Whenever a holiday rolls around, your marketing team probably brainstorms ways to make the most of it. A great way to dig in is with your affiliate marketing program. But, consumers are now more hyper-aware than ever of when they’re being sold to. So, how do you get your affiliates to promote their discount codes without having people scroll away?
Here are some creative ways to make every holiday your store’s most profitable.
The holidays are a time to decompress, celebrate, and spend time with family and friends. They’re also a time when average consumer spend jumps significantly. This makes for a lucrative opportunity for businesses to boost sales.
The holidays also allow brands to stand out in their market, attract new audiences, and capitalize on seasons or moments of giving.
There are no hard and fast rules for the “correct” way to promote affiliate discount codes. What works well for one audience may not resonate with another. Feel free to use these ideas as a jumping-off point, and get creative with your content.
Best for: Any holiday!
Gift guides are common around the Christmas holidays, but they make great promotional content for any holiday! And what better to go with your gift guide than a discount? Get your affiliates to post gift guide feed posts or stories for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and even the back-to-school season.
Have your affiliates throw in some products they use and love, and maybe do a deeper dive or longer video into your brand’s product as part of the guide. Their audience already loves and trusts your affiliate, so a little extra spotlight in a helpful gift guide will generate more revenue for your brand and more commission for the affiliate.
Best for: New Year’s, Fourth of July, Labor Day
Everybody loves a good party, so have your affiliates focus on the party element to hype up their audience for the next holiday. You can frame any product as a must-have for the next holiday party, including beauty products, clothing, hobby products, drinkware, you name it.
Have affiliates do an unboxing of your product as part of their party prep. This will give your audience a sense of urgency and make them feel like something they also need to check off their to-do list before the holiday creeps up.
Best for: Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day
A big part of the reason your affiliate has such a big audience is that people love them as a person. Parasocial relationships go a long way, and that translates into big sales.
For holidays that celebrate a specific person, like Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, or Father’s Day, have your affiliate post why they’re gifting your product to that special person in their life. Have them use storytelling in their blog, videos, or stories, so the audience can see themselves gifting in the same way.
Best for: Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Back to School, Labor Day, Valentine’s Day
Are your products better for winding down? Luckily, that’s also something people look forward to around holidays, or afterward. Christmas, Labor Day, and Valentine’s Day are great reasons for affiliates to encourage their audience to relax and get comfortable.
Have your affiliates promote your products with a get-unready-with-me. Everybody loves a good nighttime routine, and if your products are an integral step, you’ll see your sales grow with every affiliate post.
Best for: Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day
Need to add a little gift to go with dinner? Need to impress your partner’s parents? Want to spoil your friend’s kids? Adding just a little gift to the celebration where people say “no gifts!” is always memorable without needing to go over the top.
Have your affiliates make a simple photo or story post about bringing your product along as a little extra something around the holidays. The discount code on top will make it feel like a no-brainer for their audience.
Best for: Any holiday!
Ever heard of girl math? Or getting a little something “as a treat”? People love to treat themselves (as they should!) and any holiday is a good excuse to fill their cart with a little something extra.
Have your affiliates use any holiday as an excuse to get themselves something. Family time can be difficult. Valentine’s Day can be lonely. Back-to-school season can be stressful. You can spin any holiday as a moment to gift themselves with a little retail therapy. It won’t take much to twist the audience’s arm, and then it’s win-win-win for you, the affiliate, and the shopper.
Coming up with ideas to inspire your affiliates is the tricky part. For everything else, there’s Simple Affiliate.
Simple Affiliate is an all-in-one affiliate marketing software that makes onboarding, tracking, and managing your affiliates easy. Marketers can use simple dashboards, KPI tracking, automatic payments, and even automated tax forms. It’s a no-code product that suits and scales with any business. Book a demo today to learn how it can supercharge your affiliate program.
