Thinking of Starting a SaaS Affiliate Program. Any Lessons to Share Before I Dive In?

I am in the very early research phase of launching an affiliate program for my SaaS. Nothing is set in stone yet. No commission structure, no software picked, no rollout timeline. Before I draw up a plan, I want to learn from founders and marketers who have already walked this What I am curious about: • Which tracking/attribution hurdles surprised you once real traffic showed up? • What signs told you an affiliate partnership was working or quietly draining resources? • Any red flags when evaluating platforms? • For anyone who shut a program down, what pushed you to pull the plug? I would like to avoid “build-it-and-they-won’t-come” syndrome and budget realistically for both partner recruitment and ongoing support. Honest war stories are more useful than polished case studies, so please share the gritty details commission numbers, churn headaches, fraud issues, whatever. I will round up the best insights into a follow-up post so everyone here benefits. Thanks in advance for helping me start on the right foot!