Arbitrage and traffic manipulation | Affiliate series part 3 of 5
These articles are by no means a confirmation of expertise in the subject, we are only looking into lead generation to help us understand what our teams are going through, and think outside the box on how to support them.
Feel free to add your comments where possible, if we’re touching an area that you excel in please do disagree and correct us for better accuracy.
Arbitrage and traffic manipulation can happen in any industry. In the context of lead generation, marketers or affiliate networks buy traffic from one source at a low cost, and redirect it through a different channel. Arbitrage in this case is successful when profit is generated from the difference between the low-cost and the revenue.
In simpler terms, clicks or other “visits” are purchased from social ads or ad networks (at random), who are sent to landing pages with some form of a high-value offer. Often this offer is not associated with a broker, but is rather obscured or “cloaked”, so when leads register, they don’t know exactly where they will land.
Formula: Buy at low cost, redirect and create perceived value, sell at high cost, profit the difference.
This strategy works because of:
- Very low costs comparatively
- Scalability potential is huge once a working funnel is found
- Traffic can be supplied in high volumes (faster than organic traffic)
- Short term commitments, testing a variety of offers (CPL, CPA etc)
- Potentially high returns on conversion
Bottom line: Traffic quality is lower, but the potential high-ticket size still compensates despite risks.
Systemic downsides:
- Strict policies can lead to account suspension
- Manipulative user journeys can damage reputation
- Often poor quality*
- Spillover on frustrated sales team
*Poor quality = bots, dis-engaged users, paid clicks, 0-intent registrants
“But the Ad said” or similar, is a common response that may originate from arbitrage and traffic manipulation.
Respect to those who hold their value proposition higher than the reason someone registers, but we recognize that it’s a struggle to help performance teams navigate, be creative and think outside the box to support results that are a by-product of the above.
Would love to hear your thoughts on how important the reason someone registers is, compared to our value prop and whether a conversation is still an option.
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allFX-Consult is an industry trainer since 2014. Our corporate trainings power teams across the globe, in an effortless and non-disruptive way in an effort to build, rejuvenate, reskill and upskill participants in our space.
Our 1-on-1 sessions with individuals/professionals, aim to capture the real essence of a lead or client, always according to the company’s value proposition. Exploring a conversation (and to go a step further, having an impactful conversation), doesn’t recognize hot and cold leads. Its the mandate we get as soon as we onboard the role of a brand ambassador and representative.
Contact us to arrange discreet, off-the-grid sessions with us to see how this is possible, and change the way you see leads forever.