This can be a bit confusing so let me breakdown the Skillshare affiliate program vs the Skillshare Referral program.
In short, if you’re a teacher on Skillshare you should pick a course to refer as the payout for new signups is the most.
Student Referral Program
Let me get this out of the way first as this is your basic “refer a friend” option available if you’re a paying subscriber on Skillshare.
- Payout: No payout, instead you the referrer get 1 free month of membership, applied as a discount on your next billing cycle, for each qualified referral.
- The referred person typically gets free access/month via the shared link, then must create an account and successfully pay for an annual subscription (not refunded, partially or fully).
To quality, simply use your unique referral link. Restrictions do apply and awards cannot be used with certain payout methods like PayPal in some cases.
Teacher Referral Program
This is available only if you’re a teacher on Skillshare which is a a fairly compelling reason to teach on Skillshare in the first place as there is higher earning cash potential for successful conversions, BUT it is limited to teachers who have a live course on Skillshare.
- You earn 60% of the annual subscription fee paid by a new first-time member (for the first year), net of refunds and excluding taxes.
- If monthly, you still get 60% of each monthly payment for the first 12 months of their subscription.
Membership prices do vary by country and location due to dynamic pricing and promotions, but generally speaking you can expect to earn around $100 as the subscription price for Skillshare is around $168 USD.
Promotion Advice
The best way to leverage this teacher referral program is to share one of your top performing classes directly as opposed to sharing your teacher profile.
I personally promote my comprehensive WordPress course as it has the most broad appeal.
Affiliate Program
So you don’t have a course on Skillshare but still want to promote them to your email list, on your blog or in the YouTube video description?
Well Skillshare has an affiliate program powered by Impact.com that you can sign up to.
- Commission: 20% of revenue for each new customer who starts a paid membership, up to $34 per referral.
- 30-day cookie (the referred person must sign up within 30 days of clicking your link).
- Tracking and real-time dashboard via Impact.
- Monthly payouts (received 30 days after the end of the month in which the commissions lock), via your preferred method in Impact.
To be eligible you’ll first need an account on Impact.com. Next, you’ll next need to apply to join the program. Just demonstrate that you have some sort of audience aligned with Skillshare’s brand and you should have no problem being accepted.
Practical recommendation
Use the student referral for simple free membership credit from friends.
Use the teacher referral if you teach on the platform (highest cash share of the first-year fee).
Use the affiliate program if you’re not a Skillshare teacher and want to monetize your audience through promoting Skillshare.
Teacher referral pays around 60% of the first-year annual fee (≈$100+ on a $168 plan) while the affiliate program pays only 20% (up to $34). So if you’re a teacher on Skillshare it makes no sense to use the affiliate program.
If you have questions DM me via the contact page.
All the best,
-David
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