Interview with ChanPoker.com affiliate director Brandon Berndt

If you’ve been around the poker affiliate game for a few years, you’ve probably met or heard of Brandon Berndt. Brandon has always been an active member of the poker and casino affiliate online communities, as well as being a top affiliate, affiliate manager and also an intern for PokerAffiliateWorld.com.

I met with Brandon last year at the Vegas CAC and have been keeping in touch with him ever since. Brandon is currently the man in charge of the ChanPoker.com affiliate program (special deal at the bottom of this post), and he decided to take some time out of his busy day to answer a few tough questions for me about the poker industry.

Briefly explain to me how you got into the poker affiliate industry…

• I got into the poker affiliate industry as a poker player. I played online a lot while in college, and was introduced into poker affiliate marketing and that was that.

Let’s say for example, I am a new or small affiliate and can’t drive much traffic yet. What’s the best way of letting an affiliate manager know that I’m worth the effort, and that I’m in this for the long haul?

• You can tell when a new affiliate “has it”. They show a level of commitment and the desire to learn the right way to promote. Make sure you do not make it about the money. Obviously this is the goal, but you must first learn the steps. Understand that affiliate managers have a lot of affiliates to work with, if you are not producing, yet taking up a lot of their time, they are less likely to spend time with you down the long haul. Be efficient with their time, and work hard, and they will help you a lot.

CPA affiliates who consistently produce quality players usually try to negotiate a higher CPA with their affiliate managers. What are the main factors an affiliate manager looks at when deciding what type of increase you can get in CPA?

• Two main focus’s… 1. What sort of volume you are sending and the average value of your players. 2. What does it take to insure there will be a good net profit, and what it will take to insure that you are receiving solid exposure on the affiliates sites.

What’s your overall stance on blackhat affiliates? Is blackhat SEO acceptable, provided the content is original and not stolen? If not, then where do you draw the line?

• I will not allow blackhat affiliates. I think it is important for a program to take a stance internally and externally. Too often affiliate programs put a front up that they are “against” but really they do and just keep it hushed up. I want my affiliates to be honest and hard working just like I am and my program is. I won’t have a Grey area.

Why do you think there are still companies that believe their affiliate programs are more of an inconvenience than a valuable asset?

• I think those companies aren’t running their affiliate program correctly then. Affiliate programs, if done right, are insanely profitable. For a poker room, even if you are breaking even every year for the affiliate program, you are still growing your player liquidity which is extremely important.

Let’s look ahead three years from now. Where do you think online poker will be in the United States?

• I think we will be on the cusps in three years. We’ll be in a fight to regulate the industry, and be very close to doing so. I still think we are 4-5 years away from regulation, but we’ll be closer. I also believe it will get worse, before it gets better.

Any good behind the scenes type stories to share?

• Hmmm…can’t say too much or else they aren’t behind the scenes. I would just say go to the conventions, you have know idea what will happen next.

The ChanPoker affiliate program has just launched. Sell me on it…

• I think the two most valuable aspects of our program are our brand (Johnny Chan), and the idea that it was built around. Having Johnny Chan as the face of your poker room is extremely valuable. Chan is one of the top three biggest icons in the history of the game. It is very easy for affiliates to market our room by using his accomplishments and place in poker history. I think our most important aspect though, is the fact that I created this program as an affiliate. Our program is built by an affiliate, for affiliates. Every aspect that I created in our program was made to please affiliates. I think this aspect is lost too often in affiliate programs, and I was thrilled to be able to do so for ours.

**Special affiliate deal**

Brandon has set us up with a special affiliate deal for all readers of JustinGoff.com. Instead of getting the standard 25% MGR, everyone who contacts me will automatically get bumped up to 30% MGR! Just sign up here and then send me an email with your name and website, and I’ll hook it up for you. It’s a win-win for all of us!

Again I want to thank Brandon for doing this interview. If you’re looking for a dedicated affiliate manager who’s always available, you won’t find anyone who’s more eager to help than Brandon.