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Affiliate Manager Interview Series: Sinead Lambert - Paddy Partners
Attachment 419
Sinead celebrates her glorious ascent from Purgatory to Paddy Power
Age: 30
Hometown: Dublin
Favorite food: Cheese
One book everyone must read: “Half of a Yellow Sun” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (don’t ask me to pronounce it)
How did you get started in this business?
I worked for a small middleware company in Dublin, and had no idea what the company did. What is middleware anyway? I saw Paddy Power were hiring and jumped at the chance to work with them. That was three years ago now.
What one thing (event, person, or program) has most influenced the way you conduct yourself and do business as an affiliate manager?
I think working for a brand like Paddy Power. This is where I admit I’m a nerd. I love the brand. When Cheltenham, which is one of the biggest sporting events of the year, was cancelled for a day this year, we held our own Cheltenham in our carpark. Our CEO, Financial Director and Marketing Director got involved and we posted it all on our blog. You should check it out, just to see our CEO falling…priceless!
We also give so much back to our punters through our Money-Back Specials and are known as the “punter friendly” bookie. I’d like to think we’re the same with our affiliates. We’re fair, they know they can trust us, and we have a laugh with them as well.
How does Paddy Partners differentiate itself from other affiliate programs?
We’re still very much at the growth stage, and have a lot planned for our affiliate program this year – so watch this space!
What makes us different from everyone else? I’d like to think it’s because we know our affiliates. It’s very important to me that our affiliates know they can trust us, and if they have any problems at all, they can call us and we’ll sort it out. The forums are filled with stories about affiliates not getting paid or not being able to get in contact with the merchants. When I started with Paddy Power, I had no experience in Affiliate Marketing, and learned it all from our affiliates. Even now if I wanted advice, I’d ring up some of our affiliates and ask for their opinion. We trust each other. Now, I sound like Oprah! But I think trust plays a huge part in Affiliate Marketing, and the only way to build that is to get out there and meet your affiliates.
Paddy Partners offers casino, poker, sports betting, bingo, and skill games. What geographic and demographic markets have the different Paddy Power brands historically appealed to?
UK and Ireland are still our main focus. 99% of our Sporstbook affiliates are UK based. But our Poker and Casino affiliates are from all over the world, and my plan this year is to visit as many of them as possible. Especially the ones in the Bahamas!
Previously our demographic was primarily male across all products, but this has now changed with the launch of Bingo and our Novelty betting. Now, women are getting involved. Plus, we’ll take bets on anything, from the Oscars, to what Nicole Kidman will call her new baby. We’re not just about horse racing and football.
How does marketing each of these products differ? What tends to work well for each audience and what doesn't?
Obviously our typical Sportsbook punter is going to be very different from our Bingo player. We had a huge campaign in Ireland and the UK to launch our Bingo product – “Where have all the women gone?” You can see all our past ad campaigns at www.pp-gallery.com. It caused quite a bit of controversy but it was hilarious. I think no matter what product we’re marketing – Poker/ Bingo/Casino – we have fun with it and people respond well to it.
You studied both International Marketing and Japanese at Dublin City University. What advice can you give to affiliates who were focused on their home market but are branching out into markets they are less familiar with?
How did you find out what I did at college?! Are you stalking me? If you’re thinking about moving into different regions, you’ll need to do your research before making a move. Get on the forums, ask for help from other affiliates. They’ll be more than happy to share any knowledge or experience they have in that area. Affiliate Marketing has such a strong community. That’s what I love about it. Everyone really is willing to help each other out. Group hug, everybody…
We have recently moved into Spain and had to adapt to the market. Spanish people don’t bet on football and horseracing like Irish and English people do. So, we started taking bets on bull fighting, which was a huge success.
Please describe your ideal day off.
Going to a rugby match in Croke Park, Dublin and spending the rest of the day in the pub with my friends and getting a bag of chips on the way home. I’m a cheap date!
I like to keep the drunken Irish stereotype alive.
What’s the key to building successful relationships between affiliates and affiliate programs?
Like I said before, trust is essential. I’m like a parrot repeating myself, but it really is important. So many merchants don’t give affiilates the respect they deserve. I try to meet up with our affiliates as often as possible, and they know they can call us and we’ll be able to help them out.
What was your favorite subject in school? And why was it your favorite subject?
I was a nerd at school and loved everything apart from Religion class. The nuns never liked me for some reason. I think it all started when we had to write prayers for people in purgatory. When it came time for me to read out my prayer in class, I made the mistake of saying, “We pray for those in puberty….” It was an honest mistake, but I was made to stand in the corner for hours.
Do holidays and other seasonal events play an important role in marketing and player betting patterns for the Paddy Power brands? What are the most important betting events of the year for your players?
Cheltenham and Grand National are the biggest events for Sportsbook. I love the first day of Cheltenham, it’s so exciting. It’s like Christmas time for grown ups. Also, the paddypowerpoker.com Irish Open is on at the moment. iIt’s the biggest European Poker event. We’re very proud of that.
What’s your favorite movie and why?
It has to be “Goodfellas.” I don’t need to explain.
What tips would you give to a new affiliate just starting out?
Again, get on the forums. It’s such a great community, everyone is willing to help each other out. Start posting on the forums, ask for advice and people are more than happy to offer advice and warn you of the pitfalls of affiliate marketing. Also, ask the Affiliate Managers; they sometimes know a thing or two.
What’s the first concert you attended in person?
I feel like I’m filling out a form for a dating agency with these questions…My first concert was U2 – Popmart. We had terrible seats, I could barely see the band, but I loved it. I still have a crush on Bono. I know he’s short and getting on a bit but there’s something about him.
If you were casting a movie in which you played the lead role, and you had your choice of anyone in the world, who would you pick to play your romantic interest?
Seriously, where did you get these questions from….LOL!! I guess I’ll have to go with good old George Clooney.
