Affiliates – Winning at building communities

For years, iGaming affiliates have been parroting the same mantra, about building the communities in order to « own the audience ». But as AI in iGaming, lots of talk, and few real innovative solutions and products on the market. Still, it appears that it’s at cornerstone of every leaders’ aspiration in the industry, since Linkedin posts and pannels are more and more seen.

Let’s face it : if the affiliate’s strategy stops at driving registrations and deposits, it’s more a middleman than a strong business. The ones that would survive every Google’s Updates, any PPC rates increase or competition battle would have a key factor of success; and here, it’s the community. Not only pushing traffic to operators, but also building trust, fun, events and sharing ideas with what was previously only anonymous FTDs.

This is the logical next step : from traffic to relationship

The future isn’t about shoving users toward a signup page. It’s about building a sticky, high-value relationship with players that lasts beyond their first deposit. I’ve seen subscription-based tipster businesses raking in serious cash by delivering real value – expert betting picks, data-driven insights, and actionable advice.

Combined with sharp acquisition strategies (SEO, PPC), and you’ve got a machine that doesn’t just attract players but keeps them engaged and paying.

This must not be seen as a pivot or just as an « addition » to the existing portfolio. Building communities involve some knowledge and softskills. But affiliates that would double down on tipster models aren’t just traffic sources anymore. They’re partnering with the audience towards their success and in their entertainment journey. That also open doors for extra monetization streams:

1. Subscriptions : recurring revenues from premium betting tips
2. Data & Feedbacks : communities are greats to share user’s experience, ideas, frustrations that usually are sold in other industries.
3. Merch & more : branded gear, exclusive events. Not the most profitable revenue sources, but still extra revenues allowing to reduce the dependancy.

De-risking the existing business by covering a bit more of the value chain

The successful tipsters on the market not only rely on CPA or revshare deals (some of them don’t even make money through affiliation). But they built loyal audiences, coming back frequently on their website, their apps or their socials. Sharing feedbacks, tips and deals.

Operators love them because it drives a higher lifetime value. Players love those because they belongs to something else, with people sharing the same passion.

That’s not only an affiliate thing

iGaming operators would also be interested by having their own communities, building loyalty and breaking the gap between the brand and its players. That makes a difference with others, and users would adhere to the one they’re most familiar with.

Being closer to their customer, would also help in their public image, reducing the noises of some issues in the payments of some bets, like we’ve heard of in France with some operators.

Can a bookie becoming a tipster ? Should they ?

At TGC we do think it’s possible for the right bookie but not for all operators. Some have a better image where others are perceived as running for their user’s money, no matter what.

Still, building a community in iGaming isn’t only linked to tips. There are many other ways that can be beneficial for brands. Like having customers feedbacks, building ambassador program and advertising strategies through event.

If it was easy, everyone would do it.

This isn’t plug-and-play. Because no one can fake a passion for sports, horse racing, motorsports. No one can fake the social abilities it requires to build, activate and run a community.

It needs real talents, either in the writing teams, in the handicappers one, but also in the community management, with people really focused on quality picks and user’s success.

It can also requires very strong product to feel even more different than the competitors, making it a kind of a social app, like we can see in the Banking industry in Europe with Shares, allowing everyone following you to see in what stock you invest and why.

Where to start ?

The easiest way would probably through M&A in order to get the knowledge, the product and the revenues « instantly », limiting the risk of failure of launching your own communities. During the Post Merger, it will be very important to build on the existing team and trying to keep them, since they achieved what some affiliates have struggled to.

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