How can I become an affiliate?

[matt85]

Im a pretty experienced casino and poker bonus whore and I think the thought of becoming an affiliate seems a natural step from what I can gather.

My web skills arent currently upto much but I am sure I can improve these as I go.

Can anybody offer me any advice or experiences of their own as to whether or not it would be worth pursuing this or is it saturated? How much can a reasonably successful site expect to generate? What start up costs would you expect? What would the best way to go about this be?

Any information would be gratefully received.

Thanks,

Matt.

[Inthacup]

Can anybody offer me any advice or experiences of their own as to whether or not it would be worth pursuing this or is it saturated

IMO, the affiliate market as a whole is far from saturated. There are plenty of niche markets that can be very profitable for you if you are lucky/skilled enough to find them.

How much can a reasonably successful site expect to generate?

A number like this depends on so many factors that I can't really say $x.xx. But, I can say with confidence that with reasonable success, your site could become your primary source of income. That is what happened to me. I had a 9-5 job and started an affiliate program on the side. Now, I work in this business full time and enjoy it much more than my old job.

Startup costs can be greatly reduced depending on how resourceful you are and what you can do yourself. Do you know any friends that are web designers or programmers? If you hire a freelance designer, you can get your site designed cheaper than if going with a firm. There are many young designers looking to establish themselves that do good work for less than what they could charge. They work cheaply to build their client base, then increase prices and become more selective as they grow. However, there is a much higher risk of delays and poor product in going with a freelancer, so you have to be careful in who you chose.

I have learned from experience to hire designers that work out of the same city that I do. There is definitely value in hiring someone that you can meet with in person. Creative types aren't exactly known for their strong work ethic, so hiring someone closeby makes it easier to get work done in the time frame you want.

For many reasons, I would recommend becoming a subaffiliate to an established affiliate where possible. In addition to receiving higher rates at most sites than you could get on your own, you also get someone that can share valuable industry information to help you get started.

Cup

[RikaKazak]

Right now it is super saturated [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] BUT if you become a sub-affiliate for a good affiliate you can still do "ok"

how much you make is based off of how much you put into it..also the longer you do it..the less you can put into it and still make good money.

[kimchi]

And with so many amateurs in the business, such as TheRakebackStore, you can easily have an edge over the competition.

[Bobo Fett]

I would love to hear more about becoming a sub-affiliate. Can anyone tell me more and/or point me to somewhere where I might do some research for myself?

[RakebackStore]

As a sub-affiliate - 2 methods

1. Sign as an independent sub-affiliate for major sites with an experienced affiliate. You have nothing to lose with this method. You have complete control over your own affiliate account plus you get the support of an experienced affiliate. What I am talking about here is simply being referred by an affiliate, then signing up on your own. This would be if you are looking to set up something for yourself long-term so you should be research as much as possible who your parent affiliate would be.

2. Another way to be a sub-affiliate is to get an account where you simply refer players, but you are under a large affiliate. Rake Tracker and RakeReduction are 2 programs I know of that are very successful that work like this. Here you can have a higher percentage than you would ordinarily have on your own and the affiliates usually handle payments and customer support for you. This would be if you were looking for something low-maintenance and not sure if you wanted to go long-term or not.

One sub-affiliate method would not preclude you from the other.

[AAAA]

Value Added...find some way to give your customers perceived value...either poker lessons, or cute information giveaways, because they are free...or find some "must have giveaways" that are fun and clever. then put your name on them.

[Bobo Fett]

I would like to do this long-term, but I'd prefer not get involved in the customer service/payment end, at least not in the beginning. Giving up a portion to have someone else look after this for me sounds like a great option to get started. Can anyone tell me approximately what the difference is to the bottom line? IE if 5% is a typical share for an affiliate (is it?), how much will I end up with under a subaffiliate referral program? Am I only giving up a percent or two, or do I end up with a pretty small piece of the pie?

[AAAA]

if you get 5% and give up 1% for payment services, it is 20% of your gross.

you will find it is thinner than 4% by the time you make good will payments for things that got messed up and promotions to stimulate play in the beginning, and referrals to people who send you players.

if you figure you NET 1%, you need 100 players who play $2000/month in gross rake to end up with $2000/month. if you net 2%...well, do the math, lol.

it is kind of like poker...a tough way to make an easy living.

[Pingviini]

Will you run into problems if you are a sub-affiliate for two parent-affiliates and also an actual affiliate for a site or two?

Also, which criteria do you recommend to compare when choosing a parent-affiliate? Can you recommend for parent-affiliates?