1. Audit Last Year’s Results and YTD Performance

Every good plan should start with an audit! Begin by identifying your top-performing affiliates in 2025, highlighting those who have performed well during sales periods, then segmenting them by affiliate type. Some partners may not always be able to support peak plans (for example, closed user groups), so segmentation helps to identify where to focus your initial planning efforts.

Next, review last year’s Q4 plans, budget and results. Who delivered strong performance? How are they performing year-to-date? Which affiliates might need more support or engagement to achieve results this year? This analysis should give you a clear priority list for Q4 2025.

 

2. Plan Budgets and Campaigns Early

Work closely with your wider marketing team to agree budgets for tenancies and additional activities. In Q4, fewer activities run on pure CPA, so additional investment in tenancy or hybrid deals is often key to success. Securing budget early allows you to confirm placements with key affiliates before high-exposure opportunities sell out.

Aligning your Q4 promotional calendar with your marketing team is just as important. Compare your planned campaigns against the timing of key affiliates’ campaigns - where can you create synergies? And don’t forget to prepare a full set of creative assets and offer copy well in advance so partners can go live without delay.

 

3. Secure Key Placements Early

High-value placements sell out quickly in Q4, so now is the time to start gathering media packs and booking. Reach out to your priority publishers to secure opportunities around Black Friday, Cyber Monday and other dates such as Singles Day and Green Monday. Make a note of any booking deadlines too if you are not quite ready to sign off, as this will make planning easier.

Don’t limit yourself to existing partners either. Explore new opportunities through affiliate networks, which often publish Q4 opportunities or provide discovery tools to help you identify publishers based on programme goals and regions. Events, such as Affilifest is an ideal time to meet new affiliates too. Broadening your reach can unlock incremental performance during peak.

 

4. Double-Check Tracking and Compliance

With the additional traffic and sales volume in Q4, you need complete confidence that tracking is working correctly. Test links and tracking ahead of time and monitor them closely throughout the season.

It’s also worth reminding affiliates of compliance rules in advance, particularly around paid search and coupon usage, to prevent misunderstandings at a time when speed and accuracy matter most.

 

5. Communicate With Your Affiliates

Affiliates receive a huge volume of communications during Q4, so make sure your updates cut through. Share campaign dates, sales information and relevant URLs well ahead of time to avoid anything being missed. Check if publishers need tailored copy or creative to support their activities and be responsive when requests come in - this can make a real difference to results and builds long-term goodwill.

Finally, review any long-term placements you already have in place. Adjust messaging and creative to reflect Black Friday or seasonal campaigns and contact publishers early so changes can be scheduled in good time.

 

Q4 can be a hectic period, but with the right preparation it can also be the most rewarding. By auditing performance, planning budgets and campaigns early, securing placements, checking tracking and compliance and communicating clearly with affiliates, you’ll give your programme the best chance of a smooth and successful peak season.