5 proven ways to attract coupon websites to your affiliate program

Coupon and cashback websites used to rule the affiliate world. Today, they’re hit or miss. Some online businesses find coupon sites slimy, likely because coupon codes only work one-third of the time. Talk about bait and switch.

But love ‘em or hate ‘em, the right coupon offers a unique appeal to your current audience and beyond. 

Do you cater to millennials? Well, you can persuade 86% of them to try your product with a discount or coupon. On top of that, coupons garner more loyalty than customer loyalty programs. Why? It’s that quick pleasure sensation of saving money — loyalty programs demand more time, while online coupons give potential customers immediate savings and excitement.

Pair all that with the immense monthly traffic of a coupon website? Cha-ching! Hello, revenue and loyal customers. But you’ll need to roll up your sleeves to attract coupon sites to your affiliate program. Then, you’ll need clickless tracking to measure results through an affiliate software like Tapfiliate (try our free 14-day trial today). 

Back to business — attracting coupon affiliates. We’ll break down 5 proven ways to entice coupon websites to your affiliate roster.

Top 5 strategies to attract coupon websites to your affiliate program

Coupon sites (and apps) offer mass exposure to a target audience segment: the ones far in the customer journey, who are ready to BUY! Of course, the biggest coupon websites know their worth. That’s why you need to bring your brand’s A-game to the table. 

Remember, coupon affiliate marketing isn’t “sales at any cost.” Before you engage, you need a strategy. Will you be a humble brand offering coupons regularly? Or will you aim to feel more exclusive, only offering online coupons during limited periods? Think about this as you prepare your strategy.

In the meantime?

Here are 5 solid tips to attract high-value coupon affiliates: 

• Create attractive discounts
• Provide exclusive discount codes
• Be open to different campaign types
• Use the coupon site’s expertise to help you to drive more sales
• Provide commission increases and bonuses

Let’s start with the basics. 

Create attractive discounts

Coupon websites know more than anyone how much their audience wants a deal. If brands don’t shell out enough of an incentive, customers won’t bite. And in turn, coupon affiliates won’t get their commission. 

Meaning? You can’t approach Retailmenot with a 5% discount on your obscure board game brand and expect a call back. Unless your brand has high exposure, that won’t fly. On average, coupons offer a 17.2% discount. Still, you need to shine from your competitors. 

What better way to stand out from the competition than with a mouthwatering discount? 

Of course, you can’t just shell out 30% without planning properly. Take a look at your margins, commission rates, and business goals. Think of special offers and a solid minimum spend that would justify a large discount. 

A 20% coupon might not be a great way to start a product launch. 

But how about a 30% coupon for a $50 spend? Your current customers would love it, but it might not make sense financially. 

A little more tweaking is needed… there, we have it. A 30% coupon for a $150 spend pumps up average order value and appeals to your customers. Win win…now we’re talking. Make it a limited-time offer to garner even more hype and snag a few first-time customers. 

Trust us, you’ll catch your desired coupon website’s attention. 

But what if you offer that same discount on your regular brand channels? Things can get dicey.

That’s why you need…

Exclusive coupon codes

Say you promote a Black Friday coupon code on your brand’s Instagram story. Then, you offer that same discount on a coupon website. Sure, you might have a unique discount code. But you just created competition for your beloved coupon affiliate. 

What’s stopping a customer from accessing your Instagram campaign coupon code instead of the coupon website’s affiliate link? 

Congratulations, you just created competition for your affiliate — a big no no. 

Coupon websites want exclusive promotional codes. Hang on, don’t all your affiliates have exclusive codes anyway? 

Not quite. 

You might offer all your affiliates a unique digital coupon that’s trackable to each one. However, none have an exclusive discount coupon — they’re promoting the same promotion, just through different coupon codes. An exclusive code would mean the affiliate (in this case, a coupon website), would be the only one presenting that specific discount during a specific time. 

Do coupon websites only accept exclusive codes? Not necessarily. But you’ll certainly shine and offer a serious incentive for partnership if you use them. 

Still, you’ll need to track those exclusive codes and measure your new affiliate’s performance. Tapfiliate makes coupon tracking easy with our ultimate affiliate dashboard. We illuminate insights you need to assess performance and level up your affiliate program, one digital coupon or affiliate link at a time. 

But coupon links and codes aren’t the only tool in a coupon website’s arsenal. 

Be open to different campaign types 

Let’s look at Hip2Save as an example. The coupon giant features endless promotions for brands and online retailers like Kiehls, Macy’s, Walmart, and more. 

But you’ll notice they have a few other areas of interest on their site. A quick gander through the “Tips” section shows: 

• Blog posts
• Product reviews
• Resource posts
• Other content types

Online coupon sites can be content publishers, too! So why not leverage yet another source of inbound traffic? On top of that, some coupon sites offer cashback incentives — another great checkbox for your savvy customers. 

But don’t get lazy. Cashback, content, and online coupons are three different animals requiring separate goals and strategies. If you introduce another section, think about your goals. Do you want more traffic? More of a customer base? Higher levels of customer engagement? Higher order value? Coupon campaigns will vary accordingly. 

Have we lost you? Affiliate marketing campaigns can feel intimidating, especially when you have hundreds of affiliates and unique campaigns. Mix in a content strategy, online coupon strategy, and cashback strategy — oh my. 

That’s why an affiliate tracking solution is essential. Tapfiliate helps you pinpoint exactly where your revenue comes from, attributing every commission accurately to each affiliate.

Use the coupon website’s expertise to help you drive more sales

Your affiliate relationship is also a partnership — and partners help each other. Your success is linked to your coupon affiliate’s revenue, so it’s in their best interest to drive more sales. 

Leverage that interest by picking their brain. 

Talk to your coupon site reps about your brand and their experiences with similar partnerships. They’ll have a wealth of knowledge to share with you about what’s worked with previous customers and campaigns, and what hasn’t. 

Here are some quick tips for fostering open communication and strong relationships: 

• Be transparent. Show them the data — Tapfiliate’s rich insights and reporting can help with that. 
• Personalize communications. Don’t send generic updates to every single email address in your affiliate mailing list. Talk to each one by rep name, and make sure you mention specific campaigns related to the coupon website in question. 
• Ask for feedback. Schedule a check-in and ask them about ways to improve your existing campaigns. 
• Maintain a timely payment schedule. Keep the money rolling, or else your coupon affiliates will bounce. 

Speaking of payments, we’ve reached our final tip. Here’s a hint: money talks. 

Provide commission increases and bonuses

You might need to leave some wiggle room in your commission rates for the right coupon website. Oh, and squeeze in a little extra for those prime positions (like a spot in their weekly email marketing campaigns, or daily deals). After all, you want your special offers smack-dab in the middle or top of the page. 

Granted, some customers scroll till the end — but experts say the 15-second rule captures audiences fastest. Meaning? You need a prime spot for brand awareness, visibility, and more sales. 

But we get it — how do you toggle an automated commission increase when the rest of your affiliates have the same rate? A tracking software like Tapfiliate helps you set commission increases throughout a set duration, ideally the campaign life cycle (aka the length of time the coupon is valid). 

Another way to capture a coupon website’s attention is through bonuses. Oh yes, more money — but it’s well spent. If a coupon affiliate reaches X number of sales, reward them with a cash bonus or a commission increase. Tapfiliate’s commission groups make both items super seamless. 

Attract more coupon sites to your affiliate program today

Coupon websites appeal to potential and regular customers. Something about the urgency of a special offer just gets people racing through the customer journey. Then there’s all the traffic! A partnership with a coupon website helps you leverage years of work they’ve already put in garnering inbound traffic through SEO. For example, Retailmenot scored a whopping nearly 27 million monthly visits in October. 

Still, brands and business owners need to make their affiliate program attractive. Coupon websites have tons of brands to choose from, so you’ll need to stand out — even if that means embracing a larger discount or commission rate. 

We’ve seen tons of our customers thrive with coupon website affiliate partnerships. Our affiliate dashboard captures millions of dollars of revenue through these partnerships, all pumped up by data insights that keep your marketing strategy up to date. Plus, you’ll wow your affiliates with personalized sign-up pages, data transparency, and customizable links. Ready to excel your affiliate program with coupon websites? Start tracking affiliate performance today with Tapfiliate’s free 14-day trial!