This article explains how to design, create, and manage a checkout link offer for your game in the Publisher Dashboard. Alternatively, you can create and update checkout link offers using the Checkout Link Offers API.

Note: If you’re using the Personalization feature to send offers to players, make sure to include the checkout link offer in the API payload. Although this offer doesn’t appear in the web store, it is still valid and must be explicitly sent to the player through the API.

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Prerequisites

Before creating a checkout link offer, you must first integrate Appcharge with your broadcast platform or custom distribution system.

To integrate your broadcast platform or custom distribution system:

  1. Go to the Settings tab in the Publisher Dashboard and click Integration.
  2. Toggle on Enable Deeplink JWT Secret to generate a secret key.
  3. Copy the value of the generated Deeplink JWT Secret.
  4. Add the secret to your broadcast platform configuration, or if you are using your own custom distribution system, save the secret to use after you’ve created the checkout link offer.

To create a checkout link offer:

  1. Go to the Checkout Links tab and click Create New Link.

  1. In the Settings tab, provide the offer details, including price, products, and quantity.

  2. Go to the Schedule tab to manage when the checkout link offer is available and how often it can be purchased by each player. You’ll find three scheduling options:

    • Permanent: The offer is always available, but you can limit how many times each player can purchase it.
    • Intervals: The offer will appear according to the set time intervals. If the offer link is opened outside these intervals, it will not be available, and the player will have the option to return to the web store or game.
    • Schedule: The offer will be available for purchase in specific quantities only during the time frames you define. If the offer link is opened outside these time periods, it will be unavailable, and the player will have the option to return to the web store or the game.

Note: All offers automatically expire 6 months after generation, regardless of the selected schedule type.

  1. Once you’ve filled in the necessary information, click Save to create the deeplink.
  2. Optional: Go to the Approval Request tab in the Builder tab to customize the approval request. If you choose not to customize the popup, it will use the default Appcharge configuration.

  1. Return to the Checkout Links tab and copy the deeplink.

    Important: This deeplink can’t be used as a standalone checkout link. Follow the steps to make the checkout link functional.

After creating a checkout link offer, you’ll receive a deeplink. To share it with players, you need to first make the link functional according to your distribution method:

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Broadcast platform

If you’re using a broadcast platform, such as a social media automation tool, add the deeplink to your platform’s distribution message. Make sure your JWT secret is added to the platform’s configuration settings, as described above.

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Custom distribution system

If you’re using a custom distribution system, you’ll need to manually generate a signed token (JWT) and append it to the deeplink. This makes the link secure and targeted for each player. To do this:

  1. Create a JWT object with the following parameters and sign it using HS256 Algorithm:

    ParameterRequired?TypeDescription
    playerIdYesNumberPlayer ID.
    originalLinkYesStringDeeplink offer URL.
    iatYesTimestampTimestamp when the player was redirected to the web store.

    Example code

    import * as jwt from 'jsonwebtoken';


const secret = 'YOUR_SECRET'; // Your Deeplink JWT Secret from the Publisher Dashboard
const originalLink = 'YOUR_DEEPLINK_OFFER_URL'; // The deeplink created earlier

const signed = jwt.sign(
   {
      playerId: 'PLAYER_ID',
      iat: Date.now(),
      originalLink: originalLink,
   },
   secret,
   { algorithm: 'HS256' },
);

  2. Append the signed JWT token as a query parameter to the deeplink:

    const redirectUrl = `${originalLink}?acjwt=${signed}`;

  3. Distribute this redirectUrl to players. Make sure the JWT is signed on a secure backend system.

To edit an existing checkout link offer:

  1. Go to the Checkout Links tab.
  2. Click the ellipsis next to the link you want to edit, then click Edit.
  3. Modify the checkout link as necessary. For example, update the price or change the schedule.
  4. Click Save to apply the changes.

To activate or deactivate a checkout link offer:

  1. Go to the Checkout Links tab.
  2. Click the ellipsis next to the link you want to activate or deactivate, and then click Activate or Deactivate.

To permanently delete a checkout link offer:

  1. Go to the Checkout Links tab.
  2. Click the ellipsis next to the link you want to delete, and then click Delete.