Upper Funnel Affiliate Partners: Building Brand Awareness and Acquisition

Upper funnel affiliate marketing partners play a crucial role in brand awareness and customer acquisition. They engage consumers early in their purchasing journey, exposing brands to new audiences. Unlike lower funnel partners focused on immediate sales, these upper funnel affiliates contribute to long-term brand building and are often viewed as more incremental to a brand's growth. They lay the groundwork for future purchases and brand loyalty by introducing products to potential customers who may not have been actively searching for them.

Content Affiliates: The Backbone of Value-Driven Marketing

Content Affiliates include bloggers, mass-media publications, and educational sites that provide in-depth, value-driven content to their audiences.

How They Promote to Users

Content Affiliates create comprehensive articles, gift guides, product round-ups, how-to guides, and informative pieces that seamlessly integrate product recommendations. For instance, a beauty site might produce a product roundup of the "Best Hydrating Serums of 2024" featuring their editorial team's top brands and product picks for consideration. This approach enhances brand value and builds consumer trust.

Content Affiliates primarily educate and inform, with product promotion as a secondary but crucial element. Publications like The Penny Hoarder and Budget Savvy Bride build trust with their audience through consistent, high-quality content that addresses specific interests or needs, while tech sites like Tom's Guide provide in-depth analysis of products from brands like Philips and others.

Traffic Sources

Content Affiliates use various methods to reach their audience and promote products, with a primary focus on SEO optimization. Publishers create articles optimized with popular keywords and phrases to improve search rankings and attract organic traffic. Additionally, they build backlinks by encouraging other websites to link to their content, further boosting visibility and SERP rankings.

In addition to article roundups, Content Affiliates leverage email marketing to engage their audience and share new content. They also utilize social media to connect with readers and amplify their reach. Many are expanding into multimedia formats such as podcasts and video to cater to audiences who prefer visual or audio content, further diversifying their engagement strategies. 

The goal is to maximize audience reach and visibility. High-ranking articles in search results attract more readers, increasing exposure to product recommendations and ultimately driving higher conversions. For example, finance sites like Money Crashers optimize content for search terms like "best credit cards for travel" to appear when consumers research this topic.

Revenue Model

Content Affiliates primarily earn commission when consumers purchase products through their custom links. However, since they typically engage shoppers at the top of the affiliate funnel - introducing them to brands early in the buying journey - they often lose conversions to lower-funnel affiliates, such as coupon and loyalty sites, which capture the final sale. To ensure fair compensations for their role in driving awareness and consideration, many content affiliates negotiate flat fees from brands in addition to commission-based earnings. 

These flat fees help cover the time and effort they put into creating articles, videos, or other content. This is important because making good content takes a lot of work, and they might not earn much from commissions alone, especially if readers buy products later or on a different device.

Besides commissions and flat fees, Content Affiliates might also make money by showing ads on their websites, partnering with brands for sponsored content, or selling their own products like ebooks or online courses. Some even offer consulting services to share their knowledge with others.

"Content Affiliates are the foundation of the affiliate funnel, fostering brand trust and shaping consumer awareness. They play a crucial role in a shopper’s journey, providing valuable recommendations and insights that introduce consumers to products while bringing the brand’s story to life”

Key Considerations

When working with Content Affiliates:

• Engage early before key shopping periods or product launches
• Leverage diverse content formats, such as newsletters, dedicated posts, and product comparisons
• Balance audience reach with relevance to your target market
• Prioritize partners who create authentic, high-quality content
• Recognize the long-term value of evergreen content for sustained impact

Brands like Uber and Nordstrom often work with Content Affiliates on seasonal campaigns, while companies like MasterClass and Skillshare might prioritize educational content creators who can effectively explain their value proposition.

Review Sites: Guiding Consumer Decisions

Review Sites offer detailed product analyses and comparisons, often focusing on specific categories. There's significant overlap between Content Affiliates and Review Sites, with "pure" review sites like Finder primarily focusing on product evaluations, while content-focused sites such as Wirecutter or Tom's Guide blend informative articles with in-depth product testing.

How They Promote to Users

Review Sites offer:

• Comprehensive, hands-on product reviews with in-depth analysis
• Comparative reviews putting products against competitors
• Scoring systems or ratings to quantify product quality
• Pros and cons lists to aid decision-making
• User-generated reviews alongside expert analysis

For example, consumer electronics Review Sites might offer detailed comparisons of the latest smartphones from Apple and Samsung, complete with performance benchmarks, camera quality assessments, and battery life tests.

Traffic Sources

Review Sites primarily attract traffic through:

• Organic search targeting product-specific keywords and "best of" searches
• Paid search advertising, especially in high-value product categories
• Email marketing to alert subscribers about new reviews
• Social media sharing, particularly for video reviews or infographics
• Referrals from product Q&A forums and discussion boards

Many review sites also engage in arbitrage, spending money on Google ads to drive traffic to high-converting pages. This model is particularly prevalent in competitive verticals like VPN services, insurance, banking, and web hosting, where partners like Top10 and Top10Banks can drive significant volume.

Revenue Model

Review Sites typically earn through:

• Affiliate commissions on referred sales
• Display advertising
• Sponsored content
• Premium memberships

While they prioritize objectivity, the economics of review sites often lead to ranking considerations based on commission rates or cost-per-click payouts. For instance, a review partner might adjust rankings based on which brands offer higher payouts, creating a competitive environment for placement.

“A strong commission structure is essential for review sites, which drive new customers through educational content and tend to achieve higher conversions compared to non-opionated content. Increased commissions incentivize affiliates to create compelling reviews that influence purchasing decisions and maximize customer acquisition” (second sentence is optional)

Key Considerations

When working with Review Sites:

• Focus on ranking in the top 1-3 spots to drive significant traffic
• Leverage keyword analysis to identify high-ranking opportunities for your brand
• Offer competitive commission rates to stand out from your competitors
• Target partners with existing relevant content where your products can be integrated
• Recognize that these sites prioritize EPC (earnings per click) as a key performance metric
• Consider providing gifted products for hands-on testing to enhance credibility 

Brands like Xero and QuickBooks compete for top positions on financial software review sites, while companies like Faire and Etsy might target placement on marketplaces or e-commerce platform comparison pages.

Social Media Influencers: Authentic Brand Advocates

Creators have become important partners in affiliate marketing, promoting products to their followers on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, or TikTok.

How They Promote to Users

Influencers create diverse content featuring products:

• Detailed reviews and unboxing videos
• Tutorials and how-to content
• Lifestyle integrations showing products in use
• Behind-the-scenes looks or exclusive previews
• Live streaming events with product demonstrations

Notably, influencers often receive the highest commission rates in affiliate programs due to their significant impact on brand awareness and new customer acquisition. Brands like Invoice Simple and Canva recognize that influencers' personal recommendations can be more effective than traditional advertising, justifying the higher commission rates.

Traffic Sources

Influencers leverage several traffic sources:

• Existing follower base on social media platforms
• Platform-specific features like shoppable links on Instagram or Youtube
• Cross-promotion across multiple social channels
• Email newsletters for direct communication with engaged followers
• Personal websites or blogs for more in-depth content

Beauty influencers promoting brands like Sephora or technology creators featuring products from Philips can drive significant traffic through their established channels.

Revenue Model

Influencers earn through:

• Commissions from affiliate links
• Flat-rate sponsorships
• Platform-specific monetization (e.g., YouTube ad revenue)
• Personal merchandise or digital products
• Appearances and speaking engagements

Additionally, brands often provide gifted products or memberships for organic reviews. This approach is particularly effective with younger audiences who prefer genuine, non-sponsored content, allowing influencers to create more relatable content while still benefiting from brand partnerships.

Key Considerations

When working with Influencers:

• Prioritize authenticity – their recommendations need to align with their personal brand
• Ensure compliance with platform-specific rules and disclosure requirements
• Focus on engagement rates rather than just follower counts
• Help them balance commercial content with non-sponsored posts
• Consider the rapidly changing nature of social media platforms

"Influencers are powerful brand advocates, blending authenticity with reach to drive engagement and conversions. Their personal recommendations often resonate more than traditional ads, as many consumers now turn to social media for shopping inspiration and guidance."

The Bottom Line

Upper funnel affiliate partners play a vital role in introducing brands to new audiences and building long-term brand awareness. While they may not always drive immediate conversions, their contribution to the customer journey makes them essential components of a comprehensive affiliate strategy.

By understanding the unique characteristics, traffic sources, and revenue models of Content Affiliates, Review Sites, and Social Media Influencers, brands can develop more effective partnership strategies that leverage each partner type's strengths while addressing their specific needs and expectations.