GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 1 - May 2007

Affliate Program Manager Interview Series 45 FOR PLAYERS, PARTNERS, &AFFILIATES AT 24hPOKER, IT’S LA BELLA VIT A! C ould you tell us a little bit about your p rogram? The 24hPoker program is one of t he best converting programs on the market. B esides the variety of regular incentives a nd promotions targeting both players and a ffiliates, we have recently launched a dual c ard room system. Players now have the fl exibility to play on 24hPoker, or the newly l aunched Cardroom2, with one wallet. Our p rogram is about creating incentives that i ncrease loyalty and thus conversion rates for o ur affiliates. S incepassageoftheUIGEA,whathas c hanged and how has your program a dapted? The act itself did not h ave a major effect on 24hPoker si nce less than 5% of our revenue c ame from U.S. customers. But we h ad to review all business activities a nd adapt processes according t o the UIGEA. The 24hNetwork, i ncluding 24hPoker, had to exclude a ll U.S. accounts from gaming modules; these accounts are only a ccessible for gaming but only for withdrawing funds. H ow do you approach working with p ortal webmasters? At 24hPoker, we focus our affiliate business on b uilding long-lasting relationships with our new and existing partners t hrough open communication c hannels and a continuous e xchange of information in order t o increase the knowledge pool a nd hence improve the program. T he affiliate deal depends on s everal factors. The high-ranking Google sites know their value and will expect an appropriate deal to cover their c osts in SEO, quality of site content, etc. It is e qually important to nurture affiliates at all l evels by providing tools, content, and know- h ow. What percentage of your business is directly a ttributable to affiliates? 24hPoker affiliate r evenues account for about 25% of the total r evenue, 90% of which is contributed by 2 0% of our total affiliate base. Of course whilst partnering up with a super-affiliate is like hitting the jackpot, our goal is also t o nurture the existing affiliate base and see s mall affiliates grow to top-performing ones with our suggestions. What has the withdrawal of NETeller meant to t he industry and your program? NETeller’s e xit from the U.S. has created unease among c ustomers who had their funds seized – the q uestion is whether going after a reputable payment processor like NETeller is a smart move since this does not prevent customers from switching to alternate, less reliable processors. The NETeller saga had hardly any effect on our program since Europe is primarily our main market. What do you hope to accomplish being a GPWA sponsor? We see this as a perfect platform to interact with the affiliates. We like to have constant feedback in order to improve our affiliate program. What advice would you give to would -be gaming affiliates? The keywords for n ew affiliates are optimization and content. N ew affiliates should identify what the mar ket leaders are doing and provide the same, b ut better. Equally important is to recognise a nd analyse the factors that contribute to s ite stickiness; this is an ongoing activity since the industry operates in a continuously chang ing environment: What is the next big thing? By keeping this in mind, new affiliates will h ave a competitive edge. What makes your program a uniq ue experience for its players? A t 24hPoker, we focus our effo rts on development and innovati on. Business strategy is centered o n our customers’ wants and nee ds, and by customers we me an players, partners, and affilia tes. All stakeholders benefit fr om the uniqueness of the 24hPo ker user experience — the bet ter the experience, the greater t he satisfaction and the happier t he affiliate at the end of the mon th. And the launch of Cardroom2 h as further increased player loya lty and lifetime customer value. What do you see as the m ost essential things that affiliates sho uld be doing today to achieve long-te rm success? Focus on their webs ites and ensure that they have a stro ng foothold. Work closely with t he affiliate managers in order to hav e a heads-up for any upcoming eve nts and plan to promote them to t he players. Most important, affilia tes should see themselves as an extension of the companies/products they are promoting. “Team GNUF – you can plainly see that we mean business. I’m the tall guy in the back.” Nadine Cassar OVERVIEW 24hPoker is operated by 24hPAY Ltd, Malta. The compan y offers different gaming services in cooperation with leadin g software providers along with 24/7 email support . The group that 24hPAY Ltd is part of is listed on th e Stockholm Stock Exchange (under “24H”) and has chose n PricewaterhouseCoopers as its auditors. Software Platform: 24hPoker Earnings: Revenue Share Brands: 24hPoker Position: Affiliate Manager, 24HPoker Age: “Personally I feel that age is irrelevant, since every phase in life has its best moments!” Hometown: “Malta, where the success of the gaming industry is due to the highly educated, innovative, and responsive local human resources as well as to the strong legal and tax legislation already in place to regulate the industry.” Favourite Travel Destination: “I’ve been to Rome several times both for business and pleasure. I’m in love with the city and will never get enough of the cultural backdrop, exquisite food, and high street fashion – La bella vita at its best!” “The Red Bull cans are firmly wedged, I am afraid; I struggle finding hats that fit these days!” GPWA TIMES | 24HPOKER | Nadine Cassar