Affiliate email marketing can be an effective strategy when it comes to generating revenue and growing your business.
Through affiliate email marketing, you can harness the power of affiliate partners, who then promote your products or services via affiliate email marketing campaigns.
Depending on your goals, affiliate email marketing can be a powerful way to raise brand awareness and make passive income.
Read on to learn more about affiliate email marketing as well as the top email marketing affiliate programs.
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What is affiliate email marketing?
Affiliate email marketing is a type of digital marketing strategy that combines affiliate marketing with the power of email.
In affiliate marketing, you pay affiliates a commission rate for sales or leads generated from their marketing efforts. In affiliate email marketing, this is done via email marketing campaigns.
You provide affiliates with unique referral links to your products or services. Affiliates then share the link with subscribers in their email lists.
Affiliates typically include bloggers, social media influencers, and other types of content creators.
Example of affiliate promotions in The Gift, a NYT Wirecutter newsletter for gift guides
Benefits of affiliate email marketing
Affiliate email marketing can offer a range of benefits for both your brand as well as your affiliate partners.
- Cost-effectiveness. Commissions on affiliate products are performance-based. That means you only pay according to conversions, which is more cost-effective compared to other marketing channels.
- Credibility. Brands benefit from affiliates’ close relationships with their target audiences. This will help you build trust and credibility.
- Direct connection. Use email to connect with email subscribers directly in their inbox. This can lead to higher conversion rates than other affiliate marketing channels, such as social media, search engine optimization (SEO), or podcasts.
- Measurable results. With email marketing tools, it’s easy to track the real-time performance of your affiliate email marketing campaigns. That includes open rates, click-through rates (CTR), and revenue generated via affiliate links.
How to get started with affiliate email marketing
Want to earn extra revenue through affiliate email marketing? Here are the main steps to keep in mind.
- Choose the right email marketing platform. The software should offer a range of features such as marketing automation, drip email sequences, audience segmentation, email templates, and more. Many email marketing solutions also offer affiliate programs.
- Join an affiliate email marketing program. Make sure the program falls within your niche. Your subscribers signed up for your email list for a reason — make sure the affiliate products you promote are relevant to them.
- Grow your email list. Embed signup forms in strategic places on your website and promote it on social media. You can also encourage website visitors to subscribe to your newsletter via pop-ups.
- Create email content that converts. Write compelling email subject lines and calls-to-action (CTAs). Use A/B testing to see what resonates with your audience and optimize future campaigns.
- Track your performance. Monitor email marketing metrics, such as CTR and open rates. Affiliate email marketing programs also let you track the sales you make through affiliate promotions.
Best affiliate email marketing programs
Want to partner with email service providers and make money via affiliate commissions? Here are some of the best email marketing affiliate programs to consider.
1. Brevo
Brevo is an all-in-one email marketing software with multichannel and CRM functionalities. The platform stands out given their:
- Affordable pricing, plus their generous free plan that includes core email marketing features and 300 emails/day
- Drag & Drop email builder and 40+ free email templates
- Premade email automation workflows (e.g. welcome emails to greet new subscribers)
- Chat, WhatsApp, and SMS marketing channels
- Built-in sales and CRM features
- Ecommerce integrations (e.g. Shopify, Woocommerce)
As part of Brevo’s Affiliate Program, you can benefit from attractive commissions and high conversion rates.
The Brevo Affiliate Program is a good fit for bloggers, creators, and publishers — not to mention beginners who are interested in promoting intuitive marketing tools.
Brevo Affiliate Program overview
- Commision structure: $5 per free account and $100 per paid account
- Payout method: PayPal or Stripe (alternatives available for non-PayPal regions)
- Cookie duration: 90 days
As a Brevo Affiliate partner, you get access to an affiliate dashboard on PartnerStack. Here, you can get your affiliate link and monitor affiliate commissions earned from referrals. Learn how to join the Brevo Affiliate Program.
Partners may also qualify for the Brevo Expert Program, aimed at agencies, consultants, and digital professionals.
Discover the Brevo Expert Program
Expert partners get access to exclusive features like client management, listing in Brevo’s Expert Directory, tiered revenue share, project referrals, and more.
Rewards start with a 10% monthly/yearly revenue share for 24 months for each new paying client invited.
Read more about the Brevo Expert Program.
2. GetResponse
GetResponse is another email marketing platform with an attractive affiliate program. Here are a few of their standout features:
- Automated emails, from basic autoresponders to complex automations
- Landing page editor for lead generation
- Webinar hosting
They offer two types of affiliate programs — the Recurring Program and Bounty Programs — so you can choose the commission structure that suits your goals.
GetResponse Affiliate Program overview
- Commision structure: 33-55% recurring or $100-150 upfront commission
- Payout method: PayPal, check, ACH, Eurotransfer
- Cookie duration: 120 days
3. Constant Contact
Constant Contact is a good choice for SMEs and nonprofit email marketing. They’re known for their:
- Easy-to-use email marketing features (e.g. drag-and-drop email builder, signup forms, contact management)
- Surveys and polls to gather feedback
- Social media integrations
Constant Contact affiliates benefit from uncapped commissions plus free promotional materials to help you drive conversions.
Constant Contact Affiliate Program overview
- Commision structure: $105 per paid account
- Payout method: Check, direct deposit, PayPal
- Cookie duration: 120 days
4. MailerLite
MailerLite is an affordable email marketing platform that offers recurring affiliate commissions. Key features include:
- Easy-to-use email editor and marketing automation
- Sign-up forms, pop-ups, and a landing page builder
- Website and email design integrations (e.g. Squarespace, Figma, Adobe Express)
As part of the MailerLite Affiliate Program, you’ll receive free promotional assets and dedicated support.
MailerLite Affiliate Program overview
- Commision structure: 30% lifetime recurring
- Payout method: PayPal
- Cookie duration: 45 days
5. Omnisend
Omnisend is an ecommerce platform with email, SMS, and automation features. They offer:
- Prebuilt automations (e.g. abandoned cart, birthday emails)
- Ecommerce integrations (e.g. Shopify, Woocommerce, Magento, BigCommerce)
- Product Reviews feature to gather customer feedback and boost sales
Omisend affiliates can also rely on a dedicated account manager for support.
Omnisend Affiliate Partner Program overview
- Commision structure: 20% recurring
- Payout method: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH
- Cookie duration: 60 days
