Developing a project into a large multi-vertical affiliate network to make it the go-to platform for ambitious online entrepreneurs worldwide. Previously worked at UBS Asset Management, Concorde Capital, and Fozzy Group.
LinkedInAffiliate marketing has quickly established itself as an effective and understandable means to scale businesses, find new markets, and customers. With experts from the Ukrainian engineering marketing company expla, we’ll clarify who would be the ideal candidate for the role of an affiliate manager, how the company’s hiring, onboarding, and work processes are built, and what is needed to achieve record results in just 9 months.
Affiliate marketing is one of the methods used for promoting and scaling products and services. Let’s consider a hypothetical simple example: an online electronics store wants to acquire new customers and increase profits, so it turns to an agency or affiliate networks (such as Cpamatica Affiliate Network, a project powered by expla). They agreed that for every unit of the product sold through the affiliate network, the store will remit a commission. There could be many examples coming from different fields.
Affiliates, such as website owners and platform owners, also turn to affiliate networks or agencies, offering their traffic through ad placements. The task of an affiliate manager is to establish cooperation with the most promising affiliates, understand the aspects of their traffic, and implement the most effective match between the advertiser’s product and the affiliate’s user acquisition channel. As a result, the gadgets are sold, the business gains profit, and the affiliates and agencies receive a commission proportional to the sales volume.
Head of Cpamatica Affiliate Network at expla, Yehor Halushko, notes that this is a relatively young industry, into which many employees transition from other fields.
Although the image of this profession in mass culture may be somewhat exaggerated, from the outside, it may look like a stream of endless rock-n-roll creativity. Of course, there is always room for a creative approach, but primarily, it’s a technological field, and it’s a story about analytics, data, and numbers,
notes Yegor Galushko.
The role of an affiliate manager is well-suited for individuals with a sales background, business development specialists, and account managers. That is, those who have been involved in the business aspect of sales and know how to build relationships with external partners and negotiate long-term agreements. It’s also important to have a strong level of analytical skills since collaboration is built on numbers, marketing analytics, and specific metrics.
Previous experience in sales is a valuable competitive advantage for potential candidates. expla is open to collaborating with junior candidates with limited experience, but they must be top performers to convincingly demonstrate the significance of their prior experience. This way, the company understands that individuals can quickly adapt to a new field and achieve excellent results in a short period.
80% of recent hires are job switchers. Therefore, expla has developed a comprehensive training and integration programs. The probation period typically lasts for three months, with the first three to four weeks dedicated to training, during which they are introduced to the specifics of the niche, directions, etc. During this time, individuals get a grasp of the field, and then they practice as they work, delving deeper into the subject. However, this approach works well only with strong candidates. Our company places significant emphasis on the recruiting process, selecting the strongest candidates.
During training and onboarding, newcomers are assisted by “buddies” (mentors, as they are called in the company). Employees who have recently joined the company say that the training was not that easy. But with the relevant previous experience, motivation, and perseverance, it is quite possible to get into the field in a relatively short period of time.
Yuliia Drutska has been working at expla for a year now, currently holding the position of Middle Affiliate Manager. She recalls that the first few months in the company were challenging for her because there were many aspects she was not familiar with, yet she had KPIs that needed to be consistently met.
At the first meetings with my affiliate team, I heard many unfamiliar words, which I either noted down and then figured out myself, or asked someone about afterwards. I had a weekly training plan. Along the way, there were meetings with the heads of various departments to help me learn more about the industry,
– recalls Yuliia Drutska.
Her colleague, Danylo Lytvynenko, who had experience in B2B sales in the IT industry, says that he had never dealt with affiliate marketing before, and realized how big this new world was only when he was doing tasks from the tests. Training and onboarding went well, partly because these processes are well-established in the company. He recalls that by the third week of training, he was already working with clients.
expla has possibly the best onboarding process I’ve ever had: in the first weeks, we had trainings, meetings, and we got to know the company and the industry as a whole. The only thing that was difficult during the training was to understand different traffic sources. There’s traffic from Facebook, push notifications, Google, Telegram channels. And you have to thoroughly study them, understand why one is worth so much and the other is worth less,
— says Danylo.
The profession of an affiliate manager is quite flexible and dynamic, and at expla, we create all the conditions for employees to fully realize their potential. Coupled with intensive training and personal qualities, this allows them to achieve high results in this field already in the first year of work.
Over this year, I’ve significantly improved my English: of course, I did not become a native speaker, but I can easily communicate with partners. The same goes for professional skills: over the year, I handled all KPIs, initially started as an assistant, then became a junior affiliate manager, and now I’m middle,
– recalls Yuliia Drutska.
Danylo Lytvynenko admits that he didn’t expect his work in the new field to go so well – by the ninth month of work, he had surpassed the monthly sales record of the entire department.
I am working towards better results month by month, and it’s especially satisfying that my activity also helps partners and the company to develop,
he says.
Affiliate managers say that they enjoy this field particularly because it combines IT solutions and marketing, provides relative freedom of actions and opportunities for self-realization, offers experience working with foreign markets, and allows for direct influence on their income.
For employees at expla, a fixed rate is provided, but typically the monthly bonus can exceed the fixed amount several times over.
If we’re talking about junior employees, by the end of the year, their bonus can range from 100 to 250% of the fixed amount. In terms of money, the specialist can achieve an income of $4000+ per month provided they deliver excellent results,
notes Yegor Galushko.
Accordingly, as projects grow, employees grow financially. This field offers opportunities for dynamic career development – top performers can progress from Trainee to Middle position in just a year or two, which is not often seen in other industries. Personal performance, rather than the bureaucracy of corporate culture, is what matters here.
Freedom at work, personal challenge, company values, and comfortable conditions are the things I like about this field in general and at expla in particular,
Yuliia says about her job.
