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INSIGHT
being to continually source new forms of traffic and niches to explore for new business . We need to remember that increasing numbers of people work from home , so businesses will be investing more in tools that make their workforce and processes more effective and adapt to include these technologies as part of the relationship management workflows .
Affiliates need to familiarise themselves with these types of technologies , so they are educated in the level of personalisation they provide and work with operators on these types of campaigns . Connection is going to be key ; too often deals are missed as contacts are not easily found . It will be difficult to create campaigns with partners with little knowledge as to how they work . AI technology is already being used more efficiently than human analysis to optimise campaigns in real time and I think we ’ ll see affiliate platforms start to integrate this tech in a more direct way to help campaigns perform at better profit margins .
MICRO TRANSACTIONS , TRANSPARENT DATA
Crypto and blockchain will start to innovate and break data silos . With Facebook and Apple changing their policies on third-party data we ’ ll see more affiliates build their databases and own their customers rather than simply driving traffic from one place to another for remuneration . Data is a key component for affiliates to increase the value of their business , and those that are building to scale or sell later on want both control over the data and to learn how to optimise their campaigns and increase their revenues from them . Some affiliates are already implementing key marketing technologies to improve their own customer experiences prior to sending them on to operators for conversion .
The take up of crypto within businesses
“ THINK OF AFFILIATES AS ENTREPRENEURS , NOT AS TRAFFIC DRIVERS ”
of opportunities in the blockchain sphere present transparency and efficiencies when it comes to commercial contracts . Tracking is also going to be coming to the fore as more development projects emerge in this space and are readily adopted by the wider community . According to Coindesk , the crypto industry is showing a 12 % increase in volume this year compared to 2020 . These aren ’ t stats that affiliates or affiliate managers can ignore , and although affiliate managers may be used to dealing in more traditional igaming niches , again this is something they will need to self-educate on .
I think we ’ ll see the need for better data . Rationalising the number of customer data silos will necessarily drive this part of the Web3.0 movement forward and affiliate programmes , networks and tracking solutions will need to keep up .
THE METAVERSE : HOW WILL YOU ENGAGE WITHIN IT ?
Augmented reality , 3-D virtual environments – the metaverse is happening . Right now . We ’ re all going to be engaging in it at some point in the future . How will we be transferring our brands , our messages , our business interactions into real time and transformative interactions for social and business engagement ? How will extended reality feature in your affiliate programme ? How will you engage your partners when you can ’ t physically see them and keep them affiliated to your brand ? No doubt there is going to be a lot of learning in this space in the coming years , but I think it ’ s key to start understanding the opportunity it can afford you . Start looking at how to leverage it for your business as an early adopter .
2022 will be a big year for the industry . We will see continued growth in affiliate marketing as we have consistently since the early 2000s . Brands will invest more , relationships will become more important and we have lived through a pandemic that has changed the way the world interacted and spent online .
The main message I have is never underestimate the power of great connections . Make sure you are always learning and keeping up to date with the latest digital marketing trends and emerging markets and niches within our industry to keep yourself operating one step ahead !
LEE-ANN JOHNSTONE With almost two decades of digital marketing and affiliate experience within the retail , payments and the fast-paced esports and gaming industry , Lee-Ann Johnstone is an award-winning digital marketing strategist and affiliate performance marketer . In 2018 she launched the performance and affiliate marketing agency AffiliateINSIDER , and recently she developed AMPP , a new initiative designed to help affiliate programme managers grow their programmes and drive consistent sales . She ’ s recently been inaugurated as a member of the prestigious forbes . com Agency Council and is a regular contributor to leading performance and digital marketing platforms such as TheDrum . com , forbes . com , iGB Affiliate and GPWA . For more information , visit affiliateinsider . com
54 • ISSUE 89 • Q1 2022