Affiliate Marketing Is Changing – It’s No Longer Just About Coupons and Cashbacks

Affiliate marketing has long been perceived primarily as a channel for discount portals and cashback websites. Recently, it has managed to establish itself as a fully-fledged component of the marketing mix. Brands are increasingly using it not only to support sales but also for customer acquisition, collaboration with content creators, and optimising returns on investment. In many cases, an affiliate complements or strategically extends the capabilities of performance channels such as PPC.

Affiliate marketing is shifting from the periphery to the heart of performance strategies. And with that, investments are growing too. According to the Field Guide to Affiliate Marketing Platforms document, produced by eMarketer and Rakuten Advertising, affiliate marketing spend is expected to grow by nearly 12% this year. The guide draws from a combination of Rakuten network’s proprietary data and independent research from Forrester, Awin, and Snap.

In the US and Canada, affiliate marketing already accounts for approximately 16% of all online sales. This growth is largely driven by its performance-based nature – brands only pay for actual results, not for ad impressions, making affiliate more resilient to budget cuts than many other channels.

From Coupons to Content: Who Makes up Today’s Affiliate Ecosystem?

While most consumers still actively search for discount codes and bargain offers when shopping online, affiliate marketing today encompasses a much broader spectrum of formats than just coupon websites. Approximately half of US marketers also use it for objectives higher up the purchase funnel – particularly for building awareness and influencing decisions before the actual purchase.

Content creators play a key role in this. Experience shows that nearly half of social media purchases are influenced by content from influencers, not traditional advertising.

An interesting trend is that a third of these conversions already include a discount code – suggesting a convergence of two worlds: performance motivation and credible brand reach.

Tracking has Peaked; Platforms are Evolving

Modern affiliate platforms today offer a much broader set of functions than just tracking clicks and paying out commissions. They help brands actively seek suitable partners – for example, through AI recommendations that consider performance, segment, and audience demographics.

They help brands gain a more realistic picture of how customers shop – instead of the simplified view where only the last click gets credit.

Dynamic rewards are also an important tool – for instance, higher commissions for acquiring new customers or reduced rates for repeat orders. Advanced mechanisms for detecting suspicious conversions and anomalies that protect budgets from abuse are also part of the standard toolkit.

From the consumer’s perspective, affiliate advertising has another advantage: it’s less intrusive than other forms of advertising. While more than 40% of people perceive behavioural display ads as “very intrusive,” only just under a fifth feel this way about affiliate links. The subtle integration into content and connection with user value are precisely why this format maintains favour even at a time when people are oversaturated with advertising.

Retail Media and Influencer Marketing are Merging with Affiliate

The importance of retail media networks – advertising platforms operated by retailers themselves – is growing globally. Major players like Amazon and Walmart abroad are linking affiliate models with their advertising networks, creating new opportunities for brands and publishers alike. Although retail media in this form doesn’t yet exist here, the trend of combining performance marketing with native content and creators is becoming increasingly visible even on a smaller scale.

Influencer marketing is naturally converging with affiliate principles. Campaigns are more measurable, transferable to e-commerce environments, and increasingly linked with discounts or promo codes.

Affiliate Marketing Is Changing: What This Actually Means for Your Business

If you’re running an e-commerce store, you’re likely already encountering this ecosystem whether you realise it or not. Those “influencer partnership” requests flooding your inbox? They’re part of a rapidly growing industry that’s reshaping how customers discover and buy products. That cashback app offering €2 back on a €50 order? The retailer is paying them €8-12 for that customer acquisition.

But here’s the strategic insight: this isn’t just another marketing expense—it’s potentially your most cost-effective customer acquisition channel. Unlike traditional advertising where you pay upfront with no guarantee of results, affiliate marketing only costs you when you actually make a sale.

The Opportunity Most E-commerce Brands Miss

What’s remarkable is how democratised this channel has become. You don’t need enterprise-level budgets or exclusive partnerships anymore. Smaller e-commerce stores are successfully competing with retail giants by building strategic affiliate networks. The technology barriers have never been lower, yet many brands still treat affiliate as an afterthought rather than a core growth strategy.

The Bottom Line for E-commerce

The next time you analyse your customer acquisition costs, remember: while you’re paying €30-50 per customer through Facebook ads with uncertain returns, your competitors might be paying the same amount only after they’ve made the sale through affiliate partnerships.

The brands that ignore this shift will find themselves paying premium prices for diminishing ad performance. Those who build robust affiliate programmes early—whether as small startups or established retailers—will dominate the next decade of e-commerce. The question isn’t whether affiliate marketing will continue growing; it’s whether your business will be part of that growth or watching competitors capture your potential customers.

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