Email marketing and affiliate marketing are two powerful online business models that work extremely well together.
As a blogger, promoting email marketing platforms through affiliate partnerships can be a lucrative source of recurring passive income. But with so many options out there, how do you know which programs are best suited for affiliates?
In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll highlight the 12 best email marketing affiliate programs available in 2023 based on factors like high commissions, valuable incentives and strong reputations. Whether you‘re a business blogger looking to monetize your audience or simply want the inside scoop on the most profitable partnerships, you‘ll find everything you need to know right here!
What is Email Marketing?
Before diving into the top affiliate programs, let’s briefly go over what email marketing is and why it’s so popular.
Email marketing refers to sending commercial messages to a list of contacts to promote a business, encourage sales or build relationships. It harnesses the power of email to connect with customers and prospects.
Here are some key stats on email marketing:
- 90% of consumers check email daily
- For every $1 spent, email marketing yields $42 in ROI
- Email achieves 3x higher conversion rates than social media
With the right strategies, email marketing can help grow an audience, drive traffic, boost conversions and increase revenue. That‘s why partnering with top email service providers (ESPs) through affiliate programs is so lucrative.
Now let’s get into the top 12 picks for 2023!
1. ConvertKit
ConvertKit focuses on creators, bloggers and online businesses who want to build their email list and better understand their subscribers.
Commission: You earn 30% recurring commission on all purchases made by your referrals. There are no caps on earnings.
Cookie Duration: 1 year
Perks: Affiliates get access to top performing promo materials, pre-made funnels and the blog Smart Passive Income’s affiliate training course.
ConvertKit is a great option to promote if you have an engaged following of bloggers, podcaster or digital course creators who will benefit from ConvertKit’s emphasis on analytics and segmentation.
2. ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign is an all-in-one customer experience automation platform combining email marketing, sales CRM, marketing automation and more.
Commission: 30% lifetime commission on all referred purchases.
Cookie Duration: 120 days
Perks: Affiliates get dedicated account management, custom landing pages and on-demand earnings with a $50 minimum payout.
With its robust feature set beyond just email marketing, ActiveCampaign is ideal for product-based businesses or bloggers looking to scale up their marketing and sales processes.
3. AWeber
AWeber is one of the most established email service providers out there, known for its ease of use and reliability.
Commission: Recurring commission for the lifetime of the referred customer’s account. Tiered commission rates: 20% for 0-3 months, 25% 3-6 months, 30% beyond 6 months.
Cookie Duration: 120 days
Perks: Access to an expansive library of pre-made ads and dedicated affiliate manager.
AWeber is a great option for beginners just getting started with email marketing given its simple drag and drop builder and integration with leading site builders.
4. Moosend
Moosend offers email marketing and marketing automation features tailored for ecommerce stores and small businesses.
Commission: 30% lifetime recurring commission on all purchases from your referrals. Additional commissions when contacts upgrade plans.
Cookie Duration: 90 days
Perks: Ready-to-use promo materials, real-time stats dashboard and dedicated account manager. Moosend also provides translation services for global affiliates.
If your audience runs online stores or small businesses, Moosend’s ecommerce-focused platform and features make it a great program to be an affiliate for.
5. MailerLite
MailerLite helps small businesses, bloggers and individuals quickly create email campaigns and landing pages with an easy-to-use drag and drop builder.
Commission: 30% lifetime recurring commission on all purchases generated by your link.
Cookie Duration: 120 days
Perks: Access to promo materials, affiliate training academy and custom newsletters to engage your referrals after sign up.
With one of the most generous commission structures amongst email platforms, MailerLite is a favorite for bloggers wanting to monetize their audience through email software affiliate partnerships.
6. Benchmark Email
Trusted by 100,000+ businesses, Benchmark provides professional email marketing tools combined with hands-on coaching and education for users.
Commission: Up to 40% lifetime revenue share for Business Plan referrals depending on volume. 25% commission for other plans.
Cookie Duration: 120 days
Perks: Dedicated affiliate manager for top partners, flexible payout methods and consistent promotions and incentives.
Benchmark is perfect for bloggers interested in larger payouts and more involved partnerships. You’ll benefit from Benchmark’s focus on equipping customers with email marketing best practices.
7. Omnisend
Omnisend specializes in ecommerce marketing automation tailored for DTC brands selling online.
Commission: 25% revenue share for the first 3 months, 30% thereafter.
Cookie Duration: 30 days
Perks: Real-time performance dashboard, dedicated account manager for top affiliates, and attractive incentives like bonuses and contests.
For bloggers with audiences in the DTC ecommerce space, Omnisend combines rich email and automation features with some of the most generous affiliate promotions.
8. SendinBlue
Known for its free plan, SendinBlue also offers robust email marketing and SMS tools for customer engagement and transactions.
Commission: Lifetime 30% revenue share. Additional 5-15% commission for first orders from some merchant partners like Shopify.
Cookie Duration: 1 year
Perks: Access to premium content kits and on-demand affiliate training webinars. Top partners get dedicated account managers.
Great option for bloggers focused on solopreneurs or small ecommerce businesses who will benefit from SendinBlue’s free plan to get started.
9. Ontraport
Ontraport is a complete business automation platform with integrated email, landing pages, CRM and more.
Commission: 25-35% lifetime revenue share depending on customer plan.
Cookie Duration: 120 days
Perks: Affiliates get assigned a personal account rep and receive consistent promotions like cash bonuses. Top partners get invited to exclusive events.
Ontraport’s generous commissions and perks make it rewarding for established bloggers to promote.
10. GetResponse
Trusted by over 1 million businesses worldwide, GetResponse offers email marketing, webinars, landing pages, sales funnels and powerful automation.
Commission: 33% lifetime revenue share on purchases driven by your link.
Cookie Duration: 120 days
Perks: Extensive affiliate toolkit and global support offices assist you in promoting GetResponse in your local language and currency if applicable.
GetResponse focuses heavily on supporting affiliate partners, making it a great program for international bloggers wanting localized assistance.
11. Mailchimp
With over 13 million users worldwide, Mailchimp is likely the most recognizable name amongst email marketing platforms. They offer an forever free plan for up to 2000 subscribers.
Commission: 30-40% revenue share for the first 12 months after a referral signs up, depending on plan selected.
Cookie Duration: 30 days
Perks: Dedicated affiliate specialists help you succeed and extensive resources hub to access logos, text links, product screenshots and more.
The sheer reach and name recognition Mailchimp enjoys makes them an easy service to promote to beginners getting started with email marketing.
12. SendPulse
SendPulse has email and SMS marketing systems built to help ecommerce stores increase sales and engage customers across multiple channels.
Commission: 30% lifetime revenue share on purchases driven by your link. Earn bonuses for hitting monthly goals.
Cookie Duration: 30 days
Perks: Dashboard to track clicks and sales in real-time. Access promo materials and onboarding guides for free.
As an all-in-one platform focused on ecommerce buyer journeys, SendPulse empowers bloggers in the ecommerce niche to maximize commissions through their referral network.
Tips for Promoting Email Marketing Affiliate Programs Successfully
Now that we’ve covered the top players, let’s discuss some tips to help you succeed as an affiliate:
Pick programs aligned with your niche
Choose email service providers that best match your audience and niche to ensure relevance.
For example, if you have mainly ecommerce sites following you, promote options like Omnisend over ConvertKit which skews towards creators.
Create dedicated content assets
Write in-depth blog posts and create YouTube videos reviewing your top 2-3 picked platforms to send existing traffic to.
Build targeted lead magnets
Create lead magnets like tutorials or comparison guides focused specifically on email marketing platforms so you can capture new leads to promote to.
Promote via popups and slides
Install popups or banner slides on your site highlighting your favorite program(s) so visitors engage further down the funnel.
Develop relationships with affiliate managers
Leverage personalized support from affiliate managers at your chosen providers to get the latest promo materials, incentives and tailor content strategies.
By combining platform-specific educational content with persistent calls-to-action across your assets, you can maximize conversions and commissions over the lifetime of referred users.
FAQs About Email Marketing Affiliate Programs
What qualifications do I need to join?
Most programs have a simple sign-up process requiring you fill out a form requesting details about your site and audience. Larger players like ConvertKit, AWeber and Mailchimp tend to manually review partners but rarely reject applicants.
When do I get paid my commissions?
Payout timing depends on the platform but is usually monthly or quarterly once you hit a minimum threshold like $50. Some pay affiliates out more frequently via PayPal.
How do I track my affiliate link performance?
Platforms provide intuitive dashboards to see your clicks, conversions, earnings and more in real-time. Some even offer pixel tracking to install and monitor email sign ups site-wide.
Final Thoughts
Adding email marketing affiliate programs to your monetization mix is a proven way to earn generous recurring commissions over the long term.
As one of the most stable online business models, email marketing continues to provide immense value in engaging customers across their lifecycle.
Hopefully this guide has given you clarity on the most profitable ESP affiliate options along with tips to maximize your promotions.
Now go unleash the income potential of email plus affiliate marketing!
