SBC’s Affiliate Leaders recently engaged in a discussion with Leanne Muleba, Chief Operating Officer of Matching Visions, in anticipation of her upcoming role as a speaker at the CasinoBeats Summit in May. Muleba delved into the mechanics of affiliate networks, underscoring their advantages for both smaller to medium-sized affiliates and well-established industry players.
Muleba advocates alternative strategies for traffic monetisation and underscored the increasing value of traffic sourced from messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram, particularly in today’s mobile-centric landscape. Lastly, Muleba shed light on the criteria that operators commonly consider when forging partnerships with affiliates.
SBC: Can you discuss the importance of affiliate networks in the online gaming industry and how Matching Visions distinguishes itself in this regard?
Leanne Muleba: Affiliate networks play a crucial role in the online gaming industry by connecting gaming companies with affiliates. It’s a way to help those who don’t have the resources themselves to set up things quickly and easily.
I would definitely say that the network is very important to small and medium affiliates. With that being said, large ones who don’t want the hassle of hiring an entire team, chasing money, getting deals done, etc, can also massively benefit from being associated with an affiliate network.
Matching Visions is one of the prominent players in the affiliate marketing space, specialising in the online gaming industry. Here are some ways in which Matching Visions distinguishes itself:
- Industry Expertise: Matching Visions has extensive experience and expertise in the online gaming sector, allowing us to understand the unique needs and challenges of both gaming companies and affiliates. We have over 20 years of combined experience in the industry.
- Diverse Network: Matching Visions boasts a diverse network of affiliates spanning various geographies and niches within the gaming industry. This breadth allows us to offer tailored solutions to gaming companies looking to target specific markets or demographics.
- Technology and Tools: Matching Visions invests in advanced technology and tools to streamline the affiliate marketing process, making it easier for both gaming companies and affiliates to collaborate effectively. We have a great system set up for both affiliates and operators to get the best, most detailed information in the industry.
- Relationship Management: Matching Visions prioritises building strong relationships with both operators and affiliates, fostering trust and collaboration within the network. This emphasis on relationship management helps ensure long-term success and mutual benefit for all parties involved.
SBC: With a wide range of affiliates in your network, how does Matching Visions cater to the needs of affiliates ranging from small to big?
LM: We cater to all affiliates no matter how small or big. I think the most important aspect of working with Matching Visions is that no matter what geographic region you want to get into, whether from an affiliate standpoint or an operator standpoint, we always aim to cater to you. Even if we don’t have experience in a specific market, if you come to us with an idea we will find a way to assist you in the best possible way.
Another important factor is that we handle everything for an affiliate. As previously mentioned, instead of an affiliate messaging hundreds of casinos to try to get deals, get payments, and spending many hours trying to sort everything out, we do it all for them; with payment on time every month, with the best deals for the affiliate and ensuring we have a strong and close relationship with anyone who walks through our doors.
We love what we do and our aim is to be your best friend in this industry, to protect you from all sides and to ensure you get everything you need and more.
SBC: At CasinoBeats Summit, you will be on a panel discussing traffic monetisation beyond traditional models. Can you elaborate on the importance of exploring alternative models for monetising traffic?
LM: It’s extremely important to understand how quickly the world is changing. Not just in our industry but the world as a whole and we all need to keep up with those trends. Every country has different ways of doing things and it’s important to know and understand how they work and adapt to that. Whether it be AI, different marketing techniques or anything new that comes to the table, we need to make use of these methods to stay afloat. Many of the old ways of marketing are becoming redundant and if you don’t adapt and at least try new ways, you will never know what could work and what could be a new way to maximise your revenue potential.
SBC: Messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram are increasingly becoming significant sources of website traffic. How do you assess the value of traffic from these platforms?
LM: This topic is a sensitive one for some in our industry. It can be seen as having a direct connection with players which some don’t like. However, we need to understand that in certain regions and countries like Latin America orItaly, these are the ways they communicate.
Traffic from messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram can be incredibly valuable for several reasons:
- High Engagement: People are way more interactive on this kind of platform so you are able to cater much better for what people want.
- Targeted Audience: You can target the exact audience that you want based on factors like demographics, certain interests and behaviours.
- Being mobile friendly: Gone are the days where everyone has a laptop or computer at home. However, we all know that almost all the world’s population have a cell phone, and this is crucial in these days and ages.
The value can be hard to analyse because it’s dependent on the person promoting it; each person, each country, and each group is different. We analyse traffic by going through a strict process of checking the channels, checking compliance, and checking if they have worked in the past by analysing existing stats and numbers. This is extremely important when finding brands to suit the affiliate to ensure the brand gets good deals but the affiliate is happy as well.
SBC: From your perspective working with operators, is ensuring traffic quality still the primary focus? What are operators looking for in selecting the “right” affiliates to promote their brands?
LM: 100%. Quality is the most crucial aspect of our jobs. We need to work with affiliates that can not only bring good quantity but quality results and players as well. Operators look for affiliates that fit their profiles in terms of language, product and overall experience with the brand. It doesn’t always work for all affiliates and operators but finding affiliates that can perform for a specific brand is veryimportant.
When selecting the “right” affiliates to promote their brands, operators look for several key criteria:
- Reputation and Trustworthiness: Operators seek affiliates with a proven track record of reliability, professionalism, and ethical conduct.
- Quality of Traffic: Operators prioritise affiliates who can deliver high-quality traffic that is relevant, engaged, and likely to convert.
- Audience Reach and Demographics: Affiliates with a diverse and engaged audience base are attractive to operators. They look for affiliates who can reach target demographics effectively and have the ability to tailor marketing campaigns to specific audience segments.
- Innovative Strategies: Operators value affiliates who demonstrate creativity and innovation in their marketing strategies. Affiliates who can offer unique and compelling promotional ideas, campaigns, or content formats are likely to stand out and attract the attention of operators.
- Collaborative Approach: Operators prefer affiliates who are willing to collaborate closely with them to achieve mutual goals. Affiliates who communicate effectively, provide feedback, and are open to constructive dialogue are seen as valuable partners in building successful affiliate programs.
SBC: Essentially you operate as an intermediary between operators and affiliates. How does Matching Visions handle disputes that may arise between affiliates and operators and what are some of the most common issues that you come across?
LM: First of all we always try to ensure disputes don’t happen. We do this by ensuring both the operator and the affiliate are fully informed about the deals we make, the traffic that will be sent and all the terms and conditions to ensure everyone is happy. When problems do arise we aim to protect the affiliate as long as they have met the terms of an agreement. If they have not been met, we really try to make both sides understand the issues and try to find a middle ground.
What is important for us is that both sides are always happy; essentially if we don’t do this, it’s our business that suffers so we always aim to deliver strong and valuable traffic.
SBC: What are your expectations for the upcoming CasinoBeats Summit, and which specific features of the event stand out to you?
LM: We love all things SBC. It’s always the most well-run conference with a great number of operators, providers, affiliates and more. We also love it because it keeps us up to date on what’s going on in our industry and allows us to connect with many different people. These conferences bridge a gap between all of us; we spend most of our working lives working behind a computer speaking to people we have never met. These conferences allow us to put faces to the names and build a stronger relationship with all those we work with on a daily basis!
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Muleba will be speaking on the ‘Monetising traffic beyond traditional models’ panel alongside Silvia Almeida (Chief Media Officer, Clever Advertising) and Eleonora Norbiato (Head of Acquisition, SKS365). The panel, moderated by SBC’s Content Marketing Manager Maria Tsnompilantze will take place on Thursday, 23 May at 10:00am – 10:45am.