Brian Littleton

Brian Littleton is the founder of ShareASale and currently serves as its President/CEO. He established the company in 2000 and was initially responsible for writing and building all of its core software.

Here is more detail about his journey and business endeavours:

• Inspiration for ShareASale: Littleton’s experience as a freelance web developer exposed him to numerous individuals with innovative ideas. This led him to recognise a gap in the market for affiliate network software, particularly for smaller businesses that could not afford the expensive solutions that were then available. He aimed to create a high-quality product that was accessible to businesses of all sizes.
• Role at ShareASale: As President/CEO, Littleton focuses on long-term vision and strategy while leading the company’s various projects. The primary goal of ShareASale has remained constant: to offer high-quality software and network services to customers at a reasonable price.
• Challenges in the Affiliate Industry: Littleton has identified several significant issues in the affiliate marketing industry. The most pressing is the attempt by some states to classify affiliates as a “nexus,” thus requiring online retailers to collect sales tax. This has led to retailers dropping contracts with affiliates in the affected states. Littleton also believes the industry needs to work together to address these and other issues to move forward.
• Personal Background:
  • Littleton was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
  • He spent most of his childhood in Michigan before moving to California and eventually settling in Chicago, Illinois.
  • He attended Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he earned degrees in Economics and Computer Science. He had also considered pursuing degrees in Secondary Education and Math.
• Unusual Job: Before founding ShareASale, Littleton worked in a bakery where he was responsible for preparing cheese danishes. He ate a significant amount of them and described it as a 5,000 calorie-a-day-danish-diet.
• Dream Jobs: If he had not founded ShareASale, Littleton would have liked to be a musician or a professional snowboarder, though he does not believe he possesses the necessary talent. He also considered being an astronaut but was not keen on the g-force training.
• Company Culture: Littleton is known to have delivered burritos to his team while wearing a Spiderman suit. He also mentioned that he is not the only affiliate marketer with a Spiderman suit.
• Self-Description: He describes himself as “trial and error”.
• Favorite Colour: His favorite color is ShareASale yellow.