TikTok is always on people’s tongues, whether they’re talking about the newest silly sound bite or a rising star in music. With so many eyes on one app, there’s immense potential to make money. You just have to know how to do it.
If you’re a creator or brand, affiliate marketing on TikTok can be a gold mine. Consider this your complete guide to becoming an affluent affiliate on the platform that drives trends and culture.
What Is Affiliate Marketing?
When creators advertise products and receive a commission for driving traffic and generating sales, they’re using affiliate marketing. This can be done via social media platforms, blogs, email newsletters, and other online channels. Almost any type of content creator can become an affiliate marketer.
Brands Provide Creators With Unique Tracking Links
It all starts with a link, like many great stories. When influencers (like you) join an affiliate program or partnership, they receive an affiliate link from the brand. This link is unique to the influencer and helps track which clicks and purchases came from your audience. If someone uses your affiliate link to shop for something, you can earn money.
Even if they don’t buy the item right away, you’ll still get credit as long as the cookies are saved in their browser. Cookie duration or window refers to the time period during which those cookies are valid. The window usually ranges from 60-90 days, but can be anywhere between a few days and several months.
These links also help you track creator performance as an affiliate, which allows you to fine-tune your content for more conversions.
Creators Promote Products Through Content
Once you have your links, you can create TikTok content that promotes your affiliate products. For affiliate marketing on TikTok, links can be placed in several key locations. Creators may put them in stickers or embed them in the post. There are also bio links, and we’ll dive into that aspect further down.
Your content can have subtle product mentions woven into your typical posts, or be more product-focused, like unboxings, reviews, and tutorials. There are “TikTok Made Me Buy It” trends, which allow you to curate product-focused content specifically for TikTok with minimal effort.
Creators Earn a Commission From Each Conversion
Here’s where the money comes in. Brands pay creators for “conversions.” In most cases, conversions are when someone makes a purchase through one of your affiliate links, known as a Cost Per Sale (CPS). Conversions, however, can also include clicks, subscriptions, sign-ups, and other favorable actions, generally known as Cost Per Action (CPA).
The commission rates can range from 1% to 99%. It depends on the brand, product, niche, and the credibility of the creator. Here are some common example rates for various content niches:
By no means are these firm rates. The payouts can range widely depending on product price, creator visibility, and many other factors.
How TikTok Affiliate Marketing Works
Let’s lock in on TikTok now. It’s one of the most active social media platforms on Earth, meaning there’s plenty of potential for creator income. Beyond that, TikTok makes it easy by having a TikTok Creator Marketplace and a TikTok Shop with a built-in affiliate program.
TikTok Shop: It’s an integrated e-commerce platform on the app that lets users shop for, purchase, and sell products. It utilizes live streams and in-app videos on the dedicated shopping tab, seamlessly combining content and commerce.
TikTok Creator Marketplace: An official platform for creator and brand collaborations that offers end-to-end campaign development and social selling tips. It also helps you measure and optimize campaigns based on performance.
The placement of affiliate links on TikTok can affect their visibility. Ensuring that your affiliate link is the one that gets clicked is crucial, so be strategic about where you put it. Many TikTok creators (depending on their account status and region) have the option to add a link to their bio. You can add one affiliate link or create a Linktree. Linktree is essentially a page that displays multiple links, serving as a workaround for TikTok’s limit of one link per bio.
You can also embed certain links, like app downloads or event tickets, into your posts, where they’ll be displayed and clickable above the caption. Or you can add a clickable link that takes the user directly to the TikTok Shop. Creators may add links in the comments, but it’s not always effective. One of the easiest options is to create stickers with links.
The TikTok Shop and TikTok Creator Marketplace are wonderful affiliate marketing tools, but might not be right for you, depending on your account type and goals. TikTok-native affiliate marketing doesn’t allow you to diversify with other social media platforms and is only available to creators who meet follower count requirements.
When you use other affiliate marketing platforms, such as Mavely, you have more control and more options. You can explore different commission rates and structures, repost your content for conversions on other platforms, and access more brand and product programs. If you want to keep things simple, the TikTok-native program is a decent option. However, joining Mavely allows you to maintain simplicity while gaining more flexibility and freedom.
Ways to Make Money with Affiliate Marketing on TikTok
Affiliate marketing on TikTok offers a couple of options: You can make money the organic way, or use TikTok’s paid in-app options. Here’s a breakdown of each:
Leverage Organic Content
This is the tried and true way of monetizing online content. By leveraging top-quality content styles, such as viral storytelling, niche-focused product demos, trending audio, and strategic hashtags, you can generate organic engagement. The natural strategy involves a combination of legwork and finesse, but it can pay off in the long run. It helps you build a loyal audience and drastically improves your credibility, which can lead to more conversions. It’s ideal to have about 80% of your content be organic posts that provide value and engage your target audience.
Use TikTok Spark Ads or Paid Promotions
Alternatively, you can utilize TikTok Spark Ads or paid promotions. Spark Ads are native to TikTok and a paid way to boost your content while keeping your post in its original formatting. This means all your likes, comments, music, and profile info are displayed.
Paid promotions are more generic, with a layout that makes it more evident that the post is an ad.
Use these tips when creating content to stay within TikTok’s advertising guidelines:
- Be honest and transparent
- Align your ad and landing page
- Use high-quality media, including sound
- Stick to technical product specs
How Content Creators Can Get Started
Itching to get going? Here’s how to launch your affiliate marketing on TikTok, whether you’re a famous creator or an everyday influencer. Consider it a roadmap for how to monetize content on TikTok.
1. Choose a Niche That Fits Your Voice
First, define your niche. Are you a PetTok expert? A BeautyTok guru? A SportsTok fanatic? Figure out what corner of TikTok your content fits and then lean into it. Others include lifestyle, fitness, tech, books, and parenting.
There are also countless microniches, from renter-friendly home renovations to fashion styling for tall girls. While microniches might not reach the masses, they have a substantial impact on smaller groups that can drive impressive revenue.
You need to choose a niche that fits your voice so that you can create authentic content that flows well. If you simply choose a niche you think is hot and popular, you might end up being out of place on that side of TikTok. To ensure you can create ample content and connect with viewers, create posts for something you understand and are passionate about.
2. Switch to a TikTok Business or Creator Account
This step isn’t required, but it can give you a huge leg up when you’re just starting out. Upgrading to a TikTok Business Account or TikTok Creator Account unlocks useful features, like analytics, performance tracking, and Creator tools.
A business account provides e-commerce integration, third-party tool integration, access to the Business Creator Hub, a commercial music library, promoted campaigns, and more. Businesses and brands can benefit from these because of the deep analytics and advertising options.
The Creator Accounts (also known as Personal Accounts) offer various perks, including a full music library, eligibility for the creator fund, monetization tools, and access to the Creator Marketplace. This is the standard type of account and is best if you plan to create organic content, build a personal brand, and, hopefully, go viral.
3. Join Affiliate Programs
Hop on those programs! Whether you go with the TikTok Shop that’s already on the app or work with affiliate marketing platforms like Mavely, you need a program to start making money. They’re the key to turning content into cash, but you need to choose the perfect one for your profile. Find programs with brands in your niche and payout structures that work for you.
If you want to guarantee yourself a little money, look for a hybrid model, where you get an upfront payment for promotion, plus a commission on user actions. For users confident in their content’s ability to grab consumers, a performance-based structure can be highly lucrative. If your niche lends itself to higher-priced items, a percentage or tiered commission will likely net you the most, even if it’s a low percentage. Flat rates, which set a fee for each user action, are better if you’re promoting low-cost items.
4. Build Strong Relationships With Brands
Once you decide what brands you want to work with, be sure to nurture those relationships. Open communication about what is expected of the content, rate transparency that makes pay structures clear, and campaign feedback—from both sides—are essential.
Feedback might be a discussion about the key performance indicators (KPI) of a given post, how the brand feels about the product representation, or what the creator thinks would work better in the future. For example, you might decide a skit would resonate with viewers more than a tutorial.
The best way to build creator-brand relationships is to maintain a consistent stream of communication in which creators update brands about their posts, brands share performance insights, and both sides are honest about their wants and needs. These can be lucrative, long-term relationships, so maintain positivity and professionalism.
5. Add Affiliate Links to Your TikTok Bio and Posts
You need to make sure all links are easy to find. Otherwise, you can’t make money. TikTok limits how you can use links in your posts and on your profile, so position them prominently to get clicks. The best ways to include links in your content and profile are link-in-bio tools or links embedded in each post. You have a few options for each.
Link-in-Bio Tools:
- Linktree
- Beacons
Linking in Posts:
- TikTok Shop integration
- Sticker links
- Single bio links
- Comment links
You can test one at a time and track results, or place your affiliate links in a variety of spots. Experimenting and optimizing are crucial to maximizing your profits.
6. Post Consistent, High-Quality Content
Top-notch content is necessary for success. If the content doesn’t grab attention, the number of posts per day is irrelevant. Take your time to create high-quality content, and dedicate enough time to it so you can post consistently. It’s a balance between volume and substance.
You may exhaust or annoy viewers if you post too frequently, especially if the content is of low quality, and lose followers. But if you never post, the algorithm may leave you behind. It’s helpful to create large batches of content when you’re in a creative groove, and then use a handy social media scheduler to avoid overwhelming your audience in a short time frame.
Examples of TikTok Affiliate Marketing in Action
Wondering what successful affiliate marketing on TikTok looks like? Here are a handful of accounts to check out.
Makeup by Shayla
This beauty creator (@makeupshayla) uses affiliate links in a Linktree in her TikTok bio, as well as affiliate links that are embedded in her post captions, so they hover above the caption on the video. She creates unboxing videos, product promotions, tutorials, and advice posts, offering her followers a mix of engaging content.
Good Protein
The Good Protein brand (@goodprotein) has masterfully enlisted fitness creators to promote shakes and bars with affiliate offers. The brand posts its own ads and reposts content created by influencers who tag the brand and use relevant hashtags.
BrüMate
The reusable drinkware brand (@brumate) uses the TikTok Shop to its full potential. Users can easily find the tumblers and water bottles in the TikTok Shop or click on the links embedded in the posts, allowing them to buy the item with just a few clicks.
How Brands Can Set Up an Affiliate Program on TikTok
If you’re a brand looking to step up your TikTok game, we’ll explain how to set up an affiliate program. Luckily, it’s a breeze.
1. Build an Affiliate Offer
Before you go looking for creators, you need to build out your offer. Include commission rates and tiers, product eligibility, minimum follower requirements, engagement requirements, cookie windows, and other relevant information. This will help creators determine if your brand is the right fit for their affiliate needs.
Be as clear as possible. Presenting a deceptive offer and then switching things up at the last minute can harm your brand reputation in the creator community.
2. Launch Your Affiliate Program
With all your details mapped out, you can launch your program. Launch it on the TikTok Shop or on influencer marketing platforms like Mavely. The latter offers more opportunities for scaling, and you get to utilize our advanced affiliate marketing tools, like Mavely analytics. These tools can help you understand performance, making testing and optimizing more streamlined, which is how you make the money.
3. Recruit TikTok Creators
Finding the perfect creators for your brand is integral to your affiliate marketing success. If you’re a sportswear brand, a pet training creator may not be the best fit for you. It’s better to work with influencers who create content for your niche or something very close to it. However, anytime an influencer reaches out, it’s wise to connect with them. They may see an angle you’ve missed that brings your two brands together organically.
Look for creators on the TikTok Creator Marketplace, use influencer discovery tools, or directly reach out to creators you believe would be a match made in heaven.
4. Support and Manage Creators
When managing creators, you should set expectations and provide clear briefs with some room for variation. After all, influencer creativity is what they’re great at! A good brief will detail what product you want to highlight, what features you want emphasized, and what not to mention. Giving them a script to read without flexibility can disrupt the relationship and content quality.
Beyond the development aspect, be sure to keep an open line of communication with them. Make timely payments and share performance reports so you can work together to optimize content.
Pros and Cons of TikTok Affiliate Marketing
Whether TikTok is the right platform for you to leverage affiliate marketing depends on your niche, content style, and brand.
Pros
First, let’s talk about all the good stuff awaiting affiliate influencers on TikTok:
- Highly Visual Platform: The platform is built for product discovery. Everything is visual, so it’s natural to show off a product or give a tutorial, allowing people to see the product in action.
- Fast Growth Potential: With the right content and partnership, a product can go from underground to iconic within a week.
- Low Barrier to Entry: Compared to many other platforms, you don’t need much to get started on TikTok. Blogs can be slow to grow, and platforms like Meta require an ingrained community. TikTok is more accessible for newbies.
- Multiple Income Streams: TikTok affiliate marketers can earn money in various ways, including sponsored posts, the TikTok Creator Fund, and affiliate commissions. It’s also possible to diversify across several platforms.
Cons
It’s not all rainbows and sunshine. TikTok has aspects that can be quite limiting for certain creators and brands. Carefully consider these downsides before committing to TikTok as your main affiliate platform:
- Short Video Format: The short clips can limit the depth of discussion when it comes to products. People are accustomed to watching content for 30 seconds before scrolling to the next video, so it’s crucial to capture their attention quickly and convey important information concisely. With complex products, this can be an issue.
- Rapid Content Cycle: The fast turnover means there is less room for evergreen content, which can make it hard to generate passive income.
- Requires Frequent Posting: The lack of space for evergreen content means you have to post often to keep making money and stay relevant. You have to be dedicated to the platform for your content to perform well.
- Demands Trend Awareness: You also need to stay up on all the latest trends, including hashtags, audio, stickers, meme formats, and general topics. It means constantly reshaping your content to keep people engaged, and these trends can be incredibly short.
TikTok Affiliate Marketing FAQ
Here are the most common questions about TikTok affiliate marketing, asked and answered.
How can I benefit from TikTok affiliate marketing?
You can monetize content you’re already creating, build brand relationships that boost your career and income, and establish a passive income stream, allowing you to rake it in with minimal effort. Creators who get a decent amount of attention can add to their bank account without excessive effort.
What are the requirements to join TikTok Shop as an affiliate?
The requirements to join TikTok Shop vary by country, but they may include a minimum follower count and/or account activity requirements. For example, certain regions require a minimum of 1,000 followers and account activity at least once every 48 hours.
Can I promote affiliate links through TikTok ads?
Yes, you can! You need TikTok’s approval to do so, and your landing pages must be compliant with the platform’s guidelines. You usually have to pay to promote content, which can mean creators need to spend money before they start making money.
Can I promote multiple affiliate programs?
Absolutely! You can use a link management tool to promote multiple affiliate links at once, such as Linktree or Beacons. These kinds of tools can organize your links by niche or brand, making it easier for you to manage and for users to click on.
How many followers do I need to do affiliate marketing on TikTok?
The legality of affiliate marketing on TikTok depends on the country you live in, particularly when opting for organic content over promoted ads. Platforms like Mavely don’t have a follower count requirement, so you can get started with any audience size. However, the higher your engagement, the more likely you are to make a decent amount of money off commissions.
Ready to Take on TikTok?
TikTok is waiting for you and your content. It’s one of the most thrilling platforms for affiliate growth right now, whether you’re a creator or brand, with an estimated reach of 2 billion users globally.
With authenticity, consistency, and a smart strategy, you can conquer TikTok and find affiliate success. Start small and take your time to find your groove.
Most importantly, stay true to your niche and voice. If you need any help, you can sign up for Mavely. With our robust and easy-to-use platform, we’ll give you all the tools and resources to launch your TikTok affiliate marketing business.
