Affiliate marketing sounds simple: recommend a product, share an affiliate link, and earn a commission when someone makes a purchase. In reality, getting approved for dozens or even hundreds of individual affiliate programs can turn into an administrative maze.
That is where sub-affiliate networks come in.
Sub-affiliate networks give publishers, bloggers, influencers, deal sites, and other content creators access to affiliate programs through a single platform. Instead of establishing a direct relationship with every merchant you want to promote, you can monetize many of those merchants through the sub-affiliate network.
For some publishers, this can make affiliate marketing dramatically easier. For others, sub-affiliate networks work best as a backup for merchants they cannot join directly.
Here is how they work, why you might want to use one, and some of the best sub-affiliate networks available.
What Is a Sub-Affiliate Network?
A sub-affiliate network acts as a middleman between a publisher and an advertiser’s affiliate program.
Normally, the relationship looks something like this:
Merchant → Affiliate Network → Publisher
For example, you might apply directly to a merchant’s program through an affiliate network such as Impact, CJ, Awin or Rakuten Advertising.
With a sub-affiliate network, another layer is added:
Merchant → Affiliate Network → Sub-Affiliate Network → Publisher
The sub-affiliate network has already established relationships with affiliate programs. It then allows approved publishers to promote participating merchants through its own platform.
When your visitor clicks a link and makes a qualifying purchase, the merchant pays an affiliate commission. The sub-affiliate network receives that commission and then pays you according to its revenue-sharing arrangement.
In exchange for keeping a portion of the commission, the sub-affiliate network handles much of the tracking, merchant access, reporting and payment infrastructure.
Why Use a Sub-Affiliate Network?
The biggest advantage is convenience.
If you operate a content-heavy website with thousands of outbound links, individually joining every merchant’s affiliate program may not be practical. Sub-affiliate platforms can turn many of those ordinary merchant links into monetized links automatically.
There are several other reasons publishers use them.
Get Access to More Merchants
You may be able to monetize merchants you have never applied to directly.
Some platforms provide access to tens of thousands of merchants through one relationship. Skimlinks, for example, says its platform connects publishers with tens of thousands of merchants across dozens of affiliate networks.
Monetize Merchants That Declined You
Getting rejected from an affiliate program does not necessarily mean you cannot ever earn money promoting that company.
A merchant may have strict requirements regarding traffic, content, geography or publisher type. In some cases, the same merchant may be available through a sub-affiliate platform.
Of course, you still have to follow the merchant’s rules and the sub-affiliate network’s terms.
One Account Instead of Dozens
Anyone who has been in affiliate marketing for a while knows how quickly the logins multiply.
Instead of keeping track of numerous networks, payment thresholds and dashboards, a sub-affiliate platform can consolidate much of your affiliate activity into one place.
That can be particularly helpful for smaller publishers who would rather spend their time creating content than managing affiliate accounts.
Automatically Monetize Existing Content
Some sub-affiliate platforms offer JavaScript or other technology that automatically converts regular merchant links into affiliate links.
This can be incredibly useful if you have hundreds or thousands of older articles.
Instead of manually updating every link, the technology can identify eligible merchant links and monetize them.
Test a Merchant Before Applying Directly
Sub-affiliate networks can also be useful for testing.
Suppose you have never promoted a particular retailer. You could monetize it through a sub-affiliate platform first.
If you discover that you’re consistently generating sales, you may eventually want to apply directly to the merchant’s affiliate program.
Your performance through the sub-affiliate network can give you a better idea of which partnerships are worth pursuing.
What’s the Catch?
Sub-affiliate networks are convenient, but convenience usually has a price.
The biggest disadvantage is that you may earn less per sale than you would through a direct affiliate relationship.
The merchant pays the commission to the sub-affiliate network, and the network keeps a portion before paying you.
For example, Skimlinks states that its standard publisher revenue share is typically 75/25, meaning the publisher receives 75% of the commission and Skimlinks keeps 25%.
However, the math isn’t always as straightforward as it appears. Large sub-affiliate networks can sometimes negotiate higher commission rates with merchants. A higher negotiated rate can potentially offset some or all of the revenue share.
There can also be less direct communication with the advertiser. If you become a significant sales driver for a brand, having a direct relationship may give you opportunities to negotiate higher commissions, receive exclusive coupon codes or participate in special promotions.
That’s why I generally think of sub-affiliate networks as another tool in the affiliate toolbox rather than a replacement for every direct affiliate relationship.
Best Sub-Affiliate Networks and Monetization Platforms
The terminology gets a little fuzzy in affiliate marketing. Some companies describe themselves as affiliate networks, commerce-content platforms, monetization platforms or partner networks rather than specifically calling themselves sub-affiliate networks.
From a publisher’s perspective, however, the following services can provide many of the same benefits: access to large numbers of advertisers through a centralized relationship.
1. Skimlinks
Skimlinks is probably one of the best-known names in commerce-content monetization.
Publishers can install Skimlinks technology on their websites, and eligible merchant links can automatically be converted into affiliate links.
Skimlinks says it provides a single connection to tens of thousands of merchants across dozens of affiliate networks. It also offers reporting and tools that help publishers identify which merchants and content are producing revenue.
Best for: Bloggers, editorial publishers and content-heavy websites with lots of product and retailer links.
One thing to keep in mind is the revenue share. Skimlinks currently states that publishers typically receive 75% of the commission it earns, while Skimlinks retains 25%.
For a site with thousands of links, however, automated monetization can be worth considerably more than leaving those links unmonetized.
2. Sovrn Commerce
Sovrn Commerce is another major option for publishers who want to simplify affiliate monetization.
Sovrn says its Commerce platform provides access to more than 50,000 merchants. Its tools include automated affiliate links, link optimization, reporting, APIs, price comparison features and other commerce tools.
Sovrn can also optimize links by routing affiliate traffic through an available merchant relationship.
Best for: Publishers that want a combination of automated monetization, analytics and commerce tools.
Sovrn also supports multiple types of publishers and creators, including websites and approved public social media accounts.
3. FlexOffers
FlexOffers operates a little differently because it is also a full affiliate network, but its extensive advertiser relationships can give publishers centralized access to a huge collection of programs.
FlexOffers reports more than 12,000 advertiser programs and offers tools including automated affiliate links, product feeds, promotional feeds, APIs, comparison widgets and deep linking.
For publishers, the appeal is similar: lots of affiliate opportunities under one roof rather than managing every advertiser relationship independently.
Best for: Publishers who want a traditional affiliate-network experience combined with access to a large number of advertisers and monetization tools.
4. FreshReach by FMTC
FreshReach by FMTC is specifically designed as a sub-affiliate monetization solution.
FreshReach lets publishers monetize participating merchants without first establishing a direct affiliate relationship with each one. Publishers can use FreshReach-enabled links within FMTC’s feeds and earn through a revenue-share model.
One particularly useful feature is the ability to use FreshReach as a bridge to a direct relationship.
If a publisher later becomes directly approved into a merchant’s affiliate program, FMTC says its MerchantSync technology can switch links over to the publisher’s direct tracking.
That makes it an interesting option for publishers who want to monetize now while continuing to build direct merchant relationships.
Best for: Content, coupon and deal publishers already using affiliate data feeds or publishers that want to monetize merchants while waiting for direct approvals.
5. Yieldkit
Yieldkit is another commerce-content monetization platform that connects publishers with advertisers and affiliate networks.
Its technology can match content and links with appropriate affiliate campaigns, and the company offers automated monetization tools and APIs. Yieldkit says it operates globally with a particularly strong presence in Europe and the United States.
The platform offers access to tens of thousands of campaigns and provides technology for generating redirects and deep links.
Best for: Larger content publishers, international websites and publishers interested in automated or API-driven affiliate monetization.
6. Digidip
Digidip is another option worth investigating, particularly for publishers interested in automated link monetization.
Its service converts product links on publisher websites into affiliate links so publishers can earn commissions when visitors complete qualifying transactions. Digidip is part of the mrge group, which also includes Yieldkit and other performance-marketing companies.
Best for: Established publishers looking for automated commerce-content monetization.
Should You Use a Sub-Affiliate Network or Apply Directly?
You don’t necessarily have to choose one or the other.
In fact, a hybrid approach can make the most sense.
Apply directly to the merchants that generate significant revenue for you. Direct relationships can give you greater control, closer communication with affiliate managers and potentially better commission rates.
Then use sub-affiliate networks to fill the gaps.
For example, you might have direct affiliate relationships with your 20 highest-performing merchants while using Skimlinks, Sovrn Commerce, FreshReach or another service to monetize hundreds of smaller merchants mentioned throughout your website.
This gives you the best of both worlds.
When a Direct Affiliate Relationship Is Better
If you’re generating meaningful sales for a particular merchant, consider applying directly.
A direct relationship may allow you to negotiate a higher commission, obtain exclusive offers, communicate directly with the affiliate manager and participate in special promotions.
You’re also eliminating the additional revenue-share layer.
For a merchant producing $5 per month, the convenience of a sub-affiliate network may outweigh the difference in commission.
For a merchant producing $5,000 per month, those percentage points become considerably more important.
When a Sub-Affiliate Network Makes More Sense
Sub-affiliate networks are particularly attractive when you’re dealing with the long tail of affiliate marketing.
You may mention hundreds of brands across years of blog posts, but only a handful produce substantial revenue.
It probably isn’t worth spending hours applying to and maintaining individual affiliate relationships for every obscure retailer you’ve mentioned once.
That’s where automatic monetization shines. A forgotten link in a five-year-old article can quietly turn into a commission-producing link without requiring you to hunt down the merchant’s affiliate program.
Tiny revenue streams have a habit of becoming less tiny when there are thousands of them.
Don’t Forget Affiliate Disclosures
Using a sub-affiliate network doesn’t eliminate your responsibility to disclose affiliate relationships.
If you may receive compensation when readers purchase through your links, your content should include an appropriate affiliate disclosure in accordance with FTC guidelines.
The disclosure should be clear and easy for readers to notice rather than buried somewhere deep in your website.
Final Thoughts
Sub-affiliate networks remove a lot of friction from affiliate marketing.
Instead of applying to every merchant individually, publishers can gain access to thousands of potential advertisers through one platform, automatically monetize existing links and consolidate tracking and payments.
The trade-off is usually some portion of the commission and less direct control over the merchant relationship.
For many publishers, the smartest strategy isn’t direct affiliate programs versus sub-affiliate networks. It’s using both.
Build direct relationships with your most valuable advertisers, then let sub-affiliate platforms help monetize everything else.
That way, fewer outbound clicks leave your website without at least having a chance to earn you money.
