He spent some time showing me what affiliation was all about and convincedme to give it a go. His only advice was to find a niche and something I would enjoy researching and writing about. I had a year tomake somemoney or it was back to the world of IT. The idea of working for myself, being able to decide when and where I worked really appealed to me and was a major motivating factor. Obviously, an IT background was very helpful as you transitioned into the iGaming affiliate industry. But there were probably some obstacles, as well. What were some of the things that surprised you the most about the industry? I already knew what it took to run a business and, you’re right, my IT background helped me understand what I would need to know, but didn’t tell me how. I have learned to code in PHP, create websites, write content and do SEO. BothGoogle and YouTube have helped me immensely and are normally my first ports of call if I don’t know how to do something. I found iGaming to be everything IT wasn’t. It is colorful, fun, inclusive and everyone I met couldn’t have been more supportive. It’s also a relatively small industry, so I’ve found that if you make an effort to connect with people, you get rewarded. It’s not easy, though. You have to work at relationships, content and creating your authority, and that doesn’t happen overnight. Why did you choose to work specifically with Live Casinos? I was attracted to casino, but didn’t know anything about slots. Live Casino was just starting to become more established. I am a player myself, usually at land-based casinos, and a combination of chatting to someone in the casino about playing online and advice from my friend, I ended up deciding to focus on Live Casino. It was something that interested me and I was keen to learn more. What’s next for Live Casinos? What will the vertical look like in another five years? What about 10 years? Table games will always persist, as will new variations of them. Live Casino will continue to evolve. It needs to attract new players, games with a higher volatility and provide entertainment is the current focus. I think the next trend will be more social games, taking the concept of streaming one step further, allowing players to play together and make community bets, and the like We’ll continue to see more localized games developed and more language options as more countries regulate. As for five to 10 years, I’m hoping we’ll see more games that require player participation rather than just a bet being placed and you watching an outcome. I’d personally like to see some live skillbased games, but I’ve no idea what they would look like. You make it a point to travel around and visit Live Casino studios so you have a great grasp on what it’s like behind the camera. What are some of the most common misconceptions about live casinos and the dealers, specifically? The major negative comments I see and hear are that the games are fixed. I can honestly say that while technology is used, the games you see online are exactly the same as their land-based counterparts. In fact, online is more heavily regulated and audited than land-based games. Every card dealt, bet made, or spin of a wheel is recorded and analyzed in real time. Anything untoward is flagged to compliance teams, so players, and/or dealers can’t take advantage. Being an online dealer is a skilled job. Training is thorough and they take their jobs seriously. I’ve tried the training and it’s Live Casino will continue to evolve . . . I think the next trend will be more social games, taking the concept of streaming one step further, allowing players to play together, making community bets and the like. 45 G P W A t i m e s . o r g
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