Any advice for new affiliates trying to get their first backlinks?

[jttgamble]

Hey everyone,

Im part of a young team getting into the affiliate space for the first time. We’ve built a small community and have recently also introduced our first website. But the thing we’re struggling with the most at the moment is getting our first real backlinks.
It feels a bit like a closed circle. Everyone seems to work with people they already know, and as newcomers it’s been tough to even start conversations with webmasters or find places where genuine collaboration is possible.

For those of you who have been in the industry longer:
How did you get your first backlinks when you were just starting out?
Are there any strategies, approaches, or communities that still work today for small/new affiliates? We have offered to write blogs and articles but haven't really had sucess with local websites.

Thanks in advance for any advice.
Jonathan

 

[Webzcas]

Hi Jonathan,

The affiliate landscape in iGaming is a completely different animal than what it was when I first started out 20 plus years ago, but some of the methods used back then still apply now.

Obviously producing consistent quality content is key, but without any exposure and visitors, the likelihood of it being linked to organically is low to none. That said, do not keep your eye off the ball when it comes to creating content.

What you can do is network and build up connections and relationship with webmasters working in the same space. In doing so you are able to help each other out by providing relevant links to pages on each others sites. To this extent, it is worth signing up to the various iGaming affiliate forums, in addition of course to your participation here on Casinomeister

Social Media is a very good tool to get your site 'out there' and you should find it is relatively easy to gain followers in this space. Often, X for example, people and accounts will follow you back when you follow them. Also spend some time and effort in engaging with accounts and their posts. Thus helping raise awareness of your own site.

Directory listings are not of the same value that they were back in the early 2000's, but definitely still worth exploring. Same with PR's, it is worth distributing and publishing PR's now and again. The paid ones are the best though.

Will wait to see what other members have to add before I expand on the above

 

[dunover]

Hey everyone,

Im part of a young team getting into the affiliate space for the first time. We’ve built a small community and have recently also introduced our first website. But the thing we’re struggling with the most at the moment is getting our first real backlinks.
It feels a bit like a closed circle. Everyone seems to work with people they already know, and as newcomers it’s been tough to even start conversations with webmasters or find places where genuine collaboration is possible.

For those of you who have been in the industry longer:
How did you get your first backlinks when you were just starting out?
Are there any strategies, approaches, or communities that still work today for small/new affiliates? We have offered to write blogs and articles but haven't really had sucess with local websites.

Thanks in advance for any advice.
Jonathan

To add to the above, always take advantage of mutual reviews offered by many affiliate programmes, where you each write a short complimentary line about the other and place it on your footer or 'friends' page. Ask all your aff managers if they have this system if thay haven't already offered it up.

 

[conker]

You are probably in the wrong place to be asking about backlinks. Many of the affiliates that were at Casinomeister have packed up and found other careers.

One simple thing you can do sign up to a trial with SEMRush or Ahrefs and do some link gap analysis. Search 5 of your competitors and see where they have got links from. You may find that those linking to your competitors are willing to link to your site(s). Keep in mind you probably will need some budget, as many of them will ask for money.

Don't forget to cancel your sub before it starts. AHrefs charges upfront for the year normally, so you will get a whacking great big bill, which is very hard to recover. Best of luck!

 

[jttgamble]

To add to the above, always take advantage of mutual reviews offered by many affiliate programmes, where you each write a short complimentary line about the other and place it on your footer or 'friends' page. Ask all your aff managers if they have this system if thay haven't already offered it up.

Thank you very much for this great idea. Will do!

 

[Nate]

Welcome to the forum jttgamble!

The affiliate space is no longer easy to operate in. A few years ago, you could make money off blank pages with a simple title and iframes (demo games), and Google was none the wiser. Over the years, Google has updated its algorithm to penalize low-quality content and reward well-researched and well-thought-out content (as @Webzcas mentioned).

Since the scene is extremely lucrative, large companies have invested huge amounts of money into backlinking (mostly buying backlinks), SEO, and design to shine above the competition.

Most of us have tried affiliation before and will attest that it is extremely hard to be prosperous online these days - especially with all the competition.

My advice for you would be to build your site and continue to build up your content weekly. You will eventually start to see traffic. Remember, it can sometimes take up to a year for you to start seeing the dividends of your work. Don't give up, but don't expect success overnight.

Nate