How To Manage an Affiliate Program with Affilka?

When setting up an affiliate marketing program, many operators often don’t fully comprehend what it takes to set up an affiliate management workflow. As a result, affiliate programs fail to fulfil their potential. If partners are not managed properly, affiliate programs turn from an effective marketing tool into an actual cost driver.

The creation of the affiliate program alone is not enough to boost casino or sportsbook results. Rational implementation is a demand. Affilka is an innovative platform that enables comprehensive affiliate program management and supports iGaming projects in cost-effective and productive player acquisition. 

What is a more financially feasible solution, self-service development or an off-the-shelf platform? Besides automation, what makes Affilka so distinctive? How can you maximise the performance of an affiliate program?

Let’s dive into the details and find out all the answers on how Affilka stimulates building player-focused affiliate collaboration that will be a boon for operators, partners and audiences alike.

Why operators need an affiliate marketing management solution

The effectiveness of affiliate marketing in iGaming is a fact backed up by the experience of the majority of operators. Growing an affiliate marketing program is almost impossible to manage without automation. The result will be chaos and unpredictability.

Any iGaming brand, no matter the size, needs technical support in the form of a flexible affiliate marketing software solution. Why? No matter how well your team performs, keeping count of everything manually is simply not possible. Continuous, holistic supervision of affiliate activities is necessary, since it enables an operator to identify risks, make adjustments, and, as a result, boost profits.

That’s why a modern affiliate program management solution is essential. Consider it not as an expense but as an investment that will reap a host of rewards over time, such as minimising human error, ensuring trust and efficiency with partners and engaging quality audiences.

Why is Affilka one of the best strategic options for affiliate management?

1. Managing large data volumes and automating processes. Affilka is highly automated. Most functions do not require manual configuration and are performed by the system itself (tracking performance, generating reports, making scheduled payouts, etc.).

2. Real-time tracking of all system transactions.It is clear that statistics help track affiliate performance and gauge their profitability. Precise real-time statistics (with updates up to every 15 min) reduce risk of fraud. Besides real-time data, Affilka’s data warehouse lets operators pull up stats for any work period at any time.

3. A fault-tolerant system.Even when faced with high traffic, the system remains fully functional: referral links work without interruption, so that players can always get to the destination site; all the player activities are processed, and partners receive their commissions.

4. Adaptable to changes. Affilka’s automation makes accepting change seamless for operators and partners.
   
   Here’s a simple example: the casino domain becomes unavailable, so an operator has to update the links and manually notify all project partners to update their referral materials. The team needs to wait for a response and monitor the process after notification. It can also lead to partial campaigns failing: affiliates may not immediately notice the message and continue promoting broken links. Once players click, they will see an error and leave the site. 

When such a situation occurs to Affilka clients, a landing domain can be replaced for all the referral links at once. Affiliates do not need to change anything since they still use their current referral links. Players are automatically directed to new landings and links, replaced with a single click across the entire base. The whole process takes a couple of minutes and requires no coordination or intervention.

The four primary areas of affiliate program management Affilka helps operators handle:

1. Partner efficiency.Affilka offers real-time statistics (with updates up to every 15 minutes)  with long-term data storage that is a key to transparent processes and a thorough analysis. Reports are fully customisable, containing only metrics that the operator specifies; no data dump. Operators are always aware of the status of their projects and can monitor affiliate performance properly.

2. Flexible commission creation. The Commission Constructor is truly a performance-based tool that enables iGaming operators to create individual conditions per affiliate. There is no need to stick to traditional commission types: operators can set any specific reward conditions and traffic quality restrictions necessary. The Constructor helps to reduce low-quality traffic and increase affiliate interaction efficiency.

3. Payment processing. Paying affiliates becomes much more difficult if an operator has to search for third-party payment services. Everything starts with personal control over payment dates and manual checks on traffic quality for the period (self-exclusion, duplicates and other criteria depending on the operator’s request). The next challenging step is to find several payment services and enter into an agreement with them.
   
   The payment process with Affilka involves minimum effort. Several popular payment options are already integrated, such as Neteller, Skrill, CoinsPaid, and bank transfers. Also, operators can benefit from payment processing through Affilka merchants. Payouts are made directly through the Affilka interface, where partners can set up schedules and obtain automatic rewards when it is convenient.

4. Marketing. Each promo campaign requires creating a number of banners in many different resolutions, landing pages, and other materials. Sending them out manually is a loss of human resources that could be put to better use.Affilka automates the distribution of media materials to affiliates. Operators can deliver bespoke promo content to each affiliate, hide irrelevant promotional activities, offer common materials to all affiliates or use a combination of these options.

Roles in the affiliate management team

If a small brand selects a highly automated solution, an operator can try managing partners independently. However, affiliate management is best delegated to a team, which includes:

1. An affiliate manager department. This core group of professionals usually manages all interactions with a team and partners. In the absence of automation, operators need a wide range of specialists with several directions to

• Recruit affiliates
• Cut off low-quality traffic
• Monitor affiliates and create invoices
• Engage affiliates and assist them, etc.

The management team can begin with three people and grow to infinity based on the strategy and size of the business.

Affilka, with almost all operations requiring no personal involvement, enables a manager to supervise thousands of affiliates at once.

2. A finance department. Its primary function is to generate invoices, process payments, and provide new payment methods unless the affiliate management platform incorporates its own payment processing.
   
   Affilka clients can use their own merchant accounts or rely on Affilka’s ones. According to the schedule set by the operator (any is possible), the system automatically creates a bill and sends an invoice for confirmation. Once approved, the Affilka team handles every step of the payment process in either fiat or crypto.

3. A development department (if working with an in-house solution). Developers, testers, and business analysts will form a full-fledged product team to ensure that the solution meets industry standards and affiliate requests.

4. A marketing department. The team is responsible for all brand promotion activities, including affiliate marketing. It involves constructing offers for affiliates and players, positioning brands in the online environment, and tracking trends in iGaming affiliate marketing. By relieving the staff of operational work, Affilka frees up the team’s time and attention for developing new ways to boost revenue.

The more the solution is automated, the fewer team members are required – Affilka is in charge. Nevertheless, it will adapt to the brand’s workflow and reinforce any strategy. 

Note: Affilka provides tiered team access to the system. Operators can assign employees to roles within the platform, each of which carries certain levels of functionality and access to data. 

In-house vs outsource

When it comes to affiliate management, there are 2 ways to go: 

• develop your own in-house management solution
• choose an off-the-shelf option 

In-house or classic production is carried out within one iGaming brand. Operators rely on their employees’ time, effort, and expertise to build their own platforms from scratch.

In this context, outsourcing refers to out-of-the-box affiliate management solutions which require little or no adaptation and can be implemented immediately. Affilka is one of the solutions that advocate software as a service. After the API integration, operators get access to a full range of Affilka features, technical support, and an option for customising a robust iGaming solution.

Pricing is a tangible difference between in-house development and purchasing off-the-shelf software. Compared to an off-the-shelf solution, affiliate marketing costs in development dramatically increase (team maintenance, constant negotiations with payment services, etc.). More often than not, the model quickly becomes unviable in iGaming.

Simply maintaining proper functioning is not enough. Another vital aspect of in-house development is constantly keeping up with affiliate requirements and new trends in iGaming. While it involves considerable operation expense and effort, it is a foundation for brand affiliate program competitiveness and relevance. 

The most cost-effective method is to invest in a flexible and innovative solution. Over the past three years, Affilka has been continuously improving the platform, making its clients’ affiliate programs even more valuable and convenient for everyone involved. 

The Affilka team assumes all costs and responsibility for providing an uninterrupted system and ensuring its availability in any load. Continual updates and enhancements are seamlessly integrated with client projects, so the system performance is not affected.

In addition, every Affilka client takes advantage of a committed account manager who is always available to assist with any queries.

How to use Affilka at capacity

Suppose an iGaming company decides to integrate Affilka. What are the keys to getting the most out of the partnership?

1. Flexible Plans. The Affilka Commission Constructor offers unlimited possibilities to create customised commissions and cut off unwanted traffic. If a player doesn’t qualify according to the operator’s requirements (e.g. first deposit amount and geo), the affiliate is not getting paid. Adapt conditions and reward plans for each product and geo, motivate the affiliate team and maximise their potential.
2. Cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency is undoubtedly the latest trend in iGaming. As well as fiat, Affilka supports all existing cryptocurrencies. Partner payouts are made both in crypto and fiat currencies.
3. Customisation. While Affilka is a versatile platform, its standard interface is quite native and user-friendly. All clients can customise the account interface and brand Affilka in their colours and logos. Consider adding unique search and filter tags to make interacting with partners even more streamlined.
4. Partner management. Essentially, Affilka allows operators to manage their affiliate program right from within the solution: segment affiliates, create new promo content and assign it to a particular partner, adjust team visibility settings and manage affiliate accounts. One solution replaces several platforms, making it a game-changer in iGaming.

Five points of growth in affiliate management

No matter how good your software solution is, not everything depends on it. Affilka helps strengthen the foundation of your team. 

How can you enhance the effectiveness of your affiliate strategy?

1. Introduce affiliates to brand values. Often overlooked, this point can help onboard an affiliate to a brand. It will help assure affiliates that they do not trick players and engage the audience in fair play with a brand that values its reputation.
2. Improve the site. A modern, fast and user-friendly website is no longer something outstanding, but is the norm. Experiment with banners and copy, monitor the reactions of site visitors and adjust the content if required. Take care of navigation: if a player clicks on a referral link and it takes longer than a couple of seconds to find the “register” button, a brand loses the player. With Affilka you can always ask our team to take a look at these things for you and provide pointers.
3. Create compelling offers for players. New bonuses and tournaments are a constant part of casino marketing. Pay attention to segmenting the audience (by traffic source, geo, interests, etc.) and form targeted promo offers.
4. Continue searching for the best affiliates and advertising platforms. Attract the most active affiliates and motivate them to stay in the affiliate program as long as possible. Establish communication within the team and keep engaged partners informed of new promotions that may benefit their audiences.

Skyrocket your affiliate management results

Affiliate programs need to be invested in and systematically reviewed. The combination of a motivated team and a solution that simplifies rather than complicates daily tasks ensures a steady increase in players. 

Investments in affiliate marketing will yield long-term benefits for the business, including loyal relationships with partners and expanded audiences. Join Affilka – let your team focus on generating opportunities rather than solving issues.