Affiliate Marketing For Lenders

In the News Pod, The Free Toaster founders - Carlos Caro and Nick Madrid - unpack select stories from the Wednesday news edition of www.thefreetoaster.com

Sign up for the Newsletter to get our curated news at the intersection of consumer lending & marketing, and then come here on Fridays to get our hot takes on select stories from that edition. 

*****

To support The Free Toaster Podcast, please visit our sponsors:

A word from our sponsor, Bulldog Media Group:

Bulldog Media Group is a leading performance marketing c...

Duration: 00:10:52

In this episode, Tomás returns to share what's changed since Spinwheel's $30 million funding round—including a strategic investment from Citi—and gives us an inside look at the Spinwheel Network Token, a piece of technology that changes how lenders can serve customers across the acquisition journey.

Please note: Spinwheel is a sponsor of The Free Toaster Newsletter and Podcast. 

About The Spinwheel Network Token

Spinwheel's Network Token creates a persistent, consent-based identity layer using just a phone number and date of birth. Here's what that unlocks:

Skip the funnel: Instead of starti...

Duration: 00:42:54

I sit with my co-founder Nick Madrid to discuss what we've learned in the last year of building this Podcast and Newsletter.

About Nick Madrid - Co-founder, The Free Toaster. Former Bloomberg (10 years) and Chime (3+ years). Now building media properties including The Free Toaster and the Uncovered Media brand.

Free Toaster Stats 1,200+ email subscribers (zero paid marketing), adding about 100 subs per month 13,000+ active users, 30,000+ views on www.thefreetoaster.com 118 posts published in 14 months Main Topics of Discussion Biggest lesson: Consistency matters more than predicting viral content What's working: Writing online attracts opportunities 2026 plans: Building...

Duration: 00:32:34

I recently sat with Alex Johnson on the Fintech Takes Podcast. I hope you enjoy!

*****

(Show notes below from Fintech Takes)

Welcome back to the Fintech Takes podcast. I’m Alex Johnson, joined by Carlos Caro (author of the Free Toaster newsletter and host of the Free Toaster podcast) for the second episode of Facing Credit, where we unpack what’s really happening in lending right now.

This one’s about marketing; the overlooked starting point of every loan. 

Everything in lending sits downstream of how you acquire...

Duration: 01:12:58

I was recently a guest on another Podcast, and the host asked me a question about what will happen to publishers' organic traffic that disappeared with the recent Google / SEO changes.

That question led me into a bit of a tangent / rabbit hole (I'll republish that episode here when it goes live in December), and today I share some of my updated thoughts after having an evening to reflect on the conversation.

PS: If you want to sponsor our Podcast in 2026, now's the time to get in touch. Email me at carlos@newmarketgrowth.com

<...

Duration: 00:26:52

Alana Levine, Chief Revenue Officer at Fintel Connect, returns to break down the compliance challenges that affiliate marketers face. As AI reshapes the affiliate landscape, financial institutions face mounting pressure to get compliance right—or face serious consequences.

 

In this episode, Alana shares her framework for managing affiliate compliance at scale, the real-world costs of getting it wrong, and how the rise of influencer marketing and LLMs is creating additional complexity for the next 12-24 months.

We discuss...

The Six Compliance Blind Spots

Partner vetting: Creating systematic rules for who represents your bra...

Duration: 00:39:47

We've all heard the rumors around SEO traffic drying up for publishers. Today I riff on what's going on, why it's happening, and what lenders should be doing about it.

This is a supplement to something I recently published on The Free Toaster Newsletter.

https://www.thefreetoaster.com/p/the-seo-apocalypse-has-arrived-9812

*****

 

A word from our sponsor, Spinwheel:

 

Reduce friction in your lending application with just two fields—phone number and birthdate. Spinwheel’s APIs boost application rates by 20-30% while also providing real-time credit data and seamless payment processi...

Duration: 00:13:06

We explore how fintech lenders could revolutionize customer acquisition by partnering with AI-powered finfluencers, alleviating current concentration in affiliate marketplaces.

Key Topics

The Current Problem: 30-70% of fintech lender volume comes from affiliate marketplaces, creating concentration risk. Lenders spend $4B-$6B annually on affiliate marketing but lack control over rankings and algorithms.

The Finfluencer Opportunity: Top creators are severely under-monetizing. Vivian Tu (Your Rich BFF) made $3MM from 5MM followers—just $0.60 per audience member. Credit Karma generates $12.31 per member. At Credit Karma rates, Vivian could earn $61.5MM annually.

The AI Revolution: Digital twins wil...

Duration: 00:18:46

We sit down with Alana Levine, Chief Revenue Officer at Fintel Connect, to uncover what financial institutions get wrong when launching affiliate marketing programs—and more importantly, how to get it right from day one.

As someone who lives in the trenches and is often the first call when lenders want to activate the affiliate channel, Alana shares her unfiltered pre-launch checklist and the hard-won insights that can save months of frustration and wasted budget.

We discuss...

The Strategic Foundation

Why geographic reach can make or break your affiliate program The "me to...

Duration: 01:07:51

We sit down with Kirill Klokov, CEO of Truv, to break down everything lenders need to know about income verification providers. 

Vetting Income Verification Vendors

Why most providers use the same underlying data sources The power of back-testing analysis on your own data Smart questions sophisticated lenders ask during RFPs

The Consumer Experience

Why 35% of users drop off at bank login screens How to build a smart "waterfall" approach (spoiler: start cheap, then hit instant databases) The messaging that actually works with borrowers

Beyond Basic Income Verification

Why a "complete product" covers W...

Duration: 00:33:00

Rich Walker is back! After our first direct mail episode became the most popular episode on the show, we're back for round 2.

The 10 DM Pitfalls We Discuss

1. Attribution Nightmares

People get your mail, then go to Credit Karma to respond. Your CFO freaks out about "paying twice" but that's just how the channels work together. Rich breaks down holdout testing and why you need to stop thinking about this as double-paying.

2. When Campaigns Go Off The Rails 

Your mail program is humming along, then suddenly a campaign tanks for no reason. 80% o...

Duration: 01:49:44

I sat down with John Henson, a fintech-savvy lawyer who formerly worked at LendingTree (both as an attorney and a general manager). He unpacks the regulatory chaos swirling around lead generation in 2025 — what’s changed, what’s still risky, and how fintech marketers can navigate it without getting burned.

In today's discussion: The CFPB Rolled Back Rules: Credit card and personal loan lead gen just got a little more breathing room. John explains what’s safe and what’s not. Mortgage Lead Gen Isn’t Dead: Despite RESPA, there are ways to play without federal headaches. State Privacy Laws Are Tig...

Duration: 01:22:54

I explain positive and adverse selection in lending using recruiting as an analogy. If you've ever hired someone, you'll instantly understand why your channels, pricing, and process determine your loan portfolio quality.

Key Takeaways

The Big Idea: Attracting great borrowers works exactly like hiring great people.

The parallels...

1. Channel Quality Inbound (website traffic): People actively searching, often desperate Outbound (direct mail): Higher-quality prospects who aren't hunting Best candidates and borrowers usually aren't usually looking 2. Price Matters Post a $100K vs $200K director role—which gets better candidates? Same with loans: competitive rates attract quality bo...

Duration: 00:11:11

I talk about a surprising case study where a lending product thrived in one affiliate marketplace but completely flopped in another. We explore the key differences between marketplaces that can dramatically impact performance and provide actionable insights for fintech marketers.

Key Insights Don't assume success transfers between marketplaces: A product that works well with one affiliate partner may struggle with another due to fundamental marketplace differences. Three critical marketplace variables to consider: Algorithm differences Competitive landscape variations Offer presentation layer discrepancies Strategic takeaways: Consider designing different product versions for different channels Expect varying unit economics across partnerships Recognize...

Duration: 00:13:38

Marketers sometimes like to enter new channels gradually, conservatively even. This works in many channels like paid search, social, and direct mail. 

But for fintechs, entering new affiliate channels like this can have catastrophic consequences. 

In today's Podcast, I share why entering into new affiliate marketplaces "cautiously" can be dangerous for new entrants. I'll walk you through how to play the game in reverse.

Note: If you want to hear more about this in future Podcasts, email me at carlos@newmarketgrowth.com with your questions.

 

*****

A word fro...

Duration: 00:12:28

We chat with Colin about how AI is changing marketplaces.

His thesis: “The rise of agentic AI will transform marketplaces from passive aggregators to active facilitators of transactions.”

To learn more, check out Colin’s take on how AI will revolutionize marketplaces:

https://www.gardinercolin.com/p/ai-and-marketplaces-agent-led

About Colin Gardiner

Former economics/statistical researcher that now loves building sticky consumer facing products via iterative data-driven methods. Built products for both large corporations and seed level startups, always with a primary focus on acquisition, conversion and monetization.

 

...

Duration: 01:02:33

We sit with credit card expert Jason Steele about what's happening behind the scenes in the industry. Jason shares how he went from tech work to becoming a respected credit card authority who writes for major publications and runs CardCon, the credit card industry conference.

 

We discuss:

The "Coupon Book Problem" - Premium cards are becoming more complex with endless small benefits ($6 at Dunkin', $10 off wireless) that frustrate consumers. Jason explains why this creates space for simpler card offerings that deliver clear value. What Drives Card Choices - Discover why exclusivity and status perks (l...

Duration: 00:51:48

LendAPI lets you create application flows, credit decision engines, and complete lending products through simple drag-and-drop tools—all without hiring engineers or spending millions.

You can build and launch lending products quickly and efficiently, then use a working product to raise venture capital. Even non-financial businesses like boat dealerships are using it to replace clunky Excel-based applications.

Tim in unsually transparent as an early stage founder. He shared:

$3.5 million in seed funding raised just four months ago How many applications they process daily How many lenders use the platform The company’s ARR and targ...

Duration: 01:01:01

In this episode, I catch up with my old Columbia PhD classmate Guru Sethupathy, founder of FairNow, an AI governance platform for financial services.

About AI Governance:

Involves three key components: Monitoring AI performance, explainability, and bias Ensuring compliance with financial regulations Establishing clear AI policies and procedures

Why It Matters for FinTechs:

Often viewed as a cost center but becomes a strategic advantage Becomes critically important during partner due diligence "Light touch" governance is better than scrambling reactively Risk of bias or compliance issues can be existential for startups

Explainability Benefits:

...

Duration: 00:39:38

In this episode, we speak with Greg Cox, CEO of Monevo, to discuss their recent acquisition by TransUnion and how they're transforming credit offer distribution.

Greg explains how Monevo serves as a technology layer connecting lenders and publishers, allowing lenders to distribute highly qualified credit offers to third-party websites and aggregators. The platform helps lenders target the right customers across multiple digital channels while improving conversion rates.

Highlights:

How Monevo's technology handles model hosting and decisioning, with flexibility for lenders to host models with Monevo, TransUnion, or their own platforms Their extensive publisher...

Duration: 00:39:56

Rich Walker is a 35-year industry vet who’s been responsible for over 10 billion pieces of Direct Mail.

Rich has led direct marketing teams at Capital One, the Winterberry Group, Deluxe Corporation, 2nd Order Solutions, and more recently, Aven.

So we jumped at the opportunity to get his take on how lenders can leverage Direct Mail to grow their customer acquisition programs.

 

We Discuss:

1️⃣ Why Direct Mail still matters
-$3B in spend per year
-The power of pre-screened marketing

2️⃣ Who should explore Direct Mail
-High r...

Duration: 01:39:36

What is Congruence? Aligning messaging from your ad, to your landing page, to your final conversion steps creates lift in your marketing funnel, reducing your CACs and increasing your customer acquisition volumes. It sounds elementary. Yet many organizations forget to do it.

Today we dig into examples of marketing from Wells Fargo and Discover to illustrate what it means to be Congruent across your marketing funnel.

The visuals from The Free Toaster Newsletter will help:
https://www.thefreetoaster.com/p/congruence

Our sponsors:

Spinwheel:

Streamline your...

Duration: 00:10:51

We chat with Kevin Bennett, a successful entrepreneur who helped grow Caribou to a billion-dollar company. Now, he's back with Further, a platform focused on helping people afford their first homes. Kevin shares important lessons for early-stage founders and gives practical advice for growing a business.

 

We Discuss:

Product vs. Distribution: Kevin explains why both product development and getting your product to customers are equally important.

Experimenting with Marketing: Kevin talks about the need to test different marketing channels and how to do it quickly.

Evaluating Marketing Channels: Kevin s...

Duration: 00:28:44

I just launched a new Podcast at the intersection of marketing, lending, and fintech. It includes everything you get on this show, plus more.

(PS - If you're happy with Affiliate-only content, stay here. I'll keep publishing episodes I think will be relevant to you).

Find the new show by searching "The Free Toaster" on your Podcast player, or by going here:
https://thefreetoaster.podbean.com/

Please also check out the weekly Newsletter:
www.thefreetoaster.com

And, please check out our sponsors:
www.spinwheel.io
www.fiatgrowth...

Duration: 00:02:10

Carlos shares what he learned about brand marketing from New Balance's turnaround.

 

TL;DR - For 15 years, New Balance watched its revenues decline. Consumers saw its sneakers as “dad shoes”—safe, comfortable, but uncool. Traditional direct-response marketing wasn’t reversing the trend. In April 2020, a new CMO, Chris Davis, arrived with a bold idea: flip the marketing mix from a 70% reliance on direct-response ads to a brand-led approach. It was a big gamble that took nearly 19 months to pay off, but when it did, New Balance emerged as a revitalized global brand.

 

Written...

Duration: 00:18:00

Carlos riffs on why CPA negotiations are a waste of time and 9 other things you should know about the topic as someone new to the channel.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction to CPA Negotiations

(01:43) Understanding CPA and Market Dynamics

(02:22) Strategies for Effective CPA Management

(06:11) Common Pitfalls and Final Thoughts

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

 

Find Us:

Don't forget to subscribe and review our show. Contact the host at carlos@newmarketgrowth.com.

Duration: 00:08:48

We sit with Tomas Campos, CEO at Spinwheel. Spinwheel’s product caught my attention because affiliate marketers could use their product to reduce the friction in their application processes. 

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) Meet Tomas Campos, CEO of Spinwheel  (02:30) Ideal customers and use cases (06:30) Success metrics (12:35) Challenges building the business (15:37) Partnering with lenders (22:41) Uplift from pre-filling application forms (28:12) What holds lenders back from buying (34:10) The NerdWallet integration (36:05) Other challenges lenders have (46:52) Bank account verification (47:10) Wrap up

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

 

Where to find Tomas:

LinkedIn

 

Fi...

Duration: 00:49:21

We sit with David Nohe, CEO of FinGoal, to discuss the CFPB’s Rule 1033 on Open Banking and the implications it has for bank marketers.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) David Nohe, CEO of Fingoal

(01:59) The 101 on CFPB Rule 1033

(09:32) Consumer consent

(18:04) Future of subscription models

(22:52) Funnel dynamics / friction

(24:09) Credit bureau vs. open banking data

(26:43) Why be concerned or optimistic

(32:10) Banks' strategic opportunities

(41:37) Wrap up and dinner bet

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

 

Whe...

Duration: 00:42:22

Personal finance platforms (like Credit Karma) are now at scale, with the ability to recommend products at the 1:1 user level. Further, they’re incentivized to recommend niche products that are highly customized to each user. Lending products, however, are designed for mass audiences. This disconnect presents a huge opportunity for lenders.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) Why personalization matters
(04:06) Hyper-niche lending products
(05:37) Social media and niche content
(08:43) Opportunities in financial services
(12:57) Where I see this all going
(15:01) Wrap up

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

Refe...

Duration: 00:17:06

Today we chat with Tim Hong, the Chief Product Officer at MoneyLion. He walks us through a partnership they’ve built with Plaid and other data providers to offer cash flow data at the marketing stage to lenders in the Engine marketplace.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) Tim Hong, CPO at MoneyLion
(04:06) The Engine marketplace
(12:02) Open banking and UX
(22:48) User permissioned data
(25:15) Sharing bank credentials
(27:25) Cashflow data in lending
(31:09) Spark platform
(37:20) Future of open banking
(44:17) Wrap up

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

 

Ref...

Duration: 00:45:40

I’m starting to worry that we don’t have an economically viable way to distribute cash flow underwriting (CFU) products to consumers. In today’s episode, we discuss the opportunity and challenges CFU lenders will have in distributing their products through direct mail, paid search, and of course affiliates.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction to Fintech and Cashflow Underwriting

(01:21) The Article and Its Insights

(02:38) AI-Generated Overview of The Petal Case Study

(09:21) End of AI-Generated Overview

(09:26) Analyzing Cashflow Underwriting

(11:36) Challenges in Cashflow Underwriting

(15:54) Marketing Cashflo...

Duration: 00:25:51

Today, we discuss the backstory behind my marketing agency, New Market Growth. I’ll share my background working in affiliate marketing at a connected home startup, my experience working on credit cards at Capital One, my 4 years at Credit Karma, and how my experiences came together to form a services business for lenders.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) What is New Market Growth
(01:30) Early years in affiliate marketing
(03:53) Credit Karma
(06:50) My first business: legal services marketplace
(09:10) Return to fintech + personal brands
(12:19) Founding New Market Growth
(14:27) Current focus + looking out to the futur...

Duration: 00:16:35

Today, we discuss high-level principles for your affiliate measurement (analytics) strategy. We’ll cover the 2 big questions your dashboards should be answering, we dig into 9 metrics you might not be watching, and we hit on the importance of connecting marketing stage and performance stage data.

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) True North (01:34) Driving questions (01:53) Delivering for your partners (04:26) Partners delivering for you (06:35) Combining data sources (09:34) Effective dashboards (16:49) 9 key metrics to watch (22:26) Wrap up

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

 

Find Us:

Don't forget to subscribe to Affiliate Marketing for Lend...

Duration: 00:23:04

Today, we discuss the most common reasons that lenders don’t hit their volume, account quality, and growth goals in the affiliate channel. Based on Carlos’ experience talking to lenders in his affiliate marketing agency, New Market Growth.

 

Common struggles:

Cross-functional dysfunction Model misalignment (Non)compliance  Application friction Mispricing Access to big affiliates Concentration Cold starts Lack of differentiation CPA game Thinking it’s easy

 

Timestamps:

(00:00) Common Struggles in Affiliate Marketing (03:00) Reason 1: Lack of Cross-Functional Effort (04:54) Reason 2: Misaligned Targeting Model (06:36) Reason 3: Approval Rate Issues (07:59) Reason 4: Application Friction (09:01) Reason 5: Uncompetitive Pricing (10:39) Reason 6: Missi...

Duration: 00:21:12

Today, we continue to discuss the 4 levels of Operational Maturity in affiliate marketing for lenders. We’ll go deep on 301 and 401 levels and wrap up with some tactical things you can do to land at the 401 level.

 

Summary of the 4 levels:

 

𝟭𝟬𝟭 - 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 

We're focused on the volume of leads and the cost of acquisition. The rest of the operation looks a lot like affiliate programs in other industries. There's not much attention placed on the quality of accounts that we acquire.

 

𝟮𝟬𝟭 - 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲

We learn that not all leads are created equal and not all lead sources are created equal. We pay more...

Duration: 00:44:53

Today, we introduce the 4 levels of Operational Maturity in affiliate marketing for lenders. We’ll go deep on 101 and 201 levels. The 301 and 401 levels will be covered in our next episode.

 

Summary of the 4 levels:

 

𝟭𝟬𝟭 - 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 

We're focused on the volume of leads and the cost of acquisition. The rest of the operation looks a lot like affiliate programs in other industries. There's not much attention placed on the quality of accounts that we acquire.

 

𝟮𝟬𝟭 - 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲

We learn that not all leads are created equal and not all lead sources are created equal. We pay more attention to what happens to a custom...

Duration: 00:30:13

Episode 005: Today, we discuss the marketing levers lenders have at their disposal to improve the performance of their affiliate marketing campaigns.

 

We’ll discuss levers in the following categories:

Eligibility Impressions/placements Click-through rate Application rate Approval rate Funding rate CPA/Payouts

 

Timestamps:

(00:54) Recapping previous episodes
(01:50) A big misconception
(03:02) Key levers
(09:30) CTR
(18:37) Application rate
(21:35) Approval rate
(27:09) Funding rate
(29:49) CPAs / payouts
(31:43) Conclusion and final thoughts

 

Where to find Carlos:

LinkedIn Twitter/X

 

References:

Clic...

Duration: 00:35:27

Episode 004: Today, we tackle two simple, but important questions. The first: “What affiliates should I partner with?” And the second, “Where should I host my targeting model?”

 

We cover:

How to build a list of potential affiliate partners Why “getting in” isn’t an easy as you think How to build a pitch for potential partners Where to host your targeting model Guiding principles for targeting model development

 

Timestamps:

(00:43) Outline of today's episode

(04:25) Building a list of potential partners

(09:25) Why getting into publishers isn't easy

(14:15) Cr...

Duration: 00:42:19

Episode 003: Today, we tackle a big, foundational question. “Why should I bother promoting my lending products in affiliate channels?”

 

We cover:

Size of publicly traded affiliate networks How many consumer loans are opened per year on affiliate networks Why your CMO, CPO, CRO, and CFO should care A 60-second elevator pitch for your CEO

Timestamps:

(00:43) Why Invest in Affiliate Marketing? (01:22) Affiliate Channel Scale From Public Filings (05:08) What % Of Acquisition Volume Comes From Affiliates? (06:14) Convincing Your Org to Invest in Affiliate Marketing (08:01) Benefits for Different Departments (13:06) Selling into your CPO or Strategy Head (14:44) Selli...

Duration: 00:25:26

Episode 002: In this episode, we describe affiliate marketing for lenders with tangible examples. From there, we talk through the dynamics of the affiliate game and how affiliate partnerships are structured. This provides a baseline 101 for anyone unfamiliar with the topic, and a recap for those who are more familiar with this space.

 

Additionally, we discuss:

What mindset to bring to the game Our super-lever: approval rate Notes for performance marketers new to affiliates

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction   (01:04) Exploring Affiliate Coverage In Google Results
(03:15) Behind the Scenes of Affiliate Marketing
(05:49) Affiliate Deal Structures an...

Duration: 00:30:03

Banks spend billions of dollars per year advertising in affiliate channels. It’s a complex, high-stakes game, and I’m here to guide you through it. If you’re a lender that wants to grow your affiliate program, you’re in the right place.

–

In today's episode, we discuss:
Who this Podcast is for What we'll talk about in future episodes Why affiliate marketing is important My professional background Why you should (or shouldn't) listen to me –

Where to find Carlos: LinkedIn Twitter/X   –

Find Us:

Don't forget to subscribe to Af...

Duration: 00:07:18

Duration: 00:02:38