April 15, 2025
In today’s crowded digital world, cutting through the noise to get your brand noticed is more challenging than ever. But there’s one approach that continues to prove its worth: affiliate marketing. More than just a sales strategy, affiliate marketing is a powerful way to boost brand awareness, build trust with new audiences, and create lasting impressions. In fact, affiliate marketing now drives approximately 16% of all e-commerce sales in the U.S., on par with email marketing and ahead of display ads, according to Business Insider.
How does it work? Brands team up with content creators, influencers, bloggers, or even other businesses that help promote their products or services. In return, those partners (affiliates) earn commissions on any sales or leads that they generate. It’s a win-win. Businesses get more visibility and only pay for results, while affiliates get rewarded for their efforts.
Affiliate marketing isn’t just about sales, however. It’s also about trust, reach, and relevance, which are the pillars of brand awareness in today’s marketplace.
At its core, affiliate marketing is simple: partners help spread the word about your product, and they get a cut of the action when someone makes a purchase through their unique link. Here’s a quick breakdown of how it usually works:
This performance-based model means you’re only paying for results, not vague impressions or just clicks. Better yet, affiliates tend to be people with influence in specific communities, giving your brand targeted exposure and more credibility than a typical ad might offer.
One of the biggest benefits of affiliate marketing is how it introduces your brand to new, often niche audiences in an organic way. When a trusted blogger or influencer recommends a product, their audience listens. That’s because there’s already a relationship of trust — and your brand gets to ride that wave.
Imagine a fitness gear company working with a popular wellness influencer. Or a new productivity app being reviewed by a tech YouTuber. These partnerships give your brand two things that traditional ads often lack: credibility and context.
Some other examples:
According to a study by Awin, 79% of brands say affiliate marketing helps them drive customer acquisition, and 83% find it improves brand visibility.
Each of these scenarios drives awareness, but also trust, and trust is what leads to sales.
Affiliate programs work best when there’s something in it for everyone. That means giving affiliates the right incentives to promote your brand, and giving their audience a reason to act. Here are some proven incentive strategies:
When affiliates are motivated, they’re more likely to create high-quality, engaging content that gets your brand noticed. And when their audience benefits, they’re more likely to convert. Case in point: Shopify's affiliate program offers up to $150 per referral and has been credited with significantly increasing awareness among entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Even in a digital world, physical branded merchandise still has real marketing power. Giving affiliates swag such as branded T-shirts, hats, or mugs can make them feel more connected to your brand and encourage them to show it off. Here are some creative ways to use promotional products in your affiliate strategy:
These tactics turn your brand into something tangible, helping it stick in people’s minds longer than a digital ad ever could.
To make the most of your affiliate program, you’ll want to keep an eye on performance. Metrics help you spot what’s working and where there’s room to improve. Some key metrics to track:
With these insights, you can refine your strategy, adjust incentives, and help affiliates succeed, all while boosting your brand’s visibility in the process. For example, affiliate programs run by mazon Associates have reported average conversion rates of up to 10% — significantly higher than typical banner ad CTRs.
Affiliate marketing does more than drive revenue; it creates real connections between your brand and new customers. It leverages trust, authenticity, and creativity to help your brand show up in the right places at the right time. Whether you’re a growing startup or an established player, affiliate marketing can help:
When you throw in creative incentives and branded swag, you’re not just increasing sales, you’re planting the seeds of lasting brand recognition.
Affiliate marketing can be a powerful relationship builder when done right. It puts your name in front of the right set of eyes, in the right voice, and at the right moment. For example, consider how a pet food company might work hand in hand with rescue organisations to promote specialty diets. Through a strategic combination of blog content, Instagram Reels, and pet-friendly influencers, these specialty products can reach the desired audience.
Even in niche markets – say a home brewing supply store – small businesses can collaborate with YouTube creators to produce reviews of equipment, share recipes, and show potential customers through social proof that there are products on the market they didn’t even know they wanted.
Partnerships such as these create touchpoints the feel natural, not forced. The result is real-world familiarity with your brand. Then, you can take it a step up with thoughtful perks and tangible swag. That way, your affiliated aren’t just promoters, they are champions of your brand spreading awareness that sticks – and ultimately converts. And with more than 80% of brands now using affiliate programs as part of their marketing mix (Statista), there’s no better time to harness this cost-effective, proven channel for brand growth.
Remember going forward that affiliate marketing isn’t just about getting clicks. Rather, it’s about building a brand that people remember and want to recommend.
Author bio:
Howie Turkenkopf is VP of Marketing and Business Development at Stran Promotions Solutions. He has led marketing at Stran for 10 years and helps convey Stran’s portfolio of services and its value proposition internally and externally to clients and prospects. Prior to working at Stran, Turkenkopf spent 15 years in the live music industry in marketing, merchandising and event operations roles.
