Link Optimization vs. Bid Check API: Which routing option is right for you?

Sovrn Commerce gives partners multiple ways to optimize affiliate revenue. Two of the most important are Link Optimization and the Bid Check API.

Both are designed to help traffic route to higher-earning opportunities. The difference is where the routing decision is made.

• Link Optimization is best when you want Sovrn to automatically optimize links and route clicks for you.

• Bid Check API is best when you already manage your own routing logic and want Sovrn’s real-time bid before deciding where to send a click.

The simple difference

What is Link Optimization?

Link Optimization helps publishers and creators automatically route affiliate clicks to the highest-earning eligible path available through Sovrn.

Instead of manually deciding which network or program should receive each click, publishers and creators can let Sovrn evaluate available monetization paths and route the click automatically.

This is usually the best fit for publishers and creators who want to grow affiliate revenue without building or maintaining their own routing system.

Link Optimization is best when you want to:

• Let Sovrn handle routing automatically

• Reduce operational and engineering lift

• Optimize across available CPC, CPA, and your direct affiliate opportunities

• Use Sovrn’s reporting to understand revenue performance

• Avoid managing click-level routing logic yourself

• Get more value from links without changing your workflow

For most publishers and creators, Link Optimization is the recommended starting point because it provides automatic routing, unified reporting, and less operational complexity.

What is the Bid Check API?

The Bid Check API gives partners a real-time Sovrn bid before a click is sent.

With a single API call, partners receive a live Sovrn bid for a destination URL, evaluate that bid within their own routing logic, and decide whether Sovrn is the best place to send the click.

Bid Check is built for partners who want more control over click routing and have their own routing logic built internally.

Bid Check API is best when you want to:

• Keep routing decisions inside your own system

• Compare Sovrn’s real-time bid against other monetization options

• Set bid floors before sending traffic

• Evaluate CPC and CPA opportunities in one decision flow

• Use Sovrn as one input in a broader routing engine

• Avoid waiting on EPC tests before making routing decisions

The Bid Check API is not meant to replace your routing logic. It is meant to give your routing logic better information.

When to use Link Optimization

Use Link Optimization when you want Sovrn to optimize links, route traffic automatically, and centralize performance and revenue reporting across multiple affiliate systems in one place.

This is the better fit for publishers who do not want to build or maintain a routing system, manually compare networks, or piece together reporting across separate affiliate platforms. With Link Optimization, Sovrn manages optimization across available affiliate paths and gives publishers a clearer view of revenue performance through unified reporting.

Example

A publisher has commerce content with links to multiple merchants. They want to earn more from that content, but they do not want to compare affiliate networks manually, build their own redirect system, or reconcile performance reports across multiple platforms.

With Link Optimization, Sovrn handles the routing decision automatically and brings performance and revenue reporting into one place. The publisher gets optimized monetization and clearer reporting without adding click-level routing logic or additional reporting infrastructure to their own workflow.

When to use Bid Check API

Use the Bid Check API when you already make routing decisions and want Sovrn’s bid before deciding where the click should go.

This is the better fit for partners with their own routing engine.

Example

A partner manages its own routing logic and compares multiple monetization options before sending each outbound click. The partner wants Sovrn to compete for the click, but it wants to keep the final routing decision inside its own system.

With Bid Check, the partner calls Sovrn, receives a real-time bid, compares it against other available options or internal rules, and only routes through Sovrn when Sovrn returns the strongest eligible offer.

Choosing the right option

Link Optimization and Bid Check API both help partners optimize commerce revenue, but they are built for different operating models.

Link Optimization is the best fit for publishers who want Sovrn to manage routing automatically and centralize performance and revenue reporting in one place. It reduces operational lift, helps traffic flow to higher-earning paths, and gives publishers clearer visibility across affiliate performance without requiring them to build routing logic or reconcile reporting across multiple systems.

Bid Check API is the best fit for partners who already manage their own routing decisions. It gives them a real-time Sovrn bid they can compare against other options before sending the click.

For most publishers, start with Link Optimization.

For partners with their own routing systems or more complex routing requirements, Bid Check API gives Sovrn a way to compete for clicks without taking over the routing decision.