In the iGaming affiliate business, one of the most important indicators is stability. The article below was sent to us by an old friend who has been a solo affiliate in the iGaming vertical for over 20 years. He’s not a public figure but is well-known in niche circles.
Stability is a sign of mastery. If you look at archives of various arbitrage and SEO media from at least five years ago, most of the iGaming affiliate stars from that time, the speakers at those conferences, are now forgotten.
We present to you the opinion of an iGaming SEO affiliate who has been in the industry for over 20 years and has seen numerous operators and superstar teams come and go.
The Story:
This story happened quite a while ago, in the early 2010s. Among many casinos, I was working with 888 (back then it was still called Casino on Net). The earnings were modest — only 1–2 first deposits a month and about a hundred dollars in commission. At some point, I had a conflict with the affiliate program (I don’t remember the details), and I decided to leave, switching to working through an affiliate network.
I also decided to move from Revenue Share to CPA. At that time, the CPA model offered up to $200 for each player referred, with no strict geo restrictions — this amount was paid even for users from Russia. It seemed more attractive: instead of $100 from players under revenue share, I could get $200 just for new users. I asked around among my colleagues where I could sign up for CPA with 888, and I was given a few options. I registered with an affiliate network, but it turned out they didn’t offer CPA — only revenue share. However, the percentage was 35%, while the direct affiliate program offered me only 30%. Not finding other worthy CPA options, I decided to stay there.
And so, a few months later, I referred a player who started losing heavily. He played for about a year, and during this time my commission amounted to nearly $100,000! Now imagine: if I had chosen CPA, I would have received only a couple of thousand for those referred players! Yes, getting a high roller is rare, but the effort pays off, and revenue share rewards you fully.
Now, a Fresh Story:
I’m working with a reliable Russian casino, so all the amounts below will be in rubles. I drove traffic to a brand whose stakes were nearly halved. Over 1.5 years, I brought in 730 new players, but under CPA conditions, only 530 would qualify — the rest made small deposits (many start with 1,000 rubles, and CPA is usually paid out from deposits of at least $50).
During this period, my commission under revenue share amounted to 2.35 million rubles, and by the end of the active period, my income reached 300,000 rubles a month. About a year has passed since I stopped driving traffic, and during that time, I’ve earned another 1.56 million. Furthermore, 20 previously registered players made their first deposits, and 30 qualified for CPA. Naturally, payments continue, and even with current income reduced to 100,000 rubles per month, I will earn another 0.5–1 million in the next year, and passive income will continue to come in.
Now let’s compare CPA and revenue share. At another reliable casino, for branded traffic from the Russian-speaking segment, I’m offered $25 per player. But let’s assume I find a quality casino that offers $50 per player (around 5,000 rubles at the current exchange rate, though the exchange rate was lower a year or two ago). In that case, over 1.5 years, I would have earned 530 × 5,000 = 2.65 million rubles — slightly more than with revenue share.
However, things would change in the second year. CPA would have only brought 30 × 5,000 = 150,000 rubles, and in total, after 2.5 years, I would have earned 2.8 million. Meanwhile, with revenue share, my earnings would have already amounted to 3.9 million, with a projection of over 5 million in the future. As you can see, the difference is roughly two times in favor of revenue share!
Stability is a sign of mastery. If you look at archives of various arbitrage and SEO media from at least five years ago, most of the iGaming affiliate stars from that time, the speakers at those conferences, are now forgotten.
We present to you the opinion of an iGaming SEO affiliate who has been in the industry for over 20 years and has seen numerous operators and superstar teams come and go.
The Story:
This story happened quite a while ago, in the early 2010s. Among many casinos, I was working with 888 (back then it was still called Casino on Net). The earnings were modest — only 1–2 first deposits a month and about a hundred dollars in commission. At some point, I had a conflict with the affiliate program (I don’t remember the details), and I decided to leave, switching to working through an affiliate network.
I also decided to move from Revenue Share to CPA. At that time, the CPA model offered up to $200 for each player referred, with no strict geo restrictions — this amount was paid even for users from Russia. It seemed more attractive: instead of $100 from players under revenue share, I could get $200 just for new users. I asked around among my colleagues where I could sign up for CPA with 888, and I was given a few options. I registered with an affiliate network, but it turned out they didn’t offer CPA — only revenue share. However, the percentage was 35%, while the direct affiliate program offered me only 30%. Not finding other worthy CPA options, I decided to stay there.
And so, a few months later, I referred a player who started losing heavily. He played for about a year, and during this time my commission amounted to nearly $100,000! Now imagine: if I had chosen CPA, I would have received only a couple of thousand for those referred players! Yes, getting a high roller is rare, but the effort pays off, and revenue share rewards you fully.
Now, a Fresh Story:
I’m working with a reliable Russian casino, so all the amounts below will be in rubles. I drove traffic to a brand whose stakes were nearly halved. Over 1.5 years, I brought in 730 new players, but under CPA conditions, only 530 would qualify — the rest made small deposits (many start with 1,000 rubles, and CPA is usually paid out from deposits of at least $50).
During this period, my commission under revenue share amounted to 2.35 million rubles, and by the end of the active period, my income reached 300,000 rubles a month. About a year has passed since I stopped driving traffic, and during that time, I’ve earned another 1.56 million. Furthermore, 20 previously registered players made their first deposits, and 30 qualified for CPA. Naturally, payments continue, and even with current income reduced to 100,000 rubles per month, I will earn another 0.5–1 million in the next year, and passive income will continue to come in.
Now let’s compare CPA and revenue share. At another reliable casino, for branded traffic from the Russian-speaking segment, I’m offered $25 per player. But let’s assume I find a quality casino that offers $50 per player (around 5,000 rubles at the current exchange rate, though the exchange rate was lower a year or two ago). In that case, over 1.5 years, I would have earned 530 × 5,000 = 2.65 million rubles — slightly more than with revenue share.
However, things would change in the second year. CPA would have only brought 30 × 5,000 = 150,000 rubles, and in total, after 2.5 years, I would have earned 2.8 million. Meanwhile, with revenue share, my earnings would have already amounted to 3.9 million, with a projection of over 5 million in the future. As you can see, the difference is roughly two times in favor of revenue share!