1987.
That was the year I bought my first pair of Air Jordans, the iconic sneaker that caught the world’s attention.
No doubt, because of my favorite basketball player at the time, Michael Jordan.
From that day on, I was hooked on the Nike brand, and it has stayed with me until today.
Recently, I discovered the Nike Affiliate Program, which I believe is an incredible opportunity for anyone who loves the brand and wants to start promoting products from the online Nike store.
In this Nike Affiliate Program review, I will provide a comprehensive review of the Nike Affiliate Program and explain why it’s such an excellent opportunity for affiliates who want to promote Nike gear on their website.
How Nike Started
The company initially operated out of Knight’s car trunk, selling Onitsuka Tiger running shoes after track meets.
Within two years, they had made enough sales to open their first retail store in Santa Monica, California.
After experiencing steady sales growth, Bowerman and Knight changed the name of BRS to Nike in 1971.
This name was inspired by the Greek goddess of victory and was meant to represent their mission of helping athletes reach their highest potential.
Knight gave her just over $35 for her efforts, but little did he know then that the Swoosh would become one of the most widely recognized logos in the world.
Today, Nike dominates the athletic apparel and footwear market and is one of the largest companies in the world with over 79,000 employees and annual revenues exceeding $30 billion.
Nike Affiliate Program Overview
The Nike Affiliate Program allows online marketers to earn commissions on qualifying sales that are generated through the Nike website or social media platforms.
When someone clicks through a link on your site and makes a purchase, a commission is paid to members of the program based on the item that is purchased.
The more sales that are generated, the higher the earnings will be. Plus, there are other benefits such as exclusive discounts and bonus rewards when certain thresholds are met.
Benefits of Joining the Nike Affiliate Program
Joining the Nike Affiliate Program can hugely benefit affiliates who want to make money with their websites.
When you join the Nike affiliate program, you get access to high-quality products from one of the biggest names in sports apparel and can take advantage of the following additional benefits:
Brand Recognition
Today, you can’t turn your head in any direction and not see someone wearing the latest sneaker or gym shorts from Nike.
As a Nike affiliate, you can leverage their brand name to increase your own visibility.
In addition to having access to iconic designs and branding, you can benefit from the trust and loyalty associated with the “swoosh” logo.
Generous Commissions
In addition to great brand recognition, another major benefit of joining the Nike Affiliate Program is its generous commission rates.
Depending on the affiliate network that someone signs up with, and the product sold, it’s possible to see earnings of up to 11% commission per sale.
This is significantly higher than some other affiliate programs, making it an attractive option for those who want to maximize their earning potential.
Exclusive Discounts and Rewards
The Nike affiliate program is designed to reward its members who consistently generate sales and referrals by offering exclusive discounts and rewards on top of their already generous commission rates.
This incentive structure helps attract new participants to the program while encouraging existing ones to stay engaged with their campaigns.
In addition, they can opt-in for advanced reporting tools that track performance metrics such as clicks, impressions, conversions, revenue earned, etc.
These metrics allow many affiliates to further optimize their campaigns for higher returns.
Geographical Reach
With its global reach, an affiliate marketer has access to new markets that may not be available through other affiliate programs or traditional advertising methods.
Innovative Advertising Solutions
Finally, joining Nike Affiliate Program gives affiliates access to innovative advertising solutions such as banner ads, text links, customized landing pages, etc.
All of these tools are designed with one goal in mind to maximize conversions.
These solutions provide affiliates with creative ways to promote their websites while still maintaining brand consistency across all platforms, which is essential if they want their campaigns to be successful in today’s competitive marketplace.
How to Become a Nike Affiliate?
Becoming a Nike affiliate is relatively simple, but there is one catch, you have to join their program through an affiliate network.
This is because you cannot join the Nike affiliate program directly from the Nike website.
There are several networks that you can join to become a Nike Affiliate, such as Awin, Skimlinks, Sovrn, or FlexOffers.
There are other networks that you can choose from, but these are the ones that I found that pay the most in commissions.
The process of joining any one of these networks is as follows:
Sign up for an account
Create your links
Promote your links
Nike Affiliate Program Commission Structure
As I noted earlier, the commissions you can potentially earn as an affiliate all depend on the affiliate network you join, so commissions will vary between 4% – 7% realistically.
Below is an outline of the four affiliate networks that I recommend and the highest commissions they offer for Nike products:
Skimlinks
It is a powerful tool for affiliate marketers as it allows them to focus on creating great content instead of spending time hard-coding and manually adding affiliate links.
This site offers the highest affiliate commission rate to Nike affiliates. The rate paid out is 11% and its sign-up page is the one that frequently shows up when you search for the Nike affiliate program online.
Awin
Awin is a global affiliate marketing network that offers competitive commission rates and innovative solutions.
Advertisers use Awin to promote their products and services on websites, blogs, and social media channels while affiliates leverage their established brand awareness and trust to generate more sales.
They have partnered with Nike to provide affiliates access to their program, allowing them to offer products from the company’s vast catalog of products.
The graphic below lays out their commission payment structure which max’s out at 7%
Sovrn Commerce
Sovrn (previously called Vigilink) is a technology company that specializes in connecting publishers and content creators with different brands and retail partners.
They have partnered with Nike to provide affiliates with access to their program, allowing them to earn a commission for each sale they generate.
Commission rates range from 1%-5%, depending on the product sold. This is not a huge rate, but it is still possible to make decent money with a large enough audience.
FlexOffers
FlexOffers is an innovative platform that provides affiliates and advertisers with a comprehensive solution to monetize their online presence.
They have partnered up with Nike to offer affiliates access to their program, allowing them to earn a commission for each sale they generate.
Currently, the site offers a competitive commission rate of approximately 5% and provides affiliates with the tools and resources needed to get their campaigns off the ground.
This means affiliates can effectively target their desired audience to maximize their earnings.
And in case you are wondering, I purposely left off CJ Affiliates off the list because their commission rate for Nike products is currently 1%. Not much of an incentive to become a CJ affiliate.
Promoting Nike Products
When it comes to promoting Nike products, there are a variety of marketing strategies that affiliates can use, such as utilizing social media, creating SEO-optimized articles, email campaigns, and using video marketing. Below are some details on how to maximize each approach:
Social Media
Social media marketing is an incredibly powerful tool for promotional purposes. Using this medium, Nike affiliates can create accounts on popular platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and use them to post engaging content about their Nike products.
This could include product photos, videos of people using the products in action, or even just simple text posts highlighting the product’s features and benefits.
Additionally, you can place your affiliate link on these platforms and drive potential customers to your website and make sales.
Creating SEO-optimized articles
Another great way to promote Nike is by creating SEO-optimized articles that contain keywords related to the product you’re promoting.
These articles should be well-written and informative so that readers will find them interesting and helpful.
When writing these articles, make sure to use keywords strategically so that they are seen by search engines when someone types in a query related to your product.
This will help increase the visibility of the particular Nike product that an affiliate is promoting, which translates to more sales.
Email campaigns
Email campaigns are great for targeting specific audiences with tailored messages about Nike products. You can segment your list based on location, age group, gender, etc.
So, this means you can send emails to those who are most likely to be interested in what you’re selling.
Make sure to include compelling subject lines and clear calls to action within each email so that your readers know exactly what they need to do if they’re interested in learning more about or purchasing a particular product or service from Nike.
Video Marketing
Finally, video marketing is an effective way of reaching potential customers online as well as building brand awareness for your business or store selling Nike products.
Videos allow viewers to easily digest information about the items you’re promoting while also allowing them to get a better feel for what it would be like if they were using those items themselves in real-life scenarios.
Additionally, videos are more likely than images or text posts alone when it comes to getting people engaged with content online which means more views and potentially more sales.
Nike Affiliate Program Alternatives
Every major shoe brand has an affiliate program, allowing influencers and merchants to monetize their content by endorsing the product and referring customers.
The Nike affiliate program may be one of the leading programs out there, but it’s not your only option. Check out some of the great alternatives:
Adidas Affiliate Program
Under Armour Affiliate Program
Puma Affiliate Program
Reebok Affiliate Program
New Balance Affiliate Program
Vans Affiliate Program
Converse Affiliate Program
Final Thoughts
Well, that’s it for this affiliate program review. But as you can see, Nike has developed a great affiliate program that enables affiliates to make money from simply promoting their products. By utilizing the strategies outlined above, affiliates can get the most out of this program and maximize their earnings.
