Lately, brands have been investing significantly in online marketing, particularly in social media promotion. Two of the most effective advertising strategies they follow are affiliate marketing and influencer marketing. While affiliate marketing has been here for quite some time, influencer marketing is comparatively new.
Both help businesses bring in leads, online reach and higher ROI. However, they are distinctly different in various aspects. Don’t know which one to choose for your brand’s promotion? Check this affiliate marketing vs influencer marketing guide and pick the right option.
What Are the Differences between Affiliate and Influencer Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is partnering with websites other than yours to promote your offerings. When a customer buys your products through those sites, the affiliates get a share of the sale. In influencer marketing, brands partner with influencers or people with massive followers. They promote your brand and products to bring in more sales, customers and visibility.
Here is a detailed affiliate marketing vs influencer marketing analysis:
-
Definition: Affiliate marketing is collaborating with other businesses to promote your content on their website. Influencer marketing is partnering with social media influencers to endorse your brand and services.
-
Cost: In affiliate marketing, brands pay a certain percentage of the product that is sold. There can be other pay options for different actions that the lead takes as agreed upon. It can be joining an email subscription or when a lead fills out a form. Influencers get a flat fee or remuneration for a product or for a social media post. The compensation can also include a free product or service.
-
Result: Affiliate marketing mostly leads to lead generation and revenue growth. Influencer marketing works more towards a specific product sale and brand awareness.
-
Who to approach: Blogs, publishers and independent contractors act as affiliates. Media personalities, social media stars, celebrities, major Youtubers and vloggers help in influencer marketing.
-
How it happens: Affiliate websites promote a brand’s products. When a lead clicks on the link and purchases the product, the affiliate company gets a share of the sale. Influencers promote a product or a brand through their social media handle, profile or channel. This increases product sales, brand awareness and popularity. The influencer is compensated as per agreement.
-
How to measure the outcome: Brands evaluate the result of affiliate marketing through sales volume, site traffic, and order numbers. Influencer marketing impact is measured with website traffic, social media engagement, new followers added, etc.
What are the Benefits of Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is an effective strategy to drive in more leads and traffic to a particular webpage. This method is simple and easy to implement. You need to pay only when the user clicks on the link and actually makes a purchase.
- Improves traffic and sales
Affiliate links do not impact your website ranking. However, it does help in driving more traffic to your business website. This works in improving sales and converting leads.
- Hassle-free to implement
Affiliate marketing is quite simple and doesnt require much investment. All you have to do is to create a unique product link for each affiliate. Then, track the conversions and sales.
- Pay only after results
You only need to pay a share of the sales after the user has made a purchase through the affiliate link. There is no question of paying for clicks or impressions.
What are the Benefits of Influencer Marketing?
Influencer marketing is more effective than most other marketing strategies. You get to send your brand message to millions of social media users through popular social media personalities. Also, you get much control over the entire campaign, and your brand benefits from higher reach, visibility and credibility.
- Better brand credibility and reach
Social media influencers come with loyal followers. When an influencer promotes your brand or any of your products, it automatically makes your brand credible. Fans are more likely to follow and trust brands that their favourite creators recommend.
- Controlled approach
Much of the influencer marketing campaign takes place as per your preference. The entire planning and execution, influencer selection, content creation, etc, will happen as you want.
- Superb results
Influencer marketing is generally result-oriented. The outcomes are usually quite positive. Irrespective of the industry, this form of marketing works wonders for brands. The return on investment, in this case, is pretty decent.
Can Influencers be Affiliates?
Yes, influencers can work as affiliates for your brand. Having partners who can promote your brand both as influencers and affiliates can help in successful brand endorsement. This would help to open new ways to marketing. Once the influencer campaign ends, you can continue promoting through the affiliate links.
Can a Non-influencer Do Affiliate Marketing?
A non-influencer can also take part in affiliate marketing. It might seem challenging to start affiliate marketing without any significant fan following or social media popularity. However, a non-influencer can start blog posting, create podcasts, attend industry events or opt for paid advertising. This would be the stepping stone to a successful affiliate marketing career.
Affiliate Marketing vs Influencer Marketing: Which One to Choose?
Both affiliate and influencer marketing come with their advantages and drawbacks. However, the right choice should align with your brand’s requirements, marketing goals and budget. The ultimate decision would depend on what works best for your brand.
You can choose either of the options or seek to use both as you see fit. Both strategies can backfire if managed poorly. Both can bring in higher ROI and profit if you use them smartly.
