Before accepting an affiliate, require that they have personally used your product and can provide a transformation testimonial. This ensures their promotion is authentic and compelling. Affiliates motivated by genuine belief will always outperform those just seeking a commission.

Working at a mission-driven company like Patagonia creates productive tension between selling products and achieving larger goals. This forces creative channel use. For example, the affiliate program can be leveraged not just for new sales, but to drive participation in buy-back programs or promote used clothing sales.

For a values-driven brand like Patagonia, partner alignment isn't about finding perfectly sustainable companies. Instead, the key criterion is a partner's flexibility and willingness to understand and accurately convey the brand's story and values. This pragmatic approach widens the partner pool beyond a small, niche set of endemic publishers.

Instead of cold-pitching influencers, Buy Rosie Jane identifies creators who already organically love and post about their products. They then approach these authentic fans to either license existing content or collaborate on new paid projects, ensuring genuine enthusiasm and audience trust.

In B2B marketing, one-off influencer posts for launches are ineffective and a waste of money. Brands should instead pursue long-term, integrated partnerships with creators who have built entire networks (events, newsletters, social). This approach treats the collaboration as a strategic investment in 'world building' rather than a tactical play.

Brands no longer seek influencers with broad appeal. They want to partner with creators who have a highly targeted, niche audience because it leads to better conversions. Position yourself as a specialist or community leader in a specific area to attract more valuable deals.

The best marketing strategy isn't just about being where the customers are. Patagonia evaluates new, popular channels by filtering them through a brand lens. While a platform like TikTok offers immense reach, its association with overconsumption trends might conflict with the brand's core values, making it a poor fit despite the audience size.

Unlike plugging a budget into Facebook or Google, affiliate marketing requires managing human relationships. Success depends on treating affiliates as partners, negotiating bespoke deals, and understanding individual motivations rather than simply optimizing for an algorithm.

Instead of focusing solely on last-click conversions, Patagonia's affiliate program uses Cost-Per-Click (CPC) models to achieve brand-level goals. They incentivize partners to drive traffic to non-product pages, like a film or community hub, supporting broader campaign objectives beyond direct sales and compensating partners for brand-building activities.