These days, gaming affiliates looking to succeed need to possess a litany of skills including, but not limited to:
- Graphic design
- Content writing
- Social media aptitude
- Sound/video editing
- Infographic creation and marketing
- Link building
- Proficiency in SEO, CSS, PHP, HTML, and other important abbreviations
The fact of the matter is that it’s not easy to become great at any of these skills, much less multiple skills. At best, the most one person could probably hope for is to be highly proficient at a couple of the main skills required of a gaming affiliate marketer.
Top names and sites in gaming affiliation are usually multi-person operations for that very reason. A team of experts/professionals will band together to create top sites and products.
But what if you don’t have the means or resources to start a big company? What if you’re a solo gunslinger looking to make it and survive in the Wild West world of gaming affiliates?
Traditionally, the answer for those affiliates has been to outsource; i.e., pay freelancers to do what you can’t. While that does indeed work for lots of people, that strategy relies on you having the money available to cover those costs.
Remember that you get what you pay for though. Overwhelmingly, good product and good service costs good money. But what if you don’t have that kind of money? What if you’re on a shoestring budget and can’t afford top-notch outsourced assistance? It shouldn’t mean you should have to settle for second-rate outsourced work.
Trade Your Skills for Those of Other Professionals
You can still have all your website needs covered if you effectively barter for them with other skilled professionals who possess the skills you don’t have. For example:
- You’re a great graphic designer? Offer to trade banners for blog posts.
- You’re great at SEO? Trade your services for those of a social media guru.
Network and build your site with the help of a great team. Sometimes long-term relationships will be invaluable while other times you’ll just need specific help so a one-time exchange deal could cut it.
Where Can You Find Professionals Willing to Barter?
The most natural place to find help is from your friends. If you’ve got a friend who loves to frequent casinos or poker rooms, maybe they’ll agree to write up an article for you in exchange for you loaning them some casino/poker-related books and magazines.
If you’ve got a friend who excels at video editing and you need some work done, you offer to advertise their services on your site in place of payment.
Professional Forums Can Help You Make New Friends
If you don’t have friends with whom to barter who possess the talents you need to make your websites grow, the CAP Forums represent a great place to look for pros in the industry who could help you out. With a little probing here and there, you’ll quickly realize that lots of affiliates are open to out-of-the-box-type exchange deals.
As for my personal experience bartering, I excel when it comes to content writing. I’ve benefitted from receiving all of the following in exchange for my content writing services:
- GIF banners
- Infographics
- SEO analysis
- Website design
- Content translations
- Android poker app development
Conclusion
The best part of doing all that bartering? I haven’t spent a single dime. Sure, there’s plenty of hard work involved from the time needed to find partners, negotiate barter deals, and of course write up the content they need. But in return I’ve gotten services and products I could never have hoped to try and replicate on my own. Unquestionably, my site has improved and my traffic has grown as a result.
Truth be told, bartering boils down to the old-fashioned style of “link building”. Reach out to people with services you can offer them and you’ll surely receive what you need in return. As the old saying goes: “Time is money.” Even if you don’t have money, you’ve still got the time, energy, and effort it takes to spend bartering. That’s an unlimited currency – and it’s accepted everywhere in the industry.
About the Author
Robbie Strazynski is the Founder of Cardplayer Lifestyle, the go-to news and information source for recreational poker players and fans. He has worked full-time in the gaming industry since 2010 and is currently the Content Editor for the Euro Partners family of online casinos. Robbie has been a part-time gaming affiliate since 2009.