5 ways AI is changing where and how influence happens in affiliate marketing | MarTech

"People aren't finding products the way they used to. Tools like Google's AI Overviews and ChatGPT's new conversational shopping feature are compressing the traditional funnel. Instead of starting with a search and clicking through multiple sites, consumers are increasingly discovering and comparing products directly within AI platforms. Recent data shows nearly 60% of Google searches now end without a click - a trend that will only accelerate as AI takes a more active role in summarizing content and generating recommendations."

"With AI curating the web's knowledge, who creates the content - and how credible it is - matters more than ever. AI models increasingly prioritize expert-written, trustworthy and original material, rewarding publishers who invest in authority and authenticity. For affiliate publishers, that means doubling down on expert-led reviews, in-depth comparisons and first-hand testing - the kinds of assets AI systems are most likely to surface when recommending products. Publishers should also broaden where and how they build audiences"

AI platforms and generative search compress the traditional purchase funnel so discovery and comparison occur inside AI interfaces before any site visit. Nearly 60% of Google searches now end without a click and 77% of active AI users trust AI-generated content, increasing AI influence on purchase intent. Publishers that produce expert, original and trustworthy content gain prominence in AI recommendations and should expand audience channels. Advertisers must adopt new measurement and attribution approaches, integrate AI into creative and personalization, employ privacy-safe identifiers and collaborate with publishers to capture pre-click influence.

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