INSIGHT
“ Affiliates typically work with affiliate networks more readily than with direct programmes because it’ s a safer option for them to manage multiple relationships, administration and reporting”
Will third-party affiliate networks become redundant? The simple answer is no. I say this because it still boils down to cost, resources, the relevance of your affiliate strategy and the budget required by an operator at any given time over their life cycle to acquire. Affiliate networks will continue to play an active role in developing programme growth and helping new programmes to launch, expand and scale. However, the management of a programme’ s long-tail growth strategy will need to be more stringent than before. Building an affiliate programme from point zero and recruiting affiliates to it takes an incredible amount of time and a hefty budget.
Affiliates typically work with affiliate networks more readily than with direct programmes because it’ s a safer option for them to manage multiple relationships, administration and reporting. Most reputable networks vet brands before they join( for affordability and legitimacy) and it’ s much easier for affiliates to manage multiple campaigns or programmes within one login platform. There is a greater level of trust between the affiliate and a network, compared with affiliates signing up to multiple individual programmes that could go bust overnight.
Because of what they offer as part of your overall acquisition strategy, there is still a valid reason for considering third-party networks in terms of cost, accessibility and reach. However, you may have to work a bit harder on managing that relationship than before. Your long-tail network of affiliate partners will need to be just as actively managed but with more human interaction.
How will they change their service to suit regulated marketing requirements? Perhaps networks will engage more with merchant brands and stop being run in a“ closed” environment to avoid losing lucrative gaming business. Some might reconsider their pricing and exit models( override fees) to protect against direct recruitment, while also adding continued value as part of a long-tail acquisition strategy. There may be a shift in focus from other retail-based third-party affiliate networks so that they specialise in high-value content sectors, stringent policing and long-tail reach over micro and AI technology development.
This is a positive thing, because it means that there may be more choice for operators to select third-party affiliate network providers to work with to expand their long-tail reach. It’ s clear that the affiliate network model will need to adapt to recent changes or risk losing profitable brands from their platforms, which would impact the revenue and administration levels of the affiliates operating in their network.
Even after taking into account the additional time spent improving the network of affiliates, as a whole it’ s still one of the most cost-effective ways of acquiring new players. We’ re battling with the bonus tax, which is seriously changing how we court players, and on top of this the Gambling Commission is very much making its presence felt. Although this may seem challenging, it’ s a great opportunity for operators to create better programme strategies to promote overall affiliate growth.
Does that mean that there is an increased need for ongoing training and development? Affiliate teams will need to strategise how they manage their internal programme operations, recruitment drives, account management and resourcing to deliver more effective results. By knowing affiliates and the guidelines more intensely, affiliate managers can benefit. They must create better connections, and watch out for potential breaches of the advertising codes. Operators and networks, now more than ever, need to invest in continued staff training to ensure their affiliate teams know and understand the rules, regulations and advertising guidelines to effectively police their affiliate relationships and make sound commercial decisions. This can stop the Gambling Commission from intervening. Part of the problem with the current system of regulation is that we have bits and pieces of guidance from various bodies, but not much in the way of concrete rules. If given enough time and resources to police the brand, a vigilant and knowledgeable affiliate manager may be able to prevent fines, while still working collaboratively with affiliates to build business revenue.
What’ s next? In the next year, we’ ll see more compliancebased change in the way that programmes are actively managed. Already, we’ ve seen terms and strike policies being updated to avoid fines. It will be up to all parties( network, affiliate, operator) in this ecosystem to work together to ensure compliance, either manually or by building AI technology-based upgrades that can do this automatically.
There are many challenges to come for the gambling industry, but the closure of a few affiliate marketing programmes doesn’ t have to mark the start of an irreversible trend. Those brands and networks that make an effort to adjust will likely earn a better reputation and allow their affiliate marketing programmes to flourish.
The government and the Gambling Commission are placing a spotlight on the industry at the moment. It is up to us and our affiliate partners, as well as the technology suppliers and networks that support these channels to grow, to show that we can adjust and continue to support growth in this channel.
With almost two decades of digital marketing and affiliate experience within retail, payments and various igaming brands, LEE-ANN JOHNSTONE has a wealth of expertise as an award-winning digital marketing expert and business mentor. In 2015 she curated and developed AffiliateFEST and has now founded Best Odds Marketing( www. bestoddsmarketing. com) a digital marketing consultancy, training, event management and business coaching agency supporting igaming businesses.
50 iGB Affiliate Issue 66 DEC 2017 / JAN 2018