- affiliate marketing
Express Trainers approached us in 2019 looking to give affiliate marketing a second chance. While they had some experience with affiliates in the past, their previous approach wasn’t quite meeting their goals. As the client offers big-name footwear brands at competitive prices, their biggest challenge was finding a suitable and cost-effective affiliate platform to promote their deals and drive a good ROI.
As a result of our bespoke strategy and focus on deal sites, we drove consistent growth year on year. In just the first year alone, we delivered a massive 3,019.56% ROI. As the campaign progressed, our knowledgeable team were able to sustain our impressive results — all while keeping the cost of sale consistently below 4%.
Even when ecommerce trends slumped post-pandemic and as the cost of living crisis took hold, we continued to deliver, with an average ROI of 2066.14% and an average COS of 3.49% in 2022. With more customers looking to grab a bargain on essential items like clothing and footwear, affiliate channels like voucher sites have kept the campaign in a strong position.
Taking into account all of our affiliate channels, we consistently added an additional six figures to Express Trainers’ revenue each year. Our hotukdeals exposure alone contributed an average monthly revenue increase of 55% since the beginning of the campaign.
Our decision to make hotukdeals our primary focus resulted in an impressive level of engagement. Over the course of the campaign to date, our exposure has resulted in a 3.39% conversion rate which is well above the 1% industry average.
Our first step was to create a bespoke recruitment list that reflected the client’s objectives, targets, and demographics. This would help us find the most suitable affiliate programme for our client.
We knew that the discounts Express Trainers offer would do particularly well on deal sites, so we selected these platforms as our primary source of traffic. More specifically, we utilised our existing relationship with hotukdeals to ensure the client’s best-in-market deals were listed on the site and were getting in front of an audience that wasn’t just interested in footwear but was interested in bargains more generally.
While we normally try not to rely on specific affiliate types to drive the majority of revenue, it’s important for SMEs to identify a particular affiliate type that can support the brand and deliver on KPIs in a cost-effective manner.
Hotukdeals was a prime target for us due to the nature of the site. Deals are voted on by the community and when they reach a certain level of ‘hotness’ they’re featured on the site’s homepage and social media, where they can gather even more exposure and traffic. Our client’s competitive deals and a major brand offering made Express Trainers a perfect fit for the site.
I can’t speak highly enough of Glass Digital’s influence on our affiliates. Since they started working on our campaign, we’ve seen an increase in revenue YoY, with a strong ROI and low COS. The affiliate team has knowledge and expertise in what they do, which has enabled us to target a much wider range of affiliates. They have also helped us gain access to the hotukdeals portal, which is now a key revenue driver for us.
Get in touch today to find out how our affiliate marketing team could help you build profitable partnerships.
Prefer to talk? Call 0191 338 6903