Gambling Affiliate Programs

Gambling Affiliate Programs: The Ultimate Guide

The online gambling industry has witnessed explosive growth in recent years, with the global market valued at a staggering $53 billion just two years ago. This remarkable expansion can be attributed to the increasing accessibility of digital platforms across desktop and mobile devices, coupled with shifting societal attitudes towards gambling, further fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.

In this thriving environment, there has never been a better time to venture into the lucrative world of gambling affiliate marketing. The insatiable demand for gambling-related content presents a golden opportunity for content creators to expand their businesses and tap into this burgeoning market. Platforms like YouTube and Twitch have become breeding grounds for a plethora of creators dedicated to poker, slots, and other casino games, catering to the ever-growing appetite for such content.

Register

Understanding Gambling Affiliate Programs

Gambling affiliate marketing revolves around promoting online casinos and their services. Affiliates earn commissions by converting regular website visitors into active players who register and make deposits. The ultimate goal is to ensure that these newly acquired players continue to spend money on casino games, generating revenue for both the affiliate and the casino operator.

Gambling affiliate programs encompass various sub-categories based on specific games, including:

  • Slots: Online simulations of slot machines with multiple reels, bonus games, and jackpots (including progressive jackpots).
  • Poker: Real-time online versions of the popular card game, including video poker variants.
  • Sports Betting: Betting on a wide range of sports events, including horse racing.
  • Table Games: Classic casino games like baccarat, blackjack, roulette, and craps.
  • Specialty Games: Niche offerings such as keno, scratch cards, and bingo.

The Best Gambling Affiliate Programs

Several reputable gambling affiliate programs cater to different geographic regions, offering lucrative opportunities for affiliates. At Vortex Alpha, for example, experienced account managers work tirelessly to ensure the best possible returns, regardless of your traffic type. They offer exclusive gambling offers, timely payouts, and a positive partnership aimed at providing the best solution for affiliates.

Other notable programs include:

Become An Affiliate

BINGO LINER CASINO CPA CA

PAYOUT: £65
OFFER DESCRIPTION:
$900 FREE + 100% Deposit Bonus

JACKPOT MOLLY CPL CA

PAYOUT: £7
OFFER DESCRIPTION:
450% up to $2,450 + 321 Free Spins

LUCKY DREAMS CASINO CPA AU

PAYOUT: £60
OFFER DESCRIPTION:
UP TO $4000 + 300 FREE SPINS

SLOTOZEN CPA CA NZ AU

PAYOUT: £50
OFFER DESCRIPTION:
UP TO $1050 + 327 FREE SPINS

Choosing a Good Gambling Offer

When selecting a gambling offer, consider the following factors:

  1. Simple Registration Forms: Players prefer short and straightforward registration processes to start playing quickly.
  2. Responsive Design: Mobile-friendly versions are essential for on-the-go players.
  3. Bug-Free Experience: Test the website thoroughly to ensure a smooth user experience.
  4. Attractive Bonuses: Offer genuine and appealing bonuses like no deposit bonuses, match bonuses, free spins, and reload bonuses to attract and retain players.
  5. Security and Licensing: Prioritize trustworthy and licensed sites that protect sensitive data with SSL encryption.
  6. Game Selection: A wide variety of games, including new releases from top providers like NetEnt and Microgaming, keeps players engaged.
  7. Payment Options: Offer convenient payment methods like credit cards, e-wallets (Skrill, Neteller), cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, altcoins), and bank transfers for deposits and withdrawals.
  8. Live Dealer Games: Provide an authentic casino experience with live dealer games streamed in real-time.

Gambling Affiliate Program Statistics

  • While conversion rates vary based on the offer and traffic source, some general statistics can provide insights:
  • Peak Activity Times: Weekdays between 4 PM and 10 PM tend to have higher user activity, except during spring and summer when weekends are busier.
  • Geographic Targeting: Some countries may be more profitable than others due to regulations or cultural factors. For example, gambling is prohibited in some Arab countries.
  • Cookie Lifespan: Longer cookie lifespans benefit affiliates by allowing more time for conversions.


Boosting Affiliate Earnings with Vortex Alpha


Affiliate networks like Vortex Alpha provide a centralized platform to access the best gambling affiliate programs from top operators. By registering and getting approved, affiliates can choose from multiple programs, receive assistance from dedicated managers, and access consolidated affiliate data for performance optimization.

 

Payout Models for Gambling Affiliates


Several payout models are available in the gambling vertical:

 

  • Revenue Share: Affiliates receive a commission (typically 5-25%) on the lifetime revenue generated by referred players. However, some programs also share losses, so approach this model carefully.
  • CPA (Cost Per Action): Affiliates are paid a fixed amount (usually $1-$5) for each new player who makes a minimum deposit, often analyzed within the first week for activity.
  • CPL (Cost Per Lead): Affiliates are compensated for each successful registration, with conversion rates often required to be at least 10%.
  • Hybrid Models: Combining CPA and Revenue Share, affiliates receive a fixed amount per deposit and a percentage of the player’s subsequent deposits.

Some Statistics to Back It Up

Gambling has been a very popular affiliate marketing niche for many years now, and new traffic sources might have had something to do with it. Even though there are no general indicators of conversion rates, since they depend on the exact offer and traffic source, there are some stats we can point out.

Time statistics are one of them. For example, during the spring and summer the activity of users on the weekends is surprisingly low, but peaks during the weekdays. As far as the exact hours go, the period between 4 pm and 22 pm has been the most favorable time to hook users. During the autumn and winter months, the situation is quite the opposite with peak activities happening on the weekends.

When it comes to GEO, it depends on the actual offer and there are so many of them. In some countries, it might be meaningless to buy traffic like Kazakhstan, and in Arab countries, gambling is prohibited so keep that in mind. Also, many African countries might not be the most profitable target, but in other parts of the world, you should definitely go for it.

Cookie Lifespan

There is no point in getting all those clicks if there isn’t a way for them to be properly tracked. This is where cookies come in, and this is why their lifespan is necessary. We don’t need to go into all the technical details, it’s enough to keep one important thing in mind when it comes to cookies and that is: the longer the cookie lifespan, the better it is for the affiliate marketer.

Boost Your Affiliate Earnings With Vortex Alpha

One of the best things about affiliate networks is that you can access all these amazing gambling affiliate programs from one place. There’s no need to go directly to different casinos and research the best casino affiliate programs. All you need to do is register on our platform, fill out the sign-up form, and get approved.

Once you’re in you will be able to choose one, or multiple, affiliate programs to join. Your affiliate manager will be there to assist you, answer your questions and tell you which deals are the most suitable for you.

Not only will you give access to all the best offers, but you will have all affiliate data centralized in one place, where you can compare it and improve your performance.

If you want to claim the best affiliate deals from the top operators in the gambling industry, join us today – The ultimate affiliate marketing network for gambling affiliates and operators!

Payout models for Gambling vertical

Revenue Share in Gambling

RevShare or Revenue Share model is a lifetime revenue model in which the affiliate marketer gets a commission on the profit that the player they referred earn. The commission usually varies between 5 and 25%. So let’s say a player you sent to an online casino makes $1000, you’d get a $250 commission. Not bad isn’t it.

While it does sound good, and actually is good, some gambling establishments don’t only share the profits, but also the losses. What would happen if the player you referred gets lucky and wins money? Well, for an affiliate marketer that would be a loss. So approach the Revenue share model with care.

CPA (Cost Per Action) in Gambling

The most common deal is the payment of the deposit. The minimum amount of the deposit can be negotiated with the advertiser, and usually is somewhere between 1 and 5 dollars.

Advertisers do this with the expectation that new players will actually be active and spend money on their websites/apps. Players’ behavior is usually analyzed within the first week. Those who have put in a minimum deposit and didn’t play, are not liked among advertisers. In some cases, they may not even pay for those types of players.

CPL (Cost Per Lead) in Gambling

In the gambling affiliate niche, CPL usually refers to registration fees. CPLs normally work with partner networks, just like the CPA option. The quality of traffic is what heavily impacts whether this type of model is worth working on. Terms and conditions vary, but most commonly, conversion grom registration should be at least ten percent.

Hybrid Models

The hybrid model merges the CPA model and RevShare. In these cases, for each deposit, you will get a certain amount, usually around $20. Then, with each payment the player you referred makes you would receive a certain percentage of it. The higher the number of players you bring in, the better percentage you get. In some cases, you might even end up with 40% of the player’s deposits.

Another thing that is worth mentioning is that you should not be afraid to communicate with the support. If you’re performing well and having good campaign results, you can negotiate better deals for yourself in most cases.

Gambling Affiliate Program's Target Audience

Let’s define a target audience together. Usually, it is a man, aged somewhere from 25 to 45 years, middle status (average income levels), and prone to gambling compulsion. Chances are, he works a lot and doesn’t have much spare time for relaxation, so opts for the computer instead. 

 

In many cases, this target audience is just looking for ways to break the routine and monotony in their daily lives and that’s why they choose online gambling. When you find yourself working with a target audience, you should keep several simple rules in mind. The younger your audience is, the lower their income and willingness to spend money are. For people aged 18-25, this is kind of obvious in most cases. Those older than 45 can be a good focus group but are not as willing to participate as the 25-45 yo group.

 

One of the most important things you should focus on is their level of wealth. And we’re not talking about oligarchs and millionaires, they have different hobbies. Poorer audiences, on the other hand, might be in it just to use the bonuses and flake. Those users are low-priority and won’t affect the CPA rate. So you should definitely focus on the middle-class group.

 

Another great tip when it comes to targeting your audience is to cause emotions. Some people are looking for a thrill and do not necessarily need to win, and this is exactly what you as an affiliate marketer should look for. Even if you strike one high-stakes fan that loves to gamble for the fun of it, that exact player could bring you in a lot of money for a long time.

 

Gambling is what’s all about. A bet is different, since it’s just a bet, a one-time occurrence while gambling is more dynamic. Betting usually attracts the younger audience looking for a quick win. So just to go over things once again, you’re looking for an audience between 25 and 45 years of age, with average to above-average income levels.

 

But where to look for them? We’ll go over it in the next segment.

website traffic

Traffic Sources for Gambling Affiliate Programs

Like with any other affiliate vertical, with gambling it is also crucial to keep a balance between the return of traffic from the affiliate marketer and the advertiser. To put it more simply, keep a positive ROI. In order to do this, it’s essential to know which traffic source to focus on.

 

Website Traffic

One of the most common tactics, but it does require a lot of effort. The site design should be good and the content engaging and inviting. On some occasions the site might get blocked by the RKN, so keep in mind it’s smart to have other tricks up your sleeve if this does happen.

Applications

Well, applications are not specifically a traffic source, but rather a way to convert it. The traffic does come from Facebook or Instagram where you would normally place the ads. When we say applications, we mean the mobile version of a gambling website, a casino for instance. Users can enter the online casino app directly, making it very convenient and they can always play their favorite gambling games easily. Another advantage is that mobile apps also send push notifications, reminding the players to revisit the app.

Social Media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube)

We’re all aware of the impact social media has. Let’s dive into the most popular ones and explain their relevance for gambling affiliate programs.

  • Instagram is undoubtedly one of the most popular sources of traffic, even though for gambling affiliate programs Instagram is relevant only in combination with applications. Keep in mind that Facebook has impacted the strictness of Instagram and tightened the rules for ad campaigns.
  • Facebook for sure is not a fan of gambling, and gambling accounts get banned when advertising. So, you can use several accounts at once or you somehow mask the ad. Or just advertise the apps like we explained, which can work because Facebook has a great and large audience.
  • YouTube is one of the more unexplored areas. Gambling ads are not banned on it and you should definitely use it to your advantage (as a traffic source). One of the most important things when it comes to YouTube is to set a strategy. One of the paths to choose is to advertise through bloggers or make a video of the promoted resource with links included in the description below.

Native Ads

One of the most popular trends in affiliate marketing from a couple of years ago is native ads. Even though they require testing and running in, they usually have pretty good results. The basis is simple, the advertising information is displayed as part of the content on the website. Native ads display the ads in a pretty subtle way so that website visitors don’t automatically associate them with an ad. This way the visitors are more likely to read it and click on it, plus native ads are not disabled by adblockers which is beneficial.

Emails

Kind of obsolete, but some affiliate marketers still use it as a traffic source. A newsletter might have some results, so we’re trying not to diss it entirely

Gambling Affiliate Program's Target Audience

  • Here are some of the most common phrases used in the online gambling industry. Familiarise yourself with these expressions, as you will be hearing them a lot.
  • Abuser (Freeloader) – a player that gets bonuses after registering with a casino and then takes that bonus without spending it further on the games.
  • Advancer – a player that has a strategy. The same player is usually focused only on one game, for which he believes the strategy will bring money.
  • Buy-in – entry fee for poker.
  • Hosting – is a form of fraud where one player uses someone else’s account and later gives them a portion of the winnings.
  • Hot table – is where lucky players sit for quite me time.
  • Bankroll – the entire sum of money a player can use in the games.
  • Whale – or a high roller is a player who puts a lot of money in.
  • All in action – a situation when a player puts all amount of money at stake.
  • Bonus hunter – players who display bonus funds right after receiving them. Not liked among casino admins.
  • Spin – rotation of roulette or slot.
  • Fail – a minimum win in the process of waiting for a large amount of money.
  •  

Gambling affiliate programs can be very lucrative if you find a good affiliate network to work with. Don’t forget the importance of good research before you dive into any programs. Also keep in mind many factors we mentioned, like the time of the day and what season it is as it may impact your success in the gambling affiliate industry.

 

Join us at Vortex Alpha
The best Affiliate Network for publishers in the United Kingdom, Australia, Europe, the United States, and Canada.

Become An Affiliate