Category: Affiliate Marketing Tips

World Cup to drive longest Cyber shopping campaigns ever

The FIFA World Cup kicks off this winter for the first ever time, breaking a 92-year-old precedent. So, how will the planet’s biggest sporting event affect peak trading for affiliate marketers? 

Campaigns kicking off earlier 

The
timing of the World Cup will likely drive trading globally over a more
prolonged period this Q4. Previous years’ data indicates brands increasingly
start their Cyber Week promotions earlier and earlier. October 2021 saw steady
year-on-year increases, with sales up 6% across several sectors. Fashion,
health & beauty, home & garden and electronics are all sectors that
witnessed positive sales growth compared to 2020.  

In
2022, this trend will continue thanks to the World Cup. With matches coinciding
with key trading days like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, brands around the
world will want to offset the likelihood of shoppers being distracted by the
tournament. 

Some
sectors, especially electronics, will likely execute longer periods of
heightened marketing with leading offers launching earlier in October in an
attempt to drive traffic and sales in advance of the football kicking off
during Cyber Week. Promotions for products like televisions, projectors and
soundbars will appear earlier as retailers aim to capture inevitable consumer
demand. 

For affiliate marketers, content creators, media houses and CSS (Comparison Shopping Services) partners will be key allies during this time. At the time of writing, content publishers on Awin and ShareASale globally have seen an average increase of 20% in sales across our network in H1 2022 vs 2021 (Figure 1).  

Robust
growth from traditionally upper-funnel partners supports a trend of more
considered purchasing lately. This has been exacerbated by inflation and the
subsequent living increases. Consumers are conducting more research before
committing to spend. Trusted opinion from review sites and influencers, for
example, is driving increased sales compared to discount and cashback partners that
are seeing lower or even negative growth. 

CSS
publishers have also risen in profile across Europe, with a 57% increase in H1 compared
to 2021. While CSS partners on the platform have seen continually strong growth
since the EU Commission’s anti-competition ruling against Google, they’ve seen
the greatest percentage growth out of any publisher type this Q3. With European
consumers getting savvier, CSS provides a comprehensive view of their market to
filter and choose from, no matter the product they’re looking for. We expect
this trend to continue as more advertisers realize the benefits of
integrating CSS into their campaigns, providing better product coverage across
a key discovery channel. 

A winter of sports 

While
the World Cup’s timing will inevitably drag promotions ever earlier in Q4, the
tournament’s length (the final doesn’t take place until December 18) means it
may extend promotions even later than usual, too.  

Historically,
match days regularly witness spikes in demand from those watching across a
range of sectors. Purchase behaviors during Euro
2020 highlighted this
trend and sportswear brands will undoubtedly attract hordes of fans seeking
replica shirts and other soccer paraphernalia as their teams compete. 

A popular choice for holiday gifting, December is frequently a strong month for sportswear retailers on Awin and ShareASale. December sales in 2021 were up 18% on the previous year’s volume (Figure 2) and we expect that to continue this year as the World Cup generates renewed demand from these brands.  

Not
to be left behind, we also expect a halo effect for other clothing retailers
who will be putting a spotlight on their own athleisure and sportswear during
this period, while home & garden and sports equipment advertisers will also
likely see increased traffic and conversions for any soccer-related kit they
sell. 

Meeting demand at the right time 

FMCG,
alcohol and food & drink advertisers will also be looking to take advantage
of World Cup match days, focusing their strategy and messaging to drive
impulsive sales around games. The time-sensitive nature of these promotions
requires a more dynamic marketing approach with clear calls-to-action (CTA).
Therefore, discount and coupon code partners will invariably play a key role. 

Takeout
and food delivery advertisers are prime candidates for this type, using match-themed
offers to quickly convert customers within the intended timeframe. The
combination of time pressure and highly-targeted CTAs are a proven sales-driver
while offering greater control for advertisers compared to an extended, generic
promotional period. 

Cost
conscious shoppers will also be on the lookout for discounts and other savings
in the lead up to big games when buying from FMCG retailers. The chance to buy
in bulk on food & drink essentials and make larger savings may mean we see
sales volume drop but average order values increase as shoppers aim to get more
for their money. Expect spend-and-save codes as well as tiered cashback to be
popular promotional offers, encouraging greater spend from consumers. 

A World Cup clouded in uncertainty 

Whether
the current economic climate puts a damper on global soccer fever remains to be
seen. Do not underestimate Europe’s (especially the UK’s) love for the game.
Four million viewers tuned in for England’s opening match in this year’s Women’s
Euros – almost double are expected for the World Cup.  

With its coincidental timing during Q4’s peak, advertisers need to strike the right combination of enticing promotions and brand building activity across the extended period to ensure they’re front of mind for the world’s football fans.  

Access the Awin Report 2022 to learn more about the 100 most innovative #Power100 partners on our global platform who can help you tackle the busiest trading period of the year.

The post World Cup to drive longest Cyber shopping campaigns ever appeared first on ShareASale Blog.

,Read More

Digiday+ Research: Who will gain and who will lose when (if?) the third-party cookie goes away?

Across the marketing and media industries, there is endless speculation about what the world without third-party cookies will look like — or, in fact, if that world will ever be a reality.

We’ve already covered that publishers and agencies alike are cynical about whether the third-party cookie will actually ever go away. But in the event that it does, who will benefit from living in a cookieless world (if anyone)?

Digiday+ Research surveyed 132 publisher, agency and brand professionals over the summer to learn more.

Digiday’s survey found that publishers think Apple, Facebook and Google stand to gain the most when the third-party cookie meets its demise: Half of the respondents said Apple will gain a lot or a little from the end of the third-party cookie, 38% said the same of Facebook and 33% said Google will gain. Agency and brand pros agreed on the top three, but the percentages looked very different for this group. Forty-six percent of agency and brand respondents said Apple will gain a lot or a little with the death of the cookie, followed by Google at 33% and Facebook at only 20%.

Interestingly, publisher pros and agency and brand pros disagree about how publishers’ fortunes will shake out once the third-party cookie goes away for good. Only 17% of agency and brand respondents said publishers will gain a lot or a little, but 29% of publishers are optimistic about how they will fare in a cookieless world.

When it came to identifying who will lose when — or if — the end of the third-party cookie comes, respondents to Digiday’s survey revealed that the answer is, essentially, everyone. Publisher respondents said vendors and advertisers will lose the most, with nearly three-quarters (73%) saying those parties will lose a lot or a little with the death of the cookie, followed by agencies, which 68% of publisher respondents said will lose. Meanwhile, 73% of agency and brand respondents said advertisers and publishers will lose a lot or a little, and two-thirds said vendors will lose following the end of the third-party cookie.

But the real story here is how high the percentages are among respondents who think all of these parties will lose following the death of the third-party cookie compared with the percentages of those who think they will gain. Only Apple and Google had fewer than half of respondents to Digiday’s survey say they will lose a lot or a little after the cookie goes away. And it was a close call for Google: 46% of publisher pros said Google will lose with cookie deprecation, and 48% of agency and brand pros said Google will lose.

Digiday’s survey also found that publishers’, agencies’ and brands’ opinions about who will gain and lose from the death of the third-party cookie are dynamic. In fact, they’ve changed even just since the spring — before Google announced the most recent delay of the cookie’s demise. For publisher pros, they’ve shifted course on whether Google itself will gain or lose: In a similar survey conducted by Digiday in the spring, 54% of publisher respondents said Google would gain from the end of the third-party cookie. That percentage was down to 33% this summer. Meanwhile, the percentage of publishers who think Google will lose was up to 46% this summer, compared with 29% in the spring.

Agencies and brands have also changed their opinions on how the end of the third-party cookie will affect Google, Digiday’s surveys found. Only a third of agency and brand respondents said this summer that Google will gain after the cookie is gone, compared with half of the respondents in the spring. And there was a big difference in how agency and brand pros think the most recent delay will affect Facebook: In the spring, 37% of agency and brand respondents said the social media platform will gain from the death of the cookie, compared with only 20% in the summer. Meanwhile, the percentage of respondents who said Facebook will lose rose from 42% in the spring to 64% in the summer.

,Read More