Nike is a great brand – perhaps the best marketers on the planet. The Just Do It campaign has become a part of our language. There are a number of ways to sell Nike products as an affiliate. But it is not as straight-forward as other brands. It is a good lesson in audience focus and best commission-to-conversion.
Hint … It is not always the brand’s website that is best for you and your visitors.
Let’s take a look …
Go to our affiliate programs page for more program reviews.
Nike Products
Clearly Nike is best known for their basketball and other athletic shoes. Don’t call them sneakers this is somehow a pejorative in Nike-land. People can get cult-like in their obsession with limited edition ones. Never-mind the celebrity and athlete pre-owned ones.
It is a huge market.
Nike Affiliate Program Review
Nike does have an affiliate program. You may even be compelled to join it based on other articles you read. Well …
it is a fine program if you are sending your EU visitors to the Nike UK site.
Nike Affiliate Program
Types of products: Running Shoes and Athletic-Sportswear at Nike UK
Where to join: Nike UK Program at Awin
Commission structure: 11%
Cookie length: 30 days
Payment Methods: Paypal ACH
The affiliate program most often recommended, and the only one I know of is at Awin. This program is for the UK and EU markets …
It is a strong program that pays a hefty 11% commission for all sales at nike.com/gb/ Check your Google Analytics account to see if you already have a decent number of visitors from this are. If yes … Just Do It … sorry.
If you do have a number of EU customers, by all means, join the program. The same goes if you are trying to get a foothold in that market.
We know our customers, and analytics confirm that 80% are US-based 10% EU and the rest are from around the world. So what does our majority audience do if they have a strong audience overlap with Nike?
Not to worry there are many places to get commissions on Nike products …
General and Fashion Retailers with Nike Products
Nike products are sold by lots of big-box retailers as well as high-end retailers like Neiman Marcus. These are great places to find the latest arrivals. Keep an eye on store-wide sales to snag some great deals.
Amazon
Commission Rate: 4%
Cookie Length: 1 day
Affiliate Info: Amazon Associates Program
Since Amazon has everything they have a great selection of running shoes and other sporting and leisure footwear. Shoes would fall in the 4% category. Not great but Amazon converts better than anyone else. amazon has 7 pages of just Nike basketball shoes. Five pages are over $200 pair.
eBay
Commission Rate: 50% to 70% of eBay revenue
Cookie Length: 1 day
Affiliate Info: eBay Partner Network Signup
ebay is going to be a great place to find both new and vintage Nike footwear. You do want to know the seller and watch out for counterfeits. If it sounds too good to be true … ebay has both buy it now and auction sales. Most auction sales go in the last few hours so watch out for the 1-day cookie.
Neiman Marcus
Commission Rate: 6%
Cookie Length: 5 days
Affiliate Info: Neiman at Rakuten Marketing
Neiman Marcus has the full line of Nike sneakers. They will have a smaller selection of specialty items like the Lebron high tops.. They will be one of the first to get new items if that is what your are looking for.
Macy’s
Commission Rate: 8%
Cookie Length: 14 days
Affiliate Info: Macy’s Affiliate Program
Search for best place to buy Nike and Macy’s often come up. They have good regular prices and great sales prices. If you can combine with a store-wide holiday discount you can score a real deal.
Overstock
Commission Rate: 8%
Cookie Length: 14 days
Affiliate Info: Overstock Affiliate Program
Overstock won’t have the best selection but you may find a real bargain. Always worth a check.
Etsy
Commission Rate: 8%
Cookie Length: 14 days
Affiliate Info: Etsy Vintage Nike Sneaker
Here’s a more creative angle. Vintage Nike sneakers. Etsy has a nice selection as do others. People flip sneakers believe it or not. Etsy also has decorated Nike sneakers. How about a “Swarovski Women’s Nike Air Max 270 Rainbow Sneakers Customized with Clear Swarovski Crystals. Custom Bling Nike Shoes for $181.79”
Sporting Retailers with Nike Products
The sporting good retailers will have the broadest selection of shoes from Nike. Particularly when you look beyond running and basketball. These specialty items like golf shoes still have strong search volumes with much less competition.
Dick’s Sporting Goods
Commission Rate: 6%
Cookie Length: 5 days
Affiliate Info: Dick’s Sporting Affiliate Program
Dick’s is a well known sporting goods store that anchors many malls and shopping centers. They are big stores with big inventories. This is the place to find Nike golf, soccer (football), and other specialty Nike products.
Eastbay
Commission Rate: 6%
Cookie Length: 5 days
Affiliate Info: Eastbay Affiliate Program
A smaller regional version of Dick’s. They often have great sales and events.
Shoe Retailers with Nike Products
You have dedicated athletic shoe stores like Footlocker and you also have just giant discount shoe outlets like DSW. Both of these types of shoe retailers will have a good chance of getting a special pair of Nikes at a special price.
Foot Locker
Commission Rate: 2%
Cookie Length: 2 days
Affiliate Info: Footlocker Affiliate Program
At 2% it is hard to get excited about Foot Locker but if you find a great sale … perhaps.
DSW
Commission Rate: up to 10%
Cookie Length: 14 days
Affiliate Info: DSW Affiliate Program
I can’t drive by a DSW without pulling. Though I almost always go there to hunt on the clearance rack, I do also get great deals on sneakers in the general section. I have seen many a great-priced Nike set on the racks.They have a dedicated affiliate page with more information.
Zappos
Commission Rate: 6%
Cookie Length: 5 days
Affiliate Info: Zappos at CJ
Zappos is a newer company but they have a great selection of Nike products at great prices.
How to Market Nike and Related Affiliate Products
There are a few options for marketing these affiliate programs. Email marketing, paid ads and SEO and content marketing as well as social media marketing. Nike products are very visual as are their ad campaigns so Social media should be a big part of your marketing plan.
Google Trends
Google Trends is also a valuable tool with a Nike focused campaign. Many Nike products become very trendy and knowing which products are creating buzz is a valuable tool. You can easily use Google Trends to check the interest in specific Nike products.
Nike Cortez Google Trends
Then create a campaign with …
- Review Article
- Comparison Article
- Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and other social posts of articles
SEO — Don’t Focus on Head Keywords
Though Nike is a huge brand discussed on many many websites, specific products can be easier to rank,
Nike Cortez has over 500,000 monthly searches. These results will be dominated by retailers, Nike, etc. You wouldn’t want to target this head keyword. The better choice would be to target things like …
- Nike Cortez Review
- Nike Cortez vs Adidas Superstar
- Nike Cortez Toddler
Content Marketing
Sneakers are a broad niche with lots of competition from other affiliates and the vendors and retailers. All have the same goal– get SEO traffic. Unless you think you can compete with huge authority sites it is best to focus on low competition, low volume keywords. A search like “best Nike sneakers” has over 1
Lower Competition Keywords
Look for low competition keywords like the ones below.
- best golf shoes — 8,000/mo
- best Nike shoe – 1,200/mo
- most popular Nike shoes – 2,400/mo
You may want to use something like the Keyword Golden Ration (KGR) method. This helps to find low competition underserved keywords.
Direct Linking (Deep Linking)
Whenever possible link directly to the product with what is called deep-linking. Don’t just link to the sites home page or department page You want to link directly to the product you are recommending.
Social Media
Nike products are such visual items that they scream for social outreach. It is the perfect Facebook and Pinterest niche.
Look to automate your Pins and Facebook posts for the best effect, likes, and traffic. You can use a tool like Viraltag to automatically schedule posts and Pins.
YouTube
YouTube is a natural channel. You can do the unveiling of new purchases with detailed on the spot reviews. have a fun Facebook live activity. How about a kids fashion show of the latest youth or toddler Nike shoes?
You are only limited by your imagination.
Go to our affiliate tips page -- learn how to promote products.
FAQ
How much does Nike pay affiliates?
Nike UK affiliates receive an 11% commission on eligible purchases.
How long do you have to make a sale from someone who uses your affiliate link?
Nike has a 30-day cookie. As long as the customer purchases within 30 days of arriving with your affiliate link you will receive the commission.
Does run its own affiliate program?
Nike's affiliate program is managed by Awin. Awin provides affiliate support and marketing materials.
Nike Related Products
If you like Nike you should consider the competitors too. Adidas, Reebok, UnderArmour all have affiliate programs …
Wrapping Up
Nike is a powerful brand worth being associated with. If the EU is your market then go for the Nike.com/gb program but still supplement it with the other affiliate channels.
If you are marketing to the states there is no shortage of places to source original Nike products. Either way …(drumroll please)
Just Do It!
Affiliate Networks Discussed
Most of the retailers use affiliate networks to manage their affiliate programs for them. In this Nike affiliate program roundup the retailers were in the networks below.
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Impact (Formerly Impact Radius) —
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Pepperjam —
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Rakuten —
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CJ Affiliate —
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ShareASale —