CreatorIQ research with Ipsos shows that creators are keen to move beyond short-term deals and build lasting partnerships. Here are his four ways your brand can take advantage of it.
we know that Brands want to include creators With affiliate marketing programs. But if you limit yourself to affiliate-only engagement, you're missing out on the full potential of creator marketing.
According to a recent study conducted by CreatorIQ: By partnering with market research firm Ipsos, the creators hope to go beyond a short-term deal and build a lasting partnership. This is great news for brands.
The benefits of affiliate marketing programs for brands are clear. Creators promoting products and services in exchange for a sales commission is a low-risk, high-reward strategy. The problem is that affiliate marketing deals are too often focused on the short-term transactional nature of the relationship, missing out on long-term opportunities.
Creators, on the other hand, want more. They want real relationships with the brands they work with, not just business relationships. In short, brands that treat successful affiliate deals as the beginning of a rewarding creator relationship have the opportunity to build lasting, collaborative partnerships that continue to deliver positive results in the long term.
How can brands build these lasting partnerships? Our research reveals four key points for brands to keep in mind.
1. Partner with creators who use and love your products
Creators prefer to promote brands they personally love, use, and believe in themselves, with 80% of creators surveyed saying “already using products in their daily lives” is a top priority It is listed as.
For creators, non-financial factors such as product quality and brand reputation are more important than commission rates and earning potential. In fact, 82% cite “product quality and audience relevance” as their top priority when working with brands.
Think back to most creators (and the creators you most want to work with). Consider product quality as the most important factor When choosing whether to work with a brand in any type of relationship, not just affiliate partnerships. This means there is true brand affinity and alignment in values, style and audience.
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Before approaching a creator with a partnership offer, do your research first. Have creators ever used or mentioned your product (or a competitor's product)? How closely does their audience align with their target demographic? These are important details you can check using Creator Marketing Solutions.
2. Enable direct relationships
Creators want to work directly with the brands they use, not just be given products to sell. However, traditional affiliate programs tend to focus on transactions rather than support. This means you need to establish clear lines of communication.
The biggest areas of support creators seek are:
- Assistance in resolving payment issues – 36%
- Access to a dedicated affiliate manager – 35%
- Help resolve technical issues – 29%
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We take care of the day-to-day payment and support functions of the Creator Program so they don't cause frustration or consume resources, so you can focus on what's important, like building relationships with your most important creator partners. Become.
3. Provide product training and support
Creators are on the front lines selling your products to their followers. After all, they're sellers, so why not give them the same training and support as your sales staff? That means giving them access to additional resources and content to help them succeed.
This includes details on product education, training on proven best practices, previews of upcoming product launches, and more, so you can plan and strategize with more information at your fingertips.
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Creators are sellers. Please treat it as such. We provide you with access to resources and content that will help you succeed in your role, including product education, best practice training, and advance information about upcoming product launches and promotions.
4. Providing opportunities beyond affiliate marketing
When creators are successful in increasing their revenue directly through affiliate links, it's a strong indication that they can contribute in other meaningful ways. We provide additional partnership opportunities for these creators and help them reach their full potential.
In fact, 41% of creators surveyed said their biggest challenge with affiliate programs is the “lack of further opportunities with brands” they have affiliate partnerships with. Not far behind is the inability to further develop relationships with brands.
Building trust and establishing ongoing relationships with creators and audiences means looking beyond the initial engagement and seeking long-term opportunities. One-time opportunities reduce a creator's ability to build trust with their audience, negatively impacting purchases. Authenticity is a top priority for these creators, and it seems disingenuous to post a few affiliate links and move on.
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Creators who engage in affiliate sales are creators who have the potential to benefit their brand in other ways. Work with them on new campaigns, new content, and even product development. If they want to work with you and have a proven ability to influence lower-funnel outcomes, there is little downside to establishing a more direct relationship.
conclusion
Taken together, these findings indicate that brands need to think of affiliate programs as the beginning, not the end, of creator partnerships. Our data shows that creator content simply performs better than traditional “ads,” so brands are using creator content in sponsored posts, paid ads, product pages, and even in-store signage. You need to take advantage of it.
Ultimately, establishing direct relationships with creators and bringing them in-house, including steps such as product training, consulting, and other key support activities, is a much more sustainable and successful strategy. .
Affiliate programs, when used to identify the best creators through proven performance, are actually just the beginning of a relationship between brands and creators that has the potential to develop into a long-term and fruitful partnership. there is.
Download our free report to learn more Beyond Affiliates: Building Sustainable Creator Partnerships From CreatorIQ here.
