Affiliate marketing is one of the primary drivers of e-commerce sales
Not fully exploiting its potential means handing a piece of the market to more agile competitors. Between affiliate programs in a vegetative state and a handful of exemplary ones generating impressive results, there's everyone else — the majority of e-commerce brands. Some have a false sense of success, unaware that the ceiling is far higher. Others know something isn't right, but lack a clear idea of how to improve.
The solution is simpler than it seems. But before we get there, let's establish who actually needs it.
Here's a quick diagnostic. Answer four simple questions. Every "no" is a signal that it's time for change.
Question 1: Does your affiliate panel show the actual payout to each individual publisher?
To be precise — not the network's fee, but the amount reaching the entity actually generating the sales.
A "no" here means you're accepting affiliate marketing in its retro form. Years ago, Google SEM campaigns were managed by agencies on fixed CPC rates, with agencies maximising their own margin regardless of traffic quality. Today, that's unthinkable in SEM. In affiliate marketing, it still happens. As a result, affiliate networks may focus more on maximising their own margin than on growing your sales.
Diversifying publisher payouts is a strategic element of a well-run affiliate program. It should be built on analysis of sales volume, publisher position in the purchase path, basket value, and competitor commission rates — always with the advertiser in the loop. Without this knowledge, you're likely overpaying some publishers and underpaying others, and your overall sales volume is suffering for it.
Question 2: Does your affiliate panel show the source domain responsible for each sale?
Without precise information on where a buyer came from, you have a serious problem. Your money may be going to fraudsters rather than honest affiliates. Despite improving fraud detection, bad actors are thriving — mistyped domain redirects, fake cookie-policy links leading to advertiser stores, and many other tactics are still widespread.
Fraudsters hide at the end of long chains of intermediary entities, appearing in statistics only as part of a broader segment. Without precise source data, you can't detect or eliminate these abuses. This inflates affiliate acquisition costs at the expense of both the advertiser and honest partners. If a network is blocking source domain information, ask yourself: why, and in whose interest?
Question 3: Can you contact publishers directly, without going through the network?
Building a partnership program without direct contact with your partners sounds absurd — yet in practice, direct contact is often blocked. The advertiser sets the payout, the network presents the terms to the publisher minus its margin, and the publisher either delivers sales on those terms or doesn't. This model fails if you want real results. Partnership requires understanding the other party's expectations, capabilities, and constraints. Genuine collaboration is impossible without a direct communication channel.
Question 4: Does your affiliate panel show all touchpoints on the purchase path?
Without full attribution visibility, you don't truly know what's driving your sales. There are entire categories of publishers — influencers chief among them — who show zero effectiveness in a last-click model, yet deeper analysis reveals they frequently initiate the sales process. Moreover, these initiations often involve brand-new customers, making them especially valuable from a lifetime value perspective.
If you want to build a holistic affiliate program that goes beyond coupon and cashback sites, you must reward not only last-click converters but also initiators and assists.
Every "no" can become a "yes" with in-house affiliate marketing
Until recently, going in-house meant committing enormous resources — rational only for the largest players. That's why GrowthLift was built: to make the transition to in-house affiliate marketing simple and cost-free. GrowthLift combines modern technology and an integrated publisher marketplace with access to strategic experts who can advise you — or take on operational tasks if needed. Most importantly, it gives advertisers full decision-making power, data access, and control at every step.
