What is Affiliate Marketing?

The process of affiliate marketing consists of product or service referrals, by sharing their links on different channels (e.g. social media platforms, blogs, other websites, podcasts) where the affiliate partner has access to an audience.

The typical result retailers or advertisers seek is a sale. Some other affiliate programs can also value the generation of leads, and website traffic using clicks, in-app downloads, or even free-trial users. Joining an affiliate program is usually free and done right, an affiliate strategy can transform into a profitable online business by generating steady incomes.

• Influencers - they are digital content creators who can influence the purchasing decision of their followers. Influencer marketing is popular on social media channels such as Instagram and TikTok.
• Bloggers - they can influence the purchase decision through content marketing on their digital blogs because they organically rank highly among search engine results.
• Email lists - some affiliate partners have access to email lists that they can use to promote a retailer’s products or services.
• Media websites - these sites are focused on building huge audiences of visitors and promoting products through banners or in-text affiliate links.

If you are a retailer and want to expand your sales channels, affiliate marketing can provide you with many opportunities: it is easy to execute, fully digital, and easy to scale. By partnering with affiliates, you increase your advertising results and maximize your resources. Therefore you extend your reach, increase your engagement with target audiences with less investment and pay only for performance in the end (e.g. pay per sale, per click, per lead, or install).