Sub-networkSub-network

A sub-network is approved on your programme like any other publisher. Behind it, its members, its sub-publishers, promote your brand through its links, usually giving up part of their commission in return. They join the sub-network, not your affiliate network, and you aren't told when a new one starts.

So approving a sub-network is one decision about one business, not a review of every site behind it. A publisher you removed, or one your terms bar, can reach you again through that layer. Networks' rules for sub-networks differ: some hold them responsible for their members as if the members' actions were their own, and others leave it voluntary.

• Your network's report names the sub-network, while Google's About this advertiser names whoever holds the Google Ads account, so one sale can carry two names.
• A sub ID may identify the member, as a code only the sub-network can look up.
• Ask whether your paid-search terms reach every member, and whether a named one can be excluded.

Behind the network is the lesson on this layer, and the guide to who's bidding on your brand shows how to put the names side by side.