Hey

Welcome to Freddy’s Fast Five.

I send these weekly emails to grow your affiliate program with 5 quick reads in 5 minutes.

Let’s jump into this week’s deep dive.

I’ve been in affiliate marketing since 2009. I’ve seen every trend come and go.

But 2025 feels different.

AI and tech are reshaping the landscape almost monthly.

Here are my 5 bold predictions for the future of affiliate marketing (drawn from my own experience working with 100+ DTC brands in the last 3.5 years.)

1. Performance creators > Traditional affiliates

The top affiliates today aren’t just creators with audiences or traditional coupon sites.

Top affiliates now run full-scale media companies, investing $50K–$500K/month in paid traffic. They're performance marketers building funnels and acting as your online sales team.

2. AI is transforming recruitment and optimization

AI can now score affiliates, write outreach, predict scaling, and adjust commissions, analyzing 10,000 affiliates in hours with 80%+ accuracy.

(Manual prospecting is already outdated.)

3. Hybrid commission models are the new standard

Flat rev-share is dead. Programs now mix upfront fees, tiered commissions, and bonuses, designed to attract affiliates who invest real money and effort.

- $1,500 flat fee for first 100 conversions

- 20% commission for 101–500

- 25% for 500+

- $10K bonus at $100K/month

This attracts affiliates willing to invest time and money.

4. From last-click to full-journey attribution

Multi-touch + cross-device tracking finally rewards top-funnel partners. Affiliates stick around when they’re paid for awareness and conversions.

5. Community-driven ecosystems are the future.

Affiliate networks used to be the growth engine. But in 2025, it’s about building affiliate communities. When affiliates feel like partners, they stay longer, invest more, give feedback, and refer quality affiliates.

The bottom line is AI, hybrid models, better attribution, and community-building are just rewriting the affiliate marketing playbook. Adapt now, or risk being left behind.

Now, let’s look at a brand putting these strategies into practice.

Who they are & why it works

Pro-aging beauty brand with proven DR funnels (concealer, moisturizer, serum) that perform consistently on email and direct response traffic.

VSLs, TSLs, advertorials, and quizzes are fully tested and optimized for smooth traffic matching.

Performance & fit:

Hero product: All-in-Wonder Concealer with high AOV and strong repeat rates. Best for affiliates targeting women 40+ in skincare/beauty.

Deal terms

Exclusive CPA bumps + custom assets for top partners. Flexible tracking (Impact, Everflow, postbacks, etc.).

How to partner:

Reply to this email for Q4 intro. 

Who they are & why it works:

Upsellit helps brands recover lost revenue with AI-powered cart abandonment, personalization, and remarketing tools.

Performance & best fit:

Proven to recover up to 36% of abandoned carts and lift conversions into double digits. Best fit for wellness, sleep, beauty, and gifting brands.

How to partner:

Performance-based, no setup fees. Reply to this email for a Q4 intro.

That's a common myth.. While big brands can afford to be picky, early-stage brands often need that foot in the door to get their program off the ground and generate initial cash flow. 

The key is using them strategically. Work with just 1-2 partners, set clear rules to prevent coupon leakage, and treat it as a short-term stepping stone while you build toward premium partnerships.

That’s it for this issue. If you want me to introduce you to any of our partners, simply reply to the email and I’ll get in touch.

And if you have any questions for me, feel free to ask. 

I read all of the emails. (Even the promotional ones!:)

Thank you for reading till the end. 

Talk soon,

Fred