What is Performance Marketing?
Performance marketing is a digital advertising model where advertisers only pay when a specific action occurs—such as a sale, lead, or install. In ad networks, this model aligns incentives among advertisers, networks, and publishers. Advertisers define conversion goals, and publishers (often called affiliates) drive traffic to achieve those goals. The network tracks performance using tracking links, cookies, or postbacks.
This data-driven approach focuses on ROI and allows for precise campaign optimization. Common payment models include CPA (cost per action), CPL (cost per lead), and CPI (cost per install). Performance marketing is popular in affiliate networks and verticals like finance, eCommerce, apps, and sweepstakes. Success depends on targeting, creatives, and strong relationships among all parties involved.
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