Performance Marketing Manager, Affiliate Program Management

About the role

The Performance Marketing Manager owns and drives growth across NerdWallet's affiliate and strategic partnerships channels. This role is responsible for end-to-end program management, from partner recruitment and relationship development through rigorous performance analysis and reporting. The role sits at the intersection of partnership management and performance marketing, collaborating closely with the broader Paid Media team to ensure optimal budget allocation and channel synergy.

Responsibilities

• Own affiliate and partnerships channel reporting including daily, weekly, and monthly performance dashboards tracking clicks, conversions, CPA, revenue, and ROI; analyze data to identify trends, anomalies, and optimization opportunities.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for all affiliate and strategic partners (publishers, networks, sub-networks, technology platforms); conduct regular business reviews to assess performance, align on goals, and identify growth opportunities.
• Recruit, onboard, and activate new affiliates aligned with business growth objectives; negotiate commission structures, promotional placements, and performance incentives to maximize partner value and ROI.
• Conduct incrementality testing and attribution analysis to accurately measure affiliate channel contribution and avoid cannibalization; monitor for fraudulent activity and maintain traffic quality.
• Partner with SEM, Paid Social, Display, and other paid media channel owners to evaluate and optimize the overall paid media mix; contribute to integrated budget allocation discussions leveraging efficiency metrics.
• Plan and execute affiliate/partnership promotional campaigns including seasonal pushes, product launches, and co-marketing initiatives; develop creative briefs and manage affiliate assets that drive conversion.
• Develop annual affiliate/partnerships channel roadmap with partner growth targets and program enhancements; present channel performance and strategic recommendations to senior leadership on a regular cadence.
• Manage affiliate platform operations including link management, tracking pixel implementation, commission configuration, and evaluation of affiliate management platforms (e.g., TUNE/HasOffers, Cake, Everflow).
• Develop and maintain forecasting models to project channel performance and support budget planning; develop SOPs for affiliate program management to enable scalability.
• Maintain and enforce brand safety standards; ensure all affiliate placements comply with brand guidelines, FTC disclosure requirements, and regulatory requirements.

Requirements

• 3–6 years of hands-on affiliate marketing experience, ideally within a performance marketing or DTC/e-commerce environment.
• Demonstrated experience managing affiliate programs using affiliate management platforms such as HasOffers/TUNE, Cake, Everflow, or comparable technology.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to work fluently in Excel/Google Sheets, and experience with BI tools (Tableau, Looker, or similar).
• Experience with cross-channel paid media strategy and familiarity with SEM, Paid Social, and Display channel dynamics.
• Prioritize a proven track record of growing an affiliate program through partner recruitment, relationship management, and data-driven optimization.
• Solid understanding of attribution models, tracking methodologies (pixels, postbacks, SKAdNetwork), and incrementality measurement.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present data and strategy clearly to stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with SQL for data querying and self-serve analytics.
• Experience in financial services, fintech, or a highly regulated industry.
• Prior experience collaborating within an integrated paid media team environment.
• Knowledge of FTC disclosure guidelines and affiliate compliance best practices.

Where You Can Make An Impact

Own affiliate and partnerships channel reporting including daily, weekly, and monthly performance dashboards tracking clicks, conversions, CPA, revenue, and ROI; analyze data to identify trends, anomalies, and optimization opportunities.

Serve as the primary point of contact for all affiliate and strategic partners (publishers, networks, sub-networks, technology platforms); conduct regular business reviews to assess performance, align on goals, and identify growth opportunities.

Recruit, onboard, and activate new affiliates aligned with business growth objectives; negotiate commission structures, promotional placements, and performance incentives to maximize partner value and ROI.

Conduct incrementality testing and attribution analysis to accurately measure affiliate channel contribution and avoid cannibalization; monitor for fraudulent activity and maintain traffic quality.

Partner with SEM, Paid Social, Display, and other paid media channel owners to evaluate and optimize the overall paid media mix; contribute to integrated budget allocation discussions leveraging efficiency metrics.

Plan and execute affiliate/partnership promotional campaigns including seasonal pushes, product launches, and co-marketing initiatives; develop creative briefs and manage affiliate assets that drive conversion.

Develop annual affiliate/partnerships channel roadmap with partner growth targets and program enhancements; present channel performance and strategic recommendations to senior leadership on a regular cadence.

Manage affiliate platform operations including link management, tracking pixel implementation, commission configuration, and evaluation of affiliate management platforms (e.g., TUNE/HasOffers, Cake, Everflow).

Develop and maintain forecasting models to project channel performance and support budget planning; develop SOPs for affiliate program management to enable scalability.

Maintain and enforce brand safety standards; ensure all affiliate placements comply with brand guidelines, FTC disclosure requirements, and regulatory requirements.