Affiliate Network

What is an Affiliate Network?

An affiliate network is a type of ad network that connects advertisers and publishers through a performance-based advertising model, such as cost per action (CPA). While affiliate networks are built technologically similar to most ad networks, they typically work as an intermediary that curates advertisers and publishers and facilitates manual connections in a marketplace. Affiliate publishers typically include influencers, website owners, app developers, bloggers, and other platforms. In affiliate marketing, advertisers pay affiliate publishers a commission for driving a specific action, such as leads or sales.

How Does an Affiliate Network Work?

  1. Publishers sign up to an affiliate network to explore opportunities to partner with advertisers. 
  2. Advertisers sign up to an affiliate network to set up performance-based ad campaigns and connect with publishers. 
  3. Publishers can choose to connect with an advertiser, or vice versa. An affiliate marketing manager will typically help guide a publisher or advertiser to the right relationships. 
  4. Once terms are agreed upon, publishers will follow advertiser guidelines to promote the offer.
  5. Publishers get paid by the advertiser for each specific action. The affiliate network typically provides robust reporting for both the publisher and advertiser. 

Benefits for Publishers and Developers

There are many affiliate networks to choose from, so it can be challenging to decide on the best one for a specific publisher.

For publishers, it’s important to choose an affiliate network that works with advertisers that will be most synergistic with their type of traffic and niche.

Monetization Opportunities

Affiliate networks enable publishers to monetize their app, game, or website with an additional income stream. When publishers choose the right advertiser campaigns to promote, the results usually significantly outperforms typical advertising formats like banner ads or video ads that pay a CPM. For example, a financial influencer may earn $50 for every user that signs up to a particular financial service, whereas the same ad in a banner format is likely to earn a $1 CPM. 

Variety of Offers

Affiliate networks typically host a number of offers either focused on a few types of advertisers or across various industries. Publishers can choose from offers that best align with their audience to maximize the chance of successful conversions. 

Support and Resources

Affiliate networks typically provide publishers with platform tools, hands on account management, and other resources to help them succeed. This support can include access to marketing materials, guidance on best practices, and assistance with optimizing their campaigns.

Benefits for Advertisers 

For advertisers, it’s important to choose an affiliate network that offers access to a wide range of publishers. 

Access to a Broad Base of Publishers

Affiliate networks give access to a board base of publishers who have audiences across various niches. This allows advertisers to quickly tap into and deploy ad campaigns without building a direct relationship with each publisher. 

Performance-Based Marketing

Affiliate networks operate on a performance-based model, meaning advertisers only pay for actual results driven, such as sales or leads. This model ensures that advertising budgets are spent efficiently, as budgets are tied directly to measurable outcomes.

Scale

Affiliate networks enable advertisers to scale their marketing efforts quickly by leveraging a broad base of publishers combined with a tracking platform. This scale and technology are valuable for businesses looking to expand their reach without developing their own platform or increasing their marketing team size.

What’s The Difference? Ad Network vs Affiliate Network 

While most ad networks and affiliate networks are now technologically similar, there are some key differences between the two.

Ad networks typically offer an ad unit that publishers will integrate. The ad network chooses the right offer to show in the ad unit depending on the targeting parameters. So, an ad network may still work solely on a performance-basis, however, most of the revenue generated is through a programmatic/real-time ad unit.

Affiliate networks are typically a marketplace that connects publishers and advertisers to connect manually via their tech platform. There is often more manual work involved to promote an offer with an affiliate network. 

Explore More Terms  

  1. Ad Network
  2. Cost Per Action (CPA) 
  3. Performance Marketing

Why Choose Adscend Media?

At Adscend Media, we offer performance-based ad solutions that cater to both advertisers and publishers. With our focus on rewards-based ad formats and performance-driven results, we help you maximize engagement and revenue. 

Interested in exploring further? Contact us to learn more.