FEATURE
The case for affiliates Reputable affiliates add credibility to new sites The bingo industry is dominated by just a handful of successful platforms. 888’ s Dragonfish software is host to more than 200 sites, including huge brands such as Foxy, Wink and Costa. And while no one software is perfect, there is a definite sense of‘ better the devil you know’ when it comes to players choosing – and trusting – something new. Affiliates provide the perfect way for new brands to quickly gain trust by association. After all, why would your favourite comparison site suggest playing somewhere unsafe?
Affiliates allow the amplification of marketing messages to relevant new audiences With restricted marketing budgets, little site revenue and no SEO authority, it can be particularly challenging for new sites to compete for attention against bigger and wealthier brands. But by piggybacking on the campaigns of affiliates, it’ s possible for sites to access large, highly relevant audiences at a fraction of the cost( more on that below).
Affiliates increase exposure for brands in already-saturated verticals Even the best-optimised bingo and casino sites will struggle to get more than one or two listings in search results for popular keywords. In addition, there are plenty of phrases for which Google favours affiliates. For example, for this article I performed a search for“ new bingo sites” and none of the top 10 listings that appeared on the first page of results were operators.
Moreover, where the searcher intent is to view a list, Google more often than not returns a list. The only way
“ At OnlineBingo. co. uk, as with many of our competitors, we work closely with new partners to agree mutually beneficial deals that are regularly reviewed and adjusted according to actual performance”
for new brands to capture this traffic is to be part of these affiliate landing pages or risk missing out altogether.
Flexible commission structures & budgets Don’ t want to commit to large acquisition costs with no guarantee of ROI? Worried about paying for expensive clicks that don’ t convert? With the CPA and revenue share models offered by the vast majority of gambling affiliates, new sites are able to tailor budgets for real depositing players and avoid the pitfalls of speculative costs per leads.
At OnlineBingo. co. uk, as with many of our competitors, we work closely with new partners to agree mutually beneficial deals that are regularly reviewed and adjusted according to actual performance.
The best affiliates are working as marketing partners, not just as suppliers of players.
If not affiliates, then who? Every channel, from organic search to programmatic display, demands a certain appetite for risk from advertisers. Affiliates are so prevalent and influential in the gaming industry that removing them from the inbound mix completely would have a very noticeable and costly effect.
Assuming that other sources of players are already operating close to their full potential, where would the hitherto affiliate-generated prospects come from?
The case against affiliates A few bad actors affect the reputation of the masses Low-quality affiliates are not unique to gambling – just try comparing broadband, car insurance or mobile phone contracts online.
Rules are made for exceptions. Just as the plane that lands safely doesn’ t make the news, the compliant affiliate isn’ t made an example of. The onus is – and should be – on operators to vet who they work with, but it is also on affiliates to be honest and transparent in their methods. Good faith works both ways.
The current operator mindset of‘ guilty unless proven compliant’ is problematic in that it initiates new affiliate relationships on a foundation of scepticism and mistrust. Condescending compliance messages and over-sensitive programme suspensions don’ t help but when there’ s a gambling licence on the line, who can really blame them?
Affiliate management is costly and time consuming We have reviews for more than 600 bingo, slot and casino sites on OnlineBingo. co. uk, yet we are only a small part of many operators’ affiliate programmes.
The burden of keeping information, offers and terms consistent across all third-party platforms is a particularly cumbersome responsibility for new sites. Even minor regulatory changes become prohibitively consequential.
48 iGB Affiliate Issue 71 OCT / NOV 2018