The Evolution of Affiliate and Digital Marketing

 

Key Trends

Digital marketing continues to expand and is at the forefront of almost every brand’s marketing strategy. While the digital ecosystem is comprised of many different channels including search, social, display and many more, there has been one that continues to make a lasting impression. Affiliate marketing, which boasts impressive ROI, brand awareness and relatively minimal risk, has proven that it is a viable, growing industry. Since its inception in 1994, affiliate marketing has come a long way. It has overcome obstacles such as fraud and lackluster analytics, to eventually introducing innovative concepts such as attribution and targeting.

Below outlines key takeaways and trends around Affiliate and Digital Marketing.

  • The Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) format was very appealing as there was relatively no risk involved for the advertisers
  • In the beginning fraud ran rampant due to a lack of proper technology
  • Campaign targeting was no longer a one size fits all as it became easier to segment
  • The rise of technology platforms revolutionized the Affiliate industry to provide real-time analytics
  • Mobile spending is on the rise
  • Attribution and Real-time marketing provided granular insights into the customer journey
  • Affiliate marketing is predicted to reach $4.5 billion in spending in 2016

Sources: affiliatemarketertraining.com | emarketer.com | eboostconsulting.com | multichannelmerchant.com | digitalstrategyconsulting.com