Don't Default to Paying Affiliates Higher Commissions To Boost Interest

"What if I told you that your best growth opportunity is sitting right there in your affiliate dashboard, and it won't cost you a single penny more?"

Her cost per acquisition had crept up 40% in three months and her first instinct was the same as every other ecommerce founder I've coached: throw more money at the problem.

She seemed skeptical. But three weeks later, she’d generated £12,000 in additional revenue, recruited 12 new gold-star affiliates organically and built the strongest community engagement her brand had ever seen.

The process? She stopped treating her affiliates like commission-collecting strangers and started treating them like the content creators they actually are.

Most ecommerce founders approach affiliate partnerships with a purely transactional mindset: "I'll give you X% commission if you send me sales." It's a relationship built entirely on financial exchange, which means when performance dips, the only lever you can pull is increasing commission rates or finding new affiliates.

But here's what we're missing: Content creators don't just want money, they want audience growth.

Every influencer, blogger and content creator is fighting the same battle you are: how to grow their reach and build a sustainable audience. When you only offer them commission, you're solving just half their problem.

The solution is simple, which is probably why so few brands do it consistently. Instead of just paying your affiliates, start promoting their content to your audience.

Here's the exact framework my coaching client used:

She went through her affiliate dashboard and identified her top 5 performers from the previous month. But instead of looking at just sales data, she looked at the quality of their content. Which affiliates had created genuinely helpful reviews, tutorials or posts about her products?

One affiliate, a micro-influencer with 8,000 followers, had written a detailed blog post about her 30-day skincare routine promoting their products. The post was thorough, honest and included before-and-after photos. It had generated decent sales, but more importantly, it was content my client’s own audience would genuinely value.

Instead of sending a generic "thanks for the sales" email, she sent this message:

"Hi Jessica! I absolutely loved your 30-day skincare routine post, it's exactly the kind of real, detailed content my community craves. Would you be open to me featuring it in next week's newsletter? I'd love to share it with my 15,000 subscribers and will make sure to mention that readers who want to support your content can purchase through your affiliate links."

Jessica's response was immediate and enthusiastic. Why? Because she wasn't just offering money… she was offered a chance to align with a brand she loved and to drive audience and subscriber growth.

In her next newsletter, she dedicated a section to "Community Spotlight" and featured Jessica's blog post. But here's the key: she was completely transparent about the relationship.

The section read: "This week's spotlight goes to Jessica (+ insta link), who documented her incredible 30-day transformation using our vitamin C routine. Her blog post (link below) is a must-read for anyone starting their skincare journey. Full transparency: Jess earns a commission when you purchase through her links, which helps support her amazing content creation. Win-win!"

But the real magic happened in the weeks that followed.

Within two weeks of that first newsletter feature, my client received five more enquiries from her newsletter subscribers asking about affiliate opportunities. These weren't random strangers, they were engaged community members who already loved the brand and had built-in audiences with aligned target markets.

One of these new affiliates was a fitness trainer with 12,000 Instagram followers who had been a customer for eight months. She'd never considered becoming an affiliate until she saw how she’d promoted Jessica's content.

Word spread quickly through her affiliate network about the newsletter features. Suddenly, affiliates weren't just posting quick "swipe up" stories, they were creating more thoughtful, detailed content because they knew it might get featured to the brand’s entire audience.

The quality of affiliate-generated content improved dramatically across the board.

The transparency about affiliate relationships actually increased trust rather than decreased it. Her audience appreciated the honesty, and many commented that they were happy to support both the brand and the content creators she featured.

This transparency also positioned her as a brand that genuinely cared about the success of her partners, which attracted higher-quality affiliate applications.

Most importantly, her reliance on paid advertising has since decreased. The affiliate program became a reliable, diversified traffic source that actually improved over time rather than becoming more expensive. What was a passive marketing ‘add-on’ in affiliate marketing was now a growth engine for the business working to a collaborative, easy-to-manage framework. Sure she was paying out additional commissions (10%). However, her pricing strategy had already accounted for this for newsletter registrations and retention incentives. A 10:1 ROAS blew her Meta Ads ROAS out of the water. And yes, I know you shouldn’t view ROAS as a key metric, I’m just presenting it here as an example 🙂

Set aside 30 minutes every week to review your affiliate performance, but don't just look at sales numbers. Look for:

Get link alerts from a tool like Ahrefs or even Google Search Console so you know when new articles linking to your store are indexed. Here’s a shoutout to Ben who featured me in his article on The Top 10 Ecommerce Mentors in the UK. Thanks Ben 🙂 I only found this through ahrefs link alerts.

Here's the exact template that works:

"Hi [Name]! I loved your recent [specific content] about [specific product/experience]. The [specific detail you liked] was especially helpful. Would you be interested in me featuring this in next week's newsletter? I'd share it with my [X] subscribers and mention that readers can support your content through your affiliate links. Let me know if that sounds good!"

Create a recurring "Community Spotlight" or "Customer Stories" section in your newsletter. Always include:

After featuring an affiliate, follow up with them about the results (there’s a likely chance that they’ve already done the same for you). Share traffic numbers, engagement metrics, or sales data. This shows you're genuinely invested in their success and often leads to even better content creation.

Instead of just linking to affiliate content, create short video testimonials where you personally recommend their posts. This adds a personal touch that increases both trust and click-through rates.

Partner with multiple affiliates to create themed content bundles. For example, feature three different affiliates' workout routines in a single newsletter, with each earning commissions on their respective recommended products.

Invite top-performing affiliates to co-create content with you. This could be Instagram Live sessions, podcast interviews, or collaborative blog posts. Then promote this content through both your channels and theirs.

The magic of this strategy is that it doesn't feel like a business transaction. Don't create a formal "newsletter feature program" with applications and requirements. Keep it organic and based on genuine appreciation for quality content.

Selectivity is key. If you feature every affiliate, it loses its impact and value. Only feature content that genuinely adds value to your audience.

Always be clear about affiliate relationships. This isn't about hiding the commercial aspect, it's about being transparent while focusing on the value exchange.

This strategy works because it addresses a fundamental shift in how commerce happens online. Consumers increasingly want to buy from brands that feel authentic and community-driven. They want to support creators they follow and trust brands that support those creators.

When you cross-promote your affiliates' content, you're not just driving sales, you're building a ecosystem where everyone wins:

Pick your top affiliate from last month. Find their best piece of content about your product. Send them a message expressing genuine appreciation and asking if you can feature it in your next newsletter.

That's it. No complex systems, no additional software, no budget increases.

Just one message that transforms a transactional relationship into a genuine partnership.

My partnership coaching client’s £12,000 revenue boost in three weeks started with exactly this: one message to one affiliate about one piece of content.

The hardest part isn't the implementation, it's breaking the habit of reaching for the ad spend increase when you need growth. Instead, reach for the relationships you've already built. Affiliate marketing will deliver you compounding growth. I’m guessing Social Snowball got it’s name for that exact reason!

Your growth-stage affiliate partners are content creators first and commission earners second. When you honour that reality, everything else falls into place.

I keep talking about un-silo-ing (new word) your marketing work. This isn’t affiliate marketing strategy. It’s not email marketing strategy. It’s not SEO strategy. And that’s the problem many brands face when they outsource all of these categories of work. There’s no blended strategy. What I’ve just shared above? It’s an ‘all of the above’ growth strategy. It’s profitable revenue growth. Pure and simple GOOD growth.

What affiliate will you reach out to first? The transformation starts with one conversation.