This Is the Secret Marketing Tool Your Small Business Needs to Compete With the Big Brands | Entrepreneur

In today’s digital-first retail environment, smaller brands often face an uphill battle when competing with industry giants’ massive marketing budgets. Advertising costs on most platforms continue to escalate, making it difficult for smaller ecommerce business owners to drive sales and scale cost-effectively.

One effective and cost-effective strategy that empowers upstart brands to drive sales without the hefty upfront costs associated with traditional advertising is affiliate marketing. In this model, online retailers partner with website publishers that feature content and have an audience that is also relevant to the online retailer. The retailer only pays publishers when a sale is actually completed, typically as a commission represented as a percentage of that sale, making affiliate marketing a low-risk, high-reward marketing strategy.

Cashback rewards programs such as Rakuten, PayPal Honey and Capital One Shopping, which operate as publishers in the affiliate marketing model, incentivize customers by delivering a small percentage of their earned commissions as cashback on consumers’ purchases. These programs, and others like them, are used by millions of online shoppers. By working with cashback browser extension publishers through an affiliate program, smaller retailers can tap into the potential of this performance-based marketing channel, and reach value-conscious consumers without overextending their budgets.

But, smaller online retailers may have concerns about browser extensions and their impact on a brand. They may have concerns about margins or of losing control of pricing and the discounts they offer or if their customers will value their products less because they’re getting cashback. But if a brand offers an affiliate program, they are already paying commission rates on sales which should be reflected in their margin calculations. The cashback rewards are paid to the customer from the commissions the publishers earn on sales. And retailers concerned about whether customers will value their brand less for offering cashback rewards through a browser extension can take heart in knowing even some luxury brands are beginning to offer cashback rewards.

The truth is, cashback browser extensions have evolved into a powerful marketing tool that benefits both consumers and merchants. They can drive sales, increase average order values and help independently-owned ecommerce businesses reach new customers.

Related: How Brands Can Turn Short-Term Rewards Into Long-Term Loyalty

Why consumers love browser extensions

The consumer appetite for savings is bigger than ever. In a consumer survey commissioned by Wildfire and conducted by the research firm Big Village in May 2024, we examined consumer attitudes towards various savings tools, including cashback and coupon browser extensions, that online shoppers are using. In one finding, 77% of consumers said they are more interested than ever before in earning cashback rewards for shopping, and 72% said they are more interested in using online coupons and discounts for shopping.

These tactics were second only to shopping during sales and promotional events. In fact, these tactics were ranked higher than shopping at discount retailers or buying generic products.

Wildfire’s report also shows that nearly one in three consumers (27%) use browser extensions to earn cashback more this year than last, and that 70% of consumers who have ever installed a browser extension use it frequently for cashback rewards.

These findings highlight that savings-focused shopping tools are becoming integral to the online shopping experience. However, browser extensions are not just about discounts — they boost consumer confidence. Respondents in the Wildfire survey gain many benefits from cashback browser extensions, including:

• 86% find offers in their extension to be valuable
• 84% trust the offers they get through their extension
• 83% report they save time by getting coupons in their extension

For small to mid-sized retailers, offering deals through extensions can help ensure consumers feel they’re making the right choice in their purchases, which can translate into higher conversion rates.

Related: 11 Effective Marketing Strategies to Help Streamline Your Startup

Understanding the impact of browser extensions on merchants

One of the most common concerns among smaller, niche brands is that offering deals through cashback browser extensions will reduce the perceived value of their products. However, the data tells a different story. Cashback browser extensions don’t just deliver consumers discounts — they help merchants expand their reach and increase sales in several important ways. Wildfire’s 2024 survey, as well as a landmark 2023 study conducted by CJ and Namogoo across 67 million shopping journeys, focused on the business value of browser extensions, illustrating some of the impacts on merchants.

1. Improved merchant preference: The use of cashback browser extensions influences online shoppers’ choice of retailer: 88% of respondents in Wildfire’s survey who use a cashback browser extension choose to shop at merchants that offer deals.
2. Increased conversion rates: Conversion rates are critical for any ecommerce business. Wildfire’s survey showed that the use of cashback browser extensions can positively affect merchant conversion rates. In fact, 93% of respondents using extensions are more likely to complete their purchase. The CJ/Namogoo report illustrated that extensions increased conversions by 25% even for shoppers whose carts contained no discounted items;, and further, that shoppers who received a pre-checkout alert from their cashback browser extension were 64% more likely to complete a purchase compared to extension users who did not see an alert.
3. Higher average order values: Perhaps one of the most significant benefits of cashback browser extensions for merchants is the increase in average order value (AOV). A total of 60% of consumers in the Wildfire survey reported spending more when they knew they were getting a deal through their extension because they believed they were maximizing value through cashback or coupon offers. Further, the CJ/Namogoo report showed shopping browser extensions resulted in a 38% increase in shoppers’ “add-to-cart” rates, and 65% more revenue per shopping session when an alert from the extension appeared.

The upside to understanding browser extensions

It’s understandable that independent retailers might be cautious when it comes to allowing their affiliate offers to be featured in browser extensions. Concerns about pricing control and margin compression often arise. However, cashback browser extensions are not about slashing prices or devaluing your brand — they’re about creating a win-win situation for both brands and the consumer.

Three key reasons why browser extensions make sense are:

• Increased visibility: Being featured in a cashback extension can introduce a brand to new customers who might have otherwise shopped elsewhere. Many extensions can trigger notifications on a Google search results page, helping retailers in the results stand out with a cashback offer alert.
• Low-risk: Unlike traditional advertising, retailers only pay when a sale is made, ensuring they get tangible results from your marketing efforts.
• Ability to compete with larger brands: Cashback browser extensions help level the playing field. Larger brands often have more resources for extensive marketing campaigns, but smaller retailers can leverage extensions to display their own cashback offers, too. This can help smaller retailers enter the consideration set for value-minded shoppers.

Conclusion

The ecommerce landscape is increasingly competitive, and retailers that don’t have the global customer reach of a Walmart, Target, Amazon or Temu need every advantage they can get. Embracing cashback browser extensions as part of an affiliate marketing strategy can be a smart move that not only boosts the bottom line but also builds long-term customer loyalty. In a world where shoppers are continually searching for the best price and value, your brand can be the one they turn to when their browser extension alerts them to your next great offer.