Cashback & Coupon Sites: Bottom-Funnel Boost or Brand Risk?
Cashback & Coupon Sites: Bottom-Funnel Boost or Brand Risk?
Cashback and coupon sites often seem like a fast track to boosting conversions and affiliate program performance. But with their promise of high traffic and quick wins, especially during key promotional periods like Black Friday, it’s easy to see why many brands consider onboarding them. But is it always the right move?
While these partners can help drive volume and visibility, they also come with potential drawbacks. From promo code misuse and weakening a brand’s image, to questionable incrementality and obscure attribution. It’s essential to evaluate whether these platforms truly align with your marketing strategy and KPIs.
In this post, we’ll break down exactly how cashback and coupon sites work, the benefits and challenges of partnering with them, and what to watch out for when onboarding them to your affiliate program. Whether you’re managing a luxury brand or scaling a new DTC brand, this guide will help you make informed, data-driven decisions about this controversial affiliate vertical.
How do Cashback and Coupon Sites Work?
Cashback and coupon sites operate by offering discounts or rewards to consumers in exchange for shopping through their affiliate links.
👉 Cashback sites give users a percentage of their purchase back after the sale is complete.
👉 Coupon sites share discount codes that reduce the total cost at checkout.
In both cases, the affiliate site earns a commission on the referred sale and either passes part of that commission back to the user (cashback) or presents it as a discount (coupon). The customer is redirected via an affiliate tracking link, and once the purchase is completed, the commission is paid to the partner. These models can drive substantial conversion uplift during key promotional windows like Black Friday, but that volume often comes with trade-offs.
Why You Should Be Cautious
While cashback and coupon affiliates can deliver quick wins, they might not always align with your brand’s broader marketing strategy. Below we’ve listed some key reasons to stay cautious:
1. Credit for Organic Sales
Many cashback and coupon sites target users already in the purchasing journey. This raises concerns around incrementality, are these affiliates truly adding value, or are they capturing credit for sales that would have happened anyway?
2. Brand Integrity Risks
Luxury or premium brands need to tread carefully. Overuse of discounts can weaken your brand image. For instance, a high-end ecommerce brand might avoid cashback and coupon sites to prevent promo code leaks and maintain pricing consistency across existing partners.
3. Promo Code Misuse & Leakage
Unauthorised or expired codes can occasionally surface on these platforms, creating frustration for customers in the checkout process. Or worse, these codes can often spread across unintended sites.
4. Attribution Skew
Most affiliate networks use a last-click attribution model, which often favors cashback and coupon partners. This can lead to disputes when mid or upper funnel partners (like content creators or influencers) are overlooked.
5. Transparency & Ethics
Some sites don’t clearly disclose how and where they’re promoting your links, especially when browser extensions automatically apply coupons without user intent. That lack of transparency can damage trust and data integrity.
Common Challenges & How to Overcome Them
If you decide to onboard cashback or coupon sites, here are some of the most common issues you could face, and how to proactively address them:
- Attribution Disputes
Use detailed tracking tools, cookie windows, and post-purchase journey analysis to assess true value and avoid inflated last-click crediting.
- Traffic Quality
Request insights into user demographics and engagement stats. Understanding who their audience is will help ensure they’re aligned with your brand goals.
- Code Protection
Monitor where your promo codes appear online using Google searches and implement restrictions on affiliate promo use.
- Market Fit
Cashback and coupon sites are more common in the UK and US, but less prevalent in other EU regions, so make sure they fit your target market strategy.
- Program Oversaturation
Don’t onboard 50+ bottom-of-funnel partners. Focus on high-quality partners with engaged, relevant users, and maintain a balanced mix across your funnel.
- Incrementality Testing
Does a tenancy placement or higher visibility actually increase volume? Compare organic vs. paid performance and optimise based on the results.
- Partner Transparency
Push for transparency around browser extensions, traffic sources, and funnel position. Prioritise platforms that offer opt-in control and detailed reporting.
What Kind of Results Can You Expect?
Results will vary based on industry, product type, and how competitive your affiliate commission rates are. Typically, cashback and coupon partners can drive an immediate uplift in traffic and conversions, particularly during high-intent shopping periods.
You can often ask these sites for benchmark data, such as average click-through rate (CTR) or conversion rate (CR%) in your vertical. If you’re open to testing, consider adjusting commissions to see how it impacts placement and performance.
Should You Onboard Cashback & Coupon Sites to Your Affiliate Program?
When launching an affiliate program, it’s tempting to lean on cashback and coupon sites to immediately boost results. These partners can be valuable tools for program growth and are often traffic and conversion powerhouses during peak promo events.
But before you dive straight in, it’s important to understand exactly how they work, and whether they align with your brand’s long-term goals. Ultimately, they need to be managed strategically to avoid cannibalising organic sales or damaging your brand image.
Some Key Takeaways
Before onboarding these affiliates:
- Track attribution closely and ensure ethical crediting.
- Protect your codes from leaks and misuse.
- Safeguard your brand by being selective and aligning with trusted partners.
- Demand transparency from publishers and understand how they operate.
- Measure incrementality, not just volume. Focus on retention, LTV, and AOV.
Next steps:
- Audit your current publisher mix - are you too bottom-funnel heavy?
- Identify any gaps in your funnel coverage and set clear KPIs
- If you’re trialing cashback or coupon partners, start with one or two high-trust platforms.
- Test and refine your approach using commission optimisation, code protection measures, and transparent tracking.
Fancy leaving it up to the experts?
Want help crafting a full funnel affiliate strategy that’s tailored to your brand’s goals? Whether you're considering onboarding cashback and coupon partners or just want to ensure your affiliate channel is driving incremental, sustainable growth, we can help.
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