Before working with a casino affiliate program, it’s important to for an affiliate to understand the program’s terms and conditions to determine their stance on ring fencing, negative carryover, and other important factors.
Here is a rundown of some things you need to know about an affiliate program before choosing to work with them:
Community Reputation
First and most importantly, research the reputation of the affiliate program you are interesting in working with. Unfortunately, there are many rogue programs out there that affiliates are best to steer clear of associating with for the sake of themselves and their players.
You can search CAP to find info on just about every significant affiliate program out there (hint: if there’s not a word about them on CAP, it’s probably not a good sign). Research to make sure the people you’re going into business with are legit.
Terms and Conditions
They say the devil is in the details. That holds especially true with gaming affiliate programs. Read through a program’s terms and conditions specifically to find their policy on the following few things:
- Ring fencing. Do they allow you to segregate a big winner from the rest of your players so that one whale can’t spoil your earnings with a single lucky session? This is a fine-print type of policy that can make a big impact on your earnings.
- Bundling. Is the casino you are going to promote networked with other casinos you already promote? If so, the program might “bundle” the players you send to these operators under one single affiliate account. If they do not permit ring-fencing, one big winner could spoil your earnings across all of the programs you promote.
- Negative carryover. If your players are net winners this month, will the operator require your players to collectively “give back the winnings” next month before you start earning revenue? This practice, known as negative carryover, generally induces affiliates to avoid the program. However, be cautious about a program that promotes negative carryover but in truth implements the practice through bundling or refusing ring-fencing.
- Bonus wagering requirements. Some casinos advertise a seemingly-great sign-up bonus when in truth there are huge hurdles to clear in order to see any of that money.
Importance of Affiliate Manager
One tough-to-control variable of being a casino affiliate is the affiliate manager you’re working with. Working effectively with affiliate managers is important for achieving success.
When first choosing a program to work with, it’s a smart idea to have a quick chat with your affiliate manager to cover the basics of working together. For example, what are the best ways to contact your affiliate manager? There will be times where it may be advantageous to get ahold of them quickly.
Use this initial consultation as a way to address the questions and concerns you have of promoting the operator. You can never have an affiliate manager’s attention quite as much as you do just before agreeing to promote them!