5 Affiliate Marketing Skills All Businesses Should Be Seeking
Organisations have an increasing array of options and methods at their disposal to promote services to target audiences. A key tenet of modern engagement is affiliate marketing, and while not new, its role has significantly expanded in recent years, driven in part by changes to leading search engine algorithms and shifting consumer behaviours. In fact, the past two years have seen consistent growth in affiliate marketing investment in the UK, with a 17% year-on-year increase between 2023 and 2024, outpacing broader digital marketing spend. To ensure businesses remain visible and on the radar of potential customers, sourcing the right specialists to spearhead activity is critical, but it also presents a major challenge. But what are the top five affiliate marketing skills that businesses should be seeking to drive growth in 2025 and beyond?
A Changing Marketing Environment
Affiliate marketing is now recognised as a vital component of the digital marketing landscape, and the majority of consumer-facing businesses leverage it as a core part of their strategies. This is a highly varied market, with the likes of cashback, loyalty programmes, content sites and influencer partnerships all playing significant roles. The last of these groups – influencer-driven affiliate marketing – has seen the most rapid recent growth, with investment rising by 42% between 2023 and 2024. One of the reasons behind its expanding role is the high levels of return on investment noted by brands, with research suggesting an average return of £17 for every £1 spent, and even higher rates in markets like travel and FMCG. But this can’t be achieved without having the right experts capable of developing campaigns that resonate with target audiences. And while specific demands will vary from market to market, there are certain evergreen affiliate marketing skills that all employers should be looking to identify in their next hire:
Top Affiliate Marketing Skills
Strategic Thinking
Effective affiliate marketing requires adapting to market trends, and changing approaches depending on success rates. This drives the need for strategic thinking to identify the right partners, align campaigns with broader goals, and adapt to market shifts, and consequently, for professionals who can analyse market trends, understand behaviours and build strategies that hit the mark. Employers should also seek those with the ability to forward-plan, foresee potential challenges or bumps in the road, and pivot accordingly to ensure sustained and consistent success.
Creativity
With so many organisations all competing for the same customers, affiliate marketing is becoming an increasingly saturated space, and creativity can separate the best campaigns from the rest. As with all aspects of marketing, it is those organisations that develop content and messaging that truly resonates with audiences that will succeed, and this can only be achieved by sourcing those with creative flair who can build and action unique value propositions.
Communication
Affiliate marketing requires building relationships with potential partners, internal teams, external stakeholders and more, meaning effective communication is critical. While the majority of marcomms professionals will be adept communicators, organisations should specifically seek those with the ability to articulate their campaign goals, provide feedback and ensure alignment and collaboration across all elements of affiliate programmes.
Negotiation
Along similar lines, affiliate marketing thrives on relationships, and building and maintaining them requires more than just strong persuasive communication, but also the ability to negotiate terms that align with both the affiliate's and the company's objectives, including discussing commission structures, performance expectations, and promotional strategies. The best affiliates will likely have multiple competitors vying for their attention, and to secure the partnerships that deliver results, professionals must negotiate compelling offers that stand out. Negotiation also plays a critical role in conflict resolution. Disagreements over performance metrics, payment terms, or promotional content can arise. Professionals equipped with strong negotiation skills can navigate these challenges, finding solutions that preserve the partnership and maintain campaign momentum.
Data Analysis Expertise
No affiliate marketing strategy will succeed without the right data, and technological advances mean that professionals have ever-increasing amounts of information to gauge performance, optimise conversion paths and ultimately build a thorough and impactful plan. This is no easy task, and proficiency in the likes of Google Analytics, Tableau and industry-specific dashboards can go a long way and should be sought by employers looking to fill their next vacancy.
Continuous Learning
As with so many emerging fields, the affiliate marketing landscape is highly dynamic and platforms and customer behaviours are constantly evolving. The best specialists will show a thirst for knowledge and the ability to take on new skills, whilst delivering great results. Sourcing talent with these competencies will also aid organisations in staying competitive in an increasingly crowded marketplace, and can mean they are more aware of emerging market trends and broader changes which could affect them.
For organisations, ensuring affiliate marketing output is hitting the mark with potential customers is essential; however, achieving results relies on having the best people, and those with the right blend of softer and technical prowess, which isn’t always an easy combination to source.
If your organisation is looking to source affiliate marketing expertise and grow your marketing function, get in touch with our specialist team to find the talent it needs to thrive.
