Nike Affiliate Program Review: Everything You Need To Know Before Promoting
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Are you thinking about promoting the Nike affiliate program?
Nike is a huge sporting brand that sells sports apparel, fitness equipment, and trainers. The brand is recognized worldwide, and they have an estimated market value of over $30 billion — employing over 75,000 people worldwide.
There's no doubt that Nike is a famous company with millions of fans — they sponsor top sports stars and produce quality goods that sell.
But is Nike worth promoting as an affiliate?
Let's find out.
Contents
- What Is The Nike Affiliate Program?
- Does Nike Have An Affiliate Program In The United States?
- Does Nike Pay You To Promote Them?
- Nike Affiliate Program Requirements (Any Restrictions?)
- What Are The Benefits Of The Nike Affiliate Program?
- How Much Commission Can I Earn With The Nike Affiliate Program?
- Commission Restrictions for The Nike Affiliate Program
- How Do I Sign Up To the Nike Affiliate Program?
- Best Method For Promoting The Nike Affiliate Program
- Is The Nike Affiliate Program Best Suited To Sportwear Websites Only?
- Pros and ConsÂ
- Final Thoughts On The Nike Affiliate Program
What Is The Nike Affiliate Program?
The Nike affiliate program aims to help bloggers, influencers, content creators, marketers, and publishers to make money by promoting Nike products.
Once you sign up for the Nike affiliate program, you get a unique affiliate link that you use to refer people to buy from the Nike store. When they purchase, you earn a commission.
For example:
A blogger writes a review for a pair of Nike Air Max trainers. At the end of the review, a link says ‘Grab A Great Deal Now For These Trainers,' or something similar. The reader clicks the link (your affiliate link) and purchases the Nike shoes. You earn money.
Does Nike Have An Affiliate Program In The United States?
Yes, the Nike affiliate program is available to multiple countries worldwide, and the United States is one of those countries.
Nike is a famous brand in America, and almost everyone has heard of the sporting brand. However, you may find that certain affiliate platforms for those in the US offer different commissions, so be sure to keep an eye out for this.
Does Nike Pay You To Promote Them?
Nike doesn't pay you to promote them, but as mentioned above, you receive a commission if someone purchases a product from your promotional efforts.
You won't get paid to promote, but yes, you will get paid if you refer a customer who makes a sale.
Nike Affiliate Program Requirements (Any Restrictions?)
If you have an established website or blog, you should find it easy to get accepted for the program.
They accept affiliates from all over the world. The third-party affiliate software and platform you will use depend on where in the world you are.
You will need the following:
- An active email and contact details
- Live websiteÂ
- Payment method
- An agreement to the program terms and conditions.
You can't sign up without any web presence, and you will be asked about your promotional plans when attempting to join.
Once you have filled in the relevant details, the company will review your affiliate request and get back to you within a few days with their decision.
Send them a friendly email reminder if they don't get back to you within a week.
What Are The Benefits Of The Nike Affiliate Program?
There are many benefits to joining the Nike affiliate program. As long as you abide by the rules, the program offers many incentives.
Here's a breakdown of the main benefits:
Multiple Products to sell
Nike has thousands of products available to sell. As a Nike affiliate, you will have numerous choices to highlight for your audience.
Nike Is A Well-known Brand
Everyone knows Nike, and their tick (swoosh) logo is recognizable worldwide. When a brand is so well-known, it is easy to sell and refer its products.
The video below explains how Nike built their famous brand:
30-day Cookie Tracker
When you join the Nike affiliate program, you get a 30-day cookie for your referrals. If a customer visits the Nike website via the affiliate link on your website, you will still get the commission up to 30 days later.
For example, the customer who clicked on your link may browse the website but not purchase immediately. However, as long as they buy within 30 days, you will still get the commission as a Nike affiliate partner, even if they return to the website via a different route.
No Customer Service Required
This benefit is available for any affiliate marketer. You refer potential customers from your blog to the main Nike website when you're an affiliate, and your job is complete from that moment on.
The company (Nike) deals with any customer service concerning the sale. Therefore, you never deal with frustrated customers, returns, or faults.
Nike Affiliate Marketing Material
As an affiliate for Nike, you get affiliate marketing material to use for your promotions. These are banners, promotion materials, toolkits, and various special offers and deals to entice your reader base.
You also receive promotional offers such as free delivery, sale material, and various other marketing tools to help you with your promotions of the Nike program.
Updated Product Feed
The product feed for the entire inventory is updated regularly, so you will always have the latest prices and offers for your affiliate listings.
Affiliate-Run CompetitionsÂ
Nike will occasionally have affiliate-run competitions for their affiliates, which will result in prizes for the winners. These are typically gift cards that you can spend in-store.
How Much Commission Can I Earn With The Nike Affiliate Program?
Depending on your location and what you sell, this will determine how much commission you can make as a Nike affiliate.
According to the Nike website, the commission rate can go up to 11% for all recognized sales. However, after my research, I have found that the likely commission rate you receive will be between 6% and 9%.
This commission rate is still decent compared to other affiliate programs that sell sportswear.
Commission Restrictions for The Nike Affiliate Program
As an affiliate for Nike, you won't get a commission for all their products, and below is a list of the items and circumstances when you will get zero commission.
- Any transactions made through the ‘SNEAKRS' section of the website will result in no commission.
- The use of an unauthorized promotional code or voucher will result in zero commission (cashback will also be declined).
- Apple watches, wetsuits, and gift cards sales will give the affiliate no cash rewards.
- Jordan products also result in no commission for cashback publishers.
How Do I Sign Up To the Nike Affiliate Program?
Nike doesn't run their affiliate program, and depending on where you live will determine the third-party affiliate platform you will use.
If you visit the Nike affiliate web page and click on apply, you get redirected to an affiliate merchant, depending on your location (likely AWIN).
You will then sign up to become an affiliate.
Another way to sign up is to Google the' Nike Affiliate Program' and click the links to official Nike affiliate partners (check out affiliate vs partner here).Â
Below are a few of the options:
Be sure to check out the additional terms because some of the programs offer different commission rates and cookie lengths.
Best Method For Promoting The Nike Affiliate Program
There are many ways to promote Nike products as an affiliate, but in my opinion, the single best way is to write in-depth reviews for the products.
Run some keyword research, find keywords related to the product, and write a full review. You should also write related articles that link to the main review article. If you want to take it a step further, you can (and should) create YouTube videos highlighting the review.
You can also create unboxing videos and post links back to the review on social media.
The key is consistency, good writing, niching down, and thinking outside the box regarding affiliate marketing.
Is The Nike Affiliate Program Best Suited To Sportwear Websites Only?
No. If your website is a sportswear website, obviously, promoting Nike's products will be a no-brainer, but don't feel you need to be in the sportswear niche to promote the service.
Nike is one of the best-recognised brands for running gear and other fitness apparel, but it's not just about sports shoes. Many of its products are fashionable and worn by people who don't play sports. So, if you run any fashion or fitness website, for example, you can still become an affiliate member and promote Nike products to your audience. The Nike affiliate program isn't just for sports sites.
Pros and ConsÂ
Pros |
Cons |
Good commission | Seems better suited to UK and EU affiliates |
Updated marketing material | Pre-approval (although some may consider this a good thing) |
Established brand | Some products are non-commissionable, i.e., gift card |
Nike automated product feed | |
Extensive range of products |
Final Thoughts On The Nike Affiliate Program
The Nike affiliate program is an excellent program to promote mainly because of the popularity of the products and brand awareness.
You get affiliate marketing material, a decent commission, and various other benefits when you become an affiliate.
While some marketers will think 6% to 9% commissions are low and that it's not the best affiliate program, you need to realize that these are higher than many other programs, including Amazon Associates, and you won't have to sell too hard if you niche down.
If you're looking for an excellent sportswear brand to promote as an affiliate, the Nike affiliate program is up there with the best.
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