Hey — it’s Nico.

This is Behind Tactics 🧠, the Failory newsletter where I share the strategies behind the best startups.

This issue takes 7 mins to read. If you only have one, here’s what you need to know:

• CheaterBuster quadrupled its website traffic and hit 350M views on TikTok in six months through an unsupervised affiliate program.

• This strategy hands over creative control to anyone, turning thousands of TikTok creators into a decentralized marketing force.

• Affiliates earn based on performance, getting paid per 100K views and receiving a share of referral revenue, keeping everyone’s incentives aligned.

• Similar to CheaterBuster, Airbuds launched a student-driven Ambassador program, giving creators freedom and driving them to #2 in the App Store’s music category.

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The Strategy

Affiliate Marketing in the TikTok Era

A couple of weeks ago, I talked about how Verse used TikTok influencers to grow a viral side project. Today, I want to explore another way startups are tapping into TikTok as a powerful growth engine.

This time, we’re looking at how CheaterBuster pulled in over 350 million views on TikTok and quadrupled its website traffic—all in just six months. And they did it with a completely unsupervised affiliate program.

CheaterBuster is an app built to confirm whether someone is active on Tinder. As the name suggests, it’s mainly used by people trying to find out if their partner is still swiping.

All users need to do is enter a name, age, and location, and the app takes it from there. It even offers facial recognition, making it possible to track down profiles operating under fake names.

To drive growth, CheaterBuster adopted a bold strategy: instead of managing every piece of content, they handed over creative control to thousands of independent creators through an affiliate program. This decentralized approach turned TikTok into a viral playground, with creators generating massive engagement, no supervision required.

Let’s break down exactly how they pulled this off—and why this strategy works so well.

1. Marketing Outsourced to Strangers

CheaterBuster’s affiliate program feels more like an open-source marketing campaign. Instead of carefully selecting influencers or providing strict instructions, anyone can sign up, grab pre-made clips from a content library, and start creating videos.

This decentralized approach means that content is being posted by thousands of independent creators, each bringing their personal style to the campaign.

This is a major shift from typical TikTok marketing strategies, which usually involve formal influencer collaborations. With CheaterBuster’s model, anyone with a TikTok account becomes a potential marketer.

TikTok thrives on creativity and authenticity—two things that are hard to manufacture. By giving up control, CheaterBuster lets creators post content that feels natural and aligns with TikTok’s chaotic, trend-driven culture.

The videos that emerge from this program vary widely, from emotional interviews where someone nervously checks if their partner is using Tinder to dramatic “gotcha” moments where relationships unravel on camera.

2. Performance-Driven Rewards

What makes this affiliate program click is that rewards are directly tied to performance. Affiliates earn $40 for every 100K views and 15% of the revenue for every paying user they bring in, which comes out to around $3.18 per referral. Unlike traditional influencer campaigns, where creators are paid upfront, CheaterBuster only rewards creators who generate actual results.

The program also adds a competitive twist with monthly and weekly bonuses. Each month, the top five affiliates split $2,000, while the creator of the most-viewed video of the week gets an extra $300. This gamified system encourages affiliates to keep experimenting and pushing their limits. The alignment between CheaterBuster’s goals and the creators’ incentives keeps everyone motivated—if the affiliates succeed, CheaterBuster wins too.

Because rewards are tied to actual results, the program becomes self-sustaining. Affiliates are always testing new ideas, trying to figure out what works, and refining their strategies to get more views. This continuous improvement creates a feedback loop that pushes the most engaging content to the top.

3. Lowering Barriers for Creators

This program has an incredibly low entry barrier. Anyone can join, with no need for expensive equipment, big followings, or even a willingness to show their face. CheaterBuster offers a library of pre-made video content, which affiliates can edit and re-post with their own personal touch.

This structure fits perfectly with a growing trend on TikTok: faceless creators—people, often women, who want to become influencers but prefer to stay anonymous. CheaterBuster’s content library makes it easy for these creators to participate without filming themselves. They can simply remix existing clips and still earn money by driving views and referrals.

The hands-off approach also makes the program highly scalable. Since there’s no need to monitor or approve every post, affiliates are free to upload as much content as they like. This high volume is exactly what the TikTok algorithm loves, boosting the visibility of the best-performing videos and creating viral momentum.

Should I?

Why This Works

• Decentralized Creativity at Scale: CheaterBuster’s affiliate strategy thrives by leveraging thousands of creators, each bringing their unique spin to the campaign. Instead of relying on a handful of influencers, they’ve harnessed the collective creativity of the internet. This approach works because TikTok’s culture rewards originality and unpredictability—two things that are hard to achieve through traditional, tightly controlled campaigns.

• Risk-Free Scalability: Traditional ad campaigns require significant upfront investment, with no guarantee of success. CheaterBuster’s model shifts the financial risk to the affiliates, paying only for actual performance. This makes the campaign infinitely scalable, with no ballooning costs, since the company only spends when it gets results.

• Minimal Oversight, Maximum Impact: By offering a content library and giving creators free rein, CheaterBuster reduces the time and effort needed to manage the campaign. The lack of micromanagement not only makes the program easier to run but also empowers affiliates to create in ways that feel natural to them. This freedom keeps the campaign fresh and aligned with TikTok’s fast-moving trends.

How to Apply It

• Open the Door to Everyone: Instead of selecting a handful of influencers, make your affiliate program accessible to anyone. Provide clear instructions for joining and offer ready-to-use content, just like CheaterBuster’s library of pre-made videos. The key is to lower the barriers to participation, so anyone, regardless of follower count or experience, can jump in and start creating.

• Design for Chaos: Viral campaigns thrive on unpredictability. Build your affiliate program with flexibility in mind so that it can adapt to the fast-moving trends of TikTok. Pre-made content should act as a starting point, not a template—expect that creators will use it in unexpected ways, and embrace the chaos that comes from handing over control.

• Encourage Iteration and Learning: Promote competition and continuous learning within your affiliate network. Affiliates should be aware of each other’s successes, just like CheaterBuster’s creators track what’s trending. Create leaderboards or announce the top performers each week to motivate affiliates to refine their strategies and stay engaged.

Yes, But

• Content Quality Is Hard to Control: By opening the doors to everyone, CheaterBuster sacrifices some control over how the brand is represented. While many videos feel authentic, others could miss the mark, leading to inconsistent messaging or content that reflects poorly on the brand. There's always a risk that some creators might post inappropriate or misleading videos, which could backfire.

• Credibility Risks: In industries that rely on trust, credibility, or professionalism—like finance, healthcare, or enterprise software—this chaotic, crowd-driven approach could harm the brand’s image. Viral TikTok content often leans into humor, sensationalism, or informality, which might work against you if your product requires a polished or authoritative tone.

• Complex Products Need Clarity: For more complicated products, relying on independent creators can backfire—affiliates may miscommunicate key points, confusing customers and creating more noise than clarity in specialized markets.

Keep Learning

Others Playing It

Another startup successfully tapping into TikTok’s power is Airbuds, a widget-based music app. Instead of an affiliate program, Airbuds launched an Ambassador program by recruiting hundreds of students and giving them complete creative control. Each student was asked to post 2-3 videos per day, allowing them to experiment freely with content styles that resonate with their audience.

@claire.airbuds

OPEN UP THE DOOR!!!! #airbuds #college #widget #foryou

This approach has paid off—Airbuds quickly climbed to #2 in the music category on the App Store. Their success highlights how giving creators freedom to shape content and work within TikTok’s trends can generate organic growth and meaningful engagement.

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That’s all for this edition.

Cheers,

Nico