Breaking Into a New Market With Affiliate Marketing

Are you looking to expand your business into a new market? Affiliate marketing can be a powerful tool to help you achieve that goal. In this blog, we’ll guide you through the essential steps to successfully break into a new market using our tried-and-true affiliate marketing strategies.

Step 1: Identifying a new market to expand into

Run a competitive analysis

Running a competitive analysis is an integral part of market research.

By examining the types of partners who are onboarded with your brand’s competitors, you gain insights into affiliate credibility and the demand for your product or similar products in that market.

For example, if high-performing affiliates in the market you’d like to expand into have partnered with your top competitors, it indicates a demand for your type of brand among that partner’s audience.

Step 2: Choosing the right affiliate partners

Once you have identified the new market and conducted thorough research, the next crucial step is selecting the right affiliate partners to collaborate with. This step requires a deep understanding of which affiliates will thrive in specific markets or locations.

Here’s how an experienced agency can help your brand find and connect with affiliates that will drive results:

Understand market suitability and success factors

• Identify affiliates who have a proven track record in the target market
• Consider the compatibility of partner types with the preferences of the target audience
• Focus on partners who are likely to generate the most revenue and increase brand awareness

Connect with relevant affiliates

• Engage with affiliates who have a genuine interest in your product or service
• Prioritize personalized outreach and establish a connection with responsive contacts
• Start small to manage workload and minimize the risk of errors or oversights

Leverage regional expertise

• Seek support from boots-on-the-ground regional experts who possess language skills and cultural knowledge
• Leverage their networks and recommendations to solidify credibility with potential partners
• Gain insights into partner preferences, requirements, and performance expectations

Optimize recruitment and onboarding

• Tailor your approach to match language preferences and communication styles of local affiliates
• Seek expert guidance on best practices specific to each market, ensuring effective outreach and onboarding
• Capitalize on existing relationships, such as strategic account managers, to establish familiarity and trust

Step 3: Creating a strong regional affiliate program strategy

Expanding into a new market with affiliate marketing requires a well-defined strategy that aligns with your business objectives.

This strategy serves as a guiding framework for your team and provides clarity on why you are entering the new market. By setting clear goals and objectives, you can maximize your chances of success and effectively manage the expansion.

Here are key elements to consider when creating a strong regional affiliate program strategy:

Get aligned on goals and KPIs

While increasing revenue and sales are important, it’s essential to consider any additional objectives specific to the new market you’d like to focus on.

By clearly defining these objectives—such as capitalizing on pre-existing demand, introducing your brand, or growing brand awareness—your team members will have a better understanding of the purpose behind their tasks and fosters alignment and motivation.

It’s important to remain flexible and adaptable throughout the process. Roadblocks and challenges may arise, requiring adjustments to the strategy.

Establish a realistic timeframe

Setting a realistic timeframe is vital. Divide the expansion into stages, for example:

• Market research
• Affiliate outreach/recruitment
• Campaign execution

This helps track progress and sets achievable expectations. It guides partner recruitment and ensures all expansion stages are covered.

Avoid rushing, which creates unrealistic expectations and hampers relationship-building. Allocate enough time to establish strong partnerships and make necessary adjustments.

Streamline affiliate onboarding

When onboarding affiliates, it’s crucial to justify why they should choose your brand, particularly if you’re new. Determine target affiliates based on market research and convey the value proposition.

Define a recruitment process for successful onboarding and establish key metrics to monitor during expansion. These metrics aid in evaluating partner performance and identifying top performers in the new region.

Build and optimize relationships

• Leverage existing partnerships: Tap into the strength of your existing partnerships that have a presence in the new market. Leverage their influence and trust to introduce your brand to potential affiliates. Maintaining consistent points of contact fosters familiarity and strengthens relationships.
• Personalize communication: Arrange introductory calls or meetings between your team and partners to establish personal connections. Assign dedicated relationship managers to ensure prompt communication and address partner queries effectively. Personalized interactions build trust and demonstrate your commitment to their success.
• Provide essential resources: Translate creatives and offers into the local language, ensuring they resonate with the target audience. Adapt banner and asset sizes to meet regional requirements and platform specifications. Equipping partners with these resources maximizes their ability to effectively promote your brand.

Step 4: Measuring success in a new market

Once you have entered a new market, it becomes crucial to measure your success accurately. By tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) and analyzing the results, you can gain valuable insights and make informed decisions to optimize your affiliate program.

Here are some essential ways to measure success in a new market:

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Keep an eye on important metrics like conversion rate, click-through rate, revenue, and customer acquisition cost. These indicators help you evaluate performance and stay aligned with your objectives.

Onboarding partners and market demand: The success of onboarding partners provides valuable insights into the market demand and expectations. Use this feedback to adjust your strategies and better meet the needs of your partners and target audience.

Analyzing results: Continuously analyze the outcomes of your affiliate marketing campaign. Monitor the identified KPIs and assess the impact of product launches or sales. Be aware of potential inflated performance due to initial customer excitement.

Continued optimization of partners and program: Adapt your strategy based on the practices that work well in the new region. Stay flexible and amend your plan accordingly. Keep partners engaged and actively promote your offers to align with local market preferences.

Acceleration Partners: Your key to successful market expansion

Expanding into an affiliate program into a new market requires strategic planning and execution. Acceleration Partners, a top-tier partnership marketing agency, offers the expertise and resources needed to successfully break into new markets.

We provide market research, connect brands with proven affiliates, and leverage regional expertise to ensure effective outreach and onboarding. With our guidance, businesses can create a strong regional affiliate program strategy, measure success through key performance indicators, and continuously optimize their approach.

Ready to break into a new market and achieve remarkable results with affiliate marketing? Accelerate your success with Acceleration Partners. Let’s connect!

By: Ellie Sarrafi