Is Affiliate Ready for UGC?
In the brave new world of Reddit and communities, how will affiliate play?
My last update 8+ months ago featured me sounding the alarm on affiliate disruption…. The traditional publishing model was under threat.
Even the venerable, much-vaunted, first-hand review stalwart The Wirecutter has seen their search visibility diminished in recent months.
I’m not happy to have been “right” about this… Nor is being right all that helpful for an indie publisher.
The rules have changed.
Google and AI (but mostly Google) is intent on disrupting themselves and maximizing profits… even to to the point of pre-emptively killing their core product, it seems.
But people haven’t stopped searching.
So who benefits?
With each passing month, the BIG winners seem to be clear. UGC (user generated content) sites, led by the elephant in the room… Reddit.
eCommerce sites, non-content first brands, and YouTube also seem to have benefited to a lesser extent.
But Reddit has skyrocketed!
I’m not sure it’s really sunk in just yet HOW seismic this shift is.
As a publisher, I’m treating it has Google circa 2013… a time to get in early and build.
So much so that I’ve spent the last 6+ months down the rabbit hole with Reddit… and even launched a course to boot!
But what does this mean for the affiliate industry?
Clearly the old guard of “blue blood” publishers are under threat… both from these Google updates, but also emergent AI (like ripping off original journalist stories).
At least they still have a pulse, protected by their inherent entrenchment in the web and Google’s appetite for “just a few” content shops.
The small indie publisher… much less fortunate.
Layoffs, consolidation, but more often than not, quietly closing up shop.
Many of these “long tail” publishers were the lifeblood of many affiliate programs. Responsive, bespoke, persistent, cost-effective… these were the worker bees of the performance ecosystem.
So the publishers hit hard enough to be desperate (“necessity is the mother of invention”) AND nimble enough to pivot are going to lead the way out of this purgatory.
Personal experience and that of peers is shining a light on a few promising avenues. These include Facebook for viral traffic (but not really affiliate), Pinterest for a mix (but still mostly programmatic ad / traffic plays), and smaller gems like Flipboard (also mostly ad play).
Of course Bing and alternative search continue to play a role. They may even seize the moment.
Old school forums are also having a moment, getting swept up in the UGC tide. Maybe we should all launch forums for our brands and blogs…
An aside: I don’t think the old tech is built for the moment, however. I do see a new breed of “community in a box” platforms like Circle, Heartbeat, and Skool charting a better course from a usability perspective.
But there are two channels uniquely suited for affiliate… YouTube and… Reddit.
Both platforms are natural fits for personal experience, unboxings, and product recommendations… In fact, I’d make the case that Reddit may soon rival G2 Crowd as a platform for B2B software recommendations.
What’s unique about Reddit is how similar it is to the “old days” of Google Search. It’s still mostly text based content (although they are versatile enough for video to play well).
Intentional decentralization is built into their ethos. Communities - or “Subreddits” - largely police themselves… with a few federated auto-filtered enforcements from the mothership.
This is fertile ground for indie creators and micro influencers.
The other “leg up” Reddit has vs YouTube is the more evergreen content profile. Some of the best - if laborious - threads on Reddit started 5+ years ago.
What both YouTube and Reddit share is a more communal relationship with audience. Comments on videos, responses to posts, are where some of the best content can be created (or, conversely, shallow invective flourishes).
And while YouTube comments are important, comments are the lifeblood of Reddit. Community is a build in feature. For Reddit, it’s ALL in the comments section.
I see the convergence of UGC and community as the core macro drivers for content moving forward. Both as a side effect of Google’s algo updates, but more durably as the antidote to “Hapsburg” AI drivel. In a world of AI mediocrity, personal “human” opinions stand out.
Precocious brands and savvy affiliate managers looking for an edge…. follow these bread crumbs.
Thank you for reading! I hope to do more of these updates as we go. Please do check out my new Reddit Leverage course. It’s applicable for publishers, affiliates, and the ecosystems they support.
There really isn’t another course out there with the latest reality. I’m also adding modules weekly! As a loyal reader, you can take 20% off discount here (code: AFFIN).