Do you own an online store? Have you heard of affiliate marketing, but are still hesitating to integrate it into your marketing strategy? Casaneo has been involved in affiliate marketing for over 10 years, and here we explain the principles and advantages of this strategy for e-merchants.
By the end of the book, you’ll be able to understand the key benefits of affiliation, consider setting up an affiliate program, and adopt winning strategies to maximize your online visibility and sales.
With Casaneo, you can get started in affiliate marketing with confidence. Get started now and develop your online store.
What is affiliation for e-merchants?
Affiliation is a marketing strategy in which an e-tailer collaborates with partners, called affiliates, to promote its products or services. In return, these affiliates receive a commission on each sale or action (registration, click, etc.) generated through their efforts.
For it to work, three parties are involved:
- The salesperson or product creator (advertiser) who, like you, wants to achieve a specific objective: sell products, reach a wider audience or gain notoriety.
- Affiliates or publishers (influencers, bloggers, etc.) who promote your products and introduce your online store to their audience. Note that the affiliate can also be another brand or online store. In this way, your collaboration is based on cross-selling and facilitates the expansion of your target audience.
- The consumer or customer is the main target of your marketing strategy. It’s the customer who takes the final action, generating commissions for the affiliate and sales for the vendor.
Today, a fourth player has entered the affiliate marketing arena. Its arrival is all the more advantageous for online businesses and affiliates alike. We’re talking about affiliate platforms.
History and evolution: how affiliation transformed e-commerce
It was at a cocktail party in 1996 that the idea of affiliate marketing took shape, thanks to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. A woman wanted to sell books on divorce via her website, without becoming a salesperson herself. Jeff Bezos came up with an innovative solution: integrate links on her site to books available on Amazon.
In return, it would receive a commission for each sale generated. In July 1996, this innovative concept gave rise to the very first affiliate program the Amazon Associates Program. This initiative revolutionized online commerce and laid the foundations for affiliation as we know it today.
Since the global pandemic, affiliate marketing has experienced a veritable renaissance. In just four years, this once neglected acquisition lever has become an essential pillar of e-commerce. The number of content creators, whether youtubers or bloggers, has literally exploded since 2020. The result: affiliation is profoundly transforming online sales strategies. It is redefining opportunities for brands and affiliate partners.
Affiliation operating principles
Affiliation is a performance-based strategy. The affiliate undertakes to distribute or relay the advertiser’s media or commercial offers to its audience. They market the product or service to consumers through various channels: blog, social network, YouTube, etc.
Affiliates can be varied. The choice of partners depends on your specific objectives. You can work with media sites, bloggers, e-mailers or cash-backeteers.
When the customer follows the affiliate link to carry out an action on the merchant’s website (sale, newsletter sign-up, etc.), the affiliate receives a commission. Please note that the customer must be aware that the affiliate receives a commission on each action performed.
Affiliates can be remunerated by :
- CPA the affiliate receives a percentage or a fixed amount for each sale generated.
- CPC a commission is paid to the affiliate for each click redirecting to your site.
- CPL The affiliate is paid for each qualified lead obtained, such as a registration or contact request.
Create an affiliate program tailored to your needs with Casaneo. Maximize your sales and control your costs.
Why is affiliation the best way to develop your online store?
Understanding affiliate marketing and how it works already gives you an idea of the benefits this marketing strategy can bring to your online business. Let’s take a closer look at these key benefits for your online store.
Better return on investment
As we said earlier, affiliation is based on a pay-for-performance model. This approach enables both advertisers and affiliates to benefit from concrete results. By leveraging the specific audiences of each affiliate, advertisers have the opportunity to reach a large volume of potential buyers. For their part, affiliates are remunerated for each objective reached, thanks to the distribution of campaigns on their channels. With other digital levers, profitability remains uncertain. Here, affiliation offers an almost guaranteed ROI.
A diversified, high-performance network of affiliates
Affiliation offers you the opportunity to collaborate with a wide variety of publishers. Here again, affiliation platforms save you both time and money. Casaneo, for example, is committed to providing you with a network of qualified and efficient affiliates, specifically selected for your business sector. Thanks to this solution, you have access, in a single place, to several hundred affiliates ready to promote your products or services.
Several marketing objectives
Affiliate marketing offers great flexibility in achieving a wide range of marketing objectives. Using this strategy, you can :
- Generate online sales
- Collecting leads
- Encourage newsletter subscriptions
- Stimulate requests for quotes and free trials.
This strategy is also effective for retailers who don’t sell directly online. It offers a solution adapted to different types of conversions.
Affiliation Marketing at your fingertips
THE KEYS TO MAKING THE MOST OF THIS BOOMING LEVER Download the guide!Who can benefit from affiliation?
Any online store owner can make affiliation part of their marketing strategy. It’s a particularly profitable strategy for growing your online business. What’s more, affiliation is suitable for businesses of all sizes.
For small companies, it’s an effective strategy for gaining visibility without high initial investment. For larger companies, this solution is recommended to diversify their promotional channels.
Affiliate marketing helps e-businesses achieve their growth objectives and optimize their return on investment. This strategy makes it possible to target very specific audiences through specialized affiliates.
Advantages and disadvantages of affiliation for e-commerce entrepreneurs
Why affiliate marketing?
It’s easy to see that affiliate marketing is a powerful strategy for e-tailers. It enables you to increase sales without requiring a large initial investment. By collaborating with affiliates, you can share responsibility and minimize financial risk. This model also offers the opportunity to explore new markets and reach a wider audience. Your online store can also benefit from rapid, measurable growth.
Points to bear in mind
However, affiliate marketing presents challenges that cannot be ignored. Over-reliance on affiliates, for example, can undermine traffic and conversion. Managing partnerships requires constant monitoring to ensure that affiliates meet quality standards. You also need to remain vigilant against the risk of fraud or non-compliant behavior, which could damage your brand image.
Find out how Casaneo can help you structure your affiliate marketing strategy.
Winning strategies for integrating affiliation into your e-commerce business
Would you like to launch an affiliate program? Here are the steps you need to follow to effectively integrate this winning strategy into your e-commerce business
Define your goals
Start by identifying the products or services you want to promote. Prioritize those that have a particular margin or appeal to your target audience. These strategic choices will determine the direction of your program.
Choose the right affiliates
Look for partners who share your values and understand your market’s expectations. This may include specialized influencers, bloggers or complementary sites. A good affinity between your store and your affiliates is essential to maximize results.
Use a reliable platform
Affiliate management requires powerful tools for tracking sales, paying commissions and analyzing results. With Casaneo, you can manage your affiliate program optimally.
Track performance
Regularly analyze your program data. Find out which affiliates are performing best, which products are generating the most sales, and adjust your strategies accordingly. This ongoing optimization ensures maximum return on investment.
Simplify your management and maximize your results with Casaneo. Boost your e-commerce today.
Affiliate marketing tools and platforms: choosing the right partner
Affiliate marketing tools enable you to track, manage and optimize your partnerships to maximize your online sales. Compare the options available to find the one that meets your needs. Solutions vary in terms of features, such as performance tracking, automated payments and affiliate management.
Some platforms stand out for their ease of use and efficiency. For example, Casaneo offers advanced features tailored to online stores, such as intuitive dashboards, precise commission tracking and dedicated support. These features ensure optimum control of your affiliate campaigns.
To choose the ideal solution, also assess your specific needs. Prioritize criteria such as easy integration with your site, data transparency and customer support. Make sure, too, that the chosen platform fosters smooth collaboration with your affiliates to maintain a relationship of trust.
Affiliation is a powerful strategy for e-tailers wishing to develop their online sales without high initial investment. By choosing the right partners, optimizing your links and using high-performance platforms, you can turn your online store into a lasting success.
Casaneo, expert in affiliate marketing in the fashion and home sectors, offers over 10 years’ experience and a network of more than 3,800 affiliates. Contact them to take your sales to the next level.
