2024 holds promise for major shifts in affiliate marketing strategies. The world of affiliate marketing is gearing up for a transformative journey, offering businesses new avenues for growth and innovation.
The ‘Partnership Economy’ is booming, and so is the need to identify more effective media models and synergies between Consumers, Publishers, Advertisers, and Media Networks in growing industries and verticals.
With the accelerated adoption of generative AI, new forms of commerce, and the ability to anticipate and adapt to dynamic changes, Affiliate marketing has evolved into a cornerstone strategy for businesses seeking to broaden their reach and drive revenue.
In this article, we will dive into affiliate marketing stats and trends to watch in 2024.
Affiliate Marketing Stats
- $16.2 Billion global affiliate marketing market value as of Q3 2023
- The affiliate Marketing market has a CAGR of 15.4%
- The global affiliate marketing industry is expected to grow to a market size of $27.78B by 2027 and $38.3B by 2030
- The top affiliate categories and niches are Fashion, Sports and Outdoors, and Health and Wellness.
- 12-20% of U.S. e-commerce sales are attributed to affiliate marketing.
- Affiliate sales represent on average 45% of assisted conversions (at least 1 touch).
- On average, the Affiliate ROAS is 40% higher than other paid media channels.
- $12:1 is the average Affiliate ROAS across industries.
- 76% of affiliate channel spend is from retail brands with about ⅓ of that going to clothing affiliate programs
Top Affiliate Marketing Trends to Watch in 2024
As online businesses ‘demand is chasing down more cost-effective, innovative, and non-disruptive solutions to diversify revenue and grow profitably, 2023 has brought many learnings of how affiliate marketing is always evolving and how to best prepare for 2024.
1. Larger Affiliate Budget and ROI
In 2023, 84% of marketers report that the affiliate marketing model has raised their ROIs by 5X for SMEs, demonstrating how deeply embedded the practice has grown.
For enterprise brands, the focus has been on finding new network and relationship synergies to streamline speed to market and accelerate the path for additional growth and profitability.
65% of advertisers plan to increase their affiliate budgets and media coverage by 30% in 2024.
2. Accelerated Adoption of AI Automation and Integrations
More than 90% of US affiliate marketers currently use generative AI mostly for content creation, writing copy, inspiring creative thinking, and helping streamline the market research process.
AI will continue to integrate with day-to-day affiliate program management; it will help brands get better matched with affiliates, support streamlined contracts, affiliate application, and vetting processes, and better detect and prevent fraudulent activities on the program.
With gen AI, affiliate marketers will also get access to more predictive analytics to personalize marketing strategies and make more informed decisions. This will also help automate routine tasks for program efficiency and optimization.
On the publisher side, AI will unleash new content creativity and opportunities for creators and publishers, taping into AI-assisting tools to help them refine keyword strategies and support the content editorial process.
To best protect and maintain rankings on page 1, there will still be the need for continued adjustments to keep up with Search Engine algorithm updates, higher-intent, higher-offer, and lower-demand environment
How to best prepare?
- Explore AI-driven technologies and affiliate platforms
- Implement predictive analytics
- Automate your routine tasks
- Utilize chatbots for customer support
- Experiment with AI-generated Content
3. Media and Editorial Content Publishers will raise their standards
Media publishers have been in the business of buying authority sites in a continued strategic effort to dominate search results to win the largest shares of that online market.
This trend continues to go up as Google has released more search engine algorithm updates to challenge how publishers rank content online and to redesign how consumers research and hunt for good deals and products.
With this increased amount of updates, the release of Google Search Generative Experience (SGE), and its test to enhance search results with new discount features, content publishers will need to double down on their strategic priority to protect their organic rankings on Search Results.
While embracing AI in their editorial process and content strategies, these publishers continue to raise the bar on their placement fees and commissions for advertisers and sellers to get visibility on their websites.
How to best prepare?
- Craft more compelling pitches to get considered for placements
- Explore hybrid compensation models and higher incentives
- Build solid relationships with editors
- Optimize your website’s traffic engagement rates
- Increase positive product reviews
4. SEO and Voice Search
The use of voice assistants will reach 8.4B in 2024 from 4.2B this year.
Successful affiliate marketers in 2024 will not only prioritize traditional SEO practices but will also embrace the nuances of voice search, tailoring their strategies to align with the evolving ways in which consumers seek information and how it is currently reshaping the affiliate marketing industry’s dynamics.
Affiliate marketers will need to adapt their strategies to accommodate the nuances of voice search queries, focusing on conversational keywords and providing content that aligns seamlessly with the spoken language.
Affiliates need to anticipate the questions users might pose verbally and structure their content accordingly. This not only enhances discoverability but also ensures that the content aligns with the conversational tone inherent in voice searches.
Voice searches often have a strong local intent. Users frequently ask about nearby products or services.
Almost 60% of consumers use voice assistants to find local businesses. For affiliate marketers, this emphasizes the importance of localized SEO strategies.
Ensuring that content is optimized for local searches enhances the chances of being recommended by voice-activated devices.
How to best prepare?
- Optimize for conversational keywords
- Create FAQ-style content
- Enhance local SEO
- Prioritize mobile optimizations
- Experiment with voice-activated ads
5. Rise of Technology and BNPL Partners’ Effectiveness
As affiliate marketers explore emergent technologies such as buy now, pay later (BNPL) with publishers like Klarna or connected TV (CTV) with TV Scientific, new data and insights can help brands think through the next steps in their consumer strategies.
It allows brands to distribute affiliate-focused ads on CTV, and drive native ecommerce through personalized offers shown on retailer’s websites.
These also allow for more tracking and attribution capabilities as these deals and partnerships are – for the most part – performance-based commissions.
How to best prepare?
- Stay informed of the trends
- Identify relevant partnerships with BNPLs and CTV partners
- Integrate these partners into your content strategy
- Diversify payment options
6. Power of Micro and Nano Influencers Partnerships
There is a growing significance of micro and nano influencers, as these partners master building authenticity and trust with their audience and support brand awareness and product discovery.
As creators and influencers continue to climb marketers’ list of strategic priorities, affiliate networks, platforms, and agencies have stepped up their courtship of influencers. And in some respects, influencers have shown themselves to be quite receptive;
For example, 58% of the publishers Awin added to its network in H1 2023 were influencers.
LTK influencer sub-network recorded strong Q3 2023 growth, keeping its place on the top 3 publishers driving the largest brand signals and affiliate sales amongst this publisher group.
Impact has rolled out its Creator platform and has bet on the rising power of influencer partnerships and performance-based deals in the creator economy. Increasing influencer connections and visibility for eCommerce and retail businesses to maximize brand awareness initiatives and help expand reach through more diverse media formats.
The network also solidified its partnership with TikTok and YouTube to enable creators to take advantage of sellers’ deals directly available on these platforms to promote to their audience.
Amazon Influencer program’s growing popularity has allowed new technologies to emerge and support sellers working with influencers, promising more transparency and higher commission incentives, but the Amazon Associates program is not yet ready to match.
These new affiliate software and platforms, such as Levanta, can enable direct partnerships between creators, ambassadors, content creators, publishers, and Amazon Sellers, and offer more visibility in Amazon revenue attributed to Amazon Associates.
How to best prepare?
- Identify your niche audience
- Leverage data for influencer selection
- Diversify your recruitment tools
- Build long-term relationships with influencers
- Create personalized campaigns
- Boost performance-based compensations for this group
- Offer exclusive deals and discounts
7. Rise of Video and Shoppable Content Formats
One big shift to anticipate in 2024 is toward the use of video formats.
Consumers like watching videos and short formats, so they’re becoming the main way brands and affiliates share their messages. Videos aren’t just about showing products; they tell stories and build deeper connections with viewers, which is what people want nowadays.
Video content commands attention where authenticity continues to attract larger audiences on publishers’ sites.
As this format can be shared across many different platforms and social media, it makes it a strong tool for affiliates to reach more people and boost sales.
There is also a noticeable lift in live shopping events that enable new performance-based relationships between brands and “creators” and it’s reshaping how affiliate marketers engage with their audiences.
In the era of real-time engagement, with over 260 million viewers every single day, shoppable content essentially turns the browsing experience into a more interactive and seamless shopping journey. Instead of just showcasing products, this approach allows consumers to directly purchase items they discover through the content itself.
This growing trend is a win-win for both consumers and marketers. Consumers enjoy a more convenient and efficient shopping experience, while marketers benefit from increased conversion rates and a more direct connection between their content and sales.
As we move forward into 2024, expect shoppable content to become a standard and influential practice in affiliate marketing, transforming the way audiences discover and purchase products online.
How to best prepare?
- Engage with nano Influencers and live streamers
- Experiment with video and content formats with live events on Meta, TikTok, and Amazon
- Explore networks and technologies able to track real-time performance
8. Higher Focus on First-Party Data
As we approach the cookieless era, advertisers and marketers find themselves at the precipice of a fundamental shift in digital advertising strategies.
In the final preparation for this change, advertisers, publishers, and affiliate marketers must focus on building first-party data relationships directly with their audience. Establishing direct connections through engaging content, personalized experiences, and transparent data collection practices will be paramount.
Affiliate networks are also investing more in first-party data tracking methods and contextual targeting capabilities to support advertisers’ program optimizations and maintain the effectiveness of targeted campaigns.
How to best prepare?
- Leverage contextual advertising
- Implement AI-Driven Targeting
- Utilize Social Media and Influencer Marketing
- Diversify your marketing channel mix
9. Rise of Brand-to-Brand Partnerships
Brand-to-brand partnerships, also known as B2B collaborations, are gaining momentum in affiliate marketing where two or more brands join forces for mutual benefit. In this collaborative model, brands collaborate on marketing initiatives, co-branded campaigns, or shared promotional efforts to tap into each other’s audiences and expand their reach.
You may have seen some popular examples of B2B partnerships such as:
- Nike and Apple collaborated to create the Nike Training Club (NTC) app for the Apple Watch.
- Starbucks partnered with Spotify to create the Starbucks app’s “Now Playing” feature.
- Uber and Spotify teamed up to enhance the in-car experience for riders
How to best prepare?
- Identify complementary brands that share similar demographics and audience interests
- Utilize affiliate networks for collaborations
- Craft campaigns and create joint content
- Cross-promote on social media
- Explore influencer collaborations
Top Affiliate Networks to keep on your radar in 2024
Check out our list of top affiliate networks to maximize the potential of your affiliate program and to be ahead of the game in 2024.
Conclusion
Businesses have high growth goals and fewer resources right now and 2024 will be a year to test new automation powered by AI, get closer to creators, ‘affluencers’, and nano influencers, test video formats, and solidify marketing budgets to keep visibility and relevancy in content, and editorial publishers’ sites.
As ad prices rise and effectiveness declines, affiliate marketing has been on the rise, and Affiliate partnerships can drive the most efficient revenue growth for any business.
By embracing these trends, you can set yourself up for success in affiliate marketing in 2024.
Your Success Starts with The Good Strategy!
Stat sources: Statista, Hubspot, EMarketer, Impact, Forrester, The Good Strategy.
