secure apps” setting within your Gmail account. External systems (such as TUNE) can interface with your account. To learn more and change this setting, go to google.com/settings/security/lesssecureapps.

If you see a notice that 2-Step Verification is turned on and can’t use this setting, you need to generate an app-specific password to integrate with TUNE. Do so by going to security.google.com/settings/security/apppasswords.

Once you do whichever step is relevant to your Gmail account, fill in the Email Domain fields with:

Custom SMTP Server: Enabled
Alternate SMTP Host: smtp.gmail.com
Alternate SMTP Port: 465
Alternate SMTP Type: SSL
Alternate SMTP Username: your full email address, including “@gmail.com” or “@yourdomain.com”
Alternate SMTP Password: your Gmail password, or the app-specific password if you generated one
Alternate From Name: The name you want to be displayed when others receive the email
Alternate From Address: The address you want these emails to come from

Test SMTP Settings

Enter an email address to send a test email to using the custom STMP settings like test_example_email@some_domain.com

Has to be an email address you want to send a test email. To see if your SMTP settings are correct.

Note: Depending on your service provider, it would be advised that you remove the restriction of sending emails from an unauthenticated sender. This is because the “Email Support” link for the partner in the top right section uses the login email of the partner and your SMTP server will not send an email from an unknown/unauthenticated user. Please contact your SMTP provider to ensure this can be done.

Potential Problem with Free Email Providers and Alternate From Addresses

Many free email providers (such as Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo) disallow using alternate addresses, as a way to prevent fraudulent activity. This issue also exists for domains using Google Apps for email. With an SMTP service provider account (often as part of paid web hosting), you can create email accounts on that STMP server and customize their From addresses directly.

Setting Up Custom Domains with GoDaddy

If you have a domain that you would like to use for your application or tracking domains for your TUNE network and that domain is registered with GoDaddy, here is a step-by-step process for getting this setup. Setting up domains with TUNE requires a CNAME point to your network domain (networkid.hasoffers.com) or your default tracking domain (networkid.go2cloud.org)

Getting to Your Domain CNAME Settings in GoDaddy

After logging in, hover over the Domains drop-down. In the drop-down click on Domain Management under the Management section.
In domain management, you will see a list of domains that you have registered listed. Click on the domain name that you want to use with TUNE.
In the domain manager, click on ‘Launch’ under the DNS Manager section (middle column, bottom)
Jump to the application or tracking domain setups to see how to set up each from here…

Setting Your Custom Application Domain

Decide what subdomain you want to use for your network. Typically, networks use the ‘partners’ subdomain (affiliates.example.com) or something along those lines; however, this is completely up to you.
Under the CNAME (Alias) section, click on the ‘Quick Add’ button.
A new row will appear at the bottom of the list. In the Host column, you want to enter the name of your subdomain in the list. For example, if you want to use the ‘partner’ subdomain in the domain affiliates.example.com, you would type in ‘partners.’ In the ‘Points To’ section, you want to enter the URL of your network, as yournetwork.hasoffers.com. See below for an example of how to set this CNAME:
Click on the big black ‘Save Zone File’ button above the CNAME settings. Click OK in the prompt.
It will take a few minutes for the change to take effect in GoDaddy. Once that takes place, you can add the subdomain you set up in your domain setting in your TUNE network.
If you want to use the root level domain instead of a subdomain, you can create a new CNAME with the Host value set as ‘www’ and have that point to your application domain. In TUNE, you want to add the tracking domain as www.yourdomain.com.

Setting Your Custom Tracking Domain

Decide on the subdomain you want to use for tracking links and conversion pixels. Typically networks use the ‘tracking’ subdomain (tracking.example.com) or something along those lines, however, this is completely up to you.
Under the CNAME (Alias) section, click on the ‘Quick Add’ button
A new row will appear at the bottom of the list. In the Host column, you want to enter the name of your subdomain in the list. For example, if you want to use the ‘tracking’ subdomain in the domain tracking.example.com, you would just type in ‘tracking’. In the ‘Points To’ section, you want to enter the URL of your tracking domain, which is either yournetwork.go2cloud.org or yournetwork.go2jump.org double check what your network tracking domain is by going to your tracking domain settings and in the tracking settings, it will show you what your network tracking domain is. See below for an example of how to set this CNAME:
Click on the big black ‘Save Zone File’ button above the CNAME settings. Click OK in the prompt.
It will take a few minutes for the change to take effect in GoDaddy. Once that takes place you can add the subdomain you set up in your domain setting in your TUNE network.
If you want to use the root level domain instead of a subdomain, you can create a new CNAME with the Host value set as ‘www’ and have that point to your tracking domain. In TUNE, you want to add the tracking domain as www.yourdomain.com.