If you’ve been in affiliate marketing for more than a few years or experienced Social Media Giants like Meta and Pinterest, you’ve probably noticed a pattern: platforms start out scrappy and generous, but over time, they evolve—or devolve—into something unrecognizable. What begins as a “we’re in this together” vibe gradually shifts to corporate efficiency, tighter rules, and shrinking commissions.
This is called the “Shittification Curve”—the lifecycle every one of these platforms seems to go through. From the Golden Age of trust and fast payouts (for affilliate platforms) to the eventual Peak Shittification and slow death spiral, this curve explains why veterans reminisce about the good old days while newcomers are blissfully unaware… until the squeeze hits.
In this article, we’ll break down each stage of the curve, why it happens, and what it means for affiliates trying to survive—and thrive—in an ever-changing landscape.
The Affiliate and Social Platform “Shittification Curve”
1. The Golden Age (Birth to ~3 years)
- Vibe: Indie, scrappy, “we’re in this together.”
- Features: Generous commissions, fast payouts, low bureaucracy.
- Support: You can email the founder directly and get a reply in 24 hours.
- Why affiliates love it: Trust, transparency, and mutual hunger for growth.
2. The Growth Phase (~3–7 years)
- Vibe: Professional, stable, still friendly.
- Features: Solid tracking, regular feature updates, more merchants joining.
- Commission rates: Still high enough to motivate affiliates.
- Why it’s still good: Platform needs affiliates to grow, so incentives are aligned.
3. The Acquisition / IPO Moment (~7–10 years)
- Vibe: “Big exciting news!” — at least in the press release.
- Reality: New owners start looking for efficiency and profit maximization.
- First warning signs: More forms, more terms, slightly slower support.
- Affiliate suspicion: “Uh-oh… who are these new guys?”
4. The Monetization Squeeze (~10–15 years)
- Vibe: Corporate. Automated emails. Support feels templated.
- Changes:
- Commission rates quietly reduced.
- Payout thresholds or fees creep upward.
- Tracking “updates” make attribution harder for affiliates.
- Why it happens: The platform is mature, merchant side is now the real customer, not the affiliates.
5. Peak Shittification (Post-15 years)
- Vibe: “We value our partners” …but clearly mean merchants.
- Reality: Affiliates are now seen as just another traffic source to be squeezed.
- Changes:
- Rules tightened, especially for small affiliates.
- Commission rates at historic lows.
- More unpaid referrals due to stricter cookie policies or tracking loopholes.
- Consequence: Veterans leave. Only newbies (who don’t know better) stay.
6. The Death Spiral
- Vibe: Legacy platform coasting on name recognition.
- Active affiliates: Mostly big coupon/deals sites and paid search specialists.
- Small affiliates: Long gone to niche, indie networks or direct brand deals.
- Platform strategy: Keep the machine running, extract remaining profit, and avoid investing in anything new.
Moral of the story:
For affiliates, the sweet spot is before acquisition and before the monetization squeeze. After that, you either adapt… or you find the next up-and-coming platform that’s still in the Golden Age.
If you want, I can make this into a visual curve graphic with the “happy to sad” transition clearly marked — it would be perfect to share in a blog post or on LinkedIn as affiliate nostalgia fuel. Would you like me to draw it?
