The content you share as an affiliate marketer can make or break your career in this competitive industry.
Affiliate content is strategic content created to promote a product or service in a style that engages with your website visitors in a way that generates conversions and clicks and drives sales.
We know that the best type of content in affiliate marketing has to be valuable and consistent.
In this article, we list the most successful content types for affiliate marketers that will help to boost their affiliate sales and commissions.
Blog posts are the backbone of affiliate marketing content because they provide detailed, valuable information that helps build trust with readers.
They allow for in-depth product reviews, comparisons, and tutorials, making it easier to naturally incorporate affiliate links.
Additionally, blog posts can use SEO techniques to rank high in search engine results which will attract organic traffic.
Blog posts should feature detailed reviews and comparisons that help readers make informed purchasing decisions. For example, their articles include extensive product testing, interviews with experts, and real-world usage scenarios.
Your goal must be to enhance the content's credibility and value. Each review should clearly state the affiliate links and any existing affiliate partnerships.
In essence, blogging works very well in affiliate marketing because of low overhead. You don't have to deal with holding inventory, storage, hiring staff, managing products, and so on. You just need website hosting and writing skills.
The three major benefits of running a blog as an affiliate marketer are:
Examples:
No wonder all the best affiliate marketers start from a blog and build their businesses from there. The most famous affiliate blogs include Smart Passive Income, Neil Patel's Blog, and Authority Hacker.
One of the most famous affiliate sites Wirecutter (previously The Wirecutter), was founded by Brian Lam in 2011 as a product review blog.
In 2016, Wirecutter was purchased by The New York Times Company for about $30 million. Today, the blog is considered to be the best example of affiliate marketing content that has been done right.
YouTube is the powerhouse of affiliate marketers. Why? Because it has 2.7 billion monthly users around the world.
They spend 1 billion hours watching Youtube videos every single day. That's a major source for potential target audiences in affiliate marketing.
In essence, YouTube videos are an excellent content format for affiliate marketing because they engage the viewers visually and directly.
In videos, marketers can demonstrate products in action, and show their features in real-life.
This visual engagement builds trust as viewers can see and hear the reviewer, creating a personal connection.
What's particularly useful is that videos retain audience attention longer than text, increasing the chance of conversions.
Additionally, YouTube, being the second largest search engine, offers significant SEO benefits as videos can rank on both YouTube and Google.
Affiliate links in video descriptions and end screens provide easy click-through opportunities for viewers.
YouTube videos cover various content types, such as reviews, tutorials, unboxings, guides, and so on.
The three major benefits of creating YouTube videos as an affiliate marketer are:
Example:
An excellent example of video content is the Unbox Therapy YouTube channel, which effectively incorporates affiliate links in video descriptions through product unboxings and reviews.
It has 24.5M subscribers, and each of their video amass at least one million views. Their most popular video titled "iPhone 6 Plus Bend Test" has 73M views.
This is the most common type of affiliate marketing. Creating good product reviews is one of the most effective ways to convince people to buy your affiliate links.
The reason why product reviews are so successful has to do with the fact that people want to know the best options before buying.
There's so much information and paid advertising on the internet that unbiased and genuine product reviews are considered a very legitimate source for product information.
A well-crafted product or service review should:
The three major benefits of choosing product reviews as your go-to affiliate content are:
Examples:
Some of the most successful product review content has been shared by sites like Wirecutter, PCmag, Byrdie, The Spruce, and many more.
Tutorials are some of the best affiliate marketing content because they provide practical, step-by-step instructions that solve specific problems.
The practical application makes tutorials and how-to guides particularly appealing to the audience.
This is a hands-on approach to engage viewers by showing them exactly how to use a product or service, step by step.
How-to tutorials immediately make the content highly relevant and useful. As trust is built through clear and helpful guidance, viewers are more likely to follow through on affiliate recommendations.
Tutorials also naturally integrate affiliate links, as viewers seeking solutions are already primed for purchasing the product being demonstrated.
Additionally, tutorials can be easily optimized for SEO, drawing consistent organic traffic from users searching for how-to solutions.
The three major benefits of creating tutorials and how-to guides as an affiliate marketer are:
The best thing about tutorial content is that it can be used for any niche. It doesn't matter the product or service you promote; tutorials will be equally relevant since people want to know how to use, build, apply, and do things to get the most out of a thing you sell.
Tutorials will always be the most effective and timeless marketing tactic that's resistant to market changes and new trends.
There's tons of information about everything out there. No wonder comparison articles and videos perform so well in affiliate marketing—they help people make a choice.
This format provides clear pros and cons, which allows readers or viewers to see the differences and similarities at the same time.
Because product or service comparisons present objective information unlike reviews (where marketers share their own impressions of using a product), comparison content builds trust and positions the affiliate marketer as an authority.
These articles and videos usually attract high-intent users who are close to making a purchase decision.
Additionally, they rank well in search engines for keywords like "best" or "vs," driving targeted traffic instantly.
Most importantly, comparison articles and videos make users feel confident about their choices. This leads to more frequent use of affiliate links.
The three major benefits of creating product or service comparisons are:
Podcasts are excellent for affiliate marketing because they offer an intimate, engaging format that builds a loyal audience.
Listeners often tune in regularly, creating a strong connection with the host. This trust makes them more receptive to recommendations.
Podcasts can seamlessly integrate affiliate promotions within the content, making them feel like natural endorsements rather than intrusive ads.
The format allows for detailed discussions, giving the host time to explain the benefits of a product or service thoroughly.
No wonder podcasts have been so popular lately. They offer the flexibility to listen while commuting, exercising, or doing household chores. Because they're so convenient, the likelihood your audience will hear your full message is higher than in articles.
Being audio-based, podcasts also reach an audience that prefers listening over reading or watching, expanding your potential affiliate market.
The three major benefits of creating podcasts as an affiliate marketer are:
Examples:
The Smart Passive Income podcast by Pat Flynn is a great example of podcast content used in affiliate marketing. It integrates affiliate offers within each podcast series in a way that it aligns well with the subject that's being discussed. It has over 47 million downloads and is among the top iTunes business podcast.
Listicles are very effective for affiliate marketing because they offer concise and easily digestible information.
They feature a straightforward format and can be consumed even if you are really busy.
Readers always appreciate the clear structure since they can quickly scan for relevant points.
Each item in the list provides an opportunity to feature different products, increasing the chance of clicks on affiliate links.
Moreover, listicles naturally rank well in search engines due to their popular format and can target various keywords, driving organic traffic.
They're also super shareable, broadening their reach through social media.
The three major benefits of creating listicles as an affiliate marketer are:
Case studies are a format popular among B2B marketers and affiliates.
They feature real-world examples and success stories that illustrate how the affiliate product solved a problem or delivered benefits.
This problem-solution approach is one of the most effective methods to drive conversions since they offer tangible evidence.
What's more, case studies can address potential concerns and doubts by giving useful advice on what to do in a particular situation.
Evidence-based content builds trust, enhances credibility, and builds authority and reputation. All of these are crucial for driving more conversions and convincing people to buy.
The three major benefits of sharing case studies as an affiliate marketer are:
E-Books and playbooks are a great affiliate content format for providing in-depth expertise and showcasing your knowledge to your audience.
This type of content is normally provided for users for free, and it's a super effective way to generate qualified leads.
It's not as easily digestible as other content forms like podcasts or listicles, but in the long run they are very effective.
In affiliate marketing, most of the content relies on visual formats, like YouTube videos, TikTok, or social media channels. But E-books not only capture leads for your marketing efforts but also create a perfect space for sharing detailed affiliated promos.
The three major benefits of using e-Books and playbooks as an affiliate marketing strategy are:
Email campaigns are still one of the best digital marketing channels and are very relevant in affiliate marketing.
Most affiliate marketers use email marketing to earn money. Their goal is to build solid email lists of potential buyers that can be used for targeted campaigns.
Email campaigns excel in promoting a product or service to followers who were already interested in similar items. Follow-up emails can easily increase chances if conversion.
Email marketing can be used in combination with E-Books, where users sign up by providing their email addresses and agreeing to receive emails with similar offers.That's where targeted email campaigns come into play.
For example, if you are promoting a software product, you can use lemlist to send personalized emails to a list of potential leads, highlighting how the product can solve specific pain points.
The automated follow-ups can remind them of the benefits and include testimonials or case studies to further build your authority and trust.
Campaign sequences can gradually introduce different features of the software, encourage trial sign-ups, and ultimately convert leads into customers through targeted affiliate links.
The three major benefits of using email campaigns in affiliate marketing are:
This one is a no-brainer.
Social media is home to affiliate marketers called influencers, who make their money by promoting brands and their products, sharing affiliate links, doing sponsored posts, making public appearances on other creators' media channels, and so on.
All the most popular social media influencers have enormous audiences with hundreds of millions of followers. The reach you can potentially get on social media is not comparable to anything.
All the successful affiliate marketers have active Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn (B2B affiliate marketers) accounts where they engage with an audience on a daily basis.
And since everyone's on social media these days, there's always an audience for your niche. You can share everything from product demos to short tutorials, from daily reels with call-to-actions.
The best thing about doing your affiliate marketing on social media is that you can create interactive stories, influencer endorsements, and content created by users, that seamlessly integrate your affiliate links.
The pros of social media in affiliate marketing are that:
Examples:
The best examples of affiliate marketers on social media are Charli D'amelio (155.5M followers on TikTok), Shradha Sharma (over 2M followers on LinkedIn), Neil Patel (466.2K followers on X).
The next step from creating social media posts is becoming a solid influencer with a big following and many affiliate partnerships.
Knowing that influencer marketing is one of the most powerful marketing methods, it's no surprise that influencer collaborations are very effective in enhancing your affiliate marketing efforts.
In affiliate marketing, Influencer and brand collaborations are very effective because:
Unlike sharing your posts or reels on social media, influencer collaborations with brands are more strategic and focus on long-term goals.
This type of partnership between companies and influential individuals are connected with a specific niche or industry.
Typically, influencer affiliates use bigger affiliate marketing network for such partnerships. Here are three main categories of influencers:
What sets influencer collaborations apart from other formats of affiliate marketing is that there's a huge potential for big money.
To put that into perspective, these are the highest paid TikTok influencers:
Examples:
CJ Affiliate, formerly Commission Junction, is a famous affiliate marketing network where influencers can feel at home.
Big and established brands gather at CJ Affiliate, and, most of the time, they are on the lookout for the next best influencer to become the face of their affiliate program.
All your affiliate marketing content should be optimized for search engines.
Otherwise, you won't get any traffic to your blog or video, and your promotions will never reach their potential buyers.In other words, SEO is a must for all the successful affiliate campaigns because:
There are many tactics to optimize your content for SEO, but the most common ones include:
Deals and coupons are extremely effective tools for an affiliate marketer with digital coupon redemption on track to surpass $90 billion in 2022.
This kind of content allows your audience to make use of your affiliate offers and as a result get a discount, a freebie, or multiple items for the price of one.
They’re a much needed final push when a person is a step away from buying.
Digital deals and coupons can take various forms, like:
What makes deals and coupons very effective, is that you don’t have to convince people to use them.
People search for deals themselves, and it’s usually at the final stage of a buyer’s journey, which means they are ready to make a purchase.
Gift guides is another very effective type of content you can create as an affiliate. They work because they’re both super convenient and helpful.
They’re also something that never gets old— we all have birthdays, weddings, holidays, mom’s and dad’s days, there’s an occasion for everything.
The best way to structure your gift guide is to approach it from a comparison guide perspective.
Include things like prices, features, dimensions, user ratings, and all the relevant info you yourself would like to know when buying something for someone.
Make sure your readers not only get a good view of the best gift ideas but they can also compare their pros and cons, and unique features.
The proven best formula for creating a gift guide is:
Keyword: best gifts
Formula: [adjective] best gifts [profession]; best gifts [age]; best gifts [hobby]
The best-performing gift guides that have high potential to sell products through affiliate links must include:
The content you create must reflect your niche, the audience you engage with, and the life you lead with your interests.
The content format must align with the channels where you promote your affiliate links.
We can conclude that content that has these features is likely to succeed better in generating money from affiliate links:
G2 Rating | Price | Best for | Standout feature | Con | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.9 star star star star star | $30/mo $75/mo $2,999/mo | Large, distributed sales teams | AI evaluation precision, gamified KPIs | Lack of tracking system | |
4.6 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Sales operations and finance teams | Powerful configurability | Limited training resources and complex to navigate | |
4.4 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Mid-market and enterprise businesses | Comprehensive incentive management | Potentially high cost and steep learning curve | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | $15/user/mo $40/user/mo Enterprise: custom price | Complex sales structures and businesses of all sizes | Complex sales structures and businesses of all sizes | Steep learning curve | |
4.6 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Collaborative teams | Connected planning | Complexity and steep learning curve | |
4.6 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies with complex sales structures | Complex incentive compensation management (ICM) with high efficiency and accuracy | Complexity for smaller teams and potentially high costs | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies who want to automate commission calculations and payouts | Simplicity and ease of use | Lack of features like redirection | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | $30/user/mo $35/user/mo Custom: upon request | Businesses that need a comprehensive and user-friendly sales compensation management software | Ease of use and adoption | Lack of ability to configure the product based on user needs | |
4.8 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies with modern sales culture and businesses who want real-time insights | A built-in dispute management and real-time visibility | Users say it works slowly, customer support is slow | |
4.9 star star star star star | $30/user/mo $50/user/mo | Smaller sales teams | Powerful automation | Lesser user base and average user interface | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies with scalable needs | Automated Commission Calculations | Lack of filtering by date, no mobile app |
PRM Tool | Rating | Feature | Pro | Con | Mobile App | Integrations | Free Plan | Pricing |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.65 star star star star star-half | Org-wide alignment | User-friendly layout and database | Suboptimal as a personal CRM | square-check | Lack of tracking system | square-check | Team: $20/month Business: $45/month | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Social Media Integration | Easy contact data collection | No marketing/sales features | square-check | Lack of tracking system | square-xmark 7-day trial | $12/month | |
4.75 star star star star star-half | Block Functions | High customization capability | Not a dedicated CRM | square-check | Limited | square-check | Plus: €7.50/month Business: €14/month | |
N/A | Open-source | Open-source flexibility | Requires extensive manual input | square-xmark | Limited | square-check Self-hosted | $9/month or $90/year | |
3.1 star star star | Simple iOS app | Ideal for non-tech-savvy users | iPhone only | square-check iOS only | Limited | square-xmark 1-month trial | $1.49/month or $14.99/month | |
3.6 star star star star-half | Smart Contact Management | Feature-rich and flexible | Reported bugs | square-check | Rich | square-xmark 7-day trial | Premium: $13.99/month Teams: $17.99/month | |
4.4 star star star star star-half | Customizable Interface | Customizable for teamwork | Pricey for personal use | square-check | Rich | square-xmark | Standard: $24/member Premium: $39/member | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Integrated Calling | Integrated Calling | Too sales-oriented & pricey | square-check | Rich | square-xmark 14-day trial | Startup: $59/user/month Professional: $329/user/month | |
4.8 star star star star star | Business Card Scanning | Business Card Scanning | Mobile only | square-check | Limited | square-check | $9.99/month | |
4.45 star star star star star-half | 160+ app integrations | Comprehensive integrations | No free app version | square-check | Rich | square-xmark 14-day trial | $29.90/month or $24.90/month (billed annually) |
Capterra Rating | Free Trial | Free Plan | Starting Price (excluding the free plan) | Maximum Price (for the most expensive plan) | Best for | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.5 star star star star star-half | square-check 14-day | square-check | €15/month/seat billed annually | €792/month/3 seats billed annually + €45/month for each extra seat | Versatility and free plan | |
4.2 star star star star | square-check 30-day | square-xmark But it offers reduced price to authorised nonprofit organisations | €25/user/month | €500/user/month billed annually (includes Einstein AI) | Best overall operational CRM | |
4.3 star star star star star-half | square-xmark | square-check Limited to 3 users | Comprehensive incentive management | €52/user/month billed annually | Small-medium businesses and automation | |
4.5 star star star star star-half | square-check 14-day | square-xmark | €14/seat/month billed annually | €99/seat/month billed annually | Sales teams and ease of use | |
4.1 star star star star | square-xmark | square-check Limited 10 users | $9.99/user/month billed annually | $64.99/user/month billed annually | Free plan for very small teams up to 10 |
CRM goal | Increase the sales conversion rate for qualified leads from marketing automation campaigns by 10% in the next 6 months. | ||||
SMART Breakdown | 1. Specific: It targets a specific area (conversion rate) for a defined segment (qualified leads from marketing automation). | 2. Measurable: The desired increase (10%) is a clear metric, and the timeframe (6 months) allows for progress tracking. | 3. Achievable: A 10% increase is possible based on historical data and potential improvements. | 4. Relevant: Boosting sales from marketing efforts aligns with overall business objectives. | 5. Time-bound: The 6-month timeframe creates urgency and a clear target date. |
Actions | Step 1: Refine lead qualification criteria to ensure high-quality leads are nurtured through marketing automation. | Step 2: Personalize marketing automation campaigns based on lead demographics, interests, and behavior. | Step 3: Develop targeted landing pages with clear calls to action for qualified leads. | Step 4: Implement lead scoring to prioritize high-potential leads for sales follow-up. | Step 5: Track and analyze campaign performance to identify areas for optimization. |
Outcomes | Increased sales and revenue | Improved marketing automation ROI | Marketing and sales alignment | Data-driven marketing optimization |