Afflow earns its commission on every post it publishes — but only if the right pieces are wired up first. This article walks through the four account-level structures every account needs: marketplace credentials, at least one publishing integration, at least one category, and at least one group. Each section links to a deeper article when you need the full reference.
1. Marketplaces — connect AliExpress
Open Settings → Marketplaces. AliExpress is the primary marketplace and uses three credentials issued by the AliExpress Affiliate Portal:
- App Key — public identifier for your AliExpress affiliate app.
- App Secret — the private secret paired with the App Key. Treat it like a password.
- Tracking ID — the AliExpress tracking ID associated with your account.
All three fields are required for the badge to flip to Connected. Once it does, the Explore Products button appears in the Products page header and Afflow can generate reliable affiliate links.
2. Integrations — connect a publishing platform
Open Settings → Integrations. Telegram is the fastest first integration to connect — message @BotFather on Telegram, send /newbot, copy the token BotFather hands back, paste it into the Telegram card, and click Save. The badge flips to Connected.
WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram are also available here, each with their own connection flow (QR code for WhatsApp, OAuth for Facebook and Instagram). They are covered platform-by-platform in the Groups section's Connect each platform article — start with Telegram for your first run-through.
3. The category-as-container model
Categories are the central organising idea in Afflow. A category does not just group products — it sets the rules every post in it inherits:
- Content language and currency — what the AI writes in.
- Marketing tone, custom prompt, and template — how the AI writes.
- Variant count — how many alternative messages the AI generates per post.
- Scheduling window and interval — when the auto-scheduler is allowed to publish.
- Tracking, Auto Pilot, Reposting — which automations are on.
- Attached groups — where posts in this category can publish.
Most accounts run multiple categories — one per audience or language. The category switcher at the top of the app filters Products, Posts, and Groups to the active category, so what you see always matches the context you are working in.
4. Create your first category
Open Categories and click Add Category. Give it a name your future-self will recognise (e.g. Home Deals — English), pick the content language and currency, and save. You can refine the AI tone, template, and schedule later in Posts → Settings — the defaults are sensible enough to start publishing today.
5. Create your first group
Once your bot token is saved and your category exists, open Groups and click Add Group. Choose Telegram as the platform, paste your channel ID (@username for public channels, -100XXXXXXXXXX for private ones), pick the language posts will be sent in, attach it to the category you just created, and save. Make sure your bot is added to that Telegram channel as an admin with permission to post — the channel will not receive anything otherwise.
What is next
Account is set up. Read Bring in products and turn them into posts next to learn the four ways products enter your catalog and how a product becomes a published post.