GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 35 - June 2016

This sportsbook affiliate says growing pains can be tough, and learning SEO is the only way to go Your site, sbat.com, launched about four years ago. Before that, you worked in IT. What made you want to work in iGaming? Before the iGaming sector, I owned an IT solutions business. One of my customers asked me to create a gambling website. When doing market research, I stumbled across two Facebook pages using affili- ate links and started to investigate. At the time, social media was a new opportunity, and I decided I should have a go. How many employees do you have now? We have 14 at our offices in Andover, with an additional 18 contractors and writers. Crazy really; never ever thought the busi- ness would grow this quickly. What was the transition from working for somebody to working for yourself like? Could you imagine ever going back to working for someone else again? Working for someone else would kill me now! I’m so used to my schedule. I’ve been working for myself for a long time now. It’s always easier to make ideas hap- pen when you are the driving force. Has running an iGaming affiliate portal been as rewarding (both in a financial and personal sense) as you hoped it would be? I’m never one for talking about money, but the industry has allowed me to grow as a person and business very quickly. I love SBAT as a business, though growing so quickly can have its stresses. What were the greatest challenges you faced entering what was already a pretty crowded sports betting market for affili- ates? When I first started, it seemed very cutthroat. This scared me, since I believe in most industries businesses can grow together. Facebook and Twitter were still very new in the iGaming world, so being aggressive with marketing allowed us to progress at a good rate. Each day I con- tacted other pages and websites, hoping to work together. You’ve posted on the GPWA Forums that you’re looking to purchase sites to di- versify your portfolio. Have you had any success in that regard? Yes, in and out of iGaming, we are looking to expand our portfolio. I’m hoping to have sites for more countries and regions. Though buy- ing sites can be a minefield — I think you always value your own creations more. Your SEO is all handled in-house, cor- rect? How would you recommend new affiliates handle SEO on a tight budget? This is one of my biggest hurdles in iGam- ing. Ninety-eight percent of those offering SEO services don’t understand the indus- try, the 1% that do are snapped up, and the 1% that are available are available for a reason. That may seem harsh, but it’s just my experience. So for me, the best way to attack SEO is to learn, learn and learn some more! Take on opinions and research them. Rather than trying to hire the 1% that are amaz- ing, we’ve tried to get them to train us. We are taking things slowly with sbat.com though, and checking what works with our other sites first. Sports betting can be a tough business, especially when your players are doing well. How volatile are your revenues from month to month? As a company we learned our lesson on Boxing Day in 2014. I looked at the coupon that day and called it perfect —my nan could have picked the winners that day. Our issue? We had all our eggs in one basket. We’d made huge investments and hadn’t had a negative month, but that day made me look at our business plan again. After the initial shock, we moved on and now joke about that day. Month to month we seem to be OK now; we target a range of sports, which helps spread the risk. Do you bet on sports yourself? What’s your favorite football team? I love bet- ting on T20 cricket, and the Indian Premier League is about to start. I bet on horse racing for big events and most weekends on football. Favorite team? Well, this one hurts — Glasgow Rangers. Probably the hardest 6-7 seasons as a fan. Though I am a season ticket holder for the Saints, so it’s not all bad. What traits do you look for in an affiliate manager? How about in an affiliate pro- gram? With an affiliate manager, one who realizes they aren’t the only bookmaker we deal with. Sometimes it’s hard to con- vert enhanced offers when another bookie has trumped them. With the program, easy-to-read stats and payments on time. What’s your preferred method of com- munication with affiliate managers? Skype — it’s easy to get questions an- swered quickly. What prompted you to join the GPWA? Trying to learn more about the industry and keep on top of my game. What do you like about the industry? The constant changes and ability to constant- ly target new areas. The conferences are good fun, too. What do your family and friends think of your work as an affiliate? When I first started, everyone was confused! My fam- ily understands now, though. My friends call me Chandler Bing; they’re still unsure what I do. GPWA AFFILIATE INTERVIEW SERIES Gary Gillies gillies8888 GPWA Affiliate Interview Series