We get it.
There are already enough acronyms in marketing and advertising – why add more to your vocabulary?
Well, if you’re an affiliate manager, you’ll want to pay close attention to this key metric because it’s one of the most important metrics to your current and prospective affiliate partners:
Earnings per click (EPC).
But what exactly is EPC, and why is it so crucial to your affiliate partners? We’re going to dive into the ins and outs of EPC, how it’s calculated, what’s a “good” EPC, and much more.
Let’s do this.
EPC stands for “earnings per click”.
It’s an essential metric for affiliate marketers to understand because it shows the expected earnings your affiliate partners can make for the number of clicks they send to your affiliate program.
It’s especially important to affiliates who can bring massive amounts of traffic to your products because it allows them to quickly see where your products may fit into some of their promotional strategies.
To calculate EPC in affiliate marketing:
EPC = Total commissions earned by affiliate partner divided by the number of clicks your affiliate partner sent through their tracking links.
Now, let’s jump into an example:
Your affiliate partner earned $1,000 in commissions from promoting your products and sent 100 clicks through their affiliate links.
To calculate EPC for this affiliate partner:
$1,000 commissions / 100 clicks = $10 EPC
But you should know when affiliate networks like CJ Affiliate, Impact, or PartnerStack, share the “network EPC” that’s a blended EPC for all their affiliate partners.
Just because a brand’s EPC may seem high, you need to consider other factors such as; Period the program has been live, types of products, sales cycle, AOV, etc.
The 7-Day EPC measures the average earnings per click over the last 7 days. It's calculated by dividing the total earnings by the number of clicks within 7 days, i.e., $50/1,000 = 50 cents.
The 30-Day EPC measures the average earnings per click over the last 30 days. It's calculated by dividing the total earnings by the number of clicks within 30 days, i.e., $50/1,000 = 50 cents.
You may hate this answer but…
It depends.
A good EPC will depend on the type of industry, product pricing, traffic, partners, the timing of promotions, and many other factors. The general rule of thumb is that the higher the EPC the better it is in affiliate marketing.
If you’re looking to improve your EPC in affiliate marketing, follow these four tips:
Is the product offer enticing enough to get users to 1) click through the affiliate link and 2) convert on the landing page? How is the offer priced in comparison to your competitors?
Does the location where the traffic comes from match your ideal customer profile?
For example: If 100% of your customers are based in the U.S. because you can only ship within the U.S., but you have affiliates targeting countries outside the U.S., the likelihood of that traffic converting to sales will be minimal. Therefore, that will impact your EPC.
If your goal is to drive conversions and sales from your affiliate partners, you want to ensure you have the most optimized landing pages you’re sending traffic to. When you have this in place, in theory, your traffic will convert higher; therefore, your EPC will also increase over time.
Another way you can improve the EPC is by optimizing your site to drive higher AOV with your customers. Higher AOV means more commission for your affiliates, therefore increasing your EPC.
Are you an affiliate marketer or manager working out of some of the affiliate networks? Curious about what “EPC” stands for within these networks? Well, we’ll pull together some definitions below.
EPC within the Amazon Associates affiliate network stands for “earnings per click”. This is the sum of your earnings divided by the number of clicks driven through your affiliate links.
EPC within the ClickBank affiliate network stands for “earnings per click”. This is the sum of your earnings divided by the number of clicks driven through your affiliate links.
EPC within the Impact affiliate network stands for “earnings per click.” This is the sum of your earnings divided by the number of clicks driven through your affiliate links.
Within the Impact platform, they calculate a brand's EPC in 30-day and 7-day windows.
EPC within the AJAffiliate network stands for “earnings per click”. This is the sum of your earnings divided by the number of clicks driven through your affiliate links.
EPC within the ClickBank affiliate network stands for “earnings per click”. This is the sum of your earnings divided by the number of clicks driven through your affiliate links.
EPC within the ShareaSale affiliate network stands for “earnings per click”. This is the sum of your earnings divided by the number of clicks driven through your affiliate links.
ShareASale calculates their EPC and displays them within the marketplace as 30-day and 7-day windows.
Now that you know the ins and outs of what EPC stands for in affiliate marketing, it’s time to optimize your program to increase this!
Take some of the tips listed above, meet with your affiliate team and see which levers you can pull over time to improve this and attract more affiliate partners to your program.
Remember, EPC shouldn’t drive your entire affiliate strategy, so don’t get hung up on this number and run into analysis paralysis.
With over 7 years navigating the intricate realms of marketing, and specifically B2B partner marketing, Nick has forged collaborations with top-tier tech brands, prominent agencies, and some of the industry's foremost B2B publishers and content creators. His deep immersion in both marketing landscapes showcases a trajectory of expertise and innovation. Identifying a significant void in specialized resources, he founded Growann.The aspiration? Deliver unparalleled insights and guidance, carving out a dedicated space where the broader marketing and B2B partner marketing communities can flourish.
