Affiliate marketing has become one of the most powerful growth levers for eCommerce brands. But here’s the thing—most brands are focusing on the wrong types of affiliates.
If you want to scale your affiliate program to $1 million+, you need the right partners, not just a large affiliate network.
In this article, we’ll break down:
1. The #1 type of affiliate that drives massive revenue growth.
2. Why most brands cap out and struggle to scale beyond a certain point.
3. The strategies top brands use to attract high-value affiliates and skyrocket sales.
Let’s dive in.
Why Most Affiliate Programs Fail to Scale
Most brands approach affiliate marketing by working with:
• Influencers & Content Creators
• Blogs & Review Sites
• Coupon & Deal Sites
• Loyalty & Cashback Programs
While these affiliates can drive traffic, they often struggle to scale.
Here’s why:
1. Influencers & content creators have fixed audience sizes, limiting growth potential.
2. Review sites and coupon sites can drive traffic but often at lower margins.
3. Most affiliate models are unpredictable—relying on external factors like organic reach.
So what’s the missing piece?
The Secret: Affiliate Media Buyers
If you look at some of the biggest eCommerce brands that got acquired—like Onnit and Miracle Sheets—a major portion of their revenue came from affiliate programs.
And the majority of that traffic? It wasn’t from influencers.
It wasn’t from coupon sites.
It was from Affiliate Media Buyers.
What Are Affiliate Media Buyers?
Affiliate media buyers are performance-driven paid traffic experts who use their own money to run ads for your brand.
Instead of a traditional agency model (where you pay a retainer + ad spend), these affiliates only get paid when they bring you a customer.
They run ads on platforms like:
• Meta (Facebook & Instagram)
• Google Ads (Search, Display, Shopping)
• TikTok & Snapchat Ads
• Native Ad Platforms
They get paid on a CPA (Cost-Per-Acquisition) model, meaning:
• They invest their own money in ad campaigns.
• They only earn when they generate a sale for your brand.
• The better their conversion rate, the more money they make.
Why Affiliate Media Buyers Are a Game-Changer for Your Brand
Affiliate media buyers scale in ways that other affiliates can’t.
1. Unlimited Growth Potential
Most affiliates are limited by audience size—whether it’s an influencer’s following or a website’s organic traffic.
Affiliate media buyers can scale infinitely by simply increasing their ad spend.
If a campaign is profitable, they can:
1. Double, triple, or 10X their ad spend overnight.
2. Keep driving new customers without audience fatigue.
3. Scale revenue without requiring any additional investment from you.
2. They Take on All the Risk (Not You)
Unlike working with an agency where you:
• Pay upfront fees
• Fund all ad spend
• Take all the financial risk
Affiliate media buyers invest their own money and only earn when they generate results.
For brands, this means:
1. No wasted ad spend.
2. No long-term contracts.
3. You only pay for actual customers, not just traffic or impressions.
3. They Are the Best Media Buyers in the Industry
Affiliate media buyers outperform traditional agencies for one key reason:
They use their own money.
Unlike agency media buyers who spend clients’ money with little consequence, affiliate media buyers:
1. Are obsessed with conversion rates and ROI.
2. Optimize campaigns aggressively to maximize profits.
3. Use data-driven strategies that ensure every ad dollar is spent wisely.
How to Attract High-Performing Affiliate Media Buyers
Because affiliate media buyers are using their own money, they’re selective about the brands they work with.
If you want to attract top-tier media buyers, follow these strategies:
1. Offer Competitive Commission Payouts
Affiliate media buyers are running expensive paid ads—so your payout needs to be worth it.
If your CPA (Cost-Per-Acquisition) is too low, they won’t run traffic to your brand.
Example: If an affiliate is paying $2 per click on Meta, they need to earn at least $2.50–$3 per click to profit.
2. Provide High-Converting Landing Pages
Even with high commissions, media buyers won’t run traffic to a low-converting website.
To attract them:
1. Use high-converting, direct-response landing pages.
2. Limit distractions—fewer menu links, more focus on the offer.
3. Test different angles—bundle hero products, add urgency, and use strong CTAs.
3. Share Data & Insights with Affiliates
Media buyers love data. The more insights you share, the better they can optimize.
1. What’s working for your other traffic channels?
2. Which creatives & offers are converting best?
3. What are your audience’s top objections, and how do you overcome them?
By treating affiliates like strategic partners, you give them the tools they need to scale faster.
4. Offer Test Budgets to Remove Risk
Many brands miss out on high-level affiliates because media buyers are hesitant to test new offers.
A simple solution?
Offer a Test Budget.
How it works:
• You cover the first $1,000 in ad spend for the affiliate.
• If they lose money, you reimburse them for any losses.
• If the test is profitable, they scale—and you just secured a high-spending affiliate.
This removes risk for the affiliate and encourages big players to test your offer.
Final Thoughts: Why You Need Affiliate Media Buyers
If you want to scale your affiliate program to $1M+, affiliate media buyers should be your #1 priority.
1. They scale infinitely—no audience caps.
2. They take on all the risk—you only pay for sales.
3. They are elite marketers—outperforming traditional agencies.
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Frederic Jean-Bart is a performance-based affiliate marketing expert with over 15 years of experience scaling multi-million dollar programs for some of the world’s top DTC brands. As the founder of Performance Partners, he has built a reputation as the go-to strategist for high-stakes affiliate deal-making—securing partnerships with the industry’s top-performing affiliates to drive explosive revenue growth.
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