Table of Contents
- Top Affiliate Marketing Statistics for 2023:
- 1. The number of online searches for “affiliate marketing” has been constantly increasing since 2016.
- 2. Affiliate marketing is a multibillion-dollar global industry.
- 3. Forecasts suggest that affiliate marketing spend will continue to increase.
- 4. 8 out of 10 brands run an affiliate marketing program.
- 5. Affiliate marketing drives 16% of eCommerce sales in Canada and the U.S.
- 6. The majority of publishers use affiliate marketing to generate more income.
- 7. Awin tops one list of affiliate networks with the highest number of publisher links; however, Amazon Associates has nearly 50% share, according to another source
- 8. Online Affiliate Marketing Managers can earn an average of nearly $62,000 annually from affiliate marketing.
- 9. SaaS-based products pay 20-70% commission
- 10. CPA is the predominant way to reward publishers within affiliate programs
- 11. 7 types of publishers typically participate in affiliate marketing
- 12. 31% of publishers consider affiliate marketing to be one of their top 3 sources of revenue
- 13. More than 65% of publishers use social media to reach out to potential customers.
- 14. The number of male publishers is higher than female affiliate marketers.
- 15. More Than 75% of Affiliate Marketing Managers Are Female
- 16. Publishers whose age range is between 35 and 44 comprise the majority of the total affiliate marketer population.
- 17. The top affiliate networks have over 150,000 affiliates.
- 18. Amazon Associates accounts for more than ¼ of websites using Affiliate Programs technologies
- 19. Affiliate marketers consider product relevance as a crucial factor in choosing an affiliate program.
- 20. Web hosting is one of the most popular and lucrative forms of affiliate marketing programs.
- 21. The fashion and wellness industries are the top niches.
- 22. Cost per Action or Pay Per Lead is the most commonly used payment model.
- 23. Affiliate marketing conversion rate averages about 0.5% to 1%
- 24. Mobile-ready websites are at an advantage.
- 25. More than 40% of online users use the internet to research products and brands
- 26. Most affiliate marketers use blogs to increase web traffic.
- 27. Artificial Intelligence and voice search tech trends to watch out for.
- Conclusion
As an entrepreneur or business owner, you’d want your brand to reach a wider audience and meet its sales targets. Achieving these goals requires a lot of time, effort, and resources. Fortunately, there are several marketing tactics you can do not only to increase awareness for your brand but also to drive more sales for your business.
Affiliate Marketing Updates 2023
Today, one of the most effective marketing strategies businesses implement is affiliate marketing. Since the 2000s, affiliate marketing has steadily gained traction, as more businesses use digital marketing to get their brand closer to consumers. Also, the rise of influencer marketing, where business owners collaborate with bloggers and social media influencers to advertise their products and services, has made affiliate marketing an integral part of marketing plans.
Affiliate Marketing Updates 2023
In this article, we’re listing the top affiliate marketing statistics for 2023 that every advertiser and affiliate marketer should know.
Affiliate Marketing Updates 2023
Top Affiliate Marketing Statistics for 2023:
1. The number of online searches for “affiliate marketing” has been constantly increasing since 2016.
Based on Google Trends data, worldwide search for the keyword “affiliate marketing” steadily increased from 2016, rising in intensity since 2020. Its peak to date came in June 2023. The initial steady increase could have been due to the growth of eCommerce, as businesses, including those that solely have physical stores, began to explore how they could promote and sell products and services online. The more rapid increase since 2020 probably represents increased volumes of brands and people trying to earn income online in the age of Covid.
Affiliate Marketing Updates 2023
2023 has seen a particularly rapid increase in searches for the term, possibly due to the uncertain world economic climate. Interest is strongest in the comparatively poor countries of Bangladesh and Nigeria. Although, notably, Japan currently shows the third-strongest level of interest in the “affiliate marketing” search term.
Affiliate Marketing Updates 2023
2. Affiliate marketing is a multibillion-dollar global industry.
According to Kinsta, the affiliate marketing industry was estimated to have a worth of $17 billion worldwide. This is up from $13 billion in 2016. Research we previously reported predicted the affiliate marketing industry to have an estimated worth of $12 billion in 2022, so the industry has grown much more rapidly than expected. And we have yet to see figures from the post-Covid era, where the value of the affiliate marketing industry is likely to be higher yet.
Affiliate Marketing Updates 2023
Statista shows that affiliate marketing spending in the United States rose from $5.4 billion in 2017 to $7.4 billion in 2021.
However, alternative figures in a 2022 study by PMA, the Performance Marketing Association, the trade association for the affiliate and partnership marketing industries, suggest that affiliate marketing investment reached $9.1 billion in 2021, a 47% increase over the previous industry report for 2018. The PMA’s study found that the $9.1 billion industry investment drove $71 billion in eCommerce sales. This represents sales impact for all performance marketing investments, including both straight performance-based media and fixed costs like tenancies, integration fees, and other tactics.
Revenue from affiliate marketing has steadily increased over the years as eCommerce continues to grow in popularity. With consumers purchasing basic goods, household devices, and tech gadgets, and procuring services using the internet, businesses are finding affiliate marketing as an effective means to connect to promote their brand.
3. Forecasts suggest that affiliate marketing spend will continue to increase.
Statista reports that the projected expenditure for affiliate marketing in the United States alone was expected to reach $8.2 billion in 2022, up from $7.4 billion in 2021. From only $2.5 billion in 2012, the spending for affiliate marketing has continued to increase year by year, which suggests that more businesses are incorporating affiliate marketing in their campaigns. In addition, Demand Sage reports that affiliate marketing spending in the USA is projected to reach $13 billion in 2023.
Affiliate marketing spend not only continues to increase in the U.S. Other countries are also allocating a large portion of their marketing budget to affiliate marketing. For example, businesses in Japan spent more than 349 billion Japanese yen on affiliate marketing in 2021. By 2025, the affiliate marketing expenditure could go beyond 514 billion yen. Meanwhile, affiliate marketing spend in the United Kingdom reached about £793 million in 2021, up from £738 million in 2020.
These numbers not only show that affiliate marketing is recognized as an effective marketing tool globally but also continues to thrive each year, with big players in the online marketplace—like the U.S., the U.K., and Japan—allocating a chunk of their marketing budget to it.
4. 8 out of 10 brands run an affiliate marketing program.
The results of a Rakuten/Forrester Research 2016 survey showed that 90% of merchants and advertisers say that they considered affiliate marketing an essential part of their marketing strategy. Of the respondents polled, more than 80% ran an affiliate marketing program to improve website traffic and increase sales. Also, over 80% of the advertisers set aside about 10% of their marketing budget for affiliate marketing.
Setting up an affiliate marketing program can lead to boosting brand awareness, improving lead generation, and augmenting sales without spending a huge amount on advertising. However, a successful affiliate marketing program relies on several factors, which include selecting brand affiliates who are in the same niche or target the same consumer profile. This way, the brand can reach its target audiences faster and discover new audiences for its products and services.
5. Affiliate marketing drives 16% of eCommerce sales in Canada and the U.S.
Affiliate marketing generates about 15% of the revenues from digital marketing channels. It has caught up with the likes of email marketing, paid search, and social media marketing as one of the most effective digital advertising techniques. 16% of online orders in the United States come through affiliate marketing. (DemandSage).
Through brand affiliates, brands can reach out to consumers without being too intrusive. Since brand affiliates have followers who trust their content, it can be easier for them to influence or convince people to buy products from brands they endorse.
6. The majority of publishers use affiliate marketing to generate more income.
Affiliate publishers are content creators who specialize in publishing materials through websites, mobile apps, and other digital channels.
Over 84% of online content publishers join affiliate marketing. A whopping 94% of publishers join 2 or more affiliate programs, while 39% and 20% of publishers use 3 or more and 5 affiliate marketing programs, respectively.
Publishers can work directly with brands or join an affiliate network like Amazon Associates, AWIN, or eBay Partner Network (EPN). Affiliate networks not just connect brands and publishers, but also streamline processes such as account management, commission payouts, and reporting.
Although most U.S. publishers don’t consider affiliate marketing as great a money-spinner as eCommerce, 31% of publishers name affiliate advertising as one of their top 3 sources of revenue.
7. Awin tops one list of affiliate networks with the highest number of publisher links; however, Amazon Associates has nearly 50% share, according to another source
In research conducted by Publisher Discovery, Awin has 30% of the worldwide publisher links, followed by C.J. Affiliates (15.8%) and Rakuten (7.4%). Awin’s large market share is primarily due to its acquisition of ShareASale. However, the data for this list doesn’t include Amazon Associates publisher links and affiliate activity from in-app or social media pages.
In the same research, but only taking into account active publishers, C.J. Affiliate emerges on top with 15.7% of active publisher links. Awin takes the second spot with a 10.2% market share, while Rakuten ranks third with 5.0%.
However, results from research undertaken by Datanyze, which includes Amazon Associates, show Amazon Associates ranking on the top with almost half of the market share at 47.85%. Coming in at the second spot is C.J. Affiliate’s 7.21% market share, followed by Rakuten, which has a 7.17% market share of publisher links, and ShareASale, 6.72%. By this measure, AWIN only comes in 5th position, with a 5.65% market share; however, when you recognize Awin now owns ShareASale, their combined share takes second place, only behind Amazon.
8. Online Affiliate Marketing Managers can earn an average of nearly $62,000 annually from affiliate marketing.
According to PayScale, the average base salary for an Online Affiliate Marketing Manager is $61,748, not including benefits, bonuses, profit sharing, or commissions.
Top-end affiliate marketers earn a combination of up to $88,000 p.a. as a base salary, $13,000 p.a. as a bonus, and $22,000 for commission. Meanwhile, low-tier affiliate marketing managers typically earn $42,000 annually.
PayScale has observed that entry-level pay for online affiliate marketing managers has dropped 21% recently, with early career salaries 8% lower. However, mid and late-career Online Affiliate Marketing Managers are now seeing pay raises of up to 19%.
Many publishers say they use affiliate marketing because it allows earning money with only a little effort. They only need to sign up for an affiliate program and then create and upload content. When web users click or make a purchase after clicking the publisher link, they get a commission. This means affiliate marketers can earn while doing other activities like taking a vacation, watching a movie, or even sleeping.
9. SaaS-based products pay 20-70% commission
One of the results we found in a survey conducted for our Affiliate Marketing Benchmark Report was that SaaS products could be highly lucrative for affiliate marketers/publishers, paying up to 70% commission. However, commission rates varied greatly, and some were much nearer 20%. If you are a content creator/publisher wanting to participate in affiliate marketing, it is vital you first do your research to see that you are promoting products that offer a reasonable return for your efforts.
10. CPA is the predominant way to reward publishers within affiliate programs
iab Australia research has found that CPA (Cost Per Action) remains the predominant way to reward publishers within affiliate programs in 2023, although it is common to use a combination of models. 74% of advertisers/agencies and 83% of publishers say they use the CPA commission model. The next most popular methods are Tenancy Fees (fees for placements) – 43% advertisers/agencies, 48% publishers, and CPC (Cost Per Click) – 33% advertisers/agencies, 35% publishers.
11. 7 types of publishers typically participate in affiliate marketing
Active Revenue identified seven types of publishers typically found in affiliate marketing:
- Blogs and content platforms
- Cashback and loyalty sites
- Comparison pages
- Social media publishers
- Email marketers
- Retargeting and remarketing experts
- Shopping directories and voucher sites
Publishers act as the connection point between advertisers and their audiences and generally keep on top of recent consumer trends.
12. 31% of publishers consider affiliate marketing to be one of their top 3 sources of revenue
eMarketer surveyed publishers about their main sources of online revenue. Unsurprisingly, eCommerce topped this list, with 36% of publishers naming it their top online revenue source and 62% placing it in the top three. Second place went to Subscriptions and memberships (29% top source, 58% in the top three). Affiliate marketing, however, was also popular, and although only 9% of respondents named it their highest revenue source, 31% placed it in their top three.
As eMarketer observed, however, there is considerable overlap between these top sources. Many publishers would consider their affiliate revenue to be part of their eCommerce earnings and may not clearly distinguish between the categories.
13. More than 65% of publishers use social media to reach out to potential customers.
There are over 2 billion people who have at least one Facebook, YouTube, or Instagram account. Twitter also has more than 200 million active users. With the numbers this significant, there’s no wonder affiliate marketers use social media to connect to niche audiences.
14. The number of male publishers is higher than female affiliate marketers.
However, the difference is just about 12%. There are about 54% male publishers and 43% female affiliate marketers. More female content creators and influencers are learning the trade, which can reduce the gap in the coming years.
15. More Than 75% of Affiliate Marketing Managers Are Female
While there may be more male publishers than female publishers, the same doesn’t apply to those employed as online affiliate marketing managers. PayScale broke down the gender balance of their respondents. They found that 75.8% of the Affiliate Marketing Managers surveyed were female, compared to just 23.2% male.
16. Publishers whose age range is between 35 and 44 comprise the majority of the total affiliate marketer population.
People within the 35 to 44 age group make up 32% of the total affiliate marketing industry. A close second are publishers within the 25 to 34 age group at 28%. Other affiliate marketer age groups include 45 to 54 (22%) and 55 to 64 (9%). On the lower end, 5% of marketers are 18 to 24, while 3% are above 65 years old. Although this information from Statista dates back to a 2016 survey, there is nothing to suggest there has been a significant demographic change since then.
17. The top affiliate networks have over 150,000 affiliates.
Startup brands and small businesses that don’t have a huge marketing budget can use affiliate marketing to get their products and services closer to consumers. Affiliate networks have hundreds of thousands of brand affiliates that cater to a specific audience.
Likewise, joining affiliate networks can benefit bloggers and influencers who are looking to monetize website traffic and earn high commissions from advertising the products or services of a partner merchant. Below are some affiliate networks with the largest number of partner merchants and publishers.
- AWIN has over 25,000 advertisers and 270,000 publishers
- ShareASale also says it has 25,000 and 270,000 publishers, however as Digital Window purchased ShareASale, and was then in turn purchased by AWIN in 2017, AWIN and ShareASale probably quote the same (combined) user numbers.
- CJ Affiliate has 3,800 global brands and 167,000 publishers
- Amazon Associates has over 900,000 members globally (creating 189,159 affiliate websites)
18. Amazon Associates accounts for more than ¼ of websites using Affiliate Programs technologies
Another way to look at the comparative size of the various affiliate marketing networks is to examine the relative percentage of websites created using Affiliate Programs technologies.
According to BuiltWith, the most common affiliate marketing-powered websites are:
- Amazon Associates (26%)
- AWIN (13%)
- Affiliate Window (7%)
- Commission Junction (i.e., CJ Affiliate) (6%)
- Impact (4%)
- Link Share (4%)
- ShareASale (4%)
- Rakuten Affiliate (3%)
BuiltWith found there to be 52,190 affiliate sites within the top 1 million websites overall, of which 9,159 are in the top 100,000 and 1,623 in the top 10,000 sites by traffic.
19. Affiliate marketers consider product relevance as a crucial factor in choosing an affiliate program.
Many affiliate marketers carefully consider the nature of products before committing to promoting them. About 18% of marketers say that they look at the type of product before choosing an affiliate marketing program. If the products fit their niche, it’s easier to create valuable and convincing content about them.
Other factors that affiliate marketers check out include the commission rate and the reputation of both the affiliate marketer and its partner merchants.
20. Web hosting is one of the most popular and lucrative forms of affiliate marketing programs.
New bloggers, influencers, and brand owners would need a host to set up their websites. Web hosting affiliate programs are popular among publishers because, for a minimal fee, they can earn per referral.
Bluehost recently paid over $5 million in commission in one year and offers one of the highest-paying web hosting affiliate programs. Publishers who promote Bluehost’s web hosting service and other products can earn at least $65 to $130 from a sale.
21. The fashion and wellness industries are the top niches.
The fashion industry, which includes clothing, footwear, jewelry, bags, and other accessories, makes up a quarter of all affiliate program accounts. However, health and wellness, which is worth over $4 trillion, emerge as the most profitable. Niches in the health and wellness industry include fitness, diet trends, alternative medicine, and organic food and beverages. Other booming affiliate marketing niches are:
- Hobbies
- Travel
- Gaming
- Technology
- Sports
- Beauty
- Luxury Items
- Personal Finance
- Movies and Music
- Pet Care
The Toy industry saw the most U.S. affiliate revenue growth in 2020, according to Rakuten Advertising, growing by 109% during the first year of Covid lockdowns.
22. Cost per Action or Pay Per Lead is the most commonly used payment model.
In the Cost per Action (CPA) model, the merchant or advertiser pays the publisher a specific amount for every action that a user makes. Actions may vary and may include email sign-up, event registration, or buying a subscription.
Cost per Sale is another payment model commonly used in affiliate marketing where the publisher receives either a fixed amount or a percentage of the cost of the item sold. Typically, commissions range from a minimum of $3 to $200 or 1% to as high as 60% per sale, depending on the affiliate program and niche. However, there are affiliate marketers that earn a thousand dollars from a sale.
The IAB UK Affiliate & Partnerships Group found a sizable 93% used CPA-style payment methods, with Tenancy Fees (bonuses for placements) also popular. Allied with this, 83% of programs based their payment on Last Click (paying commissions out entirely based on the last referring affiliate partner).
23. Affiliate marketing conversion rate averages about 0.5% to 1%
Conversion rates vary from one industry to another. The majority of affiliates also don’t share conversion rate data to stay ahead of their competition. Hence, these numbers could only serve as a benchmark to assess whether your affiliate marketing program is effective or needs improvement.
24. Mobile-ready websites are at an advantage.
Nearly 60% of internet users say that they are likely to buy using a mobile device. As people can purchase products using their smartphone, tablet, or laptop, publishers and brand affiliates must have their websites optimized for mobile devices. Mobile-ready websites allow shoppers to view web pages with ease, which improves the overall customer buying experience.
According to Statcounter, 55.86% of web traffic came from mobile in Q2 2023, compared with 42.22% desktop and 1.92% tablet.
The Digital 2023 April Global Statshot Report takes a different perspective. Using data from Q4 2022, GWI found that 95% of internet users aged 16 to 64 had used a mobile phone to access the internet over the last year, alongside 62.6% using a laptop or desktop computer and 24.6% a tablet device. If you operate an affiliate marketing website, it is essential that you make it mobile-friendly.
25. More than 40% of online users use the internet to research products and brands
Another finding from the Digital 2023 April Global Statshot Report is that 43.1% of online users use the internet to research products and brands. In addition, the most common reason for using the internet is for the relatively generic “finding information”. Affiliate marketers need to create high-quality websites that answer searchers’ questions relating to the types of affiliate products they sell.
The Statshot review also finds that 74.5% of internet users have visited shopping, auction, and classified sites over the last month.
26. Most affiliate marketers use blogs to increase web traffic.
About 65% of publishers say that good content boosts website traffic. If customers find their blogs engaging, relevant, and helpful, they are more likely to make a purchase. Many of the most successful affiliate marketers also claim that they experienced an increase of up to 240% in revenue by releasing useful content.
Blogging is a popular choice for marketers and content creators because it is less expensive than posting advertisements. Likewise, blogging statistics show that blogs generate as many as three times more leads than ads. Notably, an Awin 2020 report found that bloggers and blogging sites held 40% of the commission market.
27. Artificial Intelligence and voice search tech trends to watch out for.
The Digital 2023 April Global Statshot Report examines the use of voice assistants to find information. Based on GWI statistics, 19.3% of internet users use voice assistants each week, with more males preferring the technology compared to females.
UpCity reports even greater usage in the USA, however. They found that 58% of consumers aged 25-34 use voice search daily, and even 43% of 55+-year-old consumers use voice search weekly.
In the U.S., about 40 million people have a smart speaker at home. By 2022, it was projected that 1 out of 2 households in the U.S. would have a smart speaker. Plus, 43% of the people who own smart speakers use voice search to shop.
Apps like Siri and Alexa were considered a novelty when they were first introduced. However, as smart homes emerge, the use of voice-assisted technology has also increased. Now, besides shopping or searching for information, digital assistants are useful in performing daily tasks such as turning appliances on or off, playing music and videos, checking weather updates, and setting up a person’s daily schedule.
Conclusion
These top affiliate marketing statistics for 2023 highlight the growing importance of affiliate marketing in the digital landscape. With increasing investments in affiliate marketing and the rise of influencer marketing, it’s clear that businesses recognize the value and effectiveness of this marketing strategy. As the industry continues to evolve, it’s important for advertisers and affiliate marketers to stay updated on the latest trends and best practices to maximize their success in this multibillion-dollar industry.