Here, take my link! The rise of affiliate links

Have you ever been scrolling through your social feeds or reading through a Substack post and come across a recommendation with a link to a product?

There’s a good chance that link is an affiliate link. The person who posted it can make a small commission from every product sold through that link. And according to data from the research firm eMarketer, affiliate marketing drove over $200 billion in U.S. e-commerce sales last year.

For Bloomberg Businessweek, Cheryl Wischhover wrote about the booming business of affiliate links, and why everyone — not just influencers — are using them. “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal spoke to Wischhover about her reporting.

To hear their conversation, use the play button at the top of the page.