Working with a direct advertiser. Pros and cons

Marketing in the format of affiliate marketing is diverse and specific in many ways. One of the most important moments at the start is to choose a reliable partner. So affiliates can start working both: with a direct advertiser and drive traffic to affiliate program links. In the article, we reflect on the positive and negative aspects of each option, plus we attach a bonus: a list of direct advertising affiliates for the main verticals.

Cooperation scheme

Some webmasters still don’t understand the whole mechanism of affiliate marketing. It looks like this:

• A certain company has its own product and wants to get new customers. It could be a bookmaker that needs registrations and deposits, or a gardening product manufacturer that wants to increase sales.
• To remove the risks regarding product promotion, the company puts its product on the webmaster market, and it acquires the status of an offer. For each lead, the company pays a percentage according to one or another model.
• The place where most webs choose an offer to work with — is an affiliate program. It works on the principle of an exchange — it unites customers (companies with their product) and performers (affiliates). At the same time, the affiliate program takes its small share from the payment for each lead received by the webmaster. At the same time, the share can be charged both from the payment t the web, and separately from it (directly from the affiliate program)

However, with the development of technology, the expansion of the media space and the community of partners, many companies have considered that an intermediary in the form of an affiliate program is not at all necessary. Large product owners began to establish their own affiliate programs and promote offers directly. Such companies are called — direct advertisers.

Comparison of direct advertising and affiliate programs

Both options have their advantages and disadvantages. Webmasters choose between them based on their experience, wishes, market feedback and the proposed conditions. Let’s make a reservation in advance: further in the article, an affiliate program will mean an intermediary that does not have its own product, and a direct advertiser will mean a company, respectively, promoting its own offers. However, in essence, direct advertising is also an affiliate program. An example is Everad — a network with its own nutra-offers. Despite the fact that the company offers its own products, it has all the advantages of both affiliate programs and a direct advertiser.

It’s hard to say what came first. But one thing is clear: at the time of the birth of affiliate marketing, manufacturers did not yet have the opportunity to promote offers on their own, so most companies resorted to the services of affiliate marketing. Let’s briefly analyze the pros and cons of affiliate programs:

• Extensive selection of affiliate programs on the market. Some representatives specialize in a specific vertical or topic (Gambling Pro – gambling), others offer offers from a dozen niches at once (Alfaleads – sweeps, gambling, betting, dating, etc.)
• Availability. Affiliate programs are open to everyone, and most of them accept even beginners and webmasters with minimal experience. Only a few close their doors to the inexperienced webmasters over time.
• The affiliate program is interested in your positive results. To attract new partners, it will provide you with a personal manager, tracker and provide you with maximum opportunities for work. So, some gambling programs give out applications for running traffic. Everad, for example, can offer discounts and trials for the services a webmaster needs.
• Since the income of the affiliate program depends on the number of received leads, it will defend your traffic as much as possible. Some affiliate programs have their own traffic analytics systems. But the final result depends on the company that owns the offer.
• Bonuses. Most affiliate programs have their own bonus programs and offer bumps (rate increases), points that can be exchanged for gifts and much more

The main disadvantage of working with an affiliate program is the need to pay a percentage. This factor is often decisive when choosing direct advertising, because it can offer a higher rate (after all, in most cases, the percentage for affiliate programs is taken from the payment to the web). Another disadvantage (compared to private advertising) is the choice of offers. In an affiliate program, thousands of webs get access to any offer and start squeezing it out, while an advertiser can offer a closed offer, which only a few people are attracted to. This will give both a higher bid (without the percentage of affiliate programs) and better results of advertising campaigns – after all, the product is unique.

Direct advertisers can be private and collaborate with certain webs and teams, or it can be open and open to everyone. The main advantage is the saving of funds (no need to pay an affiliate program). Since the traffic goes directly, the result comes faster. Another advantage of working with direct advertising is faster payouts (in most cases).

Unfortunately, private ads do not accept newcomers. However, public companies are happy to help, even if you have no experience.

List of direct advertiser affiliate programs 

Below are the main affiliate marketing verticals and their main direct ad representatives.

Nutra:

• Everad – on the market since 2012
• Lucky Online (formerly LuskyShop) – one of the largest affiliate programs in general
• TerraLeads Reviews

Gambling:

• V.Partners – direct advertising of Vulkan casino. Often exhibited at booths and sponsored events
• Pelican Partners owns several large and medium-sized gambling projects. 

Betting:

• 1xbet affiliates is the largest bookmaker offering a referral program not only for webmasters, but also for ordinary people
• Mostbet, 1win, Leon and dozens of other bookmakers also make it possible to drive traffic directly to the bookmaker, bypassing a third-party affiliate program. 

Crypto:

• Aivix is a large affiliate program, has a large list of offers, positions itself as direct advertising

Dating:

• Cpamatica – has both its own offers and resale
• Traffic partner

Conclusion

Don’t forget that everything is relative. For example, advertisers may offer bonuses that some affiliate programs do not have, and vice versa. Many direct advertisers have joined as affiliate programs and have ceased to position themselves as product owners, having become more open.

However, if we talk about private advertisers, the choice is up to the webmaster. Before making a decision, it is worth analyzing the reviews, your experience and opportunities. After all, most private ads have higher requirements (mainly traffic volume and quality).