GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 43 - February 2019

Defining your unique selling proposition (USP) and how you can add value to the operator’s acquisition strategy will significantly improve your chances of getting good deals in place and maintaining a good business relationship over time. To do this, provide the insight they need on your business, site and industry experience first, before you go in and ask for a special deal. If the affiliate manager understands exactly what the benefit is to them in working with you and being on your site, it makes it a lot easier to sign off on varied deals each time. Make sure the facts and figures you present are clear and easy to read, and not out of date. Any affiliate manager worth their salt will check your site out before they even get on the call with you. So don’t try to bluff your way around delivery – that will just leave the affiliate manager in doubt about your actual abilities. Talk about your marketing strategy and any UX design ideas that you are working on to improve customer engagement and audience conversion rates. You may find that some of the issues you have faced you have in common with the affiliate manager, and they may be able to give you guidance from what they’ve experienced and learned from their own UX teams. Share insights with your account manager and help them learn about what’s happening on the front line. They’ll appreciate you for it, and will likely keep you close when news breaks, helping you get ahead of competition and regulatory changes. Define your USP and share insights with transparency Relationship Status: It’s Complicated 37 G P W A t i m e s . o r g