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The Evolution of Affiliate Marketing

4/4/2019

10 Comments

 
Evolution of Affiliate Marketing
There's a lot of (justified) confusion surrounding affiliate marketing. As digital marketing has evolved, it has transformed affiliate marketing to become more customizable and effective than ever before. In fact, 15% of all digital media advertising revenue is generated from affiliate marketing, and 50% of this affiliate generated traffic originates from mobile devices. Can you imagine our reaction if someone told us this prediction 10 years ago?

In this post, I'm leaving out the confusing jargon often used while discussing affiliate marketing, and we're going to dig right into the ins and outs of successful affiliate marketing tactics. As affiliate marketing has transformed, it's important for every brand to incorporate a fresh affiliate marketing strategy for the remainder 2019. Who knows, you might even choose to implement these ideas within your own organization!

How has affiliate marketing changed?

Old Definition:“Affiliate Marketing: a marketing arrangement by which an online retailer pays a commission to an external website for traffic or sales generated from its referrals.” - Google Dictionary

New Definition:“Affiliate marketing is the process of earning a commission by promoting other people's (or company's) products. You find a product you like, promote it to others and earn a piece of the profit for each sale that you make.” -Neil Patel

There’s an important distinction between the old view of affiliate marketing and the evolved new definition by digital marketing’s finest, Neil Patel. Can you find it? The old belief is that there was a clear distinction between affiliate marketing and influencer marketing. Affiliate marketing worked specifically through external websites such as publisher’s writing articles (the affiliate), being paid commission to drive traffic and conversions to the main business’ website that hired them. Influencer marketing was seen as a completely different ballgame.

Influencer marketing was always viewed as a type of advertisement. Influencers would be paid bulk sums in a partnership with the agreement that they would post a certain amount of images and content of a product. This is really no different than more traditional forms of advertisement such as print, TV, and radio besides the personal online platform. Now, however, this has transitioned into influencers posting blogs, pictures and stories with coupon codes and product links, in hopes that their followers will purchase a product and they will receive a commission on the sale. This content can read, “Swipe up to buy these boots I’m wearing at 10% off! Be sure to use my code!” As social media platforms become more retail friendly and sales shift from desktop to mobile, these influencers are essentially doing the same job that past affiliate partner websites would do.

Affiliate marketing and influencer marketing are basically one in the same now, as long as the tactic is built on the foundation of promoting with an end goal of receiving a commission on the conversion. Some more traditional marketers may think I’m “off the wall” when I say this, but they’re clearly not keeping up with the ever-changing world of digital marketing.

Examples of successful affiliates

Below, I’ve included more traditional examples of affiliate marketing via websites and publications. While I haven’t included any examples of the new fad… influencer affiliate marketing… it’s not because I don’t see it as useful, it’s simply because pretty much every single social media influencer is currently also an affiliate marketer. Pull up Instagram tonight and find the influencers you follow who specialize in a niche market, and check out the products they are promoting with a personalized “discount code.” Bingo! You’ve found affiliate marketing right in your own feed.
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For each company, the preference between partnering with websites or influencers for their affiliate marketing campaign depends on the needs of their brand and the target audience they are trying to reach. While the traditional website version of affiliate marketing could offer more educational value to the consumers of the content, influencer affiliate marketing has the potential to reach a higher population of people specifically in your target audience. However, remember that this is always on a case-by-case basis.

Nerdwallet
  • Most people know about Nerdwallet, and if you don’t, be prepared for extremely useful finance focused content. The purpose behind Nerdwallet is to essentially review financial products such as credit cards, banks, mortgages and insurance providers. The content delivered on this website is extremely valuable to consumers, while also highlighting companies that pay them commissions. https://www.nerdwallet.com

Thisiswhyimbroke.com
  • Still not sure what to get your father in law for his birthday? Look no further than thisiswhyimbroke.com. On this site, you will find gift recommendations in arguably the most useful form of affiliate marketing to date. https://www.thisiswhyimbroke.com/new/

Sky Scanner
  • Looking for a flight? Hotel? Not sure where you want to go, but you know the dates you want to be gone? Skyscanner could be your new best friend. This website offers the best prices on airfare and hotels, while receiving a commission every time you book. https://www.skyscanner.com

In conclusion, what do all of these affiliates, both websites and influencers, have in common? What makes a company want to partner with them?

TRAFFIC!

Influencers have a lot of followers watching for specific niche tips and tricks. Popular affiliate websites have a reputation for educational content. Without traffic, an affiliate cannot succeed let alone exist. When your company is searching for its next affiliate marketing partner, pay attention to the most important aspect… quality traffic.

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10 Comments
Mark Luke link
9/25/2019 06:32:25

Awesome post! Thanks for sharing the knowledge and keep posting more.

Reply
Drishan Vig link
2/24/2021 10:43:49

Great insights .. Thanks for letting know the history about affiliate marketing. Now is the time people move towards affiliate marketing because there is a need for a passive income just to fulfill our needs.

Reply
Saumil link
5/31/2021 04:39:34

Affiliate marketing as a business is a great opportunity for all those interested in anything business.. I am its big fan.. I like the affiliate marketing examples.. I was not knowing skyscanner is an affiliate site..it shows the scope of this industry.

Reply
Ayesha link
6/11/2021 05:09:21

Thanks for the brilliant content. Really appreciate the way you write it you covered all relevant points related to afiiliate marketing . Especially the budget part.Need more content like this. Thanks 🙂

Reply
Roberto link
10/18/2021 07:38:46

Hi,
Thank you for this amazing blog post, useful information
Looking forward to more content from you!
Thanks.

Reply
S H link
10/18/2021 07:39:51

I had a great time reading your blog. Your posts sparked my interest as well. Really informative.

Reply
affiliate marketing link
12/2/2021 08:44:39

<a href="https://affbizleads.com">affiliate marketing</a>This has helped me in so many ways before starting an affiliate site, and stopped me from making many mistakes - so thank you!

Reply
super affiliate bizleads automation summi link
12/2/2021 12:53:34

I am thankful for this blog to gave me much knowledge regarding my area of work. I also want to make some addition on this platform which must be in knowledge of people who really in need. Thanks.
Regards

Reply
Kamal Muhammad link
2/19/2022 11:19:45

The industry has evolved a-lot but its also an opportunity for new comers thanks for this post

Reply
Revglue link
5/26/2022 02:07:37

Hi, Good day. This is a perfect guide for any beginner in the world of Affiliate marketing on Instagram. It can often be super confusing when you are new to Affiliate marketing on Instagram and you may not be aware of how to go about things. This article is great as it talks about the various factors that can make Affiliate marketing on Instagram is good. I agree with every single point that has been mentioned above.

Reply



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