Why Are Brands Moving From Traditional To Affiliate Marketing?

Mrketing teams spent years pouring money into display adverts and paid social campaigns that often struggled to prove exactly what they delivered. The latest State of the Affiliate Nation report from the Affiliate & Partner Marketing Association shows many brands now want channels that can show direct sales and measurable returns.

The APMA report found brands invested £1.8bn in affiliate and partner marketing during 2025, a 7.3% increase from the previous year. That spending generated £20.7bn in revenue, giving an average return on investment of 15x. Travel and retail performed even better with returns reaching 19x.

The report used data from 11 affiliate networks, including impact.com, and tracked 357 million transactions through affiliate links during 2025. That works out to roughly 41,000 transactions every hour.

Ant Clements, UK Country Manager at impact.com, said, “They are in line with what we saw, and continue to see, at impact.com, as brands move spend from ineffective channels like advertising and put it into high-performing channels like affiliate, influencer and partner marketing. Things are tough out there, so it’s no surprise to see marketers putting their faith in channels that are known for their accountability, and their ability to deliver strong results.”

The APMA said consumer confidence stayed fragile during 2025 and marketing budgets faced financial strain. Affiliate marketing gave brands a channel where sales activity could be tracked more directly.

Retail was the biggest user of affiliate marketing, accounting for 47% of spending. Travel spending came up 14% and telecoms affiliates delivered around one million new customers every month.

What Has Changed With Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing used to depend mainly on last click commission models, where publishers earned money after a final sale. The latest APMA report shows brands now use affiliate marketing much earlier in the customer journey.

Close to £1 in every £5 spent in affiliate marketing during 2025 went into clicks, tenancy deals, hybrid agreements and other non CPA payment models. Brands are paying publishers for visibility, product discovery and customer engagement instead of waiting only for a completed purchase.

That development means affiliate marketing now operates more like a full advertising channel than a discount code business. Content publishers, comparison websites, influencers and loyalty platforms all work within the same commercial system.

The report also found affiliate marketing played a major role during Cyber Weekend shopping. More than £1 in every £7 spent during the shopping period tracked through an affiliate link, compared with £1 in every £8 during 2024.

The APMA report said, “The six trends we identified point to underlying, longer-term shifts. First, revenue and spend have grown at the same rate, while transaction growth has been more modest, pointing to higher basket values across parts of the market.”

The report also said, “Second, the channel is no longer defined purely by last-click CPA. While it still dominates, a growing share of activity now sits in tenancy, hybrid and other non-CPA models. In fact, close to one pound in five is now spent outside traditional last-click CPA, reflecting how affiliate is being used across more of the customer journey.”

What Does This Mean For Startups?

The APMA report shows startup publishers and comparison technology companies recorded the fastest annual growth across the affiliate sector. Smaller businesses are entering a market that once leaned heavily toward large media groups and voucher sites.

Kevin Edwards, Founder and Director of the Affiliate & Partner Marketing Association, said, “Many publisher models are based around empowering consumers to make better purchasing decisions while saving money and in the current economic climate that is particularly powerful. It’s especially encouraging to see comparison companies and tech start-ups drive the highest annual growth as the channel continues to diversify, offering brands the opportunity to partner with publisher models across the funnel.”

That creates room for startups building recommendation tools, shopping comparison services, creator platforms and specialist content websites. Brands now appear more willing to work with smaller publishers if those publishers can deliver customers or useful audience data.

Telecoms gives a good example of how specialised affiliate businesses are growing. The APMA report found price comparison sites accounted for 43% of telecoms affiliate spending, 4 times the sector average. Content publishers also received 23% of telecoms affiliate spending.

Finance brands also spent around £10 milllion every month on affiliate marketing during 2025, with content publishers attracting the largest share of investment.

So, brands are looking for channels where sales activity can be measured properly, and startups now have an opening to build businesses around that need.