Choosing Independence or Allegiance (Affiliate Systems in...

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1. Background

This article is founded on 251 interviews with various pigmentation artists, all possessing a minimum of three years of experience in the field. Most are practitioners of microblading, powder brows, hairstrokes, and lip pigmentation across the EU, with 12% based in the United Kingdom and 7% in the US. Research projects conducted between 2019 and 2024, with many still ongoing, delved into numerous facets of career planning and business success.

Regarding the artists' perspectives, particularly those with over seven years of experience, who constituted about 18% of the participants, their viewpoints were remarkably similar, almost identical. There was a significant consensus among the artists concerning the primary findings on the topic.

This article aims to elucidate the principal positive and negative aspects of engaging with any hierarchical system within the brow pigmentation industry. Generally, it narrows down to making critical and fundamental decisions about one's career trajectory as an artist and a participant in the brow business.

About Making an Informed Choice

It's important to clarify that the subsequent information is only applicable when an artist genuinely has a choice between entering an affiliate relationship with an academy or a corporation. Critiquing the decision to join or reject an affiliate model is only valid if the artist truly has options.

Consider, for instance, an artist working in a salon that maintains a fixed relationship with a specific corporation or academy. If all artists in that salon are required to use particular supplies, or if the services are promoted as being associated with skills from a specific academy, then the artist's freedom to choose affiliation is significantly limited.

Similarly, if an artist has no realistic prospect of progressing within an academy's hierarchy, or if no corporation is willing to engage in an affiliate partnership despite numerous applications, then realistically, there isn't a genuine choice available.

However, in many situations, a reputable artist who has cultivated a sufficient skill set and a compelling portfolio will reach a point in their career where they must make this decision. At this juncture, understanding the implications and potential outcomes of becoming affiliated is crucial for making an informed choice.

2. Hierarchical Systems Explained

When examining the brow business's hierarchical system, we can consider the structure of academies and affiliate systems. To grasp this context, it's essential to understand MLM (multi-level marketing) systems and affiliate partnership models.

MLM Systems

MLM systems operate on the principle that individuals joining the system must recruit new members "underneath" themselves. The sales generated by these recruits provide a percentage commission to the recruiter, theoretically offering a source of passive income. However, simple mathematics reveals that this is rarely feasible for the majority. Only a small fraction, often just the top 1-2% of the hierarchy, receives a significant portion of the profit. Meanwhile, over 80% of participants invest considerable time and effort yet earn less than an average return. This structure often leads to a pyramid-shaped income distribution, with those at the top reaping the most benefits. The origins of MLM systems trace back to the 1940s with companies like California Vitamin Company, later known as Nutrilite, and have since evolved into various forms across different industries.

Affiliate Systems

Affiliate marketing involves a direct relationship between the producer or service provider and the seller. The seller uses discount codes or links to promote the provider's goods or services, earning a commission for each sale made through their referral. The most well-known example of this is Amazon's extensive affiliate program. Despite the theoretical potential for substantial profits, the reality is often different. Many individuals overestimate their ability to convert their followers into buyers. While generating significant income through affiliate marketing is possible, success typically requires an established platform and access to potential buyers. This system's origin lies in revenue sharing, which has been around for decades but has found its footing in the digital age with the rise of internet commerce.

In both MLM and affiliate systems, success is contingent upon not just joining the system but also understanding market dynamics, having access to a wide network, and employing effective strategies to engage and convert potential customers. The hierarchical nature of these systems means that while there are profit opportunities, they are often concentrated at the top or require significant effort and savvy to realize.

3. Affiliate systems in brow business

When it comes to brow business, many academies practice the affiliate model, which means that the artist who joins the model has a direct relationship with the producer (academy) and becomes its affiliate. It means that she receives profit from products sold due to the artist's activities.

What makes such affiliate programs in brow business remarkable is that the corporation (academy) does not always even have to pay the affiliate profit from each sale of the products. Still, the reward can be handled via vanity metrics.

Typical Rewarding of Affiliates

The producer typically pays affiliates about 5-75% of the sales price in a standard affiliate model. The exact commission largely depends on the product. For instance, software products might offer higher percentages due to their high profit margins, while tangible items with lower margins might offer less. The process is usually straightforward. The affiliate directs the client to make a purchase, and this sale is tracked through a technical tool like a discount code, link, or form, effectively "labeling" the buyer as referred by the affiliate. If the sale is completed while the affiliate relationship is active, the producer pays the affiliate their due share immediately or after a certain period.

Vanity Metrics as a Reward

In the brow business, an interesting phenomenon allows for a different kind of reward. Instead of cash or bank transfers, corporations, often academies, provide affiliates with something they desire and would typically spend their earnings on. This is usually fame and status, or psychologically speaking, a "feeling of individual significance."

Let's break down how this happens. Suppose an artist affiliate makes sales for the corporation, often in the form of "kits" or "starter packages." They'd typically receive a percentage of each sale. To sustain and grow this business, the affiliate would need to expand its reach and attract new potential buyers, often requiring a significant investment in promotion and personal branding.

Academies often reward affiliates with vanity metrics, like raising their status within the academy's hierarchical system (with different levels for artists, masters, etc.), instead of cash payments. Since many affiliates in these systems are trainers, they already earn from students for their training and teaching efforts. Thus, such affiliate relationships can be mutually beneficial, with the academy enhancing the trainer's status and the trainer contributing to the academy's growth and reputation.

4. Positive side of becoming an affiliate

Joining a hierarchical system as an affiliate brings several positive aspects. Seasoned artists have highlighted the main benefits as financial gain, career advancement, and increased reach. Let's delve into each of these aspects.

Financial Success

If there's a genuine local demand for the academy's services and products where the artist operates, joining the system can be quite profitable. The artist essentially acts as a mediator between the academy's brand and clients with an inherent need for the academy's educational services or products.

This scenario was particularly evident during the surge of microblading from 2014-2017, as the service gained immense global popularity. Artists who aligned with systems early in this period could continuously sell products and training sessions, earning substantial amounts. However, it's important to note that this financial success was largely due to the intrinsic market demand. Affiliated artists didn't have to seek out customers actively; instead, the students sought them out.

Therefore, the mechanism for financial success was essentially riding the "river of cash" flowing from customers to the corporation and skimming a portion of each transaction.

Career Advancement

The second undeniable benefit of joining affiliate programs is career advancement. By aligning oneself with a certain level or brand, artists are instantly categorized by peers, the public, and potential clients. Achieving a certain rank within an academy system often grants the right to associate oneself with a specific "public identity." This identity is frequently represented through titles, often incorporating words such as "master," "professional," "pro," "VIP," "senior," etc. The concept is straightforward: it distinguishes individuals from others and places them within a hierarchy.

Essentially, everyone at lower levels is perceived as beneath those at higher levels, cultivating a general perception of superiority. Conversely, those at higher levels can maintain this perceived superiority over individuals at lower ranks. However, this is a dynamic that one must understand and accept when entering such vertical hierarchies.

Reach

The term 'reach' typically refers to accessing more potential clients and followers whose future engagement can translate into financial benefits. Often, academies and large corporations provide significant assistance in expanding reach. For example, when leading figures of an academy regularly promote and share an artist's social media posts, it becomes considerably easier for the artist to build their following than if they were working independently. Each share, tag, mention, or endorsement by the academy (usually through its leaders) acts as a mini-marketing campaign, which, if done independently, could be quite costly.

If the artist benefits the academy or corporation in the long term, these small promotional efforts accumulate, enhancing the artist's engagement and reach. This expanded reach can eventually convert into a substantial following for the artist. This following, or digital asset, holds real value and isn't easily lost or taken away. It represents a tangible benefit of being affiliated with a larger, well-connected organization that can provide visibility and credibility, key components in building a successful career in the brow business.

5. Downside of becoming an affiliate

To provide a balanced view of becoming an affiliate, it's essential to consider the potential drawbacks experienced by many seasoned artists. Below, we explore the negative aspects of affiliate relationships concerning financial success, career advancement, and reach.

Actual Profitability

Many artists who have joined hierarchical systems and spent years collaborating with academies confess that financial profitability is often highly theoretical and doesn't materialize as hoped. The reason for this discrepancy is twofold. First, high profitability for past artists was largely due to high intrinsic market demand, meaning artists didn't have to expend significant time, energy, and resources to find customers. This demand allowed artists to focus on professional training materials and supplies provided by the academy. However, when market demand shifts and artists must actively seek out customers, the academy system can become more of a burden than a solution. The value it adds becomes marginal if there's no high intrinsic market demand to generate a steady influx of customers. In such cases, the artist essentially transforms into a sales agent for the corporation, relinquishing a portion of sales income, which can feel reminiscent of an unjust medieval taxation system rather than a mutually beneficial relationship (as one very seasoned artist who has a long term experience with an academy behind them, put it).

Additionally, artists who have joined affiliate programs as part of "professional teams," "elite artists," or "masters" indicate that if there are no clients who genuinely want the products, being tied to one brand and obligated to use its products can become a limiting factor rather than a financially profitable endeavor. This limitation can restrict artists' flexibility and hinder their ability to adapt to market changes or personal growth directions.

Actual Influence on Career

When discussing career advancement, many seasoned artists concur that affiliation can be beneficial, but primarily for those who are the "smallest fish in the pond." This analogy refers to artists with varying experience levels, reputation, reach, and brand value within a group. Joining such a hierarchical group can lead to one of two outcomes: the artist either raises or lowers the group's average level within a larger academy or corporate hierarchy.

Suppose an artist who is relatively less experienced, with a smaller reach and less recognizable personal brand, manages to join a category well above their current standing. In that case, this is undeniably a step forward in their career. They benefit from the group's established reputation and resources, which can provide significant opportunities for growth and exposure.

Conversely, if an artist is one of the group's more experienced and well-known members, they might find themselves raising the group's level instead. In such cases, joining the group could potentially slow down their career progression rather than advance it. They might invest time and resources into uplifting the group's status, which could detract from their advancement.

Therefore, artists must critically evaluate their position and the potential impact on their career before joining any hierarchical group. It's crucial to consider whether the affiliation will genuinely elevate their status or if they might inadvertently become a pillar for others to rise, possibly at the expense of their growth. This decision should be based on a clear understanding of one's current standing and the characteristics of the group in question.

Actual Reach

Artists with affiliate structures often acknowledge the potential to build their reach through the academy model and corporate affiliations. Yet, there are caveats to consider. The first concerns promotion. In many systems, academy leaders only promote those artists already proving profitable, meaning the artist must first significantly benefit the academy, either through direct sales or by enhancing its reputation and market reach, before receiving promotional support. Artists report that this promotion often dwindles once their activities slow down, indicating that such support is more of a reward for past efforts than an investment in their future potential.

Many artists in such systems have vivid stories about the intense competition within these hierarchies. They describe how members often engage in backstabbing and diplomacy to win favor with key individuals in the system. While this article won't delve into the specifics, it's somewhat naive to believe that one can advance in most hierarchies without employing a diverse and cunning set of strategies reminiscent of those familiar to fans of Game of Thrones.

The second aspect pertains to the quality of the reach gained. Typically, the followers acquired through these affiliations are already closely tied to the academy's brand rather than being a diverse pool of potential new customers. Moreover, a critical analysis of these followers often reveals that many are "mass followers" who follow a wide range of entities with little engagement. While this following isn't "fake" in the traditional sense of bots versus real people, converting a significant portion of these followers into paying customers can be challenging, especially if the artist decides to sever ties with the affiliate academy or corporation. This factor underscores the importance of understanding not just the quantity but the quality and engagement level of the reach an artist gains through affiliation.

6. The Principle Question of Identity

A critical insight many seasoned artists have shared is that engaging in affiliate relationships with academies and corporations ultimately confronts them with a profound question of identity: "Who are you at your core?" Many artists who have built their academies and brands, declining such affiliations, confess they couldn't compromise their integrity or "bend the knee and kiss the ring," as it would betray their true selves. Often, it is these individuals who achieve substantial success independently.

Conversely, some artists are more pragmatic and willing to engage in these affiliations. They might rationalize the situation by advocating for a "flat team" concept or even claim that such relationships are devoid of hierarchies. However, this is largely a rationalization and not entirely accurate. Even in the most seemingly egalitarian teams, there's typically an original architect (a "godfather" or "godmother") who benefits the most and essentially acts as the "master of the system." It's rare to find true equality in such structures, as there can never be two masters in the same domain.

This dichotomy poses a significant consideration for artists contemplating affiliate relationships and reflects on how much of their identity and autonomy they are willing to trade for potential benefits.

7. Conclusions

Hierarchical systems and affiliate relationships predominantly fall into two categories: MLM (multi-level marketing) and affiliate models. In the brow business, the latter is extensively used in corporate and academy structures.

Entering an affiliate relationship with an academy or corporation can offer substantial benefits. Seasoned artists often categorize these advantages as financial, career advancement, and reach-building. If there's demand for the academy's products and services, artists can profit significantly by strategically positioning themselves as intermediaries.

For less experienced artists with smaller personal brands and reach, joining a hierarchical group can undoubtedly advance their careers. Moreover, academics and corporations usually have access to marketing channels that can significantly extend an artist's reach.

However, many experienced artists who have left such systems report that the financial benefits were most tangible when intrinsic market demand was high. Without this demand, the system could become more of a restrictive burden than a profit source.

Career advancement within these systems is nuanced. It often depends on the relative standing of the artist within the group. Once an artist surpasses a certain level, they may find themselves more in a position of supporting others' rise rather than furthering their advancement.

The effectiveness of reach is largely at the discretion of key figures who control the system. They tend to promote artists who benefit the system but may withdraw support if they gain too much independent reach. Additionally, the quality of this reach is often closely tied to the academy or corporation, making it challenging to convert this following into sales for other products later.

Ultimately, the decision to join such an affiliate relationship boils down to the artist's core identity: whether they are an independent "maverick" or are willing to "bend the knee and kiss the ring" of the system's master. Empirical evidence suggests that while moderate success is more common among the latter, the "mavericks" tend to experience either greater failures or more significant successes.

Choosing Independence or Allegiance (Affiliate Systems in the Brow Business)

1. Background

About Making an Informed Choice

2. Hierarchical Systems Explained

MLM Systems

Affiliate Systems

3. Affiliate systems in brow business

Typical Rewarding of Affiliates

Vanity Metrics as a Reward

4. Positive side of becoming an affiliate

Financial Success

Career Advancement

Reach

5. Downside of becoming an affiliate

Actual Profitability

Actual Influence on Career

Actual Reach

6. The Principle Question of Identity

7. Conclusions