February 16, 2022
Affiliate Marketing: The Secret Weapon Every Funded Startup Needs
Running a startup, let alone during a global pandemic, isn’t easy, especially when you’re up against much bigger, more established businesses with much deeper pockets. Some days can feel like a race for your very survival, on top of the ever-present pressure to grow your business, stay relevant, and top of mind with your customers. Welcome aboard the funded startup struggle bus.
We know you’ve got big goals. And not succeeding? Well, that is not an option. Jobs are on the line, your team is counting on you, and investment partners are expecting results.
Every bit of traction you can get to gain new customers counts, and for funded startups, affiliate marketing could be a gamechanger…but only when it’s done correctly from the beginning because there’s no time to waste on unproven tactics.
Here are four reasons why:
1. Social proof is great but NOT everything.
With over 2 billion people shopping online, social proof is definitely important. In fact, 93% of consumers say that online reviews influence their purchase decisions. That said, the social marketplace is incredibly crowded. Instead of getting lost in the cost and the clutter, the affiliate channel gives you a wide variety of opportunities across multiple publishers to rise above the noise and reach online purchasers.
2. Affiliate cost per sale is hard to beat.
Get this: A sale through Google Ads can cost as much as 20 times more than the same sale through affiliate marketing. Not to mention, a paid advertisement requires a big upfront cost without a guaranteed return. Affiliate marketing, on the other hand, doesn’t require a huge investment, and the performance-based model means advertisers only pay for what they get. Better yet, a well-crafted program that includes targeted content publishers can help increase your exposure and brand awareness. Additionally, getting mentions in the digital press often requires an affiliate program because many publications now count on monetized affiliate links in their articles.
3. When it comes to your reach, bigger is better.
For funded startups and huge enterprises alike, one thing’s for sure: Affiliate marketing is a proven way to increase your exposure to grow your customer base and build meaningful market share. Every publisher you partner with brings an established audience to the table, which they then steer directly to you. Even better, a diverse portfolio of publishers can help you reach new audiences that you’ve failed to connect with in the past through other forms of marketing.
4. Every second counts, and the clock never stops ticking.
As a startup, you don’t have a minute–or dollar–to spend testing unproven marketing channels or holding your breath for results that may never materialize. Unlike social, email nurturing, and other sales efforts that take time to yield results, affiliate marketing can be planned and launched quickly–and produce meaningful results quickly, too. At PartnerCentric, we know speed-to-performance is critical. With your growth goals front and center, we offer turnkey programs to get you started on day one–and provide the metrics to prove your concept and guide the growth of your program.
PartnerCentric is also the only agency in the industry that combines award-winning account management with our proprietary software tools. We call this our Technology Enabled Account Management (TEAM), and this unique approach gives you clarity and control over all of your investments in the affiliate channel, true attribution alignment, and the peace of mind that your brand is protected from ad fraud. Plain and simple, you’re doing something different and approaching your vertical in a whole new way. Our approach is a different, disruptive way of tackling this channel for a better experience and better results.
And did we mention our account managers have the highest experience level in the industry? Over fourteen years, on average. That’s a big deal, especially for startups because you need a team that can hit the ground running from day one and will never learn on your dime. If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it’s that flexibility is everything in this space. Our team has the experience and relationships they need to find the right partner opportunities for you and, if necessary, to quickly make strategic changes. With fast-growing startups just like yours, we’ve not only disrupted existing categories but we’ve also defined brand new ones for more than 15 years.
In fact, PartnerCentric’s work has helped over 50 brands either get acquired or successfully launch an IPO–and we’re just getting started. Right now, eight of our clients are in the process of achieving the same momentous milestones.
Get in touch at partnercentric.com today.