Affiliate Policy

Last updated 21 September 2026

Some of the links on SideKix are paid. This page says exactly which ones, what SideKix is paid, and what that payment does not buy.

This Affiliate Policy explains the paid links, referral arrangements and other material connections between Character Limit LLC d/b/a SideKix ("SideKix," "we," "our," or "us") and the companies named on this site. It is published so that the connection is disclosed clearly and conspicuously, as the Federal Trade Commission's Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, 16 CFR Part 255, ask advertisers to do.

This Affiliate Policy supplements the SideKix Terms of Use, the Privacy Policy and the Purchase and Payment Policy. Where it conflicts with the Terms of Use, the Terms of Use control.

What an affiliate link is
Where affiliate links appear
Who pays SideKix and who does not
How to tell a paid link from an unpaid one
What a commission does not buy
How a company gets listed
Prices and what a reader pays
Advisors, events and Kix Credits
Accuracy and third-party terms
Data and tracking
Changes to this policy
Contact

1. What an affiliate link is

An affiliate link is a link to another company that carries a code identifying SideKix as the source of the visit. If someone follows that link and then signs up, subscribes or buys, that company pays SideKix a commission.

The commission is paid by the company, not by the reader. It is usually a one-time amount or a share of the first payment, and it varies by company.

2. Where affiliate links appear

Affiliate links appear in the affiliates list on the Partners page, and they can appear inside guides, articles, tool pages and resource lists where a specific product is named.

Every page that carries an affiliate link also carries a short disclosure near the top of the link or the list it belongs to, so the connection is visible without opening this policy.

3. Who pays SideKix and who does not

SideKix earns a commission only from the companies shown in the affiliates list. Nothing else on this site is paid.

Affiliates. Software, filing services, banking, insurance and other commercial products. These pay SideKix a commission on a signup or a purchase.
Partners. Organizations SideKix works with. They pay SideKix nothing and SideKix pays them nothing.
Local organizations, SBDCs, SCORE chapters, nonprofits, libraries, colleges and government programs. These are listed because they help founders. No money moves in either direction.
Events. The events listed on SideKix are gathered from public calendars. No host pays to be listed and no host is charged a fee.

Nothing on SideKix is placed in exchange for anything. There is no paid placement, no sponsored article, no paid review and no paid ranking.

4. How to tell a paid link from an unpaid one

Every affiliate link on SideKix carries the rel="sponsored" attribute, which is the marker search engines and browsers read for a paid link.

In plain sight, the affiliates list is labelled as paid, and each guide or article that names a paid product carries a disclosure line in the same place on the page. A link with no disclosure and no sponsored marker is an ordinary link and earns SideKix nothing.

5. What a commission does not buy

A commission does not buy a place on the list, a higher position, a better description, a rating, a recommendation or the removal of a criticism.

Where SideKix compares products, the comparison is written from the same facts a reader could check themselves, and a product that is not an affiliate can appear alongside one that is, above it, or instead of it.

SideKix does not claim that a paid product is the best one available, and does not present a commercial product as an alternative to free help from an SBDC, a SCORE chapter, a library or a state program.

6. How a company gets listed

A company is listed when it is useful to someone starting or running a small business, when its pricing and terms are public, and when it is available across the United States or across a state SideKix covers.

An affiliate relationship is added after that decision, not before it. A company that will not agree to an affiliate arrangement can still be listed, and several are.

SideKix removes a company from the list when the product changes materially, when the terms stop being public, or when readers report a problem SideKix can verify.

7. Prices and what a reader pays

Following an affiliate link does not change the price. A reader pays the same as they would by going to the company directly, unless the company is running a discount that it has attached to the link, in which case the discount is stated.

Prices, plans and free tiers shown on SideKix are gathered from the company's own public pages and can change without notice. The company's own site is the current price.

8. Advisors, events and Kix Credits

Advisors listed on SideKix are not affiliates. Advisor compensation is set out in the Purchase and Payment Policy and the applicable Advisor Agreement, and no Advisor pays for a listing or a position.

Memberships, Kix Credits, Advisor sessions and paid events are SideKix's own products. Money paid for those goes to SideKix directly and is not an affiliate commission.

9. Accuracy and third-party terms

SideKix does not control the companies it links to. Their products, prices, terms, privacy practices and support are theirs.

A purchase made with one of those companies is a contract between the reader and that company. Its terms, its refund rules and its dispute process apply, not SideKix's.

SideKix does not provide legal, tax, accounting, investment or insurance advice, and a listing is not a recommendation to buy.

10. Data and tracking

An affiliate link may pass a referral code to the destination site, and that company may set its own cookies once a reader arrives there.

What SideKix itself collects, and what the reader can turn off, is described in the Privacy Policy and the Cookie Policy.

11. Changes to this policy

This policy changes when the arrangements change. The date at the top of the page is the date of the current version.

12. Contact

Questions about a paid link, a listing or this policy can be sent to:

SideKix Support
Character Limit LLC d/b/a SideKix
support@sidekixhq.com