#asks-offers-advice
Thread
Hey all! Curious to hear how others are approaching the affiliate PR / commerce content channel. Currently, we've been focused on editorial coverage (e.g. product reviews) by reaching out to journalists directly. But I want to focus more on the type of coverage where you get featured in editorial listicles or product roundups on high-traffic sites, with embedded affiliate links that pay the publisher a % of each sale.
For those of you already running this channel:
• How are you sourcing and pitching these publishers?
• Are you using platforms like , Awin, ShareASale, or something else to manage relationships and tracking?
• Are you going through agencies, doing it in-house, or hybrid?
• What’s been your biggest challenge — getting into the right publications, getting ROI, or managing the process at scale?
• Any tips on tools, workflows, or partnerships that have been most effective?
This would be a great topic for a call!
happy to chat about this from a publisher POV
@Ian McGlumphy + @Jen Squilla are you up to drop some knowledge here??
@Stefanie Broes I'd love to share some knowledge on this, if you have 20 min free this week or next. 🙂
@Stefanie Broes Long answer coming in! Happy to connect more on this, I have a lot of resources I can share as this is my main area of expertise! How are you sourcing and pitching these publishers?
I source publishers directly through PR-style outreach, but to the ecommerce/affiliate contacts rather than traditional editorial. If PR is already running, align those efforts so it’s coordinated. Publishers are much more aware of monetization now, so I lead with how we can help them drive revenue.
Are you using platforms like Impact, Awin, ShareASale, or something else?
Impact is my go-to as most major publishers prefer it. Awin is cheaper but not as robust. If you choose Impact, start small and avoid getting upsold into a bigger tier than you need.
Are you going through agencies, in-house, or hybrid?
Hybrid is ideal:
• One in-house person (part-time is fine) dedicated to publisher recruitment and relationship building
• Paired with a PR agency that understands affiliate, or a specialist affiliate agency focused on publisher recruitment
Caution: some agencies often start with a lot of coupon/cashback partners for quick wins rather than quality publisher relationships.
Biggest challenge?
Avoiding over-reliance on coupon partners, finding enough high-value publishers at scale, and having enough resources for consistent outreach. A PR agency that “gets” affiliate can speed this up since they have the contacts.
Tips, tools, or workflows?
• Impact for relationship management and, payouts, tracking
• Linkby for CPC-based editorial placements aka premium press-style coverage without $20K+ sponsored fees
• Keep a balance of top-of-funnel (listicles, gift guides, premium pubs), and bottom-of-funnel (Rakuten, Capital One Shopping) + integrate other types of creators like You-tubers, etc
• One More Note: Hybrid style placements (flat rate + commission) with Top Influencers in the Health/Wellness space does super well here too - pick those who can promote across multiple channels: podcast, social + newsletter.
Coming in a little late but <@U095WUKP805>’s answer was spot on!
@Stefanie Broes we are working on this now as well and what <@U095WUKP805> said is exactly how we are approaching it. We actually just had to let go of a PR agency that wasnt delivering in the affiliate space, so we are onboarding a full stack affiliate agency that specializes in Performance PR / influencer / traditional affiliate. Lots of pay to play these days so you'll want to open up budget for that as well.
@Stefanie Broes Email me! ! Would love to work together :)
<@U095WUKP805> knocked this question out from every angle - she knows her stuff 🎯
One thing to consider, with GEO, the value won't solely be measurable via click-throughs on an affiliate anymore — AI (ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity) will often cite affiliate listicles and roundups directly in answers, so your brand shows up even if no one clicks on the article. It’s not the affiliate link that matters, it’s the credibility + structure: trusted domains (Wirecutter, Forbes Vetted, CNN Underscored), evergreen updates, and comparison/explainer formats that AI favors. And worth noting — SEO success ≠ GEO success. There’s surprisingly little overlap, so you need both strategies.