AvantLink
AvantLink is an independently owned affiliate marketing network connecting 2,000+ premium merchant advertisers with vetted publishers across US, Canada, and Australia networks, generating revenue through transaction commissions and managed services subscriptions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersPark City, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What AvantLink does
AvantLink, legally Dynamic Web Source, Inc., is an independently owned affiliate marketing network founded in 2005 and headquartered in Park City, Utah. The company operates a web-based SaaS platform connecting merchant advertisers with vetted affiliate publishers (content creators, bloggers, influencers, and websites) across three country-specific networks in the United States, Canada, and Australia. As of its 20th anniversary in 2025, AvantLink reports 2,000+ premium advertisers on its platform, with notable enterprise brands including REI, Trek, Helly Hansen, Stanley, Crocs, and EVO concentrated in outdoor, active lifestyle, and adventure verticals.
The company's core technology is built on the Arches Platform, an API-first affiliate network architecture featuring mobile-responsive dashboards, advanced tracking, and interactive data visualization. Supporting modules include Performance Reports (12 report types on a new data warehouse), Insights (clickstream-based attribution with multi-network deduplication), Tag Management 2.0 (configurable commission rules by affiliate group), Snap tools (SnapVisi, SnapDealist, Snapsearcher), and an Affiliate Network API launched in 2007. The platform enforces a strict quality-vetting process, reportedly denying approximately 80% of affiliate applications, and maintains CCPA, GDPR, COPPA, and WCAG compliance certifications.
AvantLink generates revenue through a hybrid model: transaction-based commissions on affiliate-driven sales (primary), three-tier managed services subscriptions ($1,000-$4,000/month for Starter/Plus/Premier tiers), and premium add-ons such as Insights. Affiliate publishers join free with no participation fees; merchants pay only on performance with no monthly platform fees. The company positions human-based customer service as its core differentiator against automation-first competitors. It is led by CEO Scott Kalbach, alongside co-founders Paul Kalbach and Gary Marcoccia, and operates through separate legal entities in the US, Canada, and Australia.
AvantLink firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AvantLink
- Legal name
- Dynamic Web Source, Inc.
- Website
- https://avantlink.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- AvantLink is an independently owned affiliate marketing network connecting 2,000+ premium merchant advertisers with vetted publishers across US, Canada, and Australia networks, generating revenue through transaction commissions and managed services subscriptions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AvantLink industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Affiliate Marketing Network
- NAICS
- Media Buying Agencies (541830), Media Buying Agencies (54183)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising (7310), Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Affiliate Marketing & Partner Networks (BPAMALAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Affiliate & Partner Marketing (Performance Partnerships) (BPAFACAE), Affiliate Marketing & Partner Program Management (MPAAACAD), Affiliate & Performance Influencer Networks (Track/Pay) (MPACAGAD)
Keywords
Where AvantLink is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Park City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
AvantLink business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Affiliate Network Commissions: AvantLink acts as the payment intermediary between merchants and affiliates. Merchants pay commissions on sales driven by affiliates; AvantLink tracks, calculates, and pays affiliates on behalf of merchants. Commission structure varies per merchant program. No upfront costs for merchants (one-time integration fee only) — merchants pay only on performance.
- Managed Services (Merchant Program Management): Three-tier managed service offering for merchants: Starter ($1,000/month, 3-month minimum), Plus ($2,000/month, 6-12 month contracts), Premier ($4,000/month, annual contract). Services include affiliate recruitment, program optimization, performance reporting, placement recommendations, and strategic reviews.
- Insights Add-on Service: Premium add-on service available at additional fee for merchants wanting enhanced clickstream visibility, referral group reporting, and attribution-based commission solutions.
- Publisher/Affiliate Access: Free for affiliates/publishers to join and participate. No signup or participation fees. Affiliates earn commissions on sales they drive.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Starter - $1,000/month, 3-month minimum contract |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Plus - $2,000/month, 6/9/12 month contracts |
| Subscription | Annual | Premier - $4,000/month, annual contract with annual review |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels8 records
AvantLink product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AvantLink operates an online affiliate marketing network platform that connects merchant advertisers with affiliate publishers (content creators, bloggers, influencers) to drive performance-based sales. The platform tracks referrals, calculates commissions, processes payouts, and provides performance reporting across three country-specific networks (United States, Canada, and Australia). Merchants pay only on performance (commissions on sales driven); affiliate publishers join free after a vetting process that denies roughly 80% of applications.
Product overview
AvantLink is an affiliate marketing network platform operating as a single unified product with integrated modules. The core AvantLink platform connects merchants with content publishers and influencers across U.S., Canada, and Australia networks. The Arches Platform represents the next-generation architecture with new dashboards and reporting. Supporting modules include Performance Reports (with twelve report types and Custom Reports in beta), Insights (clickstream attribution add-on), Tag Groups (affiliate segmentation with configurable business rules), and various Snap tools (SnapVisi, SnapDealist, Snapsearcher) for content and product discovery. The Merchant Program Management managed services add-on offers three tiers (Starter, Plus, Premier) for hands-on program support. An Affiliate Network API enables programmatic access.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Arches Platform: The next generation of AvantLink's affiliate network platform featuring modernized dashboard experience, improved data visualization, advanced tracking, and customizable reporting.
Products and services
- AvantLink Affiliate Marketing Platform Core affiliate marketing network platform connecting merchants with content publishers and influencers. Supports tracking, reporting, commission management, and partner recruitment across U.S., Canada, and Australia country-specific networks. Merchants pay commissions only on sales driven; publishers join free after vetting.
- Arches Platform Next-generation affiliate network platform with new dashboard experience, API-first architecture, mobile-responsive interface, advanced tracking, and improved data visualization through interactive customizable graphs. Replaces/augments the legacy AvantLink platform for merchants and publishers.
- Insights (Clickstream and Attribution Solution) Premium add-on service providing clickstream visibility into every click throughout the referral window. Includes referral group reporting across customer journey stages, clickstream-based commission solutions with shared/modified attribution, network deduplication, and marketing channel deduplication. Available at additional fee for merchants.
- Merchant Program Management (Managed Services) Three-tier managed services program for merchants wanting hands-on affiliate program support. Starter tier ($1,000/month) provides guided launch and recruiting; Plus ($2,000/month) adds placement recommendations and monthly reviews; Premier ($4,000/month) adds active recruitment, weekly/bi-weekly reviews, and quarterly strategic reviews.
- Affiliate Network API Public API enabling programmatic access to the affiliate network for tool development and automation of affiliate marketing workflows. Forms the dynamic API foundation underlying the Arches Platform.
Quantifiable outcome
- Denied ~80% of affiliate applications to maintain network quality
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use AvantLink
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
AvantLink technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
Feature8 records
AvantLink partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Performance Marketing Association (PMA)coreAvantLink is an industry champion member of the Performance Marketing Association, the only trade association representing the performance/affiliate marketing industry. Mission is to champion and protect accountable performance marketing.
- Park City Bike Racing (PCBR)minorPCBR was created based on a shared love for riding and racing bikes. The team continues to evolve into an amazing group of athletes and influencers who #spreadthespoke as PCBR ambassadors. AvantLink is a proud supporter.
- Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA)coreAvantLink is proud to partner with the ATTA to support a global community of outdoor brands, tour operators, and travel professionals. Together, they champion sustainable adventure tourism and help grow affiliate opportunities in the active travel space.
- Outdoor Industry Association (OIA)coreAvantLink is a proud member of the OIA, working alongside industry leaders to support outdoor recreation, sustainable business practices, and policies that protect the places we all love to explore.
- Snowsports Industries America (SIA)coreAvantLink partners with SIA to support the winter outdoor industry through shared insights, community engagement, and initiatives that help brands and retailers thrive in the evolving snowsports market.
- National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF)coreAvantLink is proud to partner with the NSSF to support responsible firearms commerce and connection with merchants and affiliates in the shooting sports industry through trusted, mission-aligned collaboration, as well as at premier industry events like SHOT Show.
- LTK (formerly RewardStyle)coreLTK (formerly RewardStyle) is a quality publisher network featured in AvantLink's 'Quality Networks' section with a vigorous vetting process ensuring publisher partnerships that save time and produce results.
- Active JunkycoreAward-winning content affiliate (AvantLink's 'Affiliate of the Year' 2014 and 2015) known for year-over-year growth, technical proficiency with datafeeds, and unmatched ability to gain visitor loyalty and community.
- The WirecuttercoreQuality publisher partner featured in AvantLink's network, representing the content-focused affiliate base the network attracts.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
AvantLink competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Awin: Awin is a global affiliate marketing network with presence in many geographies, directly competing with AvantLink on cross-border affiliate program management, particularly through its acquisition of ShareASale and existing European footprint.
- Pepperjam (Ascend): Pepperjam (now Ascend by Partnerize) is a mid-market affiliate network offering managed services and technology for brands, directly comparable to AvantLink in serving mid-market merchants with managed program tiers.
- Partnerize: Partnerize (formerly Performance Horizon) is an affiliate and partner marketing platform providing SaaS-based program management, partner discovery, and attribution — directly competing with AvantLink for mid-market and enterprise advertisers.
- PartnerStack: PartnerStack is a partner management platform focused on B2B SaaS affiliate and referral programs; while vertically different, it offers the same two-sided SaaS affiliate network model as AvantLink with similar mechanics of recruitment, tracking, and commission payouts.
- Impact: Impact operates a partnership management platform covering affiliate, influencer, and B2B programs, competing directly with AvantLink's Arches platform for enterprise merchants wanting cross-channel attribution and a modern SaaS-style affiliate experience.
- ShareASale (Awin): ShareASale, now part of Awin, is a long-established affiliate marketing network offering merchants and publishers a similar performance-based platform with self-serve onboarding and managed services — directly competing with AvantLink for mid-market and enterprise advertisers across verticals.
- CJ Affiliate (Commission Junction): CJ Affiliate is one of the largest global affiliate networks, owned by Publicis, offering affiliate program management, attribution, and global publisher reach; it directly competes with AvantLink for enterprise advertisers including many of the same outdoor and consumer brands.
- Rakuten Advertising: Rakuten Advertising is a global affiliate network with display, retargeting and affiliate capabilities, directly competing with AvantLink for premium advertisers including retail and consumer brands.
Emerging players
- Refersion: Refersion is an affiliate and influencer marketing platform focused on DTC brands, providing self-serve affiliate program management with creator marketplaces — overlapping with AvantLink on influencer/affiliate workflows but typically serving smaller DTC merchants.
- LTK (formerly RewardStyle): LTK is a creator commerce platform connecting influencers with brands for affiliate-driven sales, and is listed as a 'Quality Network' partner on AvantLink. It competes for the same creator-driven affiliate dollars and brand budgets, particularly with lifestyle and outdoor influencers.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
AvantLink social profiles
Digital presenceAvantLink compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
AvantLink financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AvantLink leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
AvantLink funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AvantLink M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about AvantLink
What does AvantLink do?
AvantLink operates an online affiliate marketing network platform that connects merchant advertisers with affiliate publishers (content creators, bloggers, influencers) to drive performance-based sales. The platform tracks referrals, calculates commissions, processes payouts, and provides performance reporting across three country-specific networks (United States, Canada, and Australia). Merchants pay only on performance (commissions on sales driven); affiliate publishers join free after a vetting process that denies roughly 80% of applications.
Is AvantLink a public or private company?
AvantLink is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was AvantLink founded?
AvantLink was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is AvantLink based?
AvantLink is headquartered in Park City, United States, in the North America region.
How does AvantLink make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Affiliate Network Commissions are the primary driver. The others are managed Services (Merchant Program Management), insights Add-on Service and publisher/Affiliate Access.
Who are AvantLink's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Awin, Pepperjam (Ascend), Partnerize, PartnerStack, Impact, ShareASale (Awin), CJ Affiliate (Commission Junction) and Rakuten Advertising. Emerging players are Refersion and LTK (formerly RewardStyle).
Does AvantLink have an API?
Yes. AvantLink offers an Affiliate Network API that was launched in June 2007. The API compliments the existing tool set and allows developers to interact with the affiliate network platform.
What industry is AvantLink in?
AvantLink's product category is Affiliate Marketing Network. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMALAI, Affiliate Marketing & Partner Networks, with a secondary code of BPAFACAE, Affiliate & Partner Marketing (Performance Partnerships). Its NAICS code is 541830 and its SIC code is 7310.