Affiliate
Starter Guide

We appreciate you joining!

To contact the Backblaze Affiliate Marketing team, email us at: affiliatehelp@backblaze.com.


Getting Started

As a Backblaze Affiliate, you can earn 10% commission on referrals and renewals. Sign up only takes a few minutes. Join now and start earning!

To start, you should have received an email welcoming you to the program and giving you your Backblaze affiliate ID and affiliate links. These links are unique to you and all of your Backblaze affiliate activities. Please note that affiliate commissions are only earned on Backblaze Personal Backup and Backblaze Business Backup, and are not earned on Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage sales.



Promoting Backblaze

Graphics and Banners: We've created a collection of ads for you to promote Backblaze. We also provide logos and graphics if you want to create your own ad. You can view the Promotional Resources page to download these files.

Content and Stories: From time to time, Backblaze distributes content to our affiliates which you can use as you see fit. You can also republish any content on the Backblaze website or the Backblaze Blog that you find useful.



Ways to Sell Backblaze

Here are several different ways you can sell Backblaze and earn affiliate commission credit for the sale. Each method shows how to properly link your affiliate ID to a Backblaze account so you receive credit. Once a Backblaze account is created for a trial or purchase, we cannot add an affiliate ID to that account after the fact, so it is critical that your audience uses your affiliate link prior to installing Backblaze!

Please note that affiliate sales are only earned on Backblaze Personal Backup and Backblaze Business Backup, and are not earned on Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage sales.



Search Campaigns – Protected SEM Bidding Keywords

As part of our Affiliate Program, we require that affiliates adhere to certain guidelines to ensure that our brand and reputation are protected.

Our affiliates are not permitted to bid on any Backblaze branded trademarks or keywords, at any time and on any search engine. This includes using any portion, variations or misspellings of our trademarks, brand name or products, including but not limited to “Backblaze”, “Backblaze.com”, “blaze back”, “blaze”, “B2”. We also ask our affiliates to include “Backblaze” as a negative keyword in all campaigns. In the event these terms are violated, it may result in consequences such as deactivation from the program, loss of commissions, and/or legal action. We understand that mistakes can happen, and we will always strive to work with our affiliates to resolve any issues and maintain a positive partnership.

We ask that all affiliates review and agree to these terms before joining our program. Thank you for your cooperation in helping us maintain the integrity of our brand.



Affiliate Link

This is the most common way to refer a customer. You can use your affiliate link directly or as part of a click-through link or graphic. For example, if your affiliate ID is af9999, then your affiliate link is as follows:

  • https://www.backblaze.com/cloud-backup.html#af9999

When someone clicks on or types in your affiliate link, their browser is "cookied" with your affiliate ID for 30 days. If that person creates an account while cookied and purchases Backblaze, you receive commission credit. The cookie file name is: bz_billing_partner_id and its contents would be similar to:
af9999_845972984572



Using Your Affiliate Links

You can place affiliate links in newsletters, on your website, and on social media. Once reaching the payout threshold ($100 USD, see below), you will get paid for any new Backblaze accounts, as well as renewals created from one of your links, so long as the account is paid for and in good standing. The following are the top performing links:


https://www.backblaze.com/cloud-backup.html#afID
Use this when talking about personal backup.

https://www.backblaze.com/business-backup.html#afID
Use this when talking about business backup.

https://www.backblaze.com/windows-online-backup.html#afID
Use this when discussing Windows/PC backup.

https://www.backblaze.com/mac-online-backup.html#afID
Use this when discussing Mac backup.

https://www.backblaze.com/best-online-backup-service.html#afID
Use this when comparing backup services.

Please use your affiliate ID where it says "afID" in the link formats above.


URL shorteners

You are welcome to use URL shorteners such as bit.ly, but please make sure to redirect the bit.ly link to one of the affiliate links above.



Speed Up Your Commissions!

You can maximize your earnings by encouraging your clients to sign up for Extended Version History. By default, Backblaze saves old versions or deleted files for 30 days. With Extended Version History, your clients can extend that to 1 Year or Forever for an additional fee which will contribute to your commission.


Selling Backblaze Business Backup

An additional way to earn money is to sell Backblaze Business Backup to your business clients! When a business uses your affiliate link to create a Group, you can also earn a 10% commission for each license that is created within that Group. Just use your business backup affiliate link (https://www.backblaze.com/business-backup.html#afID) and start selling to businesses today!



Gift Code

Backblaze sells gift codes on its website. You can direct your users to the gift webpage and receive commission credit for gift codes they purchase. Here's the example for affiliate ID af9999:

  • https://secure.backblaze.com/partner/af9999?redirect=gift.htm
The gift code generated will be marked with your affiliate ID so you receive credit for the sale when the code is purchased. Note: This technique can be used for any secure (.htm) page on the Backblaze website, such as https://secure.backblaze.com/buy.htm.


Ad Notes

Not sure what to say to clients? Need some help promoting Backblaze? Click here to download a PDF with key points to cover with your audience! We also have a fact sheet that you can distribute to your audience to help them better understand our Computer Backup service.



Feedback

If you want us to take a look at your ad, please send us an email at affiliatehelp@backblaze.com with a link to your ad and we’d be happy to provide constructive feedback.



Reporting

We track and record landings, downloads, account creations, and sales associated with your affiliate ID. At the time of a payout, you will be provided with a summary report of your sales to date or you can request one by emailing us.




Payouts, Percentages, and Taxes…



Payout Level

Once you reach or exceed $100 in commission, you are eligible to receive a payout. Our Accounting team will reach out to you for a PayPal email address and W8 / W9 form. This email will come from affiliates@backblaze.com. Once you provide the requested information, our Accounting team will process your commission in the next batch of payouts.



Referral Fees

Affiliates earn 10% commission on each new referral sale, and 10% on any renewal revenue from their referred customers.



Payout Method

We pay out by sending funds to your PayPal account.



Tax Forms

The first time you have a payout ready, you will be contacted regarding payout and tax information. If you live in the United States, you will be required to complete a W-9. If you live outside of the United States, you will be required to complete a W-8 and provide your mailing address. We will withhold payment until the requested information is provided.