Why would anybody new want to start up in the casino affiliate business,

[boozaa]

For several months i had been thinking about becoming an affiliate in this line,
so i joined a few forums, read as much as i could,checked out affiliates sites,affiliate programmes etc and what i have seen and read is horrifying,

The grand prive problems
How could they get away with doing something like that, i mean if it was a b&m casino pulling that sort of trick grand prive would have been sued for everything they had,but because its online they can just say screw you,

Affiliate programmes changing there terms trying to stiff the affiliate or non or late payments,

Hackers that hack your sites to try and discredit you, or do things to try and move your sites down in the search engines,and use dishonest tactics that rakes them $$$ whilst the decent affiliates struggle, and who controls the dodgy affiliates the ones that sends thousands of spam emails(mostly to my inbox it would seem) because some casino's seemingly don't want to keep them in check after all they are bringing them paying players,so why should they care how the player signed up,

The list could go on and on

Because what i have been reading I'm just getting the impression that this business is full of thieves and scammers that have the business ethics of a slug ,and just try to con anybody out of there hard earnt money,

Don't get me wrong I'm sure most of you on this forum are decent hardworking people with honest intentions and just having sites like GWAP, casinomeister ect is a step in the right direction and I'm sure they are working hard to help people but where are all the laws and regulations to stop this sort of thing happening, because it looks like if an affiliate programme wants to con me there is nothing i can do about it, businesses cant be run this way, just because it is online,
How do you guys stomach it and why would you want to, i can see by pumacats post that even seasoned affiliates arnt happy so why would a newbie ever want to start, because it just makes me feel like running to the hills

[pgaming]

Believe or not I find being a affiliate is fun. One is provided the opportunity to create a long lasting web presence. Plus the learning curve is excellent and with the acquired skills the opportunities are endless. Being an affiliate is only one aspect of my work online maybe 10%. The rest is devoted to other online ventures.

Just a thought

greek39

[Betpartners]

Because what i have been reading I'm just getting the impression that this business is full of thieves and scammers that have the business ethics of a slug ,and just try to con anybody out of there hard earnt money,

You are not far wrong in that statement.

But, if you stay honest and have the right ethics then you will do ok.

We do have choice and for every bad apple there are quite a few good apples and considering you have done your research you should have a good idea what programs can be trusted and not.

Stay straight mate and you will be just fine,

[shar61]

I agree with greek39. I have been in this business for only 11 months. Yup you run into alot of bad seeds. But as my experience is so far this is something that i have a passion for and i absolutely love being a affiliate. I say give it a go, i don't think you will be disappointed.

[alexpratt]

Remember many people post because they have a problem - You won't see so many "this is amazing" posts so its very disproportionate - This industry is 80% great people and I have to say I have made some incredible friends in this sector, seen places I never thought I would, eaten and partied in venues out of this world and would highly recommend it.

I would never do anything else or work in any other sector - Honestly you don't know what you are missing - Get involved and if you need any help, advice just PM or email me and I'll do my best

[giggles7p]

If your only talking about "gaming" affiliates, are biggest problem is the fact that in the USA its "illegal" so we have no wheres to turn when contracts are broken, or thievery happens, but in other parts of the world i am sure because its legal to be an online affiliate [even though its really not against the law in the usa to be an affiliate, we still have no recourse avenue to turn to when being screwed, but if we were an affiliate of say "walmart" or etc..we could find some place for help i am sure] for gaming in those countries, so you would atleast have some place to take your fight to.

But if your just an affiliate to all the other marketing businesses in the world, i am sure you would not come across these types of problems. So i closing my point is, when this business goes worldwide legal, which i am positive it will someday, then the business will clean up, and thievery and contract changing issues will be a thing of the past. I hope?

Any thoughts on this by older, better affiliates than me??

Thanks
Pat

[TheGooner]

How do you guys stomach it and why would you want to ..

As has been mentioned by posters above - judging an environment by forum board postings is pretty inaccurate. It's like listening to afternoon talkback radio, or beleiving that letters to the newspaper editors give a balanced view.

Negative events tend to be the catalyst to make people post on forums, call up the radio, or write to the editor. Positive experiences and events tend to stay unpublished.

Why do I do it? Because the work from home lifestyle is excellent - running my own business is challenging and enjoyable ... and the money is ... well ... its ....

[MichaelCorfman]

There are good programs to work with, and even may of the programs where you see complaints have good positive working relationships with many webmasters.

But, as has been said above, forum participants are often quick to try to expose problems or work to get resolutions to issues because forums allow that type of information to be shared easily. Good information can be shared too, and there is that here also, but nothing gets people to post more quickly than an issue they care about.

As with the world in general, however, the current economic situation across most industries is not pretty right now. When the business world is strained it often comes out in ugly ways. It can be tough for affiliates and tough for affiliate programs. And when economic realities make it hard for a program to continue in the same way it expected to be able to based on the past, and that meets up with webmasters that are working hard to make ends meet some friction is inevitable even in the best of all possible worlds.

Michael

[KasinoKing]

Remember many people post because they have a problem - You won't see so many "this is amazing" posts so its very disproportionate - This industry is 80% great people and I have to say I have made some incredible friends in this sector, seen places I never thought I would, eaten and partied in venues out of this world and would highly recommend it.

That's so true! I myself usually only post here when I've got something to whine or grump about.

But it would get pretty boring if I started a new thread every month saying "Hey, SlotoCash paid my commission on the first day of the month... AGAIN!"

But I'm not sure I would recommend anyone start out as an affiliate these days - for me it's a hell of a lot of bloody hard work, often for pretty crap returns. If you're not hugely successful it can grind you down.
Best to start out treating it as just a spare time hobby - then you're not so likely to be disappointed.

KK

[Holland87]

Hi boozaa,

As a new affiliate, about 1.5 years now, I can tell you it's hard work but not impossible work. It is not my only source of income, (I work a full time job) because if it was, I'd be sleeping on the streets by now. (read between the lines and run Forrest, RUN! I AM SO JOKING!!)

What I get from the affiliate forums, like GPWA, is a lot of information. The information that a new affiliate can get from members that know the business is (in the words of mastercard).........priceless.

I know, in most cases, who to promote and who not to promote. What to do ethically with my sites and what not to do. What SEO tactics are good and what may put me in the sandbox with google.

I have that knowledge because of the rants and raves I read about on the forums everyday.

So, if you are feeling discouraged by the negative posts, use them to your advantage. Become involved in the forums and use them to your advantage as a tool for guidance and assistance, from affiliates and affiliate managers.

From me to you!

[LiveCasinoPartners]

Like the Gooner said, I too enjoy the lifestyle. The quality of my life is so much better than when I was working outside the home. I get to spend much more time with my son.

Before found GPWA, I had the unfortunate experience with an operator (software firm). After being a part of a community with similar ethics really helped me develope my concept of the honest and ethical webmasters. I certainly feel that these members are the types I would like to hang out with.

[bradz21]

Why not? If you have the marketing skills, time, and patience's to earn affiliate revenue, the opportunity to earn income as a an affiliate has very good potential.

[boozaa]

Thanks guys for all the answers and advice,
I guess most of you really enjoy this line of work and i can see why you would, thats why i was interested in starting, not to mention all the parties you seem to have

I'll take all the advice on board and ill know where to come if i have more questions and decide to go ahead.