A Guide to the Affiliate Platform Landscape for Premium Brands
Learn what marketers should look for in a brand affiliate marketing platform.
Creators are driving revenue through affiliate marketing for brands. Explore the affiliate platform landscape with this breakdown of monetization models for brand creators.
A quick rundown of the affiliate platform landscape
Affiliate marketing initially emerged as a way for digital media brands to get small commissions off of products they recommend to their readers. But because affiliate link platforms were built to support media companies, not individual influencers, they’re often clunky, and they don’t create easy opportunities for creator-brand partnerships to flourish.Affiliate marketing is overall a leaky bucket. You’re not capturing every purchase no matter what — whether that’s due to cookies, blockers, consumers switching devices, not clicking through as expected, or going directly to a site. Today, custom commissionable discount codes are the only way to get 100% attribution on purchases and make it easy for affiliates to get credit for their influence.Today, influencer marketing has come a long way. In addition to using affiliate links, many influencers are now using discount codes, and this system works better for brands, too.
How affiliate marketing for brands generates revenue
For brands, posting on social media can sometimes feel like yelling into the void. On many platforms, the majority of the people who see posts created by a brand already follow that brand. So in order to regularly reach new audiences, brands combine promoted posts with collaborations with publications and influencers, having them mention a product to their loyal readers or followers. Then, they provide a percentage back on every click, sale, or lead. Because they help brands reach new audiences so easily, affiliate programs for brands are an extremely effective way to increase revenue.
Is affiliate marketing profitable for premium brands?
Yes! If they choose the right influencers, with engaged audiences already interested in a brand’s niche, brands can enjoy excellent ROI from working with brand ambassadors and affiliates. Furtuna Skin ambassador Melissa Wood-Tepperberg is a Sports Illustrated 2023 Swimsuit model in addition to being a fitness influencer, media personality, and business owner.
Top types of affiliate marketing platforms for premium brands + examples of each
1. Affiliate networks
Affiliate network companies, as mentioned above, originated as ways for digital publications to earn commissions on mentioned products, so they’re often not particularly user-friendly for individual creators. Affiliate networks handle all the tracking, reporting, and paying out commissions to affiliates when their audience buys something from a partnered merchant.
2. Sub-affiliate networks
Sub-affiliate programs help online publishers tap into the near-infinite opportunities available on major affiliate networks, without having to apply for individual merchant programs or manage dozens of logins. Merchants sign up for sub-affiliate networks to help them easily expand their affiliate programs to new publications and affiliates. However, few influencers use this strategy today — it’s more popular among bloggers and digital media brands.
3. Influencer affiliate programs
Influencer affiliate programs are similar to sub-affiliate programs, but they’re built for influencers. Typically app-based, these systems usually let influencers show off their affiliate products visually, like in a photo grid.
4. Affiliate marketing platforms built for creators and brands
Make affiliate marketing easier and more effective, both for influencers and for brands. Instead of navigating various complex portals of affiliate networks, influencers can simply create a digital shelf that collects all the products they’re promoting, for all the brands they work with. Especially since most influencers don’t have their own websites anymore — unlike in the heyday of blogging — a Linkmonetize site lets their followers learn more about all the products they mention on social. Influencer marketing platforms like link monetize can also help brands manage paid influencer content and campaigns and generate more revenue. Here’s how: - Create custom discount codes and affiliate links - Optimize and scale gifting and influencer outreach - Align affiliate and influencer marketing efforts.
