How Linktree is growing its social commerce business just in time for the holidays

Linktree co-founder and CEO Alex Zaccaria told The Information in March that the move was “the first step into new revenue streams.”

According to Lara Cohen, vp of partners and business development at Linktree, the goal is to reduce the number of clicks that it takes consumers to buy a creator’s recommended product and, in doing so, increase conversation rates. 

“If you’re on someone’s TikTok and you want to buy a Zara sweater, you click into their Linktree, then you have to click into their LTK or download another app,” Cohen said. “There are a lot of steps to get there, which reduces the dopamine hit of whoever’s buying the product.”

Since Linktree Shops rolled out earlier this year, the platform’s users have generated more than 18 million clicks, a sign that the company’s creator-led social commerce bet is gaining traction, according to Linktree’s latest Creator Commerce Report, which was published on Nov. 25. The report also said that 20% of the average 1.3 billion clicks a month generated on Linktree were attributed to retail and commerce sites. 

Linktree Shops has made inroads in onboarding more retail partners, too. Linktree has partnered with more than 35 brands, up from around 20 in May. In addition to major consumer brands like Nike, Amazon and Savage x Fenty, Linktree announced earlier this month that it was partnering with Target. This means influencers can now recommend the retailer’s products and earn commission on sales. It all adds up to 5.5 million goods in Linktree Shop’s burgeoning product catalog for creators to plug. 

Linktree is poised to reap the rewards even more heading into the peak holiday shopping season. Black Friday and Cyber Monday drive a 150% increase in clicks on Linktree compared to a typical day, according to the company. For example, daily clicks to Sephora links on Linktree were up 75% during the beauty retailer sale, which took place from Nov. 1 to Nov. 11, compared to the rest of 2024.

“I’m bullish on this being the holiday season that’s defined as how creators are changing the way people shop for holidays,” Cohen said. “There’s a really natural correlation between content and commerce in the holiday season, and so we wanted to get this in motion before the holiday season to sort of test that hypothesis.”

Target was a natural fit to partner with Linktree, especially ahead of the holidays, said Cohen, because the retailer has a robust affiliate program to reach more customers and drive sales via influencers. Plus, “their catalog is so rich with different products that you can buy that we think it really opens up for creators a really big opportunity to sell a whole host of products, as well.” 

Looking ahead, Cohen said Linktree’s social commerce marketplace will be useful for small brands and retailers who haven’t been able to afford to have their own dedicated creator programs. 

Linktree is also focused on monetizing untapped areas beyond its core base of fashion and beauty goods. “We really think that creators can sell anything, whether it’s parenting, home decor or even travel,” Cohen said. “If a creator is recommending a hotel that they love, how can we figure out an affiliate program in that space, as well?”

By expanding into social commerce, Linktree is standing out in what is a crowded market filled with at least several dozen startups. But the affiliate marketing space is also changing at a rapid clip. Last week, Modern Retail reported that TikTok is letting some creators add product links from third-party affiliate networks directly to their posts, effectively bypassing the need for link-in-bio tools.

Lindsey Gamble, an independent influencer marketing and creator economy consultant, said this could reduce the reliance on link-in-bio tools. “This comes at a time when link-in-bio tools are doing more affiliate marketing,” he said. “TikTok has kind of taken away the need for certain creators to have a link-in-bio tool.”

Link-in-bio companies have been in perceived peril for several years now as platforms increasingly build in-house tools that compete with their affiliate marketing services. In 2021, for example, Linktree expanded beyond just helping creators direct their followers to other sites via to direct selling.

Cohen shrugged off any such concerns. “We’re all about creators making money from wherever they can,” she said. 

To Cohen, the biggest challenge ahead for Linktree will be training users to view the company as more than a link-in-bio tool.

“We’re kind of like the Kleenex or the Photoshop of link in bio, and proudly so, but that can be both a blessing and a curse,” Cohen said. “The challenge is educating our consumers to think about how they can utilize us beyond just the traffic driver between point A and point B.”