Just like with any marketing or sales strategy, data-driven optimization helps you maximize the number of new customers your affiliates bring in. For the best results, you should be checking your affiliates\u2019 data regularly, to see what works well and what needs improving within your program. Then, act on the data and change up the parts of the program that need revamping. This may include revising your commissions, strategically choosing new affiliates, optimizing where affiliates send leads, or improving affiliate engagement.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
How to optimize your affiliate program?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Whether you\u2019ve started your affiliate program fairly recently or have had your program for a while, there are several steps you can take to optimize and scale your affiliate marketing. We recommend these strategies and best practices.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Check your data regularly<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
You should always have specific, measurable affiliate program goals tied to a given timeframe, so you know how your program is performing. Check in on these KPIs at set cadences.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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- Regularly check affiliate sales revenue and conversion rates for given periods<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
- Also check other key metrics for the program as a whole, such as average order value, number of unique transactions driven by affiliates, link clicks, and leads brought in<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
This way, you have clear visibility of the program\u2019s performance and can better see the impact of changes you make. Be sure to check all of your key metrics on an individual affiliate level, too, to see which affiliates perform best.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Change up your commission rates<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
If you haven\u2019t updated your affiliate commissions in a while, affiliates might not be as engaged \u2013 or they may move to other programs where commissions are more lucrative. So, make sure your commissions are competitive, relative to other programs that target the same affiliates. Of course, you\u2019ll still need to make sure commissions are sustainable for your business to pay out.<\/p>\r\n
![\"activecampaign](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/activecampaign-affiliate-commissions.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n- \r\n
- It\u2019s easier to start with lower commission rates and increase them gradually, to keep affiliates happy.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
- If you don\u2019t want to increase affiliate commission rates<\/a> permanently, you might temporarily increase them during prime sales periods \u2013 or during slower times.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Change up other parts of your commission structure, as needed<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Your commission rate itself isn\u2019t the only commission-related piece you can optimize. The commission structure also includes the cookie life \u2013 how long an affiliate is eligible for a commission after a link click. A longer cookie life is more appealing to affiliates, as this gives them more opportunities to earn.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
You might also consider changing the type of commission you pay. If you\u2019re currently paying a flat fee and your order values vary greatly, you might switch to a percentage of a sale. After all, a percentage structure incentivizes affiliates for bringing in more revenue.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
One more important piece \u2013 if you\u2019re paying for traffic, change the structure so you only pay for sales (and possibly qualified leads, if your sales process is longer). Paying for traffic makes you highly vulnerable to affiliate abuse<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Add new perks<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Adding bonus perks is another way to motivate affiliates to make more sales.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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- Consider giving permanent commission rate increases when affiliates reach a certain level of lifetime sales, to incentivize affiliate to reach significant sales milestones.<\/li>\r\n
- Or, temporarily boost an affiliate’s commissions when they achieve certain sales milestones in a month or quarter.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
![\"looka](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/looka-affiliate-commission-structure.png\" "\\"\\"")
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- Give affiliates discounts for their followers to use \u2013 discounts will motivate more sales, and thus create more commissions for the affiliates.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
![\"stuffed](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/stuffed-dragon-influencer-affiliate-code-a.png\" "\\"\\"")
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- You might also give affiliates free products to try, so their promotions are more authentic. This is especially important if you\u2019ve selected affiliates who aren\u2019t as familiar with your products.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
![\"cando](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/cando-krisp-perks.png\" "\\"\\"")
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- And why not send affiliates products for their followers, that they can give away in a contest? Some leads might want to buy the products because they’ve seen your affiliate feature them.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
![\"affiliate](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/affiliate-giveaway.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nAppeal to healthy competition<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Competition can be a powerful motivator, so why not use this to your advantage to optimize your affiliate program? Run a recurring contest where the top-performing affiliates in a month or quarter get an extra reward. Display a leaderboard so affiliates can see who is making the most sales, for added motivation. This will engage affiliates and drive them to make more sales, to move up spots.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Rethink your affiliate lineup<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
If some affiliates aren\u2019t performing well, remember that you don\u2019t have to keep them on board forever. Use your affiliate software to check which affiliates are your top performers, and who isn\u2019t performing as well as you expect.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
You might decide to focus on your top performing affiliates, and disregard (or even let go) the affiliates who aren\u2019t performing well. Or, you might assist the affiliates with lower performance levels, to hopefully create even more affiliate powerhouses.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Knowing the characteristics of the affiliates who perform best also helps you seek out new affiliates with similar characteristics and backgrounds.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Check affiliates\u2019 fit<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Having the right-fit affiliates is key to optimizing performance. You need to know who you\u2019re looking for if you\u2019re adding to your lineup, And affiliate fit may give clues to why some of your existing affiliates are better-performing than others.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
First and foremost, affiliates\u2019 audience should match yours, and that audience should have a need for your product. If the audience isn\u2019t a great fit, you might see low sales levels because affiliates aren\u2019t reaching people who see benefits of buying.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Also, affiliates should regularly create high-quality content that gets a lot of engagement (comments and shares from followers). The types of content they create should align with your goals \u2013 do you want them to vlog? Create a tutorial or how-to? List out the top 5 benefits of a product? Show how they use the product in their everyday life? In addition, their voice, tone, and values must align with yours<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
If you\u2019ve found that some affiliates don\u2019t align as well as you thought, and that\u2019s reflected in their performance,\u00a0 it\u2019s probably time to let them go in favor of better-fit creators<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Optimize your landing page<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The landing page is the page on your website where affiliate links direct leads to. Once leads are on the landing page, the ball is firmly in your court because leads have gone from the affiliate\u2019s channel to yours.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to make a stellar first impression, and show leads why they should buy.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Here\u2019s how to optimize the landing page:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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- Make sure the landing page clearly shows why leads should purchase.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
- Don\u2019t make the landing page too cluttered.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
- Consider A\/B testing different landing pages to see which page performs the best \u2013 make a few changes at a time, track each page\u2019s performance, and keep carrying over the better-performing elements.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
- You might also customize different landing pages for different audience segments, based on the segments certain affiliates are bringing in.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
![\"affiliate](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/affiliate-landing-page-examples.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\r\n
- And why not send affiliates products for their followers, that they can give away in a contest? Some leads might want to buy the products because they’ve seen your affiliate feature them.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
- You might also give affiliates free products to try, so their promotions are more authentic. This is especially important if you\u2019ve selected affiliates who aren\u2019t as familiar with your products.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
- Give affiliates discounts for their followers to use \u2013 discounts will motivate more sales, and thus create more commissions for the affiliates.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
![\"What](\"https:\/\/referralrock.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/referral-rock-affiliate-software-page-2.png\" "\\"\\"")
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