Do you want to start an affiliate or partner marketing program? It’s great! Are you perplexed about the different types of affiliates you can find and work with? You’re not alone.
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There is a lot of information out there, and it can be difficult to determine which type of affiliate is best for your company. You may discover that your specific affiliate or partner program is only applicable to a small number of partners. Alternatively, your program may be adaptable enough to affect them all. Knowing your target market is always essential for a successful business.
Examine the affiliates who have signed up for your program to see if you can spot any patterns. Do those websites have a lot in common in terms of style or are they all over the place? Depending on your target audience (or potential target audience), you may want to create several distinct campaigns to promote your company. New types of affiliates can be found, or you can cut back on your efforts and focus on one or two of the most powerful types.
But exactly what are the various types of partners or affiliates? Thank you for inquiring! We’ve compiled the following list to give you a good overview of the various types of affiliates spreading the word on the Internet. Keep in mind that some sites may fall into more than one category.
Coupon websites that offer
Coupon or deal sites are without a doubt the most popular type of affiliate site available today. And for a good reason: they are eCommerce-friendly websites that consumers visit when they are looking for a good deal, which is the majority of online consumers. Affiliates will provide coupons or discount codes to their users in exchange for commissions on any sales generated by someone clicking through one of their links to a merchant site. RetailMeNot, Offers.com, Coupons.com, and RetailMeNot are excellent examples. Some even allow users to upload their own coupon codes.
Websites for News and Media
Yes, news and media websites are becoming affiliates. While it doesn’t help with “fake news,” many large media companies are monetizing content and using affiliate links to do native advertising within articles. Media conglomerates such as Ziff Davis regularly acquire online publications, while others diversify revenue streams to combat declining ad sales. In any case, these are the major players in the game.
Sites with Content
Gossip, entertainment, sports, and lifestyle, among other things. When a website is compared to a magazine, you know it has a lot of content. These sites publish original articles and columns on a regular basis, monetizing with affiliate banners and links and, at times, sponsored content. Sites that are entirely user-generated, such as discussion forums, can fall into this category because the entire site is made up of user-generated content.
Review Sites for
These websites evaluate various advertisers, usually in a specific niche. One of the most popular places to find these are on Amazon, and affiliates and partners are told that setting up an Amazon review site is one of the best ways to grow their business and start making money. But don’t just pick any of them. Look for keyword-rich URLs, clean, uncluttered content without many popups or widgets, and well-thought-out reviews tailored to the reader’s needs.
Sites for Loyalty or Cashback
Cashback sites are also very popular among users—the refund money to members based on purchases made via the site’s affiliate links. Essentially, the cashback site used to receive a commission on every sale, but now they return a portion of their commission to the user who made the actual purchase. It results in a lower profit for the publisher with each sale, but they more than makeup for it by heavily encouraging members to buy through various promotions and incentives. eBates is the most well-known and widely used.
Bloggers
Bloggers are a subset of content types, but there are many blogs that specialize in particular niches. These range from personal interests to consumer product reviews to advise on topics as diverse as saving money and parenting. Affiliate banners or affiliate links may be included in their blog posts depending on the blogger. But keep in mind that not all bloggers are created equal. Choose bloggers who discuss issues relevant to your product with your target audience.
Comparison Shopping
Sites that provide eCommerce tools, such as comparison shopping rely heavily on data feeds containing products linked to affiliate links. Users can search for millions of products on sites like Shopping.com, which returns relevant results. When a user clicks through an affiliate link to purchase a product on a merchant’s page, the comparison shopping site earns a commission.
Despite the popularity of text messaging, people still prefer to communicate via email. Many affiliates profit from it. Large publishers have built email lists to reduce their reliance on Google traffic and the penalties associated with algorithm updates. Email campaigns aimed at a specific customer demographic are common, as are multiple merchant email opportunities featuring deals or special promotions. Caveat emptor (Latin for “let the buyer beware”): Working with email affiliates can be dangerous, especially if they aren’t CAN-SPAM compliant. Affiliate fraudsters sometimes call themselves “email” affiliates because their promotional activities aren’t as visible to the merchant or advertiser as they would be if they were real.
Mobile
Certain websites incorporate affiliate links into their apps. This applies not only to coupon or shopping comparison sites that have an app but also to standalone apps. Popular apps like Shazam and Pandora use affiliate links to get people to go to Apple’s iTunes store. Free games make money through incentivized offers.
Affiliate Search
Business owners use search engines, Facebook, and other paid advertising platforms.
As a result, merchants need to think about how each affiliate brings in traffic to promote their products and make sure that the traffic is appropriate for the products they’re promoting, legal, and following the rules.
Last Updated on January 30, 2021
