DTC POD: Trends, Tools, & Tactics for Modern Affiliate Marketing

This week, we’re joined by Noah Tucker, the founder of Social Snowball — an automated affiliate and referral marketing platform for e-commerce that drives significant revenue for over 2,000 brands, including Solawave, Obvi, Javy Coffee, and a whole bunch more.

In this episode of DTC POD, Noah and Blaine go deep on affiliate strategies for consumer brands, and the ways top brands are setting themselves up to drive significant revenue growth.

We cover how to find and choose the right influencers, why it’s important to keep the activation process as smooth as possible, what brands can do to keep affiliates engaged, and how to measure the success of an affiliate program.

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Fav Quotes from Episode #335

“Brands used to partner with influencers because they wanted content and they maybe wanted to build brand awareness. But those were really the only two goals of the partnership with an influencer. And then today, since paid ads are just becoming more expensive, less reliable, brands are turning to find, are looking to find other acquisition channels. And of course influencer is a great one.”

— Noah Tucker, 00:03:57 to 00:04:20

“What it really comes down to is finding the right influencer to be an affiliate. And there's things that you need to look for to find the right influencer, because you could find an influencer that has a really good engagement rate, the perfect aesthetic, that matches the vibe of your brand. But the truth is, a lot of influencers don't drive revenue. And obviously, like, the whole point of this affiliate partnership is you want them to be driving revenue. The most important thing I would look for is are they actively tagging or posting affiliate links of other brands consistently."

— Noah Tucker, 00:16:11 to 00:16:23

“Day one, I think the lowest hanging fruit would probably be turning customers into affiliates because it’s a lot of just setting up these automations, the thank you page emails, and then it pretty much runs on its own."

— Noah Tucker, 00:25:51 to 00:26:00

3 Best DTC Practices from Noah Tucker

1. Activate your customers as affiliates

Many brands miss out on a significant revenue opportunity by not effectively turning their satisfied customers into referral partners. The key is to make the affiliate sign-up process as frictionless as possible, even integrating it into the customer's purchase journey.

By treating customers as affiliates from the get-go, you can tap into the power of word-of-mouth marketing.

2. Benchmark affiliate commissions against paid ads

Affiliate marketing should be viewed as a complementary customer acquisition channel, and commissions should be set at a level that aligns with your brand's target cost per acquisition for paid ads.

Offering competitive commissions will allow your brand to attract high-quality affiliates and influencers who can deliver profitable referrals.

Noah recommends starting with a commission rate between 10% to 30%, depending on factors such as the product's average order value and profit margins. This approach ensures that affiliate partnerships remain a cost-effective way to acquire new customers.

3. Focus on influencers that actively share affiliate links

A quick scan of an influencer's social media profiles can reveal whether they are likely to be an effective affiliate partner.

When recruiting influencers for affiliate partnerships, look for individuals who consistently post affiliate links rather than ones with just large followings. These influencers have an engaged audience that trusts their recommendations, making them more likely to convert followers into customers. Partnering with them can lead to a higher return on investment for your brand.