Digital advertising has evolved from a buzzword to a creative and technology-driven marketing tool for almost every business in the world, with mobile marketing, affiliate marketing, social media marketing, and more becoming popular. Like any other business field, the evolution of digital advertising is plagued by its own set of challenges. One of them is fraud. Digital advertising fraud is expected to increase from $88 billion in 2023 to $172 billion in 2028 (Source: Statista – Estimated cost of global digital ad fraud in 2023 and 2028). Ad fraud not only consumes a large portion of your marketing budget, it can also impact your business's ROI and incur huge opportunity losses along the way.
Since its emergence in the mid-1990s, affiliate marketing has snowballed and is now worth over $17 billion (Source: Proficient Marketing Insights: Global Affiliate Marketing Platform Industry Research Report 2023). But gone are the days of traditional affiliate marketing centered around coupons and cashback.
The rise of influencer marketing and social networks is creating a new world of opportunities for affiliate marketers and brands, with a value set to reach USD 13.8 billion in 2022 (Source: Influencer Marketing and Affiliate Growth: The Impact of Language Features on Engagement Behavior). A 2021 study found that 59% of brands and marketing agencies use influencer affiliate marketing, and 90% of respondents say influencer marketing is effective (sauce: Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2021 ).
Changing tides…
Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are helping brands effectively adapt to changing trends. Additionally, consumers are more selective, tech-savvy, and looking for personalization. Personalization is driven by data, but consumers are also concerned about how their data is collected and used. With the introduction of his DPDP (Digital Personal Data Protection) Act 2023 in India, data privacy regulations have become stricter and affiliate markets will have to ensure compliance and transparency. Nevertheless, In 2024, new trends will shape affiliate marketing, which will likely overlap with other marketing channels.
Affiliate marketing trends will change the digital marketing landscape in the new year.
we witness Advanced AI integration Personalizing your experience and optimizing your campaigns has made it more of a necessity than an option. Predictive AI helps you understand consumer behavior and target customers effectively.Companies will also consolidate Tracking and analysis solutions Measure the effectiveness and revenue impact of your campaigns (including influencer-driven ones). Additionally, it helps you optimize the allocation of your marketing budget by targeting specific sales figures.
Partnership marketing is one of the hottest trends in affiliate marketing and will become even more important in the future. According to DemandGen research, businesses can expect to increase their revenue by 96% annually through partnership marketing (Source: DemandGen-2022 Channel/Partner Marketing Benchmark Study).gradually B2B companies enter into strategic partnerships Target new audiences, grow revenue, and build business relationships. Affiliate marketing channels generate a lot of buzz about partnerships between brands, helping you optimize the ROI of your cross-brand campaigns and move towards a results-oriented approach.
Businesses leverage the power of affiliate programs to increase sales, but they still have to deal with scams and scams.. In 2020, approximately 10% of affiliate traffic was reported to be fake, resulting in losses of $1.4 billion (Source: Economic Cost of Malicious Actors on the Internet 2020). Modern criminals can easily commit organized fraud, and businesses can't fight it with outdated defenses. As companies leverage AI to scale their business; Cybercriminals are also using artificial intelligence to scam people smarter and faster. They can manipulate AI algorithms to create fake identities, send phishing emails, generate fake product listings, and gain access to sensitive data to harm your organization.
Affiliate marketers will need to take strategic steps to prevent fraud this year…
First, affiliate marketers need to stay one step ahead of cybercriminals in their attacks. An advanced fraud prevention solution that provides a layer of protection. Fraud detection systems leverage machine learning to analyze vast amounts of data to learn and demonstrate potential patterns of fraud. Affiliate marketers spend less time investigating false positives. Additionally, it facilitates real-time monitoring of affiliate behavior and traffic quality, providing an accurate picture of users across all touchpoints for faster fraud detection.
moreover, Marketers need to move to performance-based metrics and the result Because it shows actual conversions, not just clicks. For example, an unexpected spike in traffic could indicate fraudulent activity such as a click farm. It makes it harder for fraudsters to create fake impressions and allows marketers to protect their campaigns.
At the same time, marketers must: Comply with data privacy regulations such as GDPRThis is because these technologies can collect too much user data for due diligence. One of the principles of GDPR, Lawfulness, Fairness, and Transparency, helps us better understand our data and promote ethical data management practices. Advanced data protection reduces the effectiveness of deceptive tactics.
Also, Anti-fraud education and awareness among marketers Help the affiliate marketing community fight fraud. Marketers can stay informed about the latest criminal techniques and be alert to potential suspicious activity.
Nevertheless, fraud prevention is not a static process, but a continuous process that brings new changes and shapes the future of digital marketing.
The combined power of automation and tracking aided by AI and ML will be a game changer
In addition to AI and ML, automation and tracking can help marketers save time and resources. Automation allows marketers to: Deliver personalized experiences to your customers at every touchpoint. Marketing automation tools collect customer data and help you create consistent, targeted campaigns that improve customer interactions and conversions. using data, Automation allows you to accurately segment your audiencetailor your campaigns to your specific needs and deliver personalized experiences at the right time, using the right channels.
In parallel with automation, Advanced tracking solutions help marketers better understand customer behavior throughout the purchasing process. Real-time analytics and sophisticated attribution models provide data to improve products and services, adjust marketing efforts, and maximize sales.
Analysis tools using AI Analyze large data sets in real time, identify hidden patterns, and make predictive recommendations. Through integrated marketing measurement, predictive analytics helps predict future trends, determine ad spend, and accurately identify and prioritize leads. AI-powered tools help marketers understand what customers like and uncover upsell and cross-sell opportunities.
However, companies must also: Provide proper training to your marketing team We effectively introduce and utilize AI tools to maximize the potential for various marketing strategies.
Nevertheless, the balance between customer data and data privacy for personalized marketing is delicate.Brand must be Adopt ethical analytical methods Protect consumer privacy, ensure transparency, and strengthen your brand image of responsible behavior.
So what’s your best bet for 2024?
In 2024, businesses will need to ensure compliance with data protection regulations to align their marketing strategies with the complex legal landscape of data privacy. It not only reduces financial and legal impact, but also increases customer confidence and long-term success. Investing in scalable marketing technology allows you to respond quickly to future market trends, overcome potential threats, and drive long-term success in a customer-centric business environment.
Contributed article by Yogeeta Chainani, Swaarm Co-Founder and CEO
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