Apps and affiliates more important to high-end retailers than ever

Retailers at the top end of the market are turning to affiliates and other methods of mobile marketing to help them win back consumers.

New data from LinkShare, a performance marketing company, reveal that sales via its affiliate network have increased by nearly 40% year on year on 2011 compared with the market average of 18%.

LinkShare’s clients include high-end retailers such as Karen Millen and Reiss.

It says that online sales via affiliate networks were being generated by newer technologies, such as smartphones, along with consumers searching for discounted goods online.

Penny Mather, LinkShare’s marketing director, told one industry website: “Consumers go on a non-linear journey when making a decision what to buy and may touch the on- and offline worlds several times in a variety of ways before making a decision to purchase an item.”

Meanwhile, Vouchercloud, a voucher code site, has revealed new figures that also support this trend. It says that its users saved £10.5m on their Christmas purchases at the end of last year via apps and affiliate vouchers.

Greg LeTocq, managing director of Vouchercloud, said: “Our mobile phone app was also used more than expected with an average of 6,000 vouchers being downloaded every day.”