Affiliate marketing has always been valued because it is easy to measure.
The final click is easy to measure, but that does not automatically make it the most valuable moment in the journey. If content has helped a consumer discover a brand, understand the choice or feel confident enough to buy, that contribution should form part of how we assess its value.
The route to that final click is rarely straightforward. Consumers move between search, social platforms, reviews, comparison sites and publisher content before making a decision. And, to make things more complex, we are increasingly outsourcing parts of that decision-making to AI - asking it to sift through options, compare recommendations and narrow down our choices. So, connecting those touchpoints has never been more important.
According to Gartner, more than half of consumers say generative AI has already changed the way they research. This is why content has become a strategic driver of influence in affiliate marketing: it can shape which brands consumers discover, trust and consider, while affiliate connects that influence into measurable growth.
But I believe measurement now needs to evolve with that role. Last-click matters, of course, yet it cannot always capture the full value content creates, particularly as credible third-party content becomes more important in AI-led discovery.
Influence is not a softer alternative to performance. It is the contribution a partner makes to discovery, consideration and confidence before a consumer is ready to convert. In affiliate, the opportunity is to make that contribution more visible, rather than treating the final click as the only signal of value.
Why AI Is Changing the Visibility Challenge for Brands
AI is changing how consumers find and evaluate information. Instead of moving through a list of search results, users increasingly ask a question and receive a synthesised answer that compares options, summarises recommendations and narrows the consideration set.
For brands, visibility is increasingly about being understood accurately across the sources that inform discovery - many of which sit beyond a brand’s own website.
Reviews, comparisons, buying guides and specialist editorial content provide independent context around what a brand offers, where it fits and how it differs. No individual publisher article can guarantee an AI recommendation, but a credible third-party presence helps build the wider information environment through which brands are discovered and evaluated.
Content Is Taking a Larger Share of Affiliate Investment
The shift is already visible in affiliate investment. According to the APMA’s State of the Affiliate Nation, content publishers now account for around 21% of affiliate spend and are among the faster-growing partner models, alongside comparison and influence-led partners. In sectors such as Finance & Insurance, content already represents a significant share of investment and delivers strong commercial returns.
That matters because it suggests brands are starting to value partners for the influence they create across the journey, not only for the transaction they close.
I don’t see this as a question of content versus cashback, loyalty or voucher partners. The strongest programmes use each partner type for the role it is best placed to play. Content can create and shape demand, while conversion-focused partners help capture it closer to purchase. The opportunity is to manage both within one measurable affiliate ecosystem.
What This Looks Like in Real Affiliate Programmes
Across the Tradedoubler network, we are already seeing brands use content for very different commercial objectives.
MediaMarkt uses content as part of a broader performance strategy. Its Spanish affiliate programme needed to deliver against objectives ranging from recurring sales and brand visibility to student acquisition, registrations and B2B growth. Content publishers supported “brandformance” visibility through fixed-fee and CPA investment, while other partner types focused on conversion-led objectives. The programme delivered 15% year-on-year growth in confirmed sales, 18% revenue growth and an 11% uplift in conversion rate.
For Intermundial, specialist content sits closer to the core of the affiliate strategy. The travel insurer works with travel blogs, comparison platforms, media outlets and niche influencers, supported by enhanced commissions, exclusive codes and customised URLs. The programme generated more than 20,000 confirmed sales, alongside 9% revenue growth and a 9% increase in affiliate ROI, while maintaining a cancellation rate below 2%.
For one Nordic hotel group, premium editorial publishers created bespoke content around an exclusive offer ahead of a new hotel launch. The campaign generated around 150 directly attributable bookings while also building awareness for a property that had not yet opened.
We are also seeing content create value beyond immediate clicks. In one FMCG programme, trusted editorial content with a consumer review platform achieved strong SEO visibility and was included in Google’s AI Overview within hours of publication, with that visibility maintained over time. While outcomes will vary by query, category and source, it illustrates how credible editorial content can create value beyond its immediate referral traffic.
This is also where EMNA AI extends the role of content beyond traditional affiliate outcomes. By identifying the prompts and sources shaping AI answers, brands can see where they are underrepresented and use relevant publisher content to strengthen their visibility across AI-driven discovery.
The lesson is that content has no single role in affiliate. It can build visibility, educate audiences, support consideration or drive direct sales. What matters is defining that role upfront and measuring and rewarding it accordingly.
Measurement and Remuneration Need to Catch Up
From my perspective, this is where the industry now needs to catch up. If we expect content publishers to influence discovery and consideration, we cannot assess their value only through the final click. Last-click remains important, but on its own it can undervalue publishers that influence decisions earlier in the journey.
That does not mean moving away from performance-based models. Brands can complement CPA with fixed-fee or tenancy models, hybrid commissioning and visibility-based rewards. The APMA has also pointed to emerging models such as retrieval tracking and licensing agreements as AI changes how value may be attributed in a more clickless environment.
Direct conversions should remain central, but measuring content effectively also means looking at how it contributes earlier in the journey - through qualified traffic, engagement, assisted sales and sustained visibility.
The goal is not to make affiliate less accountable, but to make that accountability more representative of how value is created.
Affiliate Can Connect Influence and Accountability
Content’s role in affiliate is expanding because the way consumers discover and evaluate brands is changing. AI is accelerating that shift and increasing the strategic value of credible third-party content.
For brands, the opportunity is to rethink how content is selected, measured and rewarded within affiliate strategy. The strongest programmes will recognise the value of influence without losing sight of performance.
For me, the opportunity for affiliate is to get better at measuring the influence content has earlier in the journey, alongside the sales it directly generates.
