iGB Affiliate 55 Feb/Mar | Page 39

TRAFFIC much depend on your current design and programming. Using a tool such as the Ghostery plugin for Chrome allows you to inspect all the programs running on any website, and you’ll want to keep an eye out for companies that make use of heat maps or split testing software. com and WizardofOdds.com are three portals which have had new designs (see Figure 2 on opposite page). The themes common to all three is that their designs are fairly clean and make it easy for the user to navigate the site and make simple fast decisions as to what to click on next. Optimizely Design trends for 2016 There are many companies offering A/B testing software and solutions, and one of the biggest in the business is Optimizely. com. They offer multivariate testing, so it’s one solution to test and the results converge, so you can learn what changes on your site increase or decrease conversion. The design trend that’s easy to detect from the three affiliate and operator examples is of simplicity and being easy to navigate, with a clean layout. Looking more closely at one of those examples, AskGamblers. com, their designs became more advanced every few years, but it wasn’t until their 2014 design that they rolled back features and put less on their site, rather than accumulatively doing the opposite. The site has grown exponentially since the redesign and has lead the way for copycat portals. My main tips for webmasters and designers are to find ways to showcase your strengths, without over-cluttering your page where possible and where it makes sense. In areas such as the homepage, that’s where want to provide big lists Operators with great UX design Figure 1 (on p33) shows three excellent designs by operators – Slotsmillion. com, Casumo.com and Smarkets.com. These all look like they were crafted by a UX designer, being easy on the eye yet uncluttered with data. Affiliates with great UX design AskGamblers.com, OnlineCasinoReports. and add in all the features. However, when users get deeper into your site onto customized pages, a good piece of advice is to let the details and data sit there, rather than having it on more pages. Also, keep your listing locations as simple as possible, and constantly monitor your analytics of these pages and A/B test them in order to improve your conversion rate. JOHN WRIGHT is an iGaming industry veteran of 15 years’ experience. He has launched many affiliate websites focusing on both players and webmasters, and through his site Gaffg.com has offered a unique webmaster coaching service. He has also helped many affiliates grow and accelerate their business. His skill set includes SEO, user experience design and conversion rate optimization and he works as an iGaming consultant through his company Horseshoe Agency. Unlock Your Full Potential A Key Partner in iGaming Affiliates’ Success Since 2002 Delivering Partnership Opportunities To Your Doorstep incomeaccess.com [email protected]