Black Friday represents the single biggest revenue opportunity for affiliate marketers. According to Adobe, Black Friday increased online sales in the US by 7.5% year-over-year to $9.8 billion. Affiliate marketers can innovate their strategies to capture significant market share.
While basic Black Friday affiliate marketing tactics like product reviews and social media posts still work, the real money lies in advanced strategies that your competitors aren’t using.
These eight underrated approaches will help you stand out in the crowded Black Friday marketplace.
8 underrated black friday marketing strategies
Implement these affiliate marketing strategies to have a rocking black cyber season.
Leveraging tiered commission structures
Want to transform your Black Friday affiliate marketing from linear growth to exponential expansion? Multi-tier marketing is one great way. Give it a try and get more affiliate signups.
Use Affiliate for WooCommerce to easily set up and manage tiered commission rates.
Set up unlimited tiers with special Black Friday multipliers that create urgency and excitement.
Also, increase affiliate commissions to motivate affiliates during the Black Friday week.
Here’s exactly how it works:
- Tier 1: Direct referrer (Amy) earns 30% commission
- Tier 2: Amy’s referrer (Mary) earns 20% commission
- Tier 3: Mary’s referrer (Jake) earns 10% commission
When a customer purchases through Amy’s link for $100:
- Amy receives $30
- Mary receives $20
- Jake receives $10
You can provide exclusive marketing content, like images and videos, to your affiliates so that they can do marketing easily.
Start pre-Black Friday “Early Bird” programs
Why wait for Black Friday when you can start capturing sales weeks in advance? Early bird programs create urgency while avoiding the Black Friday traffic jam.
Structure your early bird affiliate strategy:
Week 1-2 before Black Friday:
- Offer VIP early access to select deals (25% commission boost for affiliates)
- Create FOMO with “preview passes” that affiliates can distribute
- Launch countdown campaigns showing products that will be featured
Week of Black Friday:
- Increase commissions daily (Monday: 20%, Tuesday: 22%, Wednesday: 25%)
- Provide “sneak peek” content that affiliates can share exclusively
- Set up waitlist captures for hot items with affiliate tracking codes
Offering exclusive deals and coupons
Turn your affiliates into Black Friday VIP pass holders by arming them with exclusive deals that shoppers can’t find anywhere else.
This scarcity mindset usually gives higher conversion rates during the Black Friday rush.
You can use Smart Coupons to create and distribute unique Black Friday coupon codes with time-based restrictions.
For example, offer 40% off, which is valid from 6 AM-10 AM only. Or, give 50% off on select categories, which expires after 50 redemptions.
Lower the free shipping thresholds for the affiliate traffic during Black Friday week.
Additionally, you should track which offers perform best.
Black Friday affiliate marketing through micro-influencers
Micro-influencers (1,000-10,000 followers) deliver 60% higher engagement rates than macro-influencers during Black Friday.
Their audiences trust personal recommendations over celebrity endorsements.
Here’s what you can do:
- Identify 20-30 micro-influencers in your niche (Instagram, YouTube)
- Offer 25-35% commission (higher than standard rates)
- Focus on those who posted about Black Friday deals last year
- Look for creators who specialize in “budget finds” and “deal hunting”
You can also offer:
- Dedicated Black Friday hotline for influencers
- Instant commission bumps for viral posts (up to 50%)
- “Sold Out” alternative product suggestions
Interactive shopping experiences with live commerce
Live shopping events combined with affiliate marketing are generating 10x higher conversion rates than traditional methods. This emerging trend merges entertainment with instant purchasing power.
For example, schedule flash sales during live events (lasting only 10-15 minutes) to create extreme urgency. Affiliates who host these events typically see higher engagement rates.
What else can you do:
- Host live unboxing sessions where affiliates demonstrate Black Friday deals in real-time
- Create shoppable livestreams on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube with embedded affiliate links
- Organize virtual shopping parties where affiliates guide viewers through deals via Zoom or Facebook Live
- Use QR codes during live events that link directly to affiliate landing pages
Partner with affiliates to co-host these events, providing them with:
- Professional streaming setup guides
- Scripted talking points about key products
- Real-time commission bonuses for sales made during their live session
- Exclusive discount codes that work only during the live event
Producing high-quality content
Creating informative and engaging content is essential for attracting and retaining customers.
Most store owners create well-written blog articles, product reviews and promotional videos that they make available to their affiliates for marketing purposes.
Make sure every piece of content (blog, video, social graphic) must prominently feature a countdown timer or a visible warning like “Deal Ends in 12 Hours.”
Ensure your content focuses on the deal. For example, instead of showing how the product works, show the speed of checkout and the final discounted price.
Also, do not make the customer calculate the discount. Use bold text to show the Original Price > Black Friday Price > Savings %.
Pro-tip: Create dynamic Black Friday-centric landing pages that automatically adjust product showcases based on visitor demographics.
To maximize conversions, provide your partners or affiliates with personalized, co-branded landing pages.
Each page should prominently display the influencer’s identity (name, image) to create a trusted transition from their content to your product.
Additionally, you can also optimize for long-tail keywords like “Brand X vs Brand Y Black Friday deals” rather than competitive terms.
Social media is highly potent to drive your affiliate marketing revenue. Why not use it in efficient ways?
For example:
- Set up Instagram Stories with swipe-up links (15-second deal reveals)
- Make TikTok videos showing Black Friday purchases
- Create Facebook group exclusive previews for engaged communities
- Do paid social media advertising during the Black Friday week to reach a wider audience (Target recent buyers who abandoned their carts)
You can also run an Instagram contest. Give a name to the contest like “Black Friday Frenzy”.
To enter, people have to follow the brand’s Instagram account, like the post, tag three friends and share the post to their Story. The prize is a $100 gift card.
You can also check out our in-depth blog on how to promote affiliate links on social media for more ideas.
Experiment with commission rates
Here’s a fact: A standard 10% commission won’t motivate affiliates when competitors offer more.
So, you can play with dynamic commission rates during Black Friday to double your affiliate participation.
For example, keep a base rate of 20% on all Black Friday sales.
Reward affiliates who referred 20+ customers, made a sale in the Black Friday week and generated over $1000 in revenue.
Additionally, you can offer a performance bonus like 25% or 30% for affiliates driving 100+ orders. Or, give product category-specific commission of 25% on high-margin items.
You can even reward your affiliates — like your loyal customers, gold-tagged influencers or holiday promoters — with a 30% commission during the Black Friday season.
Know more about setting up different commission rates.
Why choose Affiliate for WooCommerce?
Black Friday is a golden opportunity for affiliate marketers. But to truly maximize your earnings, you need the right tools. Affiliate for WooCommerce is your secret weapon.
This powerful plugin can help you:
- Lifetime commissions: Allow your affiliates to earn commissions on all purchases made by customers they refer to your website, as long as those customers remain associated with the affiliates.
- Direct link tracking: Let your affiliates promote using clean, natural links — while you still track every sale.
- Unlimited affiliate campaigns: Create unlimited campaigns and share resources with your affiliates. Tailor campaigns to specific affiliates or groups, enhancing personalization and engagement.
- Track affiliate performance: Monitor your affiliate program’s effectiveness with detailed analytics.
- Empower affiliates with self-service: Affiliates can manage the registration, link generation, commission tracking and customizable referral links.
- Automate payouts: Streamline your affiliate payments for PayPal and Stripe and save time.
With Affiliate for WooCommerce, you can streamline your affiliate marketing efforts, increase sales and boost your bottom line.
Conclusion
Black Friday affiliate marketing success requires more than basic tactics. These eight strategies can deliver you good results.
Use the Affiliate for WooCommerce plugin to implement these strategies and scale your business.
Start preparing your Black Friday affiliate marketing strategy now.