Banks · Affiliate marketing
Pay a personal finance website only when their reader actually opens an account.
Affiliate marketing for a bank means paying a finance website, a comparison portal or a creator a fee only when their reader opens an account or completes a loan enquiry. It is not paid for impressions. GullySales sets this up with clear tracking so you know exactly which partner sends real customers.
Scope, fee, reporting and term are agreed in writing after we have read your brief and spoken to you.
What affiliate marketing means
Affiliate marketing is paying another website, page or person a commission for every sale or enquiry they send you. This ties the cost directly to results rather than paying upfront. GullySales sets the commission terms, tracking link and payout process for each affiliate.
Last updated 8 Nov 2026. Rules for this trade differ by state and professional body, and they change. We describe restrictions in general terms, so check the current position with your own council or adviser before you publish anything.
For banks
Where it usually goes wrong, and what we would do.
“Comparison portals already do this for banks”
Sites comparing fixed deposit rates or credit card benefits already send bank traffic on a commission basis. A bank with no presence there is invisible in a comparison a customer is actively making.
“Tracking has to survive a branch visit, not just a click”
A customer who clicks an affiliate link but opens the account at a branch still needs to be attributed correctly, or the affiliate relationship breaks down over disputed credit.
“Local personal finance creators reach an audience an ad cannot”
A regional-language finance creator explaining a Kisan credit card scheme reaches exactly the rural or semi-urban customer a generic bank advertisement would miss.
What we do
What we deliver for banks.
The work available for this need. We agree the deliverables and responsibilities for your engagement in writing.
Commission and attribution agreement per partner
A written agreement with each comparison portal or finance creator setting commission per account or loan and how a branch-completed application gets credited back to them.
Result: You know exactly what a partner is owed and why.
Tracked referral links and codes
A unique code or link per partner carried from a click through to a branch application form or loan officer's file.
Result: An affiliate's contribution is not lost between a click and a branch visit.
Vetted list of comparison portals and creators
A shortlist of finance comparison sites and regional-language creators matched to your priority products, checked for accuracy before you commit spend.
Result: You partner with names your customers already trust.
Affiliate performance summary in the report
Enquiries and applications by partner, set against the enquiry baseline recorded before the programme started.
Result: You can see which partner is actually worth paying.
How the result is measured
- Sales through affiliates
- Cost per affiliate sale
- Active affiliates
Recorded as a baseline before work starts, so every later report has an honest comparison.
Questions to ask a partner
Ask a finance website or creator these six questions before agreeing to pay for an application.
- Is the product shown accurately?
- Check the partner's page against your current product sheet. Rates and eligibility should carry a date, and anything out of date is a reason to pause the arrangement.
- Is it clear that the partner is paid?
- Look for plain disclosure on the page that the partner earns when a customer applies. Rules on disclosure for finance content change, so check with your compliance team.
- Where does the customer apply?
- The application should open on the bank's own page or at the branch. A customer should never be asked for documents, OTPs or card details on the partner's page.
- What counts as a paid conversion?
- Agree the event in writing: application submitted, account opened or loan disbursed. Paying on an opened account or completed application keeps the arrangement honest for both sides.
- What wording is allowed?
- Give approved copy and a short list of what must not be said, such as assured approval or promised rates. Ask for the draft before it goes live and keep the version you approved.
- What happens to customer data?
- Ask what the partner collects, where it is stored and who it is shared with. Your information security team should review this before any customer details move between the two.
Who it is for
This is written for these banks.
- Private sector bank branches
- Public sector bank branches
- Regional rural banks
- Cooperative banks
- Small finance banks
- Business correspondent networks
- NRI-focused branches
- MSME-focused branches
Not for
It is not the right fit if.
- The finance website you have in mind cannot report which readers went on to open an account, so you would be paying for clicks you cannot check.
- Compliance has not approved what a third-party site may say about your products, so every partner page would need a review you have not set up.
Before you decide
Agree the work. Know how to judge it.
Affiliate marketing for banks: use these checks to prepare, choose the scope, and review what changes.
Bring the right evidence
Map existing partners, their territories, and the customers they serve. Review active selling and repeat orders separately from the number of partners signed up.
Make the scope clear
Agree partner fit, territory rules, onboarding, and support responsibilities. Clarify how direct enquiries and partner enquiries are assigned before starting recruitment.
Check the work in use
Follow a partner enquiry through to an order and the next purchase. Check whether the partner has the product knowledge and material needed to sell without repeated intervention.
Know when to change course
If current partners cannot sell because supply or support is weak, resolve that before recruiting more. A bigger network can spread the same problem further.
These are discussion points, not a fixed package. GullySales confirms the deliverables, responsibilities, fee, and term in writing after reading your brief and speaking with you.
How it works
How the affiliate marketing work runs
The work itself, in order. How an engagement starts, from your brief to a written scope, is set out on our method page.
- 1
Product and margin decision
After your requirements brief and conversation, we agree the scope, fee, and term in writing. Your margin and purchase route determine whether an affiliate arrangement is worth taking forward.
- 2
Tracking acceptance
Your store owner provides access and order records. We test a partner link or code through purchase and cancellation, then agree which record takes priority if reports disagree.
- 3
Terms and content approval
You approve commission rates and the conditions for releasing payment. Product claims and partner instructions go to your authorised reviewer before recruitment begins.
- 4
Partner launch handoff
Approved partners receive their identifiers and assets. Their first content is checked before publication, and your sales or order team receives the partner list.
- 5
Order and payment review
We match partner claims against completed purchases and return records. You approve the payable statement, while disputed orders and unsuitable traffic inform changes to the partner arrangement.
Where this fits
Three pieces of sales work, in this order.
This work sits inside sales process design, at stage 0, foundation. The audit comes before it, and sales management keeps it running.
Step 1
Sales audit
Find where deals are being lost and what to fix first.
Start here if you cannot say where orders are lost.
Step 2 · you are here
Sales process design
One written way to sell, from first enquiry to repeat order.
Start here if every salesperson sells differently.
Step 3
Sales management
A target, a review routine and someone who owns the number.
Start here if the team has targets and no routine.
FAQ
Questions owners ask before they call.
Not here? More answers, or ask on WhatsApp.
Is affiliate marketing appropriate for a bank?
How do we track applications that finish at a branch?
Who approves what a creator says about our product?
Can a branch sign its own affiliate partners?
How much does it cost?
How long is the contract?
How soon will we see results?
Who will actually do the work?
What do you need from us?
What if we are not happy with the work?
From the blog
Further reading for banks.
6 min read · 6 Oct 2026How buyers decide which lender or adviser to trustPeople choosing a bank, lender, adviser or insurer start with a name someone gave them, then check you before calling. See what they look for.
7 min read · 21 Sept 2026How to advertise to airport travellersA terminal is a small number of regular flyers counted many times, and the crowd changes completely between the six o'clock bank and the summer holidays.
6 min read · 29 Jan 2026Local search for a financial services office: profile, reviews and what you can sayHow a financial services office can set up its Google Business Profile, ask for reviews and reply to them without breaking client confidentiality.
More for banks
Related work to consider.
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Or start from the overview: sales and marketing for banks.
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