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In this episode of Performance Marketing Spotlight, Dexter Dethmers, co-founder of Hi Energy, joins Marshall to discuss the biggest challenges and opportunities in affiliate marketing today—especially from the publisher perspective.

Dexter shares his journey from lead generation in Australia to running programs at CJ and Honey, and ultimately launching Hi Energy to solve the growing complexity in the affiliate ecosystem. He dives into how fragmented platforms, inefficient workflows, and outdated attribution models are holding publishers back—and how AI and automation can change that.

The conversation also explores affiliate marketing as a testing ground for brands, the rise of new discovery channels like Reddit and LLMs, and why the industry must evolve beyond last-click attribution. Dexter offers a candid look at what it’s like building a company, balancing product vision with market demands, and why the future of affiliate depends on empowering the next generation of publishers.

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In this episode of Performance Marketing Spotlight, host Marshall Nyman sits down with Amanda Karr, Affiliate Marketing leader at Tailored Brands, the parent company behind well-known retailers including Men’s Wearhouse and Joseph A. Bank.

Amanda shares her career journey from getting her start at an affiliate marketing agency to spending nearly a decade managing the affiliate program at Macy’s, and now leading affiliate strategy for Tailored Brands. She discusses how the affiliate channel has evolved over the past two decades and what it takes to successfully manage performance partnerships inside a large retail organization.

The conversation covers how Tailored Brands has diversified its affiliate program beyond traditional deal partners, the growing importance of content and creator partnerships, and how AI and large language models are beginning to influence discovery, attribution, and brand visibility.

Key topics include:
• How affiliate programs operate inside major retail organizations
• Diversifying programs beyond deal and loyalty partners
• The growing role of creators and influencer partnerships
• Why affiliate marketing remains a low-risk, high-ROI growth channel
• How AI and LLM citations could reshape performance marketing attribution
• The importance of cross-team collaboration between affiliate, SEO, and social

This episode offers valuable insights for brands looking to modernize their affiliate programs and navigate the evolving performance marketing landscape.

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In this episode of Performance Marketing Spotlight, host Marshall Nyman sits down with Ryan Hilliard, CEO of Refersion and Influencer Marketing Hub, to discuss the evolving relationship between affiliate marketing, influencer marketing, and performance-driven growth.

Ryan shares his journey from agency-side performance marketing at ROI Revolution to leading two companies at the center of the affiliate and creator economy. He also explains how Refersion helps e-commerce brands track and scale affiliate partnerships while Influencer Marketing Hub provides marketers with trusted insights and resources on the creator landscape.

The conversation explores the rise of creator-led performance marketing, how brands can effectively partner with influencers at scale, and why attribution is becoming increasingly complex as AI reshapes search and customer behavior.

Key topics include:
• How affiliate and influencer marketing are increasingly converging
• Why brands should look beyond perfect attribution in modern customer journeys
• The growing role of micro-influencers and creator-driven performance marketing
• How AI is influencing research behavior and brand discovery
• Upcoming product innovations and AI-powered discovery tools at Refersion

Whether you're a brand, publisher, or performance marketer, this episode offers valuable insights into where affiliate and influencer marketing are headed next.

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