Affiliate marketing has become a popular marketing strategy for brands, with 80% of brands currently practicing it.
Affiliate marketing has become a popular marketing strategy for brands, with 80% of brands currently practicing affiliate marketing. Its effectiveness in lead generation and increasing sales for companies as the market is expected to grow from $13 billion in 2022 to $15.7 billion by 2024 and $36.9 billion by 2030. gender is shown.
It works by allowing third-party publishers to earn commissions by promoting other companies' products and services. But that success also makes it an attractive target for scammers who use a variety of tactics that can negatively impact your brand beyond revenue. Marketers need to make ad fraud prevention a business priority, and brands must evaluate affiliates, set clear expectations and guidelines, and invest in advanced ad fraud protection and optimization tools to protect their platforms. effective systems need to be put in place.
Scammers have tried a variety of ways to make cash with affiliate programs, including cookie stuffing, click fraud, and fake purchases. As technology evolves and more sophisticated methods of affiliate marketing are implemented, scammers are upgrading their capabilities and finding new ways to hack into seemingly well-protected systems. With bots crawling the web and headless browsers capable of performing advanced tasks traditionally performed by humans, fraud can be harder to detect because fewer humans are involved in the process. there is. As more brands establish online presences post-pandemic, they become easy targets for savvy scammers looking for their next victim.
Protect your brand from ad fraud
The effects of affiliate marketing fraud can go beyond just lost revenue and budget. Having your brand's products displayed alongside offensive or illegal content can unilaterally damage your brand's reputation. Every time a brand enters affiliate marketing, it carries brand risk beyond a single campaign.
Brands should prioritize ad fraud prevention and invest in advanced ad fraud prevention and optimization tools to protect their platforms. To prevent fraud, brands must have an effective system for evaluating affiliates. Setting up the right channels and guidelines for potential affiliates may seem difficult, but it's important to eliminate unethical behavior from the beginning. A clear compliance policy leaves fewer loopholes for potential fraudsters to exploit.
On the technical side, cloaking affiliate links with shortened URLs hides an affiliate's unique identity, making it easier to track while protecting the affiliate. Additionally, you can monitor your affiliates' IP addresses from time to time to ensure they are not engaging in suspicious activity. Staying on top of the latest updates is also necessary to ensure brands continue to deploy the right tools to protect their platforms.
Staying up to date with the latest updates and partnering with experts in the field is essential to supporting a growing affiliate program. By doing so, brands can identify fraudulent conversions on the first click and ensure they are building a trusted marketing ecosystem.
Build effective partnerships
It can be difficult for brands to keep tabs on the constantly evolving technological landscape and growing affiliate programs amidst their day-to-day operations and challenges. Establishing appropriate partnerships with experts in this field can provide support in this regard. Research and invest in advanced ad fraud protection and optimization tools that can provide a multi-point prevention strategy across the entire advertising journey, from impressions to clicks to conversions.
By implementing cutting-edge solutions, brands can effectively detect and prevent fraudulent conversions from occurring in the first place, protecting advertising budgets and, more importantly, maintaining brand integrity. . This approach not only protects companies from potential losses, but also fosters a culture of trust within the affiliate community, building a robust and reliable marketing ecosystem that delivers long-term success.
