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INSIGHT
CAN SMALLER AFFILIATES STILL MAKE IT IN THE US ?
When the big guns of the affiliate industry already have their footing in the US market , is there any room left for anyone else ? Alex Windsor , director of Apps4 Web Media , examines the opportunities for smaller affiliates looking to make a mark on the market
W hat happened back in 2018 with PASPA opened the floodgates for sports betting in the US . It seemed like the perfect opportunity as an affiliate to try and crack the market : who wouldn ’ t be seduced by a sports-mad country that loves to gamble ?
My company , Apps4 Web Media , was set up in 2017 . After a year ’ s absence due to a non-compete , we re-entered the market in the UK , but things were a lot different than they were in earlier years .
Competition had increased , Google had gotten a lot smarter , and operators were beginning to tighten down on who they were working with . So when we heard the States was opening up , it seemed like an ideal time to get into the US betting market .
We were fortunate that we managed to get into the US market early , at the start of 2019 when the competition was a lot less fierce than it is now . We launched our Gamble USA site in New Jersey initially , then in Indiana and in other states as and when they went live .
Looking back , we made the right move to launch so quickly and have been involved in the US now for almost four years , during which time we have seen the market get more and more competitive . But should that really put affiliates off that are contemplating a move into the US markets ? Absolutely not .
Over the last 12 months , I have seen a lot of articles , podcasts , and posts on LinkedIn and X about affiliates giving up on the US , most of the time before they have even tried .
I am not saying it is easy . It requires effort and hard work but it is one of the most exciting markets that an affiliate could get into – not to mention that it is growing yearly with more and more states moving to legalise online gambling .
SERP COMPETITION
A quick look in the SERPs on Google and you ’ ll see the same familiar sites popping up for the majority of the major sports betting and casino search terms . It ’ ll come as no surprise to learn that these are
76 • ISSUE 94 • iGB AFFILIATE LONDON 2024