Key principles driving affiliate marketing.
Listen to this story starting at 15:30 on the new, revamped The DSN Podcast. Even when your day is packed, we make it easy to stay informed, engaged and one step ahead. Listen now or read below!
The global affiliate marketing industry was valued at $18.5 billion in 2024 and projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 8 percent through 2031, according to Allied Market Research. In the US, affiliate marketing drives 16 percent of ecommerce transactions, as noted by the Affiliate Marketing Benchmark Report, highlighting its significant impact on online sales. Key trends are reshaping the affiliate landscape, presenting opportunities and challenges for marketers and brands leveraging this performance-driven channel.
A notable trend is the shift toward multi-brand representation. Consumers are less loyal to single brands, engaging with affiliates who promote diverse products across complementary categories like lotion and makeup. This aligns with the rise of brand-to-brand partnerships, where non-competing brands collaborate to expand reach, such as a travel brand partnering with a swimwear retailer to offer added customer benefits, as highlighted by ShareASale’s 2024 affiliate trends report.
Affiliates, particularly influencers, are driving this trend with 71 percent working with three or more affiliate networks to diversify the brands they represent, according to a 2024 survey by Influencer Marketing Hub. This “attitude of abundance” could be a core reason why affiliates capitalize on the industry’s projected growth to $48 billion by 2027, according to Statista.
Keeping it Real
Authenticity is crucial as affiliates represent multiple brands. Micro-influencers, with their niche expertise, achieve a 22 percent higher conversion rate than general influencers, per Influencer Marketing Hub’s 2024 report. However, only 5 percent of consumers believe influencers always promote authentic products, indicating skepticism affiliates must address, as found in the same survey.
To maintain trust, affiliates align with brands that share their values, as mismatched partnerships—like a financial podcast host promoting scuba gear—can erode credibility, per ShareASale’s insights. This is another reason why they opt for representing multiple brands. Long-term partnerships help, with 60 percent of influencers preferring sustained collaborations over one-time campaigns, fostering genuine endorsements, according to Influencer Marketing Hub.
Multiple Streams
The pursuit of multiple income streams is another key driver, though it presents challenges. Subscription-based models are gaining traction, offering affiliates recurring commissions, with a projected 20 percent earnings increase by 2026 for those promoting such products, per a 2025 affiliate trends report by Awin. However, building teams across multiple companies is complex due to varying commission structures.
On the negative side, up to 45 percent of affiliate traffic is fraudulent, complicating downline integrity, according to Influencer Marketing Hub’s benchmark report. Blockchain technology offers a solution, with 10 percent of affiliate networks expected to adopt it by 2026 for transparent transactions, according to a 2024 Forbes article.
Building Trust
Affiliates are also branding themselves as industry authorities, enhancing credibility by representing multiple products. This positions them as trusted experts, similar to curating “best of” lists that compare category offerings.
Customers find such diversity believable, with influencers providing legit “social proof” through endorsements, as noted by Refersion’s 2024 affiliate marketing guide. However, Google’s 2024 search updates penalized low-quality affiliate content, emphasizing the need for user-focused material to maintain visibility, as reported by Search Engine Journal.
From the September/October 2025 issue of Direct Selling News magazine.
