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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Affiliate Manager

💰 $55,000 - $95,000

MarketingPartnershipsAffiliate MarketingPerformance Marketing

🎯 Role Definition

The Affiliate Manager is responsible for developing, scaling, and optimizing an organization's affiliate and partner program to drive high-quality customer acquisition and predictable ROI. This role owns partner recruitment and onboarding, campaign strategy and execution, performance analysis, fraud and compliance oversight, and cross-functional coordination with marketing, product, and finance teams. Success is measured by partner-driven revenue, cost-per-acquisition (CPA), conversion rates, partner retention, and incremental lifetime value (LTV).

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Affiliate Coordinator / Affiliate Specialist
  • Digital Marketing Specialist (performance/paid channels)
  • Partner/Channel Sales Representative

Advancement To:

  • Senior Affiliate Manager / Senior Partner Manager
  • Head of Partnerships / Director of Affiliate & Partnerships
  • Director of Performance Marketing / VP of Growth

Lateral Moves:

  • Influencer Marketing Manager
  • Channel/Distribution Manager
  • Strategic Partnership Manager

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Own end-to-end affiliate program strategy and roadmap: set quarterly growth targets (revenue, new partner acquisition, CPA, conversion rate) and establish execution plans to meet business objectives.
  • Recruit, qualify, and negotiate contracts with high-value affiliate partners, publishers, coupon/deal sites, influencers, and comparison sites to expand channels and reach.
  • Manage daily affiliate operations, including campaign setup, creative asset distribution, link and promo management, offer structuring (CPA, CPL, CPS, RevShare), and promotional calendar coordination.
  • Configure and maintain tracking and attribution across affiliate networks and platforms (e.g., Impact, CJ Affiliate, Awin, Tune/HasOffers), ensure accurate tracking via tracking pixels, server-side postbacks, and UTM conventions.
  • Monitor performance metrics and optimize partner performance through A/B tests, creative refreshes, landing page recommendations, and segmented promo offers to maximize conversion rates and ROI.
  • Produce weekly and monthly performance reports and executive dashboards on revenue, conversions, EPC, AOV, CPA, retention, and fraud trends using tools like Google Analytics, Looker, Excel, or BigQuery.
  • Implement partner incentive programs, bonus structures, and co-op promotions to motivate top-performing publishers and reactivate dormant partners.
  • Conduct deep-dive analyses into partner cohorts to identify opportunities for scale, cross-sell, and program expansion into new verticals or geographies.
  • Lead onboarding workflows for new affiliates, including technical integration, creative asset training, compliance checklist, and go-live validation.
  • Enforce program compliance and brand safety: review creatives, landing pages, email copy, and discounting behavior to ensure partners follow terms, COPPA/GDPR/CCPA obligations, and brand guidelines.
  • Detect and mitigate affiliate fraud and abuse (cookie-stuffing, self-referrals, fake leads) by implementing fraud detection tools, manual audits, and chargebacks where necessary.
  • Coordinate with Product and Engineering on tracking requirements, reporting schema, SKAdNetwork (if applicable), and attribution modeling to improve measurement accuracy.
  • Manage partner payments and reconcile monthly invoices with Finance; prepare dispute documentation and negotiate settlements for chargebacks and anomalous activity.
  • Run cross-channel experiments in collaboration with paid search, paid social, email, and content teams to test attribution windows, incrementality, and cannibalization effects.
  • Optimize affiliate landing pages and customer journeys with CRO best practices, working with CRO specialists or product teams to iterate on funnel bottlenecks.
  • Maintain and update program documentation, partner playbooks, onboarding guides, and FAQs to enable scalable partner success and reduce support friction.
  • Serve as the primary relationship manager for strategic partners: hold regular business reviews, share insights, and negotiate exclusive or prioritized placements.
  • Plan and execute seasonal campaigns, flash deals, and bundle offers with affiliates to capitalize on peak demand periods and product launches.
  • Track and forecast partner-driven revenue and KPIs; provide leadership with insights on budget allocation, forecast risk, and growth levers.
  • Represent the company at affiliate conferences, industry meetups, and vendor meetings to recruit new partners and stay current with affiliate network trends and best practices.
  • Collaborate with legal on partner terms, NDAs, and contract changes to ensure commercial arrangements are compliant and protect company interests.
  • Build and mentor a scalable affiliate team (if applicable), including training, performance reviews, and setting career development plans.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory analysis to answer partner performance questions and campaign ROI inquiries.
  • Contribute to the organization’s channel mix strategy and roadmap by identifying where affiliate fits within broader acquisition goals.
  • Collaborate with the Finance team on reconciliation, billing cadence, commission calculations, and payment disputes.
  • Partner with creative/design teams to produce banners, email templates, landing pages, and UGC assets optimized for affiliate channels.
  • Work with Legal and Privacy teams to maintain compliance with data protection laws (GDPR, CCPA) and implement privacy-friendly tracking alternatives.
  • Participate in sprint planning or project timelines when technical tagging, analytics, or tracking updates are required from engineering.
  • Train internal stakeholders (sales, customer success, product) on affiliate program mechanics and how to leverage partners for product launches or promotions.
  • Maintain vendor relationships with affiliate networks, tracking providers, and fraud detection platforms; negotiate service level agreements and pricing.
  • Conduct regular partner program audits and health checks to identify underperforming segments, stale creatives, or obsolete links.
  • Support marketplace and international expansion efforts by localizing offers, adapting commission models, and recruiting regional partners.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Experience with affiliate networks and platforms such as Impact, CJ Affiliate, Awin, ShareASale, Rakuten, and Tune/HasOffers.
  • Strong analytical skills: proficiency with Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP), SQL for querying performance databases, and familiarity with BigQuery/Looker or Tableau for dashboards.
  • Tracking and attribution expertise: server-to-server postbacks, pixel deployment, UTM best practices, conversion windows, and SKAdNetwork basics (mobile apps).
  • Knowledge of affiliate pricing models: CPA, CPL, CPS, RevShare, and hybrid commission structures and how to model their business impact.
  • Performance marketing experience: ability to calculate and optimize CPA, LTV:CAC, ROI, EPC, and average order value.
  • Familiarity with web analytics tools: Google Analytics (GA4), Firebase (for apps), and event-based analytics implementation.
  • Fraud detection and prevention techniques: use of fraud platforms, manual audit workflows, and chargeback processes.
  • Contract negotiation and vendor management: drafting partner agreements, exclusivity terms, and payment schedules.
  • Basic CRO and landing page optimization: A/B testing approaches, conversion funnels, and experience working with CRO tools (Optimizely, VWO).
  • Marketing automation and email platforms: understanding of affiliate email compliance, suppression lists, and partner newsletters.
  • Experience with CRM and partner management tools, and the ability to integrate partner data into broader marketing stacks.

Soft Skills

  • Strong communication and relationship-building skills to negotiate with partners and represent company priorities diplomatically.
  • Advanced problem-solving and critical thinking to diagnose performance issues and recommend scalable solutions.
  • Project and time management: ability to juggle onboarding, campaign launches, and reporting deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
  • Data-driven mindset with attention to detail and a bias for testing and measurable outcomes.
  • Strategic thinking and commercial acumen to align partner incentives with company profitability and growth goals.
  • Adaptability and resilience when responding to changing partner behavior, seasonal trends, or platform policy shifts.
  • Collaborative team player who works cross-functionally with product, engineering, creative, and finance teams.
  • Customer-centric orientation to ensure partner promotions deliver a positive acquisition experience and durable retention.
  • Negotiation skills to secure favorable commercial terms and scale exclusive partnerships.
  • Coaching and mentoring skills for developing junior affiliate staff and scaling partner success programs.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Business Administration, Communications, Economics, or a related field.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor’s plus topical certifications (Google Analytics, Performance Marketing, Digital Marketing Institute). Master’s degree in Marketing, Analytics, or MBA is a plus.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Marketing
  • Business Administration
  • Communications
  • Economics
  • Data Analytics / Statistics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 2–5 years in affiliate marketing, performance marketing, or partner management with demonstrable results scaling affiliate programs.

Preferred:

  • 3–6+ years managing affiliate networks or performance partnerships for e-commerce, SaaS, fintech, travel, or subscription businesses. Proven track record with partner recruitment, negotiating commission deals, executing co-marketing campaigns, and using platforms such as Impact, CJ, Awin, or Tune. Experience with SQL, GA4, and dashboarding tools is highly preferred.
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