GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 42 - October 2018

about A little bit more Sebastiaan vanNood His site is casinozoekmachine.com His favorite book is the Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling He is 35 years old He is living in Oosterwolde, Netherlands His hometown is Groningen, Netherlands His favorite food is sushi Groningen pho to by Rudmer Zwerver/Shutterstock; Oosterwolde photo by Rudmer Zwerver/Shutterstock; Sushi photo by Katerinina/Shutterstock; my main page contains more than 5,000 words of information, and my longest review has almost 2,500 words. I want to inform players as much as pos- sible, and I also love to write, so it’s a win-win situation. How do you decide what casinos to promote? I let myself be guided a bit by the market and, among other things, what I read on the GPWA and a number of other authority websites. Furthermore, all the casinos I promote, I check them thorough personally. And if they check all the boxes, they get listed. Are you a full-time or part-time affiliate? Part-time, besides running a household and working full-time in real estate management. Sometimes it gets really busy, but I have lots of energy and I have put my mind to it, having set goals for the future to be a full-time affiliate. A big help and support is my girlfriend, who has been with me for more than 13 years, and as long as she believes I can do it, I eventually will get there. Do you have employees? No, but there is one friend and colleague, Joachim Peters, who recently got involved. He works independently writing reviews on my plat- form and has his own affiliate deals. It’s a big help, and it’s good to occasionally spar about ideas we have for the site. Do you gamble online? What about in brick-and-mortar casinos? I did in the past, but nowadays just sporadi- cally, because all my time is devoted to my family and my project. In the little sparet ime I do have, I occasionally visit a Holland casino. In October, I will be in Las Vegas for a six-day trip celebrating my brother’s 40 th birthday. I’m really looking forward to it. How often do you get to see and interact with other people in the industry? Have you attended any conferences? Several days a week I interact with several affiliate managers and other webmasters. I never attended any conferences, but I really need to do this in the near future, because I think I am missing out on some things. Besides that, I read a lot about the industry on- line. The internet nowadays is our best friend. But I know it’s good to get more involved physically. What traits do you look for in an affiliate manager? How about in an affiliate program? Speed, open- ness, honesty, good communication: Those are all the traits of a good affiliate manager certainly, in my opinion. That will also reflect in the success of the affiliate program. What prompted you to join the GPWA? The GPWA is the only orga- nization that has been a leader in the industry for years. The forums are very helpful, and you really get to know other people, and lots of them are very helpful. What do you like about the indus- try? I always liked casinos. The whole bling and glam surrounding it gives you an escape of the everyday world we live in. The industry can bring you independence, both financially and personally. And that has always been a dream of mine. If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be and why? The huge and wild growth of on- line casinos could use a stop, or at least it could be a little less. They pop out of the ground everywhere. You don’t want to know how many e-mails I get from new casinos that want to get listed. Sometimes it’s hard to separate the good from the bad and the ugly. What do you think the industry will look like in five years? I think the online industry is going to resemble the physical industry more and more. Virtual reality is going to be the next big thing, for sure. What do your family and friends think of your work as an affiliate? They like that I am so passionate about it. When I start talking about it, I never stop. But do they really understand exactly what I do? No, they don’t. But they support me 100%, and that’s what matters the most. GPWA AFFILIATE INTERVIEW SERIES G P W A t i m e s . o r g 56