But that’s to be expected. Everyone’s online business experience is different; everybody has different approaches; everyone has a different online poker site. Although it runs counter to what I wrote on Friday, I certainly won’t argue with the claim that some of the bigger names may be taking affiliates for granted and short-changing them. But bear in mind, that may not reflect everyone’s experience. (If it’s been yours, please let us know below.)

The bottom line then is to remember that, with online poker, Internet marketing, affiliate marketing, or any kind of online business, there is no right or wrong answer. The most successful guy is usually the one who’s doing something new or cutting his or her own path.

Now, that might sound like a cop-out — after all, if that’s the case, then what advice is valid? Just remember, for beginners, there are still larger rules to follow when you’re out to make money in the world of online poker affiliate marketing.

That said, here’s another beginner’s tip: CPA, or Cost Per Acquisition, might be better for online poker affiliates new to the game, but it probably isn’t a great way to go about setting up a long-term strategy.

Why? CPA means that you get paid a set fee for every player you deliver to a specific poker website — no matter what amount they end up spending. Revenue share means you get a percentage of each player’s earnings.

A newbie affiliate may want to go with CPA because it holds a potential for a bigger payout. After all, it’s easier to deliver traffic than it is to deliver players who are guaranteed to spend a lot. If you deliver untested players who don’t play or don’t win, with CPA, you’re still going to get paid.

But here’s the flip side: If your site gets stronger and you build a following, and start scoring a high SEO placement — and that is the goal, right? — then your player base is more likely to evolve into more experienced players (and higher spenders). And if you’re delivering higher spenders but are still locked into a CPA agreement, you’re probably not going to make as much money as you could.

Of course, a more cynical attitude is that revenue share is better because CPA gives poker sites more of a loophole to avoid playing you, especially if you start earning big money. I don’t fully agree with this theory, but since it does seem to be the experience of some veterans here at PAP, I’ll link to this article explaning the theory and let you decide for yourself.

What’s your experience? Or your preference? Has CPA been better than revenue share for you? Or, maybe the opposite is true? If so, why?

In fact, it may be wise to look twice at some online poker affiliate programs that offer a higher-than-usual revenue share — let’s say, over 40 percent. Why is their revshare so high? Most of the bigger brands, like Full Tilt or the Cereus online poker rooms (Absolute Poker and UltimateBet) offer revenue shares in the 20 to 40 percent range.

And that seems fair, right? Think of it from a business perspective: 25 percent is giving about a quarter of the profit to the affiliate. What is it saying when a poker website will offer almost half the profit it gets from each player to affiliates? It may be up to something; there may be loopholes that ensure you’re not actually going to get the high revshare you’re promised. Or it may be that the brand is weak, and so it has difficulty attracting players — in which case, it isn’t really going to help you bring in traffic. Now, that could make for an interesting challenge, if you’re the kind of affiliate who likes a challenge. But if you’re looking for a solid brand that’s going to bring in reliable traffic, you may want to keep on looking.

These are just basic guidelines, and I’m certainly not implying that a high revenue share automatically equals a weak or untrustworthy brand name. I’m just saying, the best brands usually offer a reasonable revenue share — and a lot more on top of that, like a solid reputation, reliable customer service (trust me, this is something you don’t always get from the smaller brands), and pockets deep enough to offer frequent promotions and bonuses. (More on this in an upcoming entry.)

And on the other hand — and it’s a big other hand — there’s CPA, or cost per acquisition. This is a big enough topic for its own entry, but briefly, it’s better for beginning Internet poker affiliates to factor in all the items listed above, including revenue share, than to put all their eggs in the CPA basket. Over at the Poker Affiliate Bible, Dealer Dan does a great job of explaining why. And we’ll explore this topic in more detail next week.

What do you guys think? Have you been burned by too-good-to-be-true promises of sky-high revshare in the past? Or do you totally disagree — is it, indeed, all about the revenue share?

It may surprise many of you, but the short answer seems to be no. For newbies, anyway, Google searches still show that people seeking info on how to start up a new poker site usually search for forums first.

And that’s because affiliate forums still provide a highly valuable place for newbies to quickly read a huge collection of stories, advice, and info from the past few years on what does and doesn’t work in affiliate marketing. Can you think of any other one-stop source of info that someone who wants to learn a lot about online poker affiliate marketing — and fast — would be better off checking out?

That being said, more experienced online poker affiliates tend to shun poker affiliate forums more and more, and do their networking through Facebook and Twitter. There are a growing number of pros who view  forums as an active waste of time and a distraction from the main goal of optimizing their sites. That makes sense, too; once you’ve learned all you think you’re going to learn from other affiliates, forums sort of become just a place to trade stories and maybe get news. Nothing wrong with that, but dedicated affiliates usually want to better utilize their time. (And think of those online forums that have basically become venues to gossip about industry figures or to complain about other forums … you know the ones. There’s little value in that kind of interaction, and the end result is that it makes the whole industry look somewhat foolish.)

These trends are true of affiliate forums beyond the Internet poker industry, as well. Online gaming forums across the Internet are experiencing an exodus of more veteran users and an influx of more newbies. For these newbies, poker affiliate forums remain a valuable source of quick information that new social media sites still cannot match. And that’s not likely to change. After all, as with the PAP Forum, they still provide a valuable encyclopedia of online poker affiliate knowledge, past and present.

And if a site is still drawing in lots of affiliate newbies, it’s it’s still a valuable place for affiliate programs to advertise.

But for new affiliates, or those just starting out in online business, it’s a pretty unfamiliar, even intimidating, concept. So I thought it would be helpful to start at the start. This is the second of the “basics” of what you need to know for search engine optimization.

This subject has a lot of room for debate and unique approaches. Some sites have managed to do well with fairly difficult or obscure domain names and content. Other sites with seemingly surefire domains or strategies have crashed and burned. There are a lot of X-factors, in other words. But we can still help you reduce what you need to do to a few basic, very important concepts.

Original content: Write. New. Content! Even if you’re saying what’s been said before, say it in a new way. If you don’t have that ability, seek out a writer who does. Copywriting for SEO has become a very in-demand profession in recent years, and even given all the hacks the Internet will inevitably throw at you, there are still many copywriters out there who can write the kinds of articles you need. There are also many sites and independent writers offering these services. I’m not going to list them here for you and give them free advertising, but a simple Google search will help you find them. (Or you might check out the PokerAffiliatePrograms Marketplace section.)

Some of these writers are great at what they do … some aren’t. Choosing an SEO writer, if you decide you need one, is just one of the business plunges you have to make. However, it’ll help to simply Google terms like “poker content writers” or “poker affiliate SEO writer”, etc. If a writer has the ability to rank high for those kinds of terms, it’s kind of a given that he or she will be able to offer some value to your site regarding original content.

And original content is an absolute necessity for Google rankings. The Google indexing process prefers sites that don’t repeat other sites’ copy. And readers don’t want to read what they’ve already read before. So unique content is your first step. It’s a good idea to build up a library of at least a half dozen articles before you even launch your site.

Title Tags: Ranking up there with the importance of your domain name, which we discussed last time, are your title tags. That’s what you decide to name your main home page. (Or the page you want to rank most highly on search engines; presumably, if your site is devoted to online poker, that’s going to be your home page. But it could also be a sub-page, depending on your strategy.)

This isn’t that hard. It’s relatively easy to load your title tag with SEO terms without having to be too coherent. Just don’t sound TOO spammy. For example, a title tag that reads “Internet Poker Directory: Your Source for Making Money with Poker Online” is okay (but not great); a title tag that says “Internet Poker Money Casino Online Texas Hold’Em Cash Easy Win Big!” has all those golden SEO terms but doesn’t make sense. As a reader and/or poker player, I would be quick to click away.

Meta Tags: Again, somewhat easier than the act of creating site content, but not as easy as it looks. You’ll want to load your pages with tags that are search engine friendly (you’ll have to do your research beforehand to determine what those are, but come on, they’re pretty intuitive), but the tags will be much more effective if the terms actually appear in the content, as well. So this needs to be synced up with the page content, and can’t be done too randomly. It should be written along with site content, and if the two are synced up properly, it’ll go a long way towards catapulting your site to the top of Google.

Natural links: Easier said than done, right? But again, going back to original content, the better your site’s content quality, the more other sites will naturally link back to your post. Google (and search engines in general) love natural links; it gives your site authenticity. (By “natural”, I mean, not paid for, or not obviously some kind of reciprocal advertising; a “natural” link is when another site decides to link to one of your pages because your content is just that awesome and they want to share it with their readers.) In Google’s eyes, if a dozen (or preferably, many more) sites have found your articles worthwhile enough to link to, it means you’re legit, that you’re not just an advertiser or a spammer.

And that underlines the fact that, to make money online, you need to act like a pro, and actually create content people will want to read. You can’t just post up the same old content thousands of others have and expect to get traffic. Take the time to think up something original (or hire someone to do so). The payoff will come when others notice your high-quality articles, and link to them, helping to propel your site up the search engine rankings.

More to come in future posts. What do you think? Any advice or personal stories to share? I know this is basic stuff, and most of the community here has already been down this road. So let us know your stories!

The biggest name in search engine optimization is undoubtedly Google. This is an interesting time in the world of online business, in which we’re seeing a growing backlash against Google and its dominance of the search engine market — not necessarily because people have a problem with Google’s service(s), which is/are generally regarded to be excellent, but because there’s a growing discomfort with how dominant Google has become, and that if you concentrate your online business solely on this one company, you’re putting all your eggs in one basket. And that’s generally never a good idea in any business.

Still, Google is the industry standard, and efforts by Microsoft and Yahoo to compete have come up short. Microsoft’s Bing is doing okay, but it’s barely tapped into Google’s enormous marketing share. So as a new online affiliate marketer, you’ll want to start by engineering according to Google’s standards, but, as the Search Engine Journal states, you’ll also want to keep your eye on the bigger picture, knowing to occasionally look beyond Google’s pastures.

Luckily, the basics of starting your SEO strategy are going to be fairly universal, no matter what search engine is most dominant. The most important elements are choosing a domain name that includes your most searched-for terms, and also placing those terms heavily in your content. (But also doing so in a smooth, readable manner, which is something a lot of sites fail at and suffer therefore for housing content that doesn’t appear entirely professional or trustworthy.) Linkbacks are also crucial; I’ll get to that in a future entry.

So the very first step is the domain name. And that’s the toughest part of getting started as a poker affiliate. As you definitely know, “poker” is one of the most difficult words to optimize for, because it’s so damn ubiquitous. It’s everywhere. Go to any domain registrar and search for a domain name including the word “poker” and, chances are, unless it’s something completely obscure, it’s already taken.

So your first assignment: Find a domain name that contains the word “poker”, and hopefully at least one other highly searched-for term that isn’t already taken. The more ambitious (or well funded) among you may choose to buy an existing domain. But for those not willing to take that option, the best solution is to conduct research into the hottest Internet poker affiliate keywords and phrases, and figuring out how to build a memorable, short-but-sweet domain name that has those terms.

Basic knowledge, but essential for beginners. I’ll expand into the intermediate and advanced stages in future entries. Stay tuned, and good luck!

And it’s not going to stop any time soon, either: This year’s broadcast of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) on the international sports network has jumped up a walloping 11 percent over last year.

11 percent. That’s a huge increase no matter what you’re measuring — but in the world of TV ratings, it’s particularly impressive. And the Main Event final table is still weeks away.

“According to ESPN officials, through 11 weeks of coverage of the 2009 WSOP, its broadcasts have delivered a 0.91 average household coverage rating, up 11% from last year, when the average rating was 0.82,” writes Dan Cypra over at PokerNewsDaily.

Most interestingly, the ratings deliver the key demographic that advertisers always strive to reach: males in the age group of 18 to 49. This can be an elusive group to market to, so the fact that the WSOP is delivering this demographic is likely to ensure that the tournament remains a ficture of ESPN’s programming for a long time to come.

So, what’s the benefit to poker affiliates? Well, that’s pretty much up to you and your inventiveness and ambition when it comes to marketing your site — but let’s face it, the advantages of poker getting HUGE ratings on the nation’s main sports network seem pretty obvious. Tie in your marketing to the WSOP, or to programs that offer qualifiers, and you should be able to boost your traffic and conversions accordingly.

Click here for more details on the WSOP’s ratings over at PokerNewsDaily.com.

That’s a huge number of followers, and, surprisingly, most of them have been gained over the past month. Brunson now has more followers than many Hollywood celebrities, and more than other big name poker pros like Phil Hellmuth.

Brunson himself doesn’t quite know what to make of it. In a recent statement, he said that his appearance at the WSOP Europe Main Event and at the Budapest Affiliate Conference may be the reason … or maybe (and more likely), it’s because poker players are becoming more and more famous in the general culture, and he represents them at their most successful and respected.

Face it: Poker pros are becoming celebrities. BIG celebrities. Not just because of their personalities, but because they embody something a lot of people envy: The ability to become filthy rich by playing a game.

A couple of poker player ladies, both WSOP veterans, are currently appearing on the reality TV show Amazing Race. ESPN The Magazine recently featured a (joke) pictorial featuring popular poker pros Daniel Negreanu, Jennifer Harman, Phil Hellmuth and Scotty Nguyen sitting topless at a poker table.

This week, the Chicago Tribune printed a column about how Chris Moneymaker deals with a flush draw. A new TV show about poker is probably on the way. (Hopefully it does better than the last few.) And, on a less favorable note, there’s this Boston Herald article about how World Series of Poker players are trying perhaps a little too hard to become celebrities.

Expect this trend to continue. And it’s certainly not bad news for online poker affiliates, who are likely to enjoy more traffic and search engine hits because of all these famous poker celebrities and the news they’re making. Remember, the more that people see poker in the news, the more likely they’ll be to want to play a few hands online. And that’s where you come in, affiliates.

Since both players have been drawn to London over the World Series of Poker Europe event, they’ve had occasion to jump-start the often-heated tournament. Earlier this year, it seems as though Antonius was getting the jump on ol’ Tom, but there’s been a bit of a lull in the action since then.

“Railbirds and poker players around the world have mentioned in the top online forums that the challenge would take just too much time at its current pace,” states PokerNewDaily.com, “and some were even less optimistic that the players would reach 25K hands before durrrr bailed out of the challenge.”

Well, whether or not any of that is true, the challenge, it seems, is back on — even despite the “$4.2 million hit” to Dwan’s bankroll that the previous action had seen.

Now, though, the two are almost even again. In the latest session, after logging 1,063 hands, and also after quite a few ups and downs, durrrr has finished $418,000 ahead and launched to a $697,ooo overall lead.

Get more details here at PokerNewsDaily.com.

Now, we all know that there’s no lower form of entertainment than reality TV, but in this case, count us among those interested. The poker players in question, Maria Ho and Tiffany Michelle, are pretty well-known in the poker community, if not exactly the biggest names in the game — but they certainly don’t lack personality.

Could this new gig make them more of household names? Could it hurt or help poker’s reputation in the process?

According to PokerNewsDaily, some poker industry observers aren’t enjoying the ladies’ on-screen behavior. Jon Wein claims he had to stop watching “after [Tiffany Michelle] and Maria Ho implied they were rich for the like eighteenth time.” Furthermore, he doesn’t think they’re famous enough to be on the show. “Ultimate Bet has all of these talented pros like Matt ‘mattg1983’ Graham and Adam ‘Roothlus’ Levy and then they have her … It’s a complete slap in the face to them.”

“Considering poker players do not get too many opportunities at mainstream media exposure, an appearance on a reality show can have a major influence on how the game is perceived by those who are not fans of it,” writes Jessica Welman in the PokerNewsDaily article.

Or maybe not. “If [Michelle and Ho] perform well or win, it won’t be because they are poker players,” stated reporter B.J. Nemeth in the article. “If they embarrass themselves and lose, it won’t be because they are poker players. And I don’t think mainstream fans will judge the poker industry by how they finish… The impact on poker is very different from Annie Duke’s presence on ‘Celebrity Apprentice,’ where she was only on the show because she was a famous poker player, and it was brought up repeatedly from a strategy standpoint and in the boardroom with Donald Trump.”

What do you think? Can the behavior of these two little-known poker players on one of American television’s most popular reality shows have any effect on the industry itself? Does it even matter?

Click here to read the original article at PokerNewsDaily.com.

When he won his first WSOP Main Event, he was the youngest player to do so; he also holds the record for the most WSOP final tables. He’s made well-received how-to videos for aspiring poker players, and he’s a constant presence on TV, with his many appearances at the table and behind the mic (he’s hosted the Bravo network’s Celebrity Poker Showdown).

And then there’s the other side — the “Poker Brat”, an affectionate name given to Hellmuth for his bold and temperamental attitude. That’s because Phil Hellmuth speaks his mind, loudly and regularly. He taunts opponents boldly when he’s winning; and he can react badly when beaten. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; it’s poker, after all, a sport that was built on personality and irreverence.

But sometimes this tendency to make headlines with words instead of poker playing seem calculated, so many PR stunts to get his name in the headlines. It probably isn’t; it’s probably just Phil being Phil. Still, it’s hard to know for sure.

Take his latest news-making row for example: He’s recently spoken out rather harshly against casino giant Harrah’s — and the WSOP brand, which it owns, and with which Hellmuth has so much history — for its plan to enter the online casino market, which is currently in the planning stages.

“There’s a huge battle brewing,” Hellmuth said regarding Harrah’s’ plans. Since Harrah’s owns the WSOP brand, Hellmuth is hinting that the other major online poker sites (including UltimateBet, which he represents) could team up and form a new, alternative tournament series as a way of boycotting Harrah’s and its plan to dominate the online poker space.

Could that even work? Could anything supercede the WSOP and its gigantic popularity at this stage? Does Hellmuth really believe such a thing is even possible, or is he just itching for a new round of media exposure? Whether or not the first part is true, the second part has already been accomplished. Well played, Phil.