11 Epic Types of Affiliate Partnerships for Your Brand’s Program

Whether you have an established affiliate network for your brand or are starting a program from scratch, you'll realize that there isn't just one type of affiliate partner. There's a whole landscape of them, each with unique strengths and strategies. 

This guide is designed to help you navigate that landscape. By the end, you'll have a clear understanding of which affiliate partnerships are a perfect fit for your brand, industry, and marketing objectives. Plus, we discuss how to easily manage and track your affiliate program after you recruit the right partners for your company’s goals. 

Let's get started.

What is an affiliate partnership?

Before we explore the different types, let's cover the basics. In short, an affiliate partnership is a performance-based marketing arrangement, where a business pays a commission to an external partner (the affiliate) for generating a desired outcome. Typically, this is website traffic, leads, or sales through the affiliate's marketing efforts.

Here’s how it usually works

A brand provides its affiliate with a unique tracking link. Then, the affiliate promotes your brand’s product or service to their audience/platform using that unique link. Finally, when someone in the affiliate's audience clicks the link and makes a purchase or completes a desired action, it’s tracked.

You, as the brand, then pay the affiliate a commission for the successful action or conversion.

Brands get cost-effective marketing with 65% of companies saying affiliate marketing generates 10%-20% of their revenue. Those same affiliates earn income by promoting products they believe in. It's a win-win!

How different types of affiliates drive different business goals

Not all affiliates are created equal, and that’s a great thing! Different types of affiliates are uniquely suited to help you crush different business goals. By strategically selecting your partners, you can build a well-rounded program that supports your entire marketing strategy. Here’s how different affiliate partners may align with different marketing goals.

Driving More Revenue 

Like most companies, if your primary goal is to increase sales, partners like niche communities, media affiliates, coupon sites, and bloggers can work wonders for revenue generation. They have purchase-ready audiences actively looking for deals and recommendations.

Increasing Brand Awareness

If you’re looking to increase your brand awareness, particularly online, influencer and blogger affiliates are your go-to partners. These types of affiliates typically excel at generating buzz online from their audiences, and can introduce your brand to new communities in an authentic way. 

Supporting New Product Launches

Launching something new? Influencers, who’ve been previously exposed to your brand, niche community affiliates, and newsletter affiliates can generate immediate buzz and social proof.

Seasonal or Holiday Pushes

During holiday seasons, your brand needs partners who are positioned for driving high volumes of traffic during this period. Coupon sites and media publications are perfect for capturing seasonal demand.

Generating High-Quality Leads

If you’re focused on lead generation for B2B affiliate marketing rather than direct sales, partnering with lead gen affiliates or industry influencers can help to fill your pipeline with qualified leads. It’s important to understand how a mix of different affiliate partnerships can work together to hit all your marketing goals. Now, let’s get into the specifics of each affiliate type.

A breakdown of the different types of affiliates

This section breaks down the most common types of affiliates, explaining how they work, where to find them, and which industries they suit best. By the end, you’ll know exactly what types of affiliates will reach your affiliate marketing KPIs and success metrics.

Influencer Affiliates

Influencers have a dedicated following on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat. They build trust with their audience through long and consistent periods of community engagement, which includes the promotion of products through written, voice, and video formats. 

How to recruit: To recruit influencers, you can search for them on social media platforms using relevant hashtags, head over to an influencer marketplace, or work with influencer marketing agencies.

Main benefits: High engagement, authentic storytelling, and the ability to reach highly targeted niche audiences. The size of the influencer’s following can also play a big role in how they’ll benefit your brand. Bigger audiences drive better brand awareness, whereas some small audiences can drive strong sales. Keep that in mind.

Ideal for: Fashion, beauty, fitness, gaming, and lifestyle brands.

Influencer Affiliate Examples

• Aileen Xu - @lavendaire / lavendaire.com
• Matt D'Avella - @mattdavella / mattdavella.com 

Media Affiliates

These types of affiliates include large-scale publishers, online magazines, and news outlets. Think of sites like Forbes, BuzzFeed, or Wirecutter. They often publish product roundups, gift guides, and "best of" lists.

How to recruit: Want to recruit these powerhouses? You’ll need to begin by building relationships with their commerce or editorial teams. Many are also part of major affiliate networks like CJ Affiliate or Rakuten.

Main benefits: Huge reach, high authority and credibility, and strong SEO value from backlinks.

Ideal for: Consumer electronics, home goods, finance, and travel.

Media Affiliates Examples

• Dotdash Meredith - dotdashmeredith.com
• Bustle Digital Group - bustle.com 

Niche Community Affiliates

These affiliates manage or are active members of online communities focused on a specific or special interest. This could be a Facebook group, forum website, or a Discord community, to name a few.

They work by sharing recommendations and affiliate links in a way that feels like helpful advice from another member, rather than a pushy sales pitch. 

How to recruit: To recruit them, participate in forums and groups related to your industry to identify influential members. If you need help, begin by searching these Discord communities.

Main benefits: Your brand gets access to a highly targeted audience that shares a common passion.

Ideal for: Hobby-based products, software tools, and specialized services.

Niche Community Affiliates Examples

• WeddingWire - weddingwire.com
• Dev.to - dev.to

Coupon & Discount Affiliates

These websites are dedicated to listing coupons, discounts, and promotional offers. They attract customers who are typically in search of a deal and ready to buy. 

‍How to recruit: To recruit these types of affiliates, start by joining a major affiliate network like CJ Affiliate, ShareASale, or Rakuten Advertising.

Main benefits: The ability to drive large sales volumes, great for clearing inventory.

Ideal for: E-commerce brands, especially in retail, electronics, and local services with high margins.

Coupon & Discount Affiliate Examples

• RetailMeNot - retailmenot.com
• CouponFollow - couponfollow.com

Directory & Review Affiliates

These affiliates run websites that review and compare products within a specific category. Directory and review sites work by providing detailed reviews and then use an affiliate link to direct readers to the brand they feature. 

How to recruit: To recruit them, identify the review sites by doing a quick Google Search of your niche + "Top Reviews", and submit your company to the directory. After a successful directory listing, you should be able to reach out to the team who runs their partnerships to begin the affiliate relationship.

Main benefits: Build trust and credibility instantly and capture high-intent traffic, people looking for social proof for you or competitors.

Ideal for: SaaS, financial services, travel, and consumer electronics.

Directory & Review Affiliate Examples 

• BackofHouse - backofhouse.io
• Healthgrades - healthgrades.com 

Blogging / Website Affiliates

Bloggers are one of the original types of affiliates. They combine many of the benefits from other affiliate types by creating in-depth content like tutorials, how-to guides, and personal stories, embedding affiliate links naturally within their posts. 

How to recruit: The best route is to search for the top performing blogs in your niche for non-branded related keywords or topics. Simply search “your niche + non-branded term” in Google Search or ChatGPT. Or you can use paid tools like Ahrefs to discover websites that are already linking to your competitors affiliate pages. Then reach out with your program details, and be sure to follow-up. 

Main benefits: Connect deeply with an established audience, receive SEO benefits from backlinks, and long-term traffic from evergreen content.

Ideal for: Virtually any industry, from parenting and cooking to B2B and tech.

Blogging / Website Affiliate Examples

• The Points Guy - thepointsguy.com 
• Pinch of Yum - pinchofyum.com 

Other Content Affiliates

This broad category includes affiliates who create content on platforms other than traditional blogs or social media. Think of Twitch streamers who create fantastic live content, podcasters who mention products with a special listener discount, or even creators of fun online courses. There are a plethora of different content affiliates that could be the perfect fit. 

How to recruit: This will depend on the affiliate, but typically reaching out manually via email or Direct Message is the best method. Some large content affiliates have agents, too.

Main benefits: Reach audiences who prefer non-written content and build deep connections through visual or audio media.

Ideal for: Education, software, e-commerce, and products that benefit from wide demographic and audience exposure.

Other Content Affiliate Examples

• Tasty - tasty.co
• Vincesauce - twitch.tv/vinesauce 

Lead Generation Affiliates

These partners specialize in collecting qualified leads for your business rather than driving direct sales. They might be running Google ad campaigns, creating compelling landing pages with contact forms, or promoting engaging gated content, for the sole purpose of driving leads for other businesses. 

‍How to recruit: You'll often discover these partners in affiliate networks, Facebook Groups, or Reddit threads for your niche. More often than not, they’ll already have an agreement in place that you’ll have to compete with. That said, it can be worthwhile to gain these types of affiliates as a partner. 

‍Main benefits: Fills your sales pipeline with potential customers and those with high purchase intent. Perfect for service-based or high-ticket B2B businesses.

Ideal for: B2B, SaaS, education, finance, and insurance industries.

Lead Generation Affiliate Examples

• Bankrate - bankrate.com
• Modernize - modernize.com 

App Affiliates

App affiliates are mobile apps that promote other apps or products to the user.

Here’s an example. A grocery app features a "deal of the day" and integrates an offer wall, letting users earn useful in-app rewards and get deals.

How to recruit: To recruit these unique affiliate partners, search the app store for related apps in your niche. Or, find an affiliate network that offers mobile-specific access. 

‍Main benefits: Access to a large, engaged mobile audience.

Ideal for: Mobile apps, gaming, and subscription services.

App Affiliate Examples

• AppAdvice - appadvice.com
• PriceBlink - priceblink.com 

Newsletter Affiliates

These are individuals or companies with engaged email lists. They monetize their newsletters by including sponsored content or dedicated email blasts, which is why they make great affiliate partners.

How to recruit: To recruit them, Use tools like Substack to find popular newsletters in your niche and reach out to their creators directly.

Main benefits: Direct access to an engaged audience's inbox and high conversion rates.

Ideal for: B2B, media, e-commerce, and direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands.

Newsletter Affiliate Examples

• Stratechery - stratechery.com 
• Morning Brew - morningbrew.com

Loyalty / Cashback Affiliates

Platforms like Rakuten or Ibotta reward their members with cash back or points for shopping through their affiliate links.

They work by sharing a portion of their affiliate commission with the customer, encouraging them to begin their shopping journey on their site. These are typically large players and can usually be recruited through major affiliate networks.

Main benefits: Encourages repeat purchases and builds customer loyalty.

Ideal for: E-commerce and retail brands with a wide customer base.

Loyalty/Cashback Affiliate Examples

TopCashback - topcashback.com

Swagbucks - swagbucks.com 

Recommended Resource: [Guide] Affiliate Fraud Protection to Protect Your Brand and Payouts

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How to choose the right affiliates

With so many options, how do you choose the right affiliates for your program? The key is to align your choices with your industry, brand, and goals. Here’s a simple framework to do that.

Define Your Goals

Are you aiming for brand awareness, sales volume, or lead generation? Your answer will immediately point you toward certain affiliate types. For example, if it's brand awareness, prioritize influencers.

Understand Your Audience

Where do your ideal customers hang out online? If they’re on TikTok, then it’s a must that you seek out specific creators from TikTok. If they’re professionals searching for business solutions, B2B review sites and bloggers are a good bet.

Consider Your Industry

Depending on your industry, certain affiliate types work better than others. Here’s some high-level guidance on what that can look like:

Fashion/Beauty: Influencers and bloggers are your best friends.

SaaS/B2B: Focus on review sites, lead gen affiliates, and industry bloggers.

Consumer Electronics: Media publications and review sites will drive the most impact.

DTC E-commerce: A mix of influencers, coupon sites, and loyalty/cashback platforms will create a strong mix of affiliates.

Start Small and Diversify

You don’t need to partner with every type of affiliate at once. We recommended starting with 2-3 types that best fit your goals. Once you’ve built strong relationships and processes, you can expand your program to include other partners.

How to track activities across different affiliates

Handling a diverse group of affiliate partners might sound overwhelming, but with the right technology, it’s easy to manage. Once you start recruiting all these amazing affiliate partners, you’ll need a proper affiliate management software to keep things in order. That’s where LeadDyno comes in. 

Centralized Dashboard

See all your affiliates, clicks, commissions, and sales in one place. You get a clear, real-time view of your program's performance.

Easy Affiliate Onboarding

Now that you’ve spent all this time generating buzz and reaching out to potential affiliate partners, LeadDyno makes it simple for new affiliates to sign up. They can easily get their unique tracking link and start promoting your brand right away.

Trigger Commission Payouts

An important aspect to scaling any affiliate program is timely and accurate payouts. You can pay all your affiliates on time as LeadDyno integrates with PayPal, and also offers a Webhook Payment integration, to automate payouts, keeping your partners happy, and motivated.

In-Depth Reporting

Track which affiliates are driving the most traffic and sales. These insights help you identify your star partners and optimize your program for even better results.

Using a tool like LeadDyno frees you up from administrative tasks so you can focus on what really matters: building strong, profitable relationships with your affiliates.

Final Thoughts

By understanding the different types of affiliates and how they align with your business goals, you can create a diverse and powerful marketing engine. From influencers who build buzz to coupon sites that drive discount sales, each partner can play a unique role in your brand’s marketing mix.

Ready to take your affiliate marketing to the next level? Sign up for a 30-day free trial to see how LeadDyno can help you launch, manage, and grow your affiliate program.