Case Study: Waterstones achieves huge incremental growth with Redbrain

Waterstones - Customer Case Study

Waterstones, the UK-based bookseller, worked with affiliate agency Clockwork Affiliates and vendor Redbrain to tackle its challenge of driving incremental e-commerce growth. The company had a strong brand but was not active in the competitive Google Shopping space, presenting an untapped opportunity to compete more effectively without engaging in traditional paid search or display advertising.

Redbrain was brought in as a CSS (Comparison Shopping Service) partner, operating on a low-risk CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) model. The strategy involved smart, incremental increases to the commission rate, which Redbrain used to optimize campaign performance rather than pocket the fees. This approach unlocked phenomenal growth, with Redbrain eventually driving 30% of all affiliate revenue. The entire affiliate channel saw a minimum of 80% year-on-year growth, and CSS partners became responsible for 46% of the channel's total revenue, generating over £1.7 million in sales.

Waterstones