This is the APMA’s guide to affiliate marketing and publisher payments. It has been divided into three accessible articles, which we will publish weekly. The full PDF guide will be available to download from the APMA website soon after.
In part one we introduce the motivation behind the guide and then outline the publisher payment process for the various networks and platforms who participated in the research for the guide.
Introduction to the Guide
The affiliate and partner marketing industry typically relies on three or four key players to keep the channel running smoothly.
Whether publisher, agency, advertiser, network or platform, each plays a crucial role in maintaining the health of this diverse and dynamic ecosystem.
However, the industry can only function with timely publisher payments from advertisers.
Fast payments fuel growth, enable investment, and enhance company valuations. While networks continue to improve their payment systems, navigating them can still be complex, especially for publishers working across multiple platforms.
This three-part series is your go-to resource for understanding key payment processes, varied terminology, and support across UK affiliate networks.
Whether you’re deciphering industry jargon, ensuring you’re making full use of available payment tools, or onboarding new finance team members who need to manage multiple creditors, this guide is here to help you navigate the complexities.
We will guide you from the point a sale is made to the moment it’s paid.
Why Payment Speed is Crucial
This guide marks the APMA’s first step in addressing payment speed in the affiliate industry. Efficient cash flow benefits everyone, as it:
- Supports growth: allowing publishers to reinvest in their business.
- Enhances customer experience: particularly for models that rely on upfront payments to reward customers.
- Boosts industry investment: improving working capital terms makes the industry more attractive to investors.
Who is this Guide for?
It is designed for:
- Publishers: looking to streamline their payment processes across multiple networks.
- Commercial and finance teams: managing payments and navigating industry terminology.
- Agencies, networks, and advertisers: seeking a broader understanding of how affiliate payments work and how innovation can drive program growth.
How did we Create the Guide?
- We drafted a survey of the most important questions regarding affiliate platform payments from a publisher’s perspective, with input from APMA members Genie Shopping, Broadband Genie, Top Cashback, Reward Gateway, and Global Savings Group.
- The survey was sent to 12 major UK affiliate networks and platforms for their responses: Adtraction, Affiliate Future, Awin, CJ, financeAds International, impact.com, Kwanko, Optimise, Partnerize, Rakuten, Tradedoubler and Webgains.
- The APMA compiled survey responses to create the guide’s content. Before publishing, each platform that participated was sent a copy for approval.
What’s next?
This is the first step in the APMA’s bigger plans to enhance payment processes. Look out for further content releases in the coming months, including more information on credit advancement functionality and innovation by affiliate networks.
The APMA also plans to work with its members to look for opportunities to introduce best practice guides and codes of conduct, to continue to improve affiliate payments.
If you have a suggestion for additional content, would like to add to any information shown here, or would like to propose a member initiative to enhance payments, contact [email protected].
The Publisher Payments Process
Once transactions are validated, approved commissions are compiled into an invoice for the advertiser.
The network then distributes these commissions to publishers.
In some cases, payments are made after the advertiser has paid the invoice, while in others, the network may advance the payment before receiving funds from the advertiser. Payments are processed using various methods and schedules, depending on the network’s policies and the publisher’s selected payment preferences.
Publisher Payment Methods
Speed of Payment to Publishers
Speed of payments is essential to ensure a healthy affiliate programme. The length of time it takes for a transaction to be paid can depend on the advertiser’s validation period, the length of time it takes to pay their platform invoice, and the following period for that payment to then be passed on to the publisher. In some instances, platforms will pay invoices to publishers before receiving funds from advertisers, but in many instances, the payout depends on the advertiser’s prompt payment. Payment passed is important to generate positive cash flow for the publisher, enabling them to reinvest in growing campaigns and, in many instances, pass on a reward and ensure a good end-customer experience.
“Fast and predictable payments are the cornerstone of a strong affiliate ecosystem. Unfortunately, too many publishers are forced to juggle cash flow because of delays to validations and payments.
When publishers can rely on prompt payments, they have the confidence to scale their efforts, drive more traffic, and ultimately deliver better results for advertisers. This has a meaningful impact at Genie Shopping given our rapid growth, and we actively make decisions about which partners to work based on validation and payment speed.”
Warrick Lambert, CEO of Genie Shopping
Frequency of Publisher Payouts
A special thank you to Digital Consultant and APMA advisory board member Julia Stent, who has worked tirelessly to aggregate all the information in this guide, ensuring the data collected from networks has been mapped consistently and is accurate at the time of publication.
Also, a special thank you to APMA member Revving, our Payments Guide sponsor.
About Revving
Revving captures sales data at source to provide instant access to pending and approved commissions against revenues. We’re the only capital funding platform purpose-built for adtech that enables companies to access earnings instantly, cancelling out payment delays and letting them get on with growing their business.
Read Revving’s latest article for the APMA, The Future of UK Affiliate and Partner Marketing is Frictionless!
