"Sometimes you can't make it on your own," as Bono famously sang, and we agree. This sentiment rings true for businesses seeking to expand their reach and stand out above the competition.
As consumers become more and more desensitized to online ads, traditional marketing tactics like that may not be enough to reach potential customers. Many companies are turning to strategic partnerships, like affiliate marketing, to expand their reach and generate additional revenue streams.
Today, we'll delve into the world of affiliate marketing, and provide an overview of the 5 top affiliate tracking solutions available to help you launch and grow your own program.
Affiliate marketing software is a type of software that helps businesses to manage and track their affiliate marketing programs. The software provides a platform for businesses to manage their affiliate relationships, set commission rates, track affiliate performance, and generate reports. It also provides affiliates with a unique link or code to promote the business's products or services and track their earnings.
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based marketing strategy where businesses provide incentives to affiliates for promoting their products or services and driving sales or leads.
Managing an affiliate marketing program manually can be daunting. As your program grows, tracking affiliate performance, managing commissions, and generating reports become increasingly complex tasks. That's where affiliate marketing software services come in. Here are some of the benefits of using an affiliate marketing software service:
Streamlined management: Affiliate marketing software brings all parts of managing your program into a single platform. This saves time and resources, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your business
Increased efficiency: Automating the tracking of affiliate performance and commission payouts makes the process more efficient and accurate. This reduces errors and helps ensure that your affiliates are paid on time
Low cost and risk: You can launch an affiliate program without a big investment of time or money. And there’s very little financial risk as you only pay your affiliates after they generate sales
Commission management: Affiliate marketing software services let you set commission rates and track affiliate payouts. This makes it easy to manage your budget and ensures that your affiliates are fairly compensated for their efforts
Accurate reporting: Affiliate marketing software provides detailed reports on your program's performance, including metrics such as clicks, conversion rates, and revenue generated. Use this information to optimize your referral program and make data-driven decisions
Automated tracking: Affiliate marketing software automates the tracking of affiliate performance, making it easy to monitor clicks, conversions, and other metrics. This saves time and also provides more accurate data for decision-making
Scalability: Affiliate marketing software is designed to scale with your program as it grows. This means you can easily add new affiliates, track performance across multiple channels, and manage larger volumes of traffic and sales
The best affiliate marketing software will automate most of the work required to manage campaigns: They’ll track signups, affiliate sales and revenue, as well as host the partner portal and attribute rewards. Here are some key features to consider when choosing an affiliate marketing tool.
Look for software that offers robust tracking and management tools, including the ability to create unique links and track clicks, conversions, and other key metrics.
Make sure the affiliate marketing platform offers flexible commission management tools. You should be able to customize your program structure, including commission type and currency, cookie lifetime, and reward period. You may also want software that offers multiple payout options such as PayPal and Stripe.
Staying true to your brand identity is important, so you should have the option to create a white-label affiliate dashboard that aligns with your branding.
The software you choose should have an excellent user interface and be easy to navigate and learn.
Look for software that provides detailed reporting and analytics on your program's performance, including metrics such as clicks, conversions, and revenue generated.
Learning a new tool can be hard. Look for software that offers comprehensive support and training resources, including documentation, tutorials, and customer support.
Wow! Who knew choosing an affiliate marketing platform required so much research? Well, we did. That’s why we’ve simplified it for you so you can easily identify the important factors to consider during your research. We’ve compiled a list of the top 5 affiliate marketing tools, highlighting their essential features, pros, cons and pricing.
Partnero | Tapfiliate | LeadDyno | Post Affiliate Pro | Everflow | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Starting monthly price | $99 | $89 | $49 | $129 | $750 |
Partnero | Tapfiliate | LeadDyno | Post Affiliate Pro | Everflow | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unlimited affiliates | Yes, but website visitors limited to 15,000 | ||||
White-label | Only on a Pro plan ($349/mo) | $27/mo add-on | |||
Automated payouts | Available on selected integrations | ||||
Custom domains | |||||
Personalized commission rates | In groups | In groups |
Partnero is the new kid on the block in the world of affiliate management and they have absolutely hit the ground running! The tool is geared towards SaaS and e-commerce businesses and it’s the only platform with a focus on positive partner experiences—which is key for successful partnerships.
Partnero offers a wide range of settings and customization options, including partner onboarding, program email design, custom tracking links, and more.
Host multiple programs in one account
Fully customizable program terms
White-labeled partner portal
Automated payout functionality
Email marketing integrations
Intuitive user interface: Partnero’s UI is easy to understand and use even for non-tech savvy users
Generous unlimited plans: All plans include an unlimited allowance of affiliate partners and transactions
Extensive features for affiliate partners: Partnero cares about the experience of your affiliates, so there are a bunch of features just for them including customizable referral links, QR codes, a marketing material library, and more
Highly customizable: From onboarding affiliates and setting up program terms to making your branded partner portal, practically everything about Partnero is customizable
Limited reviews: Being the youngest affiliate tracking software on the list means Partnero hasn’t had the time to collect a large amount of public feedback from their customers
Fewer integrations: Again, due to the freshness of this advanced platform, Partnero has fewer integrations compared to its competitors, although the website says more integrations are coming soon
Pricing: Plans start at $99/month
Free trial: 60-day free trial (no credit card required)
Tapfiliate is a platform that is targeted toward brands and influencers. It’s designed to be user-friendly and flexible, with the ability to integrate with a range of third-party tools and services.
Customizable affiliate signup pages
Variety of commission structures
Real-time analytics and reporting
Integrations with popular e-commerce platforms
Affiliate network access: Tapfiliate is integrated with the Admitad Network, giving users access to a network of active affiliates
User-friendly interface: The Tapfiliate platform is easy to navigate and get the hang of
Portal language options: While the admin side of things is only available in English, the portal for affiliates is offered in English, French, German, Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese (Brazilian)
Limited plans: Tapfiliate plans have limitations on the number of clicks, conversions, and affiliate partners included
Limited customization options: In comparison to the competition, Tapfiliate has very few customization options on their platform
Pricing: Starts at $89/month
Free trial: 14-day free trial (with credit card) cancel anytime
LeadDyno helps businesses manage and track their affiliate marketing programs. With LeadDyno, you can create and manage affiliate programs, recruit affiliates, track your performance and payouts, and analyze the effectiveness of your affiliate marketing campaigns.
Automated affiliate recruitment
Branded affiliate website
Performance-based reward tiers
Flexible commission structure
Wide support and compatibility with applications
Straightforward user interface: LeadDyno's intuitive and easy-to-use interface makes it simple to set up and manage an affiliate program without needing extensive technical expertise
Good customization options: The partner portal includes a good selection of customization options
Automated payouts: LeadDyno gives you the option to automate the payout process for affiliates, ensuring they receive their commissions on time
High paywall to remove branding: LeadDyno branding can only be removed when you purchase the Pro plan ($349/month).
Limits on website visitors: All LeadDyno plans, except for custom Enterprise plans, limit website visitors
Basic email editor: LeadDyno’s email editor capabilities are very basic compared to its alternatives
Pricing: Starts at $49/month
Free trial: 30-day free trial upon signup (with credit card)
Post Affiliate Pro is a top pick of many e-commerce brands. It’s reasonably priced and offers a customizable user interface and advanced features. Post Affiliate Pro tracker makes use of advanced tracking methods, such as flash cookie tracking, and delivers accurate results to protect your affiliate links from fraudulent activity.
Highly customizable
Fraud prevention
Accurate tracking and commission management
Real-time data analysis
24/7 customer support: Post Affiliate Pro offers 24/7 customer support through multiple channels such as live chat, email and phone
E-commerce integrations: Post Affiliate Pro integrates with a wide range of popular e-commerce platforms such as Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, and BigCommerce, making it easy for businesses to set up their affiliate program and track affiliate sales
Advanced features: This platform offers advanced features such as multi-tier commissions, custom tracking domains, and custom commission rules, making it a great fit for businesses with more complex requirements for their affiliate program
Steep learning curve: Post Affiliate Pro has a steeper learning curve compared to some other affiliate marketing software solutions, which may require more time and effort to fully understand, set up and utilize
Pricing: Starts at $129/month
Free trial: 14-day free trial (no credit card required)
Built for B2B, Ad Networks and e-commerce, Everflow is an all-in-one platform for managing affiliates, content creators, and strategic partnerships. It’s a comprehensive solution for businesses looking to implement affiliate and influencer marketing programs. It offers a range of features and options, making it a flexible choice for businesses of all sizes and industries.
In-depth online and offline tracking
Real-time analysis and reports
Performance analysis over time and across metrics
Fraud detection
Dedicated onboarding & support: Everflow provides dedicated 1:1 onboarding and support services to help businesses get started with the platform
Advanced analytics and variance reports: Everflow's real-time analytics and variance reports offer businesses a deep understanding of their affiliate and influencer program performance
Focus on Agencies and Ad networks: Everflow is specifically designed for agencies and ad networks, providing advanced features such as white-labeled portals, sub-accounts, and multi-currency support that are tailored to the needs of these types of businesses
High cost: Everflow's pricing is significantly higher than some of its competitors, making it a less affordable option for smaller businesses with limited budgets
Steep learning curve: The advanced features and tools offered by Everflow can require more time and effort to learn and set up compared to some other affiliate marketing platforms, which can be challenging for beginners or small businesses looking for a quick and easy solution
Pricing: Starts at $750/month.
Free trial: Everflow does not offer a free trial
Expanding your marketing efforts with affiliate marketing can be a game-changer for small businesses and big enterprises alike. Affiliate marketing software lets you streamline your marketing efforts to reach potential customers and generate more revenue.
Any of these top affiliate marketing software options give you the power to optimize your marketing efforts, pay affiliates and track performance. So take the time to evaluate your business needs and goals, and choose the affiliate tracking solution that you believe will help you succeed.