Conferences about traffic are both useful and enjoyable. They offer opportunities to meet partners whom you only know through Telegram, discover new advertising techniques, find novel approaches and black-hat secrets.
According to most, and my own opinion, the most valuable conferences are Affiliate World in Bangkok, Barcelona, and Dubai. However, Americans also excel in this domain, hosting two major events annually — Affiliate Summit West in Vegas and Affiliate Summit East in New York.
AWE takes place in winter, in January, in Las Vegas, while ASE happens in early August in New York. Yours truly, a humble native of the Nutra world, has attended both and considers it necessary to report on this expedition to the affiliate marketing community, which could not be present in this part of the world. By the way, it's totally worth it.
This account will primarily focus on ASE, as it is the more recent event, hence the information is more current.
Why are conferences necessary?
With the advent of affiliate marketing in my life, I have sequestered myself in a room surrounded by gadgets with buttons and screens, telegrams, coffee, and spend a significant portion of my work time in this merry company. I believe the situation is similar for other affiliate marketers. We rarely meet people in the niche in person; instead of faces, we remember each other's avatars on Telegram and Skype (God forbid). Sometimes you can find guys from the field in your city, discuss current issues, and arrange work-related matters. But affiliate marketing is a global game. It's played by guys from the CIS, the USA, as well as teams from China, India, and other distant Geos on the field. Conferences are necessary for connections, networking, and understanding the niche. Western conferences are great because we can catch hold of the recluse who doesn't respond on Telegram, or an overseas partner who isn't approving your account, find a new service, payment platform, or just hang out with the boys.
When is it worth going? At what level?
You've earned your first profits from traffic; you plan to further develop—attend local conferences. When affiliate marketing is your main activity, and you make a living from it, travel the world for conferences. You need to stay in the loop and build connections, or the vultures will pick at you, and you'll lag behind. I think it's useful to go to local events even for completely inexperienced guys. At the very least, to observe the crowd and get inspired or, conversely, change your mind about getting involved in the black-hat stories.
How to get there and how much does it cost?
At the beginning of the year, Google local and global conferences, and plan your movements, schedule a few events a year. The earlier you buy, the cheaper the tickets and accommodation will be. The cost varies, but everything is achievable. I can't advise on conferences in the CIS; I haven't been to those parts for a long time. American ones cost from $400 for the simplest ticket at the start of sales to $2,000 for VIP. Affiliate World follows a similar pricing pattern, starting from $500 and going up to $1,000 towards the end. By the way, last year, World had a promotion where you could buy 3 tickets for 3 events for approximately $1,000. Accommodation, flights, transportation, and other expenses — it's a game of chance. But you'll need to shell out a couple more thousand dollars. If you want to get a booth, then the endeavor will cost you a minimum of $10,000. This includes booth rental, production, and transportation. Sometimes it can go up to $20,000+.
What's the profit?
Consider this as part of the expenses of your business; it's normal. The chance to find profit at the conference is extremely high. You can recoup those couple of dollars spent on the first launch with the contacts, ad, or affiliate you find. You can find a service that will save you money/time, also profit. Some conferences, of course, pass without much value. But at the very least, it's fun, and you find useful contacts that can come in handy.
How to prepare for the conference?
First, study the event agenda, website, and app. Almost all conferences have apps/chats for participants, where you can search for colleagues, partners, familiar names, and book meetings. If there's an app, set up your profile and include keywords so others can find you. Make a plan, don't wander aimlessly; a couple of days will fly by quickly. You can print business cards and distribute this wastepaper to all interested parties, but that's a bit outdated, in my humble opinion. A QR code with your contact/Telegram on your phone's wallpaper will solve the issue. But if you have a booth, you can't do without the waste paper. Book meetings, read the schedule, iron your pants, practice speeches in front of the mirror. By the way, events usually last 2-4 days. And keep a note of all contacts as you go, or you'll get confused later!
Affiliate Summit East NY
The conference is old and popular, having taken place in New York for the past 15 years. In 2023, it attracted 3000 participants, with quite a few guys from the CIS countries, but the main audience, of course, was Americans. American conferences feature many white niches such as Leadgen, Loans, Solar panels, e-commerce, payments, and so on. This year, ASE was held right at Times Square, in the Marriott hotel on the nine floors of the hotel, so we had to run around on escalators.
A Glimpse of NY
Since we're black-hats, we're looking for our own kind. I met many fellow Noutrovets, colleagues from crypto/forex (but we speak about it in a whisper), dating. There isn't much in the way of gambling/betting at American conferences.
Nutra is thriving in the USA. White supplement brands, Nutra SS/Trial. Speaking loudly about Nutra isn't accepted either because the story is gray. About supplements, for heaven's sake. Why do I separate Nutra and supplements, I wrote about it here. To find an advertiser or an affiliate dealing with Nutra, you have to make an effort. The USA is a law-abiding country, and black-hat approaches are not common. Nutra advertisers are usually either Americans or Asians. One of the two.
Why did I go to ASE and AWE? Or my colleagues from the CIS? The motive is simple — greed. Whether you're an affiliate marketer or a Nutra advertiser, anyone, to keep the train moving, you need many people in the chain. Traffic, mid-providers, manufacturers, affiliate networks. People love attention and communication. It's necessary to further build relationships offline. Find comrades and discuss pressing issues with them.
And as a bonus, conferences in the USA are fun! Every day there are several networking parties that turn into mass drunkenness. And when people are drunk, they talk a lot of interesting things. The organizers invite stars to the parties, Method Man, Redman, and other idols from youth, it's cool.
After a 2-3 day-long conference, you need a couple more days to recover. Recommendation — take a day off after the conference, sit in your hotel room in silence. Rest and work definitely won't hurt immediately afterwards. Flying home right away — a little rush, let's save the nerve cells for Zuckerberg.
Conclusion
Affiliate conferences are a boost, a cheat code. If you prepare for them correctly, plan in advance, and make an effort at them — you will grow, your income will grow. American and foreign conferences are a different level of contacts and information; if you get to a good event, you won't regret it.
Something about conferences keeps appearing on my Insta. If anyone wants to discuss traffic, Nutra, e-commerce, processing, etc., welcome — @ilovesddd
Peace, money, and great opportunities to all!
