Four-fifths of Australian marketers consider affiliate marketing to be more cost-effective than other channels, with 80 per cent reporting stronger return on ad spend (ROAS), according to a new survey.
Globally, 74 per cent of brands have increased their affiliate investment to counter the rising cost in other marketing channels while 71 per cent of marketers now consider affiliate marketing more cost-effective than other marketing channels, and two-thirds report stronger ROAS.
“The data shows a major shift in mindset. Brands are reallocating budgets based on what is driving measurable, cost-effective growth,” said Adam Furness, MD APJ at impact.com, the affiliate and partnerships company behind the research.
“Affiliate marketing has matured from transactional relationships to strategic partnership programs. We’re seeing marketers build sophisticated partner ecosystems that deliver across the entire funnel.”
Impact.com said brands were exploring alternatives to saturated paid media channels and moving towards affiliate, which offers “performance partnerships that prioritise trust, efficiency and accountability”.
The research highlights five key areas driving the sophistication of partnership marketing programs: partner diversification, strategic investment, AI deployment, creator collaboration, and advanced measurement. Top-performing brands are expanding beyond traditional affiliate models, partnering with creators, commerce platforms, and content publishers to reach consumers across the entire purchase journey.
A standout trend is the rise of creator partnerships. More than half of brands plan to allocate at least a quarter of their affiliate and partnership marketing budget to creators — a clear sign that social influence is evolving into both a brand and performance channel. Yet a disconnect remains: while 26 per cent of creators prefer flat-fee compensation, only 19 per cent received them, highlighting a higher demand than what is available.
This evolution is playing out in real-time for online furniture retailer Castlery. “As customer acquisition costs keep rising, creators have become one of our most effective performance channels,” said Sarah Ann Lim, global partnership manager, affiliates and creators at Castlery. “We’re seeing real ROI from partnerships that combine creative storytelling with measurable outcomes and we’ve evolved our compensation model to reflect that.”
Some 97 per cent of brands report using AI in their affiliate strategies, primarily for partner analysis, personalisation, and chatbot automation. Yet most are only exploring two to three use cases, suggesting significant untapped potential for AI in this space.
Measurement and attribution are modernising as well, with 94% of brands experimenting with alternative attribution models, moving beyond last-click models toward more nuanced mixed-media and position-based approaches. However, only 20% of brands are tracking Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), and just 18 per cent measure Average Order Value (AOV) — two metrics critical to understanding long-term profitability.
Regionally, the report underscores the importance of localisation. Influencer-led affiliate growth is expected to accelerate in markets like Singapore ( 37 percentage point growth), while France and Italy are expected to be slower to adopt creator models. Australian marketers are advised to take note as local affiliate programs scale and expand globally.
“Affiliate marketing is no longer a niche tactic. It has become a core part of the modern marketing mix,” added Furness. “But to unlock its full potential, brands need to back the right partners, adopt smarter tools, and shift from transactional thinking to long-term strategies.”
