AFFILIATE marketing is driving up online sales in the country, with content creator-led purchases accounting for over half of total sales in popular categories, according to e-commerce firm Intrepid Philippines.
In affiliate marketing, a content creator (the “affiliate”) earns a commission by promoting a company’s products or services.
Intrepid Philippines CEO and regional head of live commerce Pierre Faucher told The Manila Times that the strongest affiliate-driven sales are in beauty and personal care, fashion and apparel, and health and wellness products — with consumers relying on recommendations from content creators.
“We see affiliate-led sales peak at — and sometimes exceed — 60 percent primarily in highly visual and trust-based categories,” Faucher said.
The percentage is the gross merchandise value directly generated through creators’ affiliate links on TikTok, including purchases completed through the platform’s “Yellow Basket” feature on videos and livestreams over the past 12 months through the second quarter (Q2).
The trend, Faucher noted, reflects a broader shift in consumer behavior as Filipinos discover products and buy them through short-form videos, livestreams and creator-generated content rather than traditional online searches.
“The biggest catalyst has been the rapid development of social commerce platforms, particularly TikTok Shop,” Faucher said. “What has changed significantly in recent years is how seamlessly consumers can move from product discovery to purchase within the same platform.”
As social commerce gets bigger, brands are also changing how they allocate marketing budgets favoring channels that can directly demonstrate sales results.
Affiliate marketing allows companies to tie marketing spending to actual purchases, unlike traditional advertising models that charge brands for impressions or clicks regardless of whether a sale is completed, Faucher said.
Mature e-commerce affiliate programs can generate returns of 12 to 15 times the original marketing investment, Faucher noted.
Industry estimates indicate that social commerce and affiliate-driven transactions now account for roughly 20 to 25 percent of Southeast Asia’s total e-commerce gross merchandise value, said the Intrepid report.
Beauty and personal care products account for about 30 to 32 percent of social commerce sales across the region; followed by fashion and apparel, 20 to 22 percent; health, food and supplement products, 10 to 15 percent.
The Philippines is seen to remain one of the region’s fastest-growing social commerce markets, with annual growth from 11.7 to 14.5 percent this year.
Participation in affiliate creator programs has also surged, with industry trackers reporting growth of more than 87 percent as more micro-creators and small businesses enter the sector.
