The Impact of Google’s Updates on Your Affiliate Marketing Strategy
- Jen Watson
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
With algorithm changes and AI overviews shaking up visibility, brands must rethink how they support their affiliate partners or risk losing them.
Affiliate publishers are sounding the alarm. According to the newly released PMA Industry Study 2025, more than half (52%) say they’re very concerned about the impact of Google’s recent changes. While only 7% report feeling unconcerned.
And they’re right to worry.
In March 2024, Google introduced its Site Reputation Abuse policy, targeting sites that publish low-value third-party content under the authority of high-trust domains. As a result, major media companies such as Forbes, CNN, and The Wall Street Journal have experienced significant traffic declines to their commerce sections.
But this isn’t just a big-publisher problem. Bloggers, review sites, and niche affiliates are also feeling the squeeze as AI Overviews and zero-click results increasingly answer consumer questions directly on the results page.
The result? Less traffic for publishers, fewer clicks to brand partners, and less visibility across the affiliate channel.
What’s Changing…And Why It Matters
Organic search has long been the engine behind top-of-funnel affiliate discovery. Publishers built entire business models around ranking for consumer keywords and turning that visibility into performance.
Now, that visibility is under threat from two sides:
Google algorithm updates penalize thin or low-value content (even when hosted on high-authority domains).
AI-generated summaries that reduce click-through rates by answering search queries directly on the SERP.
As the PMA report notes, this isn’t just a theoretical concern. Visibility is dropping in measurable ways, and affiliate publishers, especially those not optimized for last click, are losing income as a result. These shifts are forcing brands to rethink their affiliate marketing strategy and how they measure value beyond last-click performance.
The Data You Don’t See
Your affiliate dashboard won’t show you what never gets clicked. If top-of-funnel partners are losing traffic, your program may look stable, while in reality, the pool of content creators, SEO-based review sites, and bloggers promoting your brand is slowly drying up.
These hidden shifts should influence your affiliate strategy just as much as the numbers in your dashboard.
This is especially concerning given the continued shift in content affiliate dynamics. The PMA study found that:
Blogger's share of content affiliate spend rose from 34% to 42%.
Major media companies dropped from 46% to 35%.
52% of publishers said they are likely to experiment with new formats over the next year.
These signals show a channel going through change and a partner ecosystem looking for support.
How Brands Can Evolve Their Affiliate Marketing Strategy
1. Diversify Your Affiliate Mix
Buy Now, Pay Later partners now account for 45% of all tech affiliate investment, and comparison websites are up to 6% of total channel spend, both signs that affiliate is moving well beyond coupons.
As the channel diversifies, it's important to avoid over-relying on affiliates whose performance depends solely on Google. Now is the time to invest in:
Creators and influencer-led content.
Loyalty platforms with first-party relationships.
Card-linked offers (CLOs) and tech partners are not dependent on SEO.
2. Rethink Your Attribution Model
Last-click attribution undervalues discovery and influence. Consider models that:
Track impressions.
Credit-assisted conversions.
Include multi-touch insights.
74% of publishers said they would consistently track impressions if they were compensated for them.
3. Communicate Openly With Partners
Let your affiliate partners know you’re aware of these industry shifts. Ask how they’re being affected and how you can support them. Co-branded campaigns, flexible commission tiers, and funding for SEO-resistant formats are all potential lifelines.
Affiliate Is a Partnership…So Act Like It
Affiliate marketing has always been built on collaboration. When publishers lose visibility, the entire ecosystem loses performance potential. The new Google landscape is a reminder that affiliate programs cannot succeed in isolation from the real-world challenges their partners face.
This isn’t the end of the affiliate opportunity. But it is the end of the assumption that yesterday’s strategies are good enough for today’s environment.
Zero-click is here. And so is the need for brand partners to adapt.
Ready to Future-Proof Your Affiliate Strategy?
At AIM, we help brands navigate change with confidence, from attribution modeling and partner diversification to publisher advocacy and strategic forecasting. If you're ready to strengthen your partner ecosystem and grow your program in this evolving landscape, let’s talk.
