This article will cover the following:
Overview
Every conversion recorded in CAKE is assigned a status that determines whether and when it will be paid out. Understanding these statuses helps affiliates know what to expect, helps advertisers manage their spend, and helps network managers resolve disputes quickly.
Conversion statuses can be updated manually by network managers or automatically by rules set in your offer configuration. Changes to status take effect immediately in reporting.
Approved
The conversion has been verified and accepted by the network or advertiser. For affiliates, an approved conversion will appear on their invoice for the current billing period. For advertisers, it counts toward campaign performance and spend totals.
Filter your conversion reports by "Approved" status to get a clean view of billable and payable activity for any date range.
Pending
The conversion has been recorded but hasn't been confirmed yet. Pending is common for offers that have:
- A return or cancellation window (e.g., a 30-day return policy on ecommerce orders).
- A manual review or quality check before conversion credit is awarded.
- Fraud screening that takes time to process.
- A lead verification step by the advertiser.
Pending conversions may later move to Approved (paid out) or Rejected (not paid out). The timeline depends on the offer's review process.
Rejected
The conversion was reviewed and determined to be invalid. Rejected conversions are not paid to affiliates and are not billed to advertisers. Common reasons for rejection include:
- Duplicate submission — the same lead or order was already recorded.
- Customer cancelled or returned — the transaction reversed after the conversion was initially recorded.
- Conversion didn't meet offer requirements — for example, a lead missing required fields.
- Traffic quality issue — the conversion was flagged by the advertiser or network's quality rules.
If you believe a conversion was rejected in error, contact your network account manager with the conversion ID and any supporting transaction data. Do not attempt to resubmit the same conversion — it will be flagged as a duplicate.
Scrubbed
A scrubbed conversion was removed as part of a quality or compliance process. Scrubbing can happen automatically (based on suppression lists or offer rules) or manually (by a network manager or advertiser).
Common scrub triggers include:
- The conversion matched a suppressed email address, phone number, or IP address.
- The conversion was flagged by a fraud detection rule.
- The advertiser exercised their contractual right to reverse a percentage of conversions.
- The conversion failed a manual review.
A consistently high scrub rate on your account is a signal worth investigating. Reach out to your network manager to understand the specific suppression criteria being applied and review your traffic sources.
Handling Status Disputes
Disputes about conversion statuses are common in affiliate marketing. Here's how to handle them constructively:
| Situation | Recommended Action |
|---|---|
| Conversion shows Rejected but you believe it's valid | Gather your internal transaction records (order ID, timestamp, customer data) and contact your account manager with the CAKE conversion ID. |
| Conversion stuck in Pending for longer than the offer's stated review window | Check the offer's terms for the stated review timeline, then follow up with your account manager if the window has passed. |
| High scrub rate on a specific offer | Ask the network for the scrub criteria in writing. Cross-reference your traffic against suppression lists and review your traffic sources. |
| Conversion missing entirely — not showing in CAKE at all | Check your postback URL or pixel setup. Verify the click ID was captured and passed correctly. Use the API log or tracking test tools to diagnose. |
If you have any questions, please reach out to your dedicated CAKE Client Success Manager/Account Manager or contact the CAKE Support Team at support@getCAKE.com.