Two colleagues standing indoors, smiling and looking at a tablet together to look up "What is Affiliate Marketing:—business/casual office setting.
Marketing Strategies

What is Affiliate Marketing & How Does it Work?

Affiliate marketing is one of the most effective ways brands can drive measurable growth through partnership. Learn what affiliate marketing is, how it works, and why it remains one of the most trusted, performance-driven channels for marketers and publishers alike.
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Marketing Strategies

Affiliate Marketing Step-by-Step: 5 Essential Steps to Launch Your Brand’s Affiliate Program

Ready to launch your brand’s affiliate program? This Affiliate Marketing Step-by-Step guide for brand marketers covers everything from setting goals and choosing a platform to recruiting partners and optimizing for growth, including the benefits of affiliate networks and advanced technology. Contact us to get started!
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Marketing Strategies

How Affiliate Tracking Works: The Complete Guide for Brands & Publishers

Learn how affiliate tracking works in partner marketing and why it’s the foundation of performance marketing. Explore tracking links, cookies, attribution models, and reporting systems for accurate results and fair payments.
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Rakuten Optimism 2026
Events

Rakuten Optimism 2026: Official Event Highlights

Rakuten Optimism 2026 brought together more than 1,000 global advertisers, publishers, agencies, and industry leaders in Phoenix for two days of insights, innovation, and connection. From headline sessions and expert panels to the Golden Link Awards Gala and the debut of Mirai, Rakuten Advertising’s advanced AI optimization agent, the event showcased the ideas, partnerships, and technologies shaping the future of affiliate and performance marketing.
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Dave Trolle, RAIC member and founder of Customer First Digital dispels affiliate myths in our latest blog
Marketing Strategies

RAIC Insights: Dispelling Affiliate Marketing Myths – Part 1

The Rakuten Advertising International Collective (RAIC) aims to showcase the strategies and steps that will elevate your affiliate thinking, giving you the tools to outthink the market and deliver campaigns that outperform for your business. In our latest post, Dave Trolle, founder of digital consultancy and Affiliate Marketing specialists Customer First Digital, introduces some of the most common myths surrounding affiliate marketing and how to bust them. Stay tuned for part two from Dave in the coming weeks!
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Smiling woman stands with raised fists as coworkers applaud around a table with a laptop, charts, and coffee in a bright modern office—celebrating a successful Affiliate Marketing How To session.
Marketing Strategies

How Brands Can Launch a Successful Affiliate Marketing Program

Affiliate Marketing How To for brands: your step-by-step guide to planning objectives, selecting technology, designing commissions, and activating a high-performing partner mix. Learn how to launch and optimize with governance, tracking, and data-driven metrics.
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Luxury Blog Hero
Insights

The Always-On Luxury Shopper: Affiliate Marketing Strategies

The luxury shopping market continues to remain a key retail focal point despite economic headwinds. Our latest blog analyzes the luxury shopper, explores specific luxury shopping destinations, and provides tips and tricks on how best to leverage different affiliate marketing strategies to reach your ideal luxury consumer. Read the entire blog now to learn more!
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News

Affiliate Marketing Platforms: What Do They Do and Why You Need Them

Affiliate marketing platforms help brands and publishers manage, track, and optimize their affiliate programs. This guide explains the core functions of these platforms and what to look for when choosing a solution.
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Person working on a laptop at a wooden table while holding a coffee mug, with papers spread out nearby.
Marketing Strategies

Affiliate Marketing How-To: Ensuring Brand Voice Consistency Across Partners

Maintaining a consistent brand voice across partners is essential for brand marketers looking to scale their programs. This blog explores actionable strategies—and the value of working with a trusted affiliate network like Rakuten Advertising—to ensure your brand’s messaging, values, and reputation remain strong.
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Influencer Marketing eBook #3
Insights

Successful Influencer & Affiliate Marketing

We’re here to be your guide to all things influencer and affiliate marketing. We dive into how adding influencer marketing into your existing affiliate strategy can boost performance, awareness, and ultimately, sales to help you outperform. Read the entire blog now!
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Female millennial marketer with laptop using GA4 and affiliate marketing
Marketing Strategies

GA4 and Affiliate Marketing: How to Navigate Changing Attribution Models

Uncover the seismic shift in analytics as GA4 takes the stage, altering the game for the affiliate marketing industry. Our latest blog post explores the repercussions of GA4's move from a last-click to a data-driven attribution model. Discover how Rakuten Advertising navigates these changes, offering reliable methodologies, additional tools, and collaborative solutions.
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Dave Trolle, RAIC member and founder of Customer First Digital dispels affiliate myths in our latest blog
Marketing Strategies

RAIC Insights: Dispelling Affiliate Marketing Myths – Part 2

The Rakuten Advertising International Collective (RAIC) aims to showcase the strategies and steps that will elevate your affiliate thinking, giving you the tools to outthink the market and deliver campaigns that outperform for your business. In our latest post, Dave Trolle, founder of digital consultancy and Affiliate Marketing specialists Customer First Digital, introduces some of the most common myths surrounding affiliate marketing and how to bust them.
Read more