Mastering social media can be a game-changer for any affiliate business. Indeed, for many affiliate managers, social media channels have become just as important for seeking and engaging new referral affiliate partners and in some cases streaming is generating the lion’s share of revenue for brands like PaddyPower and Stake who have built a strong presence in the social arena.
The ease of access that these social platforms provide affiliate managers offers a unique opportunity to them to reach new affiliates at scale, help them build credibility, and drive increased program sign ups and customer conversions.
Being good at social media is not as easy as it sounds though. In this article, we’ll jump into some of the requirements, strategies and best practices that an affiliate manager should consider when looking to engage with new partners online.
Understanding the Social Media Landscape
Know your social platform:
Different social media platforms cater to different demographics. Understand the audience on each platform – whether it’s the visual appeal of Instagram, the conversational nature of X, or the professional networking you can gain from being on LinkedIn. Tailor your approach to outreach so that it aligns with the platform and your core strengths.
Don’t try to grow on all platforms at once – you’ll spread yourself too thin. Instead, focus on one platform at a time until you’ve managed to generate around 10,000 users and then leverage that audience to gain traction on a new network,
Stay compliant & relevant to the industry:
The gambling industry comes with specific regulations and restrictions. Stay informed about the advertising policies on each social media platform to ensure your content complies with guidelines. Violating these policies can lead to account suspension or removal of content.
Building Your Presence
Consistency is your new superpower:
If you take one thing out of this article make sure that it’s a consistent approach to posting, that will always grow an account better than someone who goes at it full blast for a couple of months and then stops when they haven’t got the traction they were originally looking for.
Growing an engaged audience on social media is really hard – most of the big content creators today say that it has taken them around 3-4 years to grow their following. Take that as good news though. If it was quick and easy to find an engaged affiliate audience, everyone would be doing it and the rewards would be much less than they currently are.
So, accept you’re in it for the long term and aim for at least one good post day and (if you’re focusing on X) a couple of threads every week.
Optimise your profile for affiliate business:
Craft clear and compelling business profiles on each platform.
The header is the first thing a potential new affiliate sees about you, so make sure that it’s easy for them to understand the value that you offer, what you’re selling and how to get in touch with you if they’re interested in joining your program. If they’re at all unsure or confused, they will simply move on without connecting.
Therefore, use clear and concise descriptions. Include a link to your website or newsletter and ensure that your profile picture and cover images are shared and professional. People follow other people more easily than they follow brands, so try to use a clear and professional photo of yourself so that people can clearly see you and understand what you’re about.
Create a weekly Content Calendar and avoid writer’s block!
Book out some time in your calendar every week to plan your content in advance. This helps maintain a consistent posting schedule and ensures that your content remains of a high quality and on subjects that are interesting , timely and relevant. Being prepared helps take the unease of having to come up with post content each day. Starting with a blank screen every morning or desperately trying to think of something interesting to write can cause writer’s block to any adept marketer, so being prepared helps overcome these situations.
Balance promotional posts with informative and engaging content. Share news, comment on other people’s posts. You don’t have to try to sell to your affiliates in every post you share – it won’t work and that is a sure-fire way to have people switching off from your content and from you!
Simple content creation strategies
Educational content:
Know what your affiliate audience’s current pain points are and aim to educate them in your posts. They may require certain tracking or analytical stats that they don’t get with other platforms – but can in yours. So, tell them about that! Think about what problem are you trying to solve on behalf of your partners? Perhaps you’ll share tips on responsible gaming, explain game strategies or provide insights into the latest industry news. Position yourself as an authority in your niche by posting valuable information every day.
User-Generated Content (UGC):
Encourage your affiliates to share their experiences. Testimonials are a great way to get other affiliates to promote your brand. It’s also a great opportunity to do behind the scenes content which people always find fascinating to watch. Interview your partners about what they like and don’t like in iGaming and then use that content to create your posts and upsell your program benefits within it. Whether it’s a big win, a strategy that worked for them, or a favourite game, user-generated content adds authenticity to your profile and fosters a sense of community.
Visual Appeal:
When it comes to social media, you need to stop people from their endless scrolling so that they can focus on what you’ve written. One way to do this well is to share high-quality images and graphics related to the content you’re posting. Going one stage further and using video content may be suitable for tutorials and strategy posts. Either way, adding media to your plain text helps your post stand out from the crowd and enhances engagement.
Make your posts easy to read:
Having captured someone’s attention, make sure you keep it.
No-one likes a wall of text – it just gives the impression that the reader is going to have to work hard to consume the information, and most people browsing social media are not in the mood to work hard.
Therefore:
- Keep your sentences short
- Remove unnecessary words
- Use bullet points/lists to get your point across
Build your Affiliate Audience Engagement
Respond and Interact:
As affiliates start to engage with your content, make sure that you’re actively trying to build a connection with them. Remember the target at first is to build rapport – NOT SELL!
Respond to their comments, answer questions, and participate in discussions. Show that there is a real person behind the profile, fostering a sense of connection.
Use Polls and Surveys:
Use polls and surveys to gather insights from your affiliates. Ask them questions about what they struggle with, what their opinions are on hot topics and get them talking back to you. Social media shouldn’t be used as a push channel, it can be used to pull information in about your program as well. From there you can leverage how to use this insight to improve your program and engage a wider affiliate audience. Ask about their preferences, favourite games or the type of content they enjoy. Tailor your future content (across all channels) based on their feedback.
Interact with other users:
It’s called “Social Media” for a reason – the idea being that people engage with each other in a social environment. This kind of engagement encourages people to return to your affiliate site or make a connection with you as an affiliate manager they can trust. Most social algorithms will reward those users who are actively contributing to other people’s posts. Therefore, don’t treat a social network as somewhere for you to solely post your news. Set aside half an hour each day to see what other people are writing and leave comments on their posts. If your comments are useful and add value, this is a great way to gain access to followers of larger accounts in your niche.
Industry Updates:
Make sure you stay up to date about the industry’s latest news, trends, regulations, and developments. Nobody wants old news in their feeds. While reporting the latest happenings quickly is a great way to establish yourself as a reliable source of information, the most successful influencers on social media will take things a step further. By combining the news with your own thoughts and insights, you’re not only providing information quickly, but you’re also helping your affiliates understand what the information means to them.
Networking:
Social Media is all about connections. Don’t aim to connect with only certain affiliates in the hope that they’ll follow you and respond. Engage with other affiliates, industry experts, and influencers in the iGaming industry too. Start by commenting on their posts with useful information, then perhaps you can supply them with a link to an article that you wrote which reminded you of a particular post they made. Networking not only provides valuable insights but also opens doors for potential collaborations and partnerships.
Final thoughts
Having a strong social media and outreach strategy is key to successful affiliate recruitment and to your program marketing. However, it’s not easy. It involves a strategic blend of understanding your audience, crafting compelling content, and staying abreast of industry trends.
However, by consistently implementing effective content strategies, engaging with your audience and building out relationships with other affiliates, you can create a powerful online presence that has the potential to become another revenue source for your business.
Need help with your affiliate program?
Get in touch with Cellxpert today and see how our platform can help your affiliate program SCALE.
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