What Are Sub-Affiliate Networks?
What Are Sub-Affiliate Networks (And Should You be Using Them)?
Sub-affiliate networks are a powerful but often overlooked tool in affiliate marketing. They allow brands to scale their programmes efficiently by tapping into a wide network of pre-vetted publishers without needing to build the relationships from scratch.
In this blog, we’ll explore what sub-affiliate networks are, how they work, why you should integrate them into your affiliate strategy, plus what kind of results you can expect. If you're looking to scale your programme efficiently while staying compliant, keep reading.
What is a Sub-Affiliate Network?
A sub-affiliate network is a platform that connects brands with a large network of affiliates to promote their products or services through a single integration. These networks act as intermediaries between brands and a large network of affiliates, overseeing the recruitment, management, and tracking.
Most sub-affiliate networks operate on a cost-per-action (CPA) basis, helping affiliates monetise their content. Affiliates within the network use the platform’s tracking links to monetise their traffic by turning specific brand keywords into tracked affiliate links. The publisher then earns a percentage of the commission that’s paid to the sub-affiliate by the brand.
Ultimately, sub-affiliate networks will allow us to efficiently scale affiliate programmes quickly, without needing extensive time or resources. These networks already have relationships with publishers, which allows for faster promotion of product launches, campaigns, and limited-time offers.
Growth HQ Trusted Sub-Affiliate Networks
There are a few different types of sub-affiliate networks, all of which work with different types of publishers and have different ways of reporting, as well as different cost structures. Here are some examples of reliable sub-networks we work with:
🔗 Linkby: Linkby is a CPC-based network that distributes press releases to premium publishers, helping brands gain editorial coverage and high-quality traffic on a performance basis.
🛍️ LTK: LTK is the largest influencer marketing platform, formerly known as rewardStyle and LIKEtoKNOW.it. LTK empowers creators and brands to monetise their content through shoppable links and brand collaborations, making it ideal for influencer-driven campaigns.
💸 Skimlinks: Skimlinks helps publishers monetise editorial content through automated affiliate links for products. Their technology automates the affiliate marketing process for publishers so rather than spending time creating and hard-coding affiliate links into their site, they can focus on creating great content.
Why Should I Introduce Sub-Affiliate Networks to my Affiliate Program?
Sub-affiliate networks are one of the most effective ways to scale your affiliate programme quickly and efficiently. You gain immediate access to an established network of trusted affiliates, content creators, and influencers all under one umbrella. Here’s a list of key benefits to partnering with a sub-affiliate network:
Scalability Without the Headcount
Sub-affiliate networks allow you to scale without stretching your team. They manage the recruitment and onboarding of individual publishers, saving you the time and resources needed to build those relationships manually.
Faster Promotion and Launches
Because these networks already have relationships with publishers, they can roll out campaigns faster. Whether it’s a product launch, flash sale, or seasonal promotion, sub-affiliate networks enable quicker activation and wider exposure.
Access to Established Publisher Relationships
They often work with premium publishers, influencer platforms, and media outlets. Tapping into these pre-existing relationships gives your brand instant visibility in places that would otherwise take months to penetrate.
Cost-Effective Growth
Most sub-affiliate networks operate on performance-based models like CPA or CPC, meaning you only pay for results. This massively reduces risk and allows you to optimise spend based on actual performance.
Streamlined Reporting and Management
Many sub-affiliate networks provide centralised dashboards for tracking performance, conversions and commissions, simplifying what can otherwise be a fragmented process when working with multiple partners.
How Can I Introduce Sub-Affiliate Networks to my Affiliate Program?
Not every sub-affiliate network will apply directly to your affiliate programme. Some, especially influencer or PR networks you’ll need to directly reach out to. Regardless, due diligence is key. Here’s our step-by-step guide to doing it right:
Define your goals:
- Ask yourself what you want to achieve by partnering with these networks. Are you aiming to scale quickly? Tap into new audiences? Access to big influencers or media houses? This will help you decide what type of sub-affiliate network you should be partnering with.
Select your sub-affiliate network:
- There are different types of sub-networks, choose one that aligns with your goals. For example, Skimlinks is content-based, LTK is predominantly influencer focused, and Linkby is more PR and media house based.
Do your research:
- Before partnering with a sub-network, it's essential to do your research. Request to book a meeting with them to understand what control you’ll have over content and publisher selection (this is especially important in Finance and Healthcare industries, where there are strict compliance guidelines). Ask about their tracking and reporting tools, find out what publishers they work with and most importantly, clarify payment terms.
Ensure they’re onboarded correctly:
- Once vetted, onboard your sub-affiliate network into your partnership management platform and set up the agreed commission rates and payment terms.
Provide promotional resources:
- Depending on the network, you might need to supply sub-affiliates with creative assets, product copy, campaign briefs, compliance or brand guidelines.
Monitor & optimise:
- Continuously monitor and track KPIs, adjust commission structures, and regularly communicate with the network to optimise your content’s performance.
What Challenges Could I Expect to Face with Sub-affiliate Networks?
Even with the best partners, sub-affiliate networks come with a few challenges. Here’s a list of the most common risks you need to be aware of, and how to prevent them:
Limited control over content:
- Set clear content guidelines and regularly review content to ensure it's aligned.
Compliance risks:
- Provide all compliance guidelines and regularly audit content to ensure it adheres to the compliance guidelines.
Lack of transparency:
- Only partner with networks that offer robust reporting tools and monitor data closely for clear visibility.
Quality Control:
- Clarify which sub-affiliates you’re open to partnering with based on their reputation, experience, and relevance to your brand. Maintaining communication is key to ensuring they meet your brand standards.
How to Spot and Prevent Dodgy Sub-Affiliate Networks
We’ve collated a list of the most common red flags to watch out for and how to protect your brand:
High Traffic with No Referring URLs
If you're seeing a surge in clicks but no referring URLs, it could signal automated bot traffic. Some dodgy networks simulate visits to inflate click-through rates and earn unearned commissions. Keep an eye on your analytics and flag any suspicious patterns.
Lack of Publisher Transparency
One of the biggest concerns with sub-networks is not knowing who is actually promoting your brand. If the network can’t (or won’t) disclose which publishers are driving traffic, it's a serious red flag. Require full transparency as part of your terms.
Brand Bidding in Paid Search
Some sub-networks may use your brand name as a keyword to drive traffic to their own site or affiliate links. This leads to misleading attributions, cannibalised branded traffic, and unnecessary commissions. Use search monitoring tools to detect and block this.
Unauthorised Media Channels
Affiliates might drive traffic through media channels that aren’t aligned with your brand guideline - think incentivised traffic, adult content, or misleading banners. Always set clear rules and monitor traffic sources to ensure compliance.
Using these tips will put you in a much stronger position to avoid partnering with any dodgy sub-affiliate networks and protect your brand.
What Results Could I Expect to See From Partnering with Sub-Affiliate Networks?
🔗 By partnering with Linkby, we were able to secure 7 pieces of high-quality evergreen content on a cost-per-click (CPC) basis for our client. This content continues to drive long-term traffic and sales, with minimal ongoing effort.
🛍️ Through LTK influencer campaigns, we collaborated with 8 different influencers who created evergreen content that continues to generate traffic and engagement, helping our client tap into new audiences and sustain long-term brand visibility.
💸 After implementing commission tiers through Skimlinks, we saw a direct increase in sales, making our affiliate offers more attractive to both affiliates and customers, and driving higher conversion rates.
Key Takeaways
Incorporating sub-affiliate networks into your affiliate programme can significantly enhance scalability and efficiency. While it requires some initial research and planning, it can bring great benefits such as increased reach, reduced management, and improved ROI.
By setting clear goals, selecting the right networks, and maintaining ongoing monitoring and optimisation, brands can create a scalable affiliate strategy that leverages the strengths of sub-affiliate networks. These networks open doors to new audiences, bring in fresh content, and ultimately contribute to long-term growth.
Ready to Scale?
If you want to explore how sub-affiliate networks can help scale your affiliate programme, check out our services or get in touch for a chat with our team.
