Elevating Affiliate: CEO Matt Wool Shares C-Suite Perspective at Awin’s Global ThinkTank
At Awin’s Global ThinkTank 2025 in Vilamoura, Portugal, leaders from across the global partnership marketing ecosystem gathered to discuss the future of our industry. One of the most talked-about sessions was the panel, Affiliate Marketing: A View from the C Suite – a timely and important conversation exploring how affiliate marketing is perceived in executive boardrooms, and what it will take for the channel to fully step into the spotlight it deserves.
Matt Wool, CEO of Acceleration Partners, joined a panel of C-Suite leaders from Awin, Genie Goals, Debenhams, and Zilch; bringing a signature blend of industry insight, strategic foresight, and operational pragmatism to the discussion. With over a decade of leadership at the forefront of performance partnerships, Matt is well known for his role in helping enterprise brands unlock scalable growth through affiliate and partner marketing, and his take on the evolution of the channel offered a compelling vision for its future.
The Affiliate Industry at a Crossroads
Matt opened by acknowledging a truth many in the room could relate to: affiliate marketing is in a state of transition. It’s a channel with enormous potential, but one still battling legacy perceptions, particularly among senior decision-makers.
“Affiliate is caught between two eras,” said Matt. “There’s still a segment of CMOs who hold outdated views of the channel – associating it with brand risk, and low value. But there’s also a new generation of marketing leaders who see its power and are ready to invest in it strategically.”
This generational shift is key. Matt highlighted how the emergence of digitally native, post-2018 growth marketers in C-suite roles is reshaping affiliate’s reputation. These are leaders who understand that performance marketing doesn’t start and stop with paid search or social. They recognize affiliate as a channel with real scale, efficiency, and durability if activated correctly.
The Rise of Performance-Based Creator Programs
A major theme of Matt’s perspective was the integration of influencer marketing into the affiliate ecosystem, which he sees as a significant turning point.
“Performance-based creator programs are giving affiliate a new narrative,” Matt shared. “They offer a gateway for modern marketers to enter the affiliate space through something that feels familiar, social-first, and scalable – while still driving measurable ROI.”
Unlike traditional influencer marketing, which often lacks accountability, performance-based creator programs align with affiliate principles: pay-for-performance, trackable results, and long-term relationships. For many brands, this hybrid approach is a bridge between brand awareness and bottom-line impact, and it’s opening up net new budgets that weren’t previously earmarked for affiliate.
Matt believes this convergence of influencer and affiliate is more than a trend – it’s a structural evolution in how brands build partnerships, and a critical driver in affiliate’s broader appeal to the C-suite.
Data, Attribution, and the New C-Suite Mindset
Of course, shifting perceptions at the top requires more than innovation—it requires evidence. Matt stressed that one of the biggest challenges facing affiliate advocates is navigating the evolving attribution landscape inside large brands.
“CMOs are more reliant than ever on their own attribution models,” he explained. “If affiliate doesn’t show up in those models in the right way, it’s invisible when it comes to budget decisions.”
That’s why, Matt argues, agencies and affiliate managers must come armed not just with passion – but with data that aligns to internal frameworks. Better yet, he encourages bringing publishers into the conversation directly. When decision-makers hear directly from partners about how and why their impact matters, it builds trust and transparency – two things critical for long-term investment.
This isn’t just about proving past performance. It’s about positioning affiliate as a strategic lever for the future, and backing that up with the kind of insight and accountability the C-suite expects from other major channels.
Playing the Long Game
In one of the panel’s most resonant moments, Matt shared a simple but powerful comparison between affiliate and paid media:
“In paid search or social, your competitor can outbid you tomorrow and wipe out your advantage. In affiliate, it can take years to replicate what a brand has built through strong publisher relationships and a robust program strategy.”
This, he said, is affiliate’s real superpower. While it may be slower to scale initially, it offers something few other channels do: a lasting competitive edge. By investing in the right partners, content, and infrastructure today, brands can create a moat that protects and amplifies their performance for years to come.
Matt sees this long-term advantage as a crucial message to bring to C-level conversations. In an era of constant marketing volatility, channels that offer durability, trust, and sustained value deserve greater attention—and affiliate is uniquely positioned to deliver just that.
Leading the Industry Forward
Matt’s perspective on the panel reflected Acceleration Partners’ broader approach to affiliate marketing – pragmatic, data-driven, and focused on long-term impact. As an agency, we’re committed to helping brands move beyond legacy perceptions of the channel and unlock its full strategic potential. From integrating influencer programs into performance models to aligning affiliate strategies with internal attribution frameworks, our work is rooted in helping brands scale in a way that’s measurable and sustainable.
As he wrapped up his thoughts at Global ThinkTank, Matt left the audience with a clear challenge:
“If we want affiliate to be taken seriously at the top, we have to start thinking and acting like it already belongs there.”
With leaders like the ones on this panel guiding the way, the affiliate industry’s future isn’t just promising – it’s powerful.
Want to learn more about how Acceleration Partners is driving affiliate transformation for global brands? Get in touch with our team to start the conversation.