Impact Radius Affiliate Review: Expert's Opinion (2023)
Interested in joining Impact Radius affiliate program, but want to learn more first? In this article, I'll be sharing my personal experience and review of the Impact Radius affiliate network. I will share info on how to sign up, what products and brands they offer, commission rates, and more.
What is Impact Radius affiliate and how does it work?
Reading the official impact.com website, Impact Radius is a "partnership management platform" for companies to manage their partnership programs, aka affiliate programs. Outside of affiliate marketing, Impact offers technology for influencer marketing, mobile partnerships, SaaS partnership marketing, analytics and attribution, and more.
In my experience as a veteran affiliate marketer, who has been a member since it was still called "Impact Radius", I do believe Impact Affiliate is one of the biggest affiliate networks.
Similar to other affiliate networks, Impact Affiliate allows thousands of advertisers (brands) to join their platform and recruit affiliates. As an affiliate, you will first need to join the network, then you have access to these thousands of brands. However, you will also need to apply to each individual brand within the network to work with them and get affiliate links. This process is much more streamlined within a network, and also brands may reach out and recruit / pre-approve you if you show good performance with other brands first.
Is Impact Radius affiliate legit?
Impact Radius was founded in 2008, and works with some of the largest corporations in the world such as Walmart, Shopify, Uber, Ticketmaster, Microsoft, Adidas and more. In my eyes, both Impact Affiliate and CJ Affiliate seem to have the most well-recognized brands in the world.
In my own personal experience, Impact Affiliate is 100% legit and have never had an issue with payments or support whatsoever.
Keep reading to see a much longer list of brands that are available on the network below.
What brands are on Impact Radius affiliate network?
Here is a list of some of the most recognizable brands on the Impact Affiliate Network:
Adidas
LiquidWeb
NordVPN
Ulta
Lenovo
Namecheap
Belkin
Fabletics
FabFitFun
Shutterstock
iStock
Skillshare
Southwest Airlines
United Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Hilton Honors
Marriot Bonvoy
Dick's Sporting Goods
Ticketmaster
Glossier
This list is by no means comprehensive and there are THOUSANDS more large and recognizable brands that are not listed.
Going through the available brands myself, I was overwhelmed with how many household names I recognized that are offered on Impact Affiliate, and in every niche imaginable.
I want to repeat here that aside from CJ Affiliate, Impact seems to have the largest selection of the most recognizable brands on the planet.
How much does Impact Radius pay in commission rate?
It depends on the product and how much the Advertiser (brand) has designated. Also, whether the commission is CPL (cost per lead) or CPA (cost per action). "Cost per lead" typically means you get paid for an email or phone signup. "Cost per action" typically is for verified purchases or sales, but it can also just be a free trial signup or inquiry. In short, it varies widely from one brand to another, so you will need to open up their program details page to get the exact commission rates.
What are the Impact Radius requirements to get approved?
The official impact.com website suggests, "If you’re yet to acquire a large following or significant website traffic, work on that first. Create regular content and posts to drive engagement, and learn from affiliates that you aspire to as well."
Based on this statement, the requirements to get approved by Impact affiliate would be to have significant website traffic and/or a large social media following or email list.
There are no concrete numbers shared for these requirements, but I would estimate a minimum of 1,000 unique monthly visits to your site before applying.
My personal experience and thoughts on Impact Radius affiliate marketing
In my experience, Impact Affiliate is better-suited for slightly more established affiliates who have a website that is already receiving a decent amount of traffic (1,000+ visits per month). My reasoning is that, aside from requiring a website for the application, their application process seems to be a bit stricter than Amazon Associates for example. Working with thousands of students, it is rare to hear someone get rejected from Amazon Associates, but it is far more common to hear someone get rejected from Impact Affiliate.
If you can get approved, Impact has such a wide selection of companies and brands in all different industries which presents a lot of opportunity. But it's also important to note that you will still need to apply for individual programs within the Impact network, similar to how ShareASale, Awin, and Commission Junction still operates.
One way that I have been able to successfully compete my way to over $1 million in affiliate commissions is by focusing on building real topical authority with niche authority websites. By building these brands over time, I'm able to establish authority and trust in certain niches, which further boosts my SEO over competitors. The #1 mistake most beginners make is not building any credible authority over time, and taking the easy route of just spamming affiliate links without a clear strategy.
If you need help creating a professional affiliate website quickly, check out my affiliate marketing for beginners guide.
Best Alternatives to Impact Radius affiliate marketing
Having reviewed dozens of affiliate programs and networks, here are my best recommendations for alternatives and similar to Impact Radius affiliates: