Kai Manyeh, Senior Account Manager, at RavenTrack, talks about the importance of data tracking and reporting in maximising the partnership between affiliates and operators.
Just how important is data and tracking for both affiliates and operators?
Data is crucial for both affiliates and operators to understand how the partnership is performing. For the affiliate, they need to be able to see the number of clicks, registrations, first time deposits and, of course, revenues, and they also need to be able to dig into things like location, device, traffic source, commission breakdown and more. Operators need to be able to see a similar data set but with more of a focus on conversion rates, revenue and return on investment. Effective and accurate tracking is what makes this data available to both parties and ultimately acts as the foundation of the relationship between the two. Without reliable data and tracking, cracks can quickly appear and ultimately see the partnership break down. At best, it prevents the affiliate and the operator from maximising the potential of the collaboration.
How can both parties make the most of the data and insights being generated?
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The operator needs to use a modern and powerful affiliate tracking platform. By doing this, they can gather data in real-time and be confident that it’s accurate. This data needs to be understood and analysed, and this means putting it into reports. At RavenTrack, we have more than 20 report templates so that affiliates and operators can access the information they need quickly and easily. It’s also important for both parties to work together to understand what the data and reports are saying and to use this insight to optimise campaigns, commercials and other aspects of the partnership. The nature of performance marketing means affiliates and operators are incentivised to maximise the opportunity and with the right data and reporting, they can do just that.
What key metrics do reports need to cover? And do these metrics differ for affiliates and operators?
Key metrics differ slightly for operator and affiliate but with some overlap. For affiliates, the focus is on earnings per click, traffic sources and commission breakdown while for operators, it’s on clicks, registrations, deposits, gross revenue, net revenue, and ROI. Reports should also cover things like geos, device type, browser and more. Of course, this data needs to be organised and presented in the right way and that’s why reporting is so important. Ultimately, it helps affiliates understand the landing pages, content, creatives and campaigns that are performing best and then use this insight to optimise and improve. And for operators, it’s all about understanding how each affiliate partner is performing and ensuring the wider affiliate program is hitting its KPIs, especially when it comes to return on investment.
Just how granular do reports need to be?
They can be as granular as the affiliate or operator needs. For some, this means deep and comprehensive reports that really dig down into the data across a wide range of touchpoints. But for others, it could simply be looking at how a specific creative has performed in terms of clicks, conversions, and revenues. There’s always a risk of analysis paralysis with overly complex reports, but ultimately, it’s up to the affiliate and operator as to how granular they want to go. That’s why we offer such a wide range of reports and the capabilities to go deep into the data should an affiliate or operator wish to do so.
How can the insights found in reports be used to optimise the partnership between affiliates and operators?
By sharing insights, affiliates and operators can proactively foster greater trust and collaboration. There’s potential for mistrust between both parties, but by leveraging the power of data, reporting and working together, this mistrust not only gets pushed aside but the full potential of the partnership can be realised. Specifically for affiliates, it allows them to improve the quality of the traffic they send to the operator, which obviously benefits both stakeholders. For operators, it enables them to identify high-converting affiliates and then work with them to tailor campaigns to their strengths while at the same time ensuring a strong ROI. Affiliates play a crucial role in customer acquisition for operators but many still run programs that are not performing as well as they could be simply because they do not provide accurate tracking and comprehensive reporting.
Besides reporting, how can affiliates and operators unlock the full potential of their partnership?
At RavenTrack, we break this down into three stages – track, optimise and grow. Tracking means generating clear and reliable data, optimise means turning this data into actionable insights, and grow means building stronger partnerships. RavenTrack underpins these steps, by providing the data and reports needed to create relationships where both operators and affiliates can thrive.