How a luxury brand drew +530 new customers through affiliate marketing without discounts.

The Challenge

A luxury beauty brand challenged Gen3 to prove that affiliate marketing for luxury brands could evolve from a re-engagement tool to a scalable customer acquisition strategy. The campaign had to maintain premium brand standards, avoid over-reliance on discounts, and operate within a fixed media budget.

With strict pricing policies in place and a high-control brand environment, the objective was not just performance, it was about understanding how brand-safe affiliate marketing could function as a sustainable growth channel

The Gen3 Approach

Gen3 deployed a tightly structured, two-week campaign designed to protect brand equity while driving conversions.

The approach featured:

• Solo email campaigns to target high-intent beauty shoppers directly, ensuring curated brand messaging stood out without the distraction of other retailers.
• A modest 10% cashback incentive to encourage purchases while maintaining the brand’s premium perception.
• Strategic mid-flight addition of homepage placement to build on positive early engagement metrics.
• Strict budget pacing to stay within the fixed media budget and maximize return on ad spend (ROAS).

The Results

The test campaign proved that performance marketing can be both effective and brand-sensitive:

• +530 new customers acquired, setting a record outside peak season.
• +620 total orders, with 90 repeat purchases during the flight.
• 3.92 ROAS, significantly beating the 3.0 benchmark.
• Achieved entirely within budget and without any heavy discounting.

This case study demonstrates how affiliate marketing for luxury brands can become a strategic customer acquisition strategy. By balancing reach, relevance, and restraint, Gen3 proved that premium brands can scale effectively, without sacrificing identity or profitability.

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