Affiliate Interview Series -- Rob Hutchinson -- OnlineBingoClub

**GPWA Gary** · 28 October 2009, 10:53 am

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Age: 38
Hometown: London
City currently residing in: Amsterdam
Favorite food: Sunday Roast
One book everyone must read: Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill
Sites: Unluckyforsome.co.uk, Onlinebingoclub.co.uk

Tell us about your two sites. What makes them different from other affiliate bingo sites?
Unlucky for Some is one of the most up-to-date bingo portals. We pride ourselves on the original content we add to our site, normally over 50 articles per week. We have a blog and news section for the more serious issues relating to bingo news, whether online or offline. We have been told that online bingo operators actually use Unlucky for Some as a way of keeping up with what their competitors are up to.

The Online Bingo Club offers bingo players a weekly newsletter in which we strive to bring our members some great exclusive offers from bingo sites. This year we redesigned the site; we added a blog and news section, and also included reviews of some or our most profitable bingo operators. Working on both these sites we have some great content writers who are actual bingo players, which really helps when you write about promotions as seen through the eyes of a player.

In your mind, what does the typical bingo player look for in a bingo room?
Since starting my sites I have always promoted free bingo offers, such as no-deposit bonuses. These work very well as most players like to try before they buy. Guaranteed jackpot games seem to work very well for retention also, especially now, as some sites offer crazy one-off games with prizes of cars and luxury holidays.

For affiliates who are looking to expand into bingo, what things should they think about before making a decision?
If I had a decent casino or slots site, I would definitely add a bingo section. Most casino operators now offer bingo, so it shouldn't be too much work to grab a few extra links. Starting a bingo site from scratch might be really tough going now unless you know your stuff in SEO and don't go for main keywords. PPC is available now for affiliates and can be affordable if you target the long tail stuff.

What prompted you to join the online gambling industry? Why did you become an affiliate? What were you doing before you became an online gambling affiliate?
I have always been looking for opportunities and always made decent money, but five years ago I sold up in England and moved to Holland to be with my now wife. I started from scratch and got a business going in the Dutch flower auctions, selling flowers wholesale to UK florists. While I was doing this I started looking at ways to make money online, as getting up at 5 a.m. didn't suit me. One day while looking at some forums I found an affiliate network site which had some bingo sites listed; ?0 CPA for one player sounded to good to be true, so I knocked up a Web site and the rest is history, as they say.

“Unluckyforsome?is an unusual name for a gambling site. How did you come up with it? And why is everything so pink?
When I first started as an affiliate I knew nothing about SEO or keyword domain names. I thought it would be funny to call the site after a bingo number. I tried every number available until I got to 13, and Unlucky for Some it was. As most bingo players seem to be female, pink seems to be the in color for bingo sites ?and it was the only decent-looking pink template I could find as well.

What prompted you to join the GPWA?
Obviously when I first started I knew nothing about anything. It’s in forums that I learned everything, from Web site design to SEO. GPWA has been a great source of information for me. I may only be a lurker most of the time, but it’s these types of forums and blogs that have helped me teach myself all the skills needed to be successful in this game.

You recently announced a “Show Us Your Bingo Wings?marketing campaign. What are bingo wings? How did you come up with the campaign? How’s the campaign going so far?
It wasn't my idea! I was talking to a few PR companies about some fun stuff we could do on Unlucky for Some and this popped up. Bingo Wings are the flabby bits under your arms, and when someone wins bingo they wave their arms around and you can see their Bingo Wings. We are asking people to send in a picture of their Bingo Wings. The response has been massive, and we have now turned it into a “Bingo Wings Idol?competition. The winner will be the main star in our TV advertising campaign at the end of the year. So far we have been in the Independent newspaper and also the Daily Star magazine, with lots of interest from other major newspapers and online sites.

What’s your favorite vacation spot? Why?
For the last three years we have been going to a very nice resort in Portugal. Most affiliate managers think I live there now as we go three to four times a year. It’s perfect for my two boys, who are three and four years old. It has great kids?facilities, nice spas for the wife and a good Internet connection for me!

If you had to list the keys to success as an affiliate, what would they be and why?
The main key to success as an affiliate is to get your site ranking well on Google. Second would be to pick the right sites to promote that will actually convert all this traffic you are getting from the search engines. Third would be to keep working hard at SEO and getting traffic; if you have lots of traffic then affiliate managers will love you.

If someone was cooking the perfect dinner for you, what would you want? And why?
The perfect dinner must be the traditional English roast, with all the trimmings including Yorkshire puddings.

**eaton2003** · 28 October 2009, 11:27 am

If you had to list the keys to success as an affiliate, what would they be and why?
The main key to success as an affiliate is to get your site ranking well on Google. Second would be to pick the right sites to promote that will actually convert all this traffic you are getting from the search engines. Third would be to keep working hard at SEO and getting traffic; if you have lots of traffic then affiliate managers will love you.

Agreed... that rankings is what makes or breaks affiliates.

**GamTrak** · 28 October 2009, 12:01 pm

Very nice interview Rob!

BTW you live in the best city there is! I love Amsterdam and can't wait to go back!

I don't do much bingo, but plan on it in the near future so your interview really gave me some ideas. Good job.

**Topboss** · 29 October 2009, 1:52 am

Great interview Rob.
I also had a look at your site and loved it. Nice and easy to navigate, colours are easy on the eye and loads of info.
I have one or 2 bingo sites myself, but hardly get any players - of course now that I see the calibre of your site - I know what i am doing wrong ...everything

Well Done!

**AE-Martyn** · 29 October 2009, 4:45 am

Originally Posted by garyt

Age: 38
Hometown: London

And the rest...!!

Good interview fella.

**OnlineBingoClub** · 29 October 2009, 4:53 am

Thanks for the kind words everyone

Martyn, I might look older, but at least I have more hair than you

**AE-Martyn** · 29 October 2009, 5:15 am

Originally Posted by OnlineBingoClub

...but at least I have more hair than you

You are in denile my friend.

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