Affilka by SOFTSWISS Senior Setup Manager Daria Barsukova Kraiem answers some questions about the affiliate platform migrations process.
Check out the full interview!
1) What is the estimated timeframe for migrating to Affilka by SOFTSWISS from a different platform? What factors influence the duration of this migration? What measures can be taken to speed up the migration process?
The migration time depends on how quickly the customer prepares the mapping files. The more data they have, the longer it will take. Typically, once we have all the necessary information from the customer, the migration can be completed in about three weeks.
When an operator wants to switch from another affiliate system to Affilka by SOFTSWISS, we work out all the details promptly, including the migration schedule.
Our fastest migration to date took just two weeks from initial request to onboarding all players into our system.
To ensure a smooth migration, we start by discussing with the customer what data they want to move and how they want to do it. We then provide guidance and examples of the necessary files they need to prepare. Key to success? Fast and clear communication from the client team. When they respond quickly and clearly, the migration moves smoothly as planned.
2) What factors should be considered before making a change and during the process? How should operators and platform staff prepare for the migration?
The membership team is committed to discussing all aspects of the migration process and post-migration operations with all interested migration participants. Our goal is to ensure clarity and understanding for all parties involved.
We provide comprehensive details about the entire process upfront to empower operators to make the right choices for their needs. Ensuring operators are fully informed from the start allows them to make informed decisions.
The operator must clarify which player and partner data will be migrated and its expectations regarding this moment. Additionally, if the operator plans to migrate player activity history, it is essential to coordinate with the casino platform operator as we cannot control the timing of this process.
Knowing operator preferences helps us quickly understand scope and prioritize tasks for our developers. Educating the carrier’s migration team is essential to ensure smooth, structured communication throughout the process. We have outlined expectations regarding affiliate and player migration parameters upfront, along with commission plans for migrated players.
3) How can the operator be protected against data loss during the migration process?
During the testing phase of the migration, we use random data. After successfully testing the script with this random data, we checked the import accuracy for each parameter. After confirming its accuracy, we proceed to import the actual data provided by the operator into the live interface.
The real migration starts with file validation by our developers to ensure all data is grouped and compiled correctly. After validation, we enable the migration script and all data is imported into Affilka by SOFTSWISS. Testing the migration script in advance on test data allows us to be 100% sure that no data loss will occur.
After migration, our system automatically generates new affiliate referral links without delay. This allows them to promptly replace old links, ensuring potential traffic is redirected seamlessly to the new affiliate system without any loss during the transition.
If any players have not been migrated to Affilka by SOFTSWISS due to affiliates using old referral links, we are prepared to immediately perform additional data migration to ensure all players are accounted for.
In a recent migration, we found out in advance when we could start the process after getting the mapping files. We wanted to make sure they didn’t lose any players still using the old affiliate system during this transition period.
To streamline the migration process, configuration managers carefully process the mapping file received from the operator, ensuring that all necessary commission negotiations are created accurately. We asked the operator to provide a list of all commission negotiations in advance to expedite this step.
Additionally, our developers are informed in advance of migration timing, allowing them to quickly activate the migration script as soon as the mapping file is ready. This ensures a seamless transition of affiliates and players to Affilka by SOFTSWISS, without any loss of traffic or need for additional migrations.
4) Is it necessary for the operator to notify existing affiliates about the migration?
Absolutely! Our experience shows that informing affiliates well in advance allows them to update their referral links immediately, minimizing the need for additional player migrations later.
Additionally, operators should update their affiliate landing pages with Affilka’s new links for new affiliate registrations, eliminating the need to migrate newcomers as well.
Moreover, it’s crucial to keep affiliates informed about the migration as it happens. An effective way is to send newsletters that explain the new affiliate system and inform them that they will soon need to log in to check their statistics on the new platform.
Furthermore, immediately after migration, affiliates receive an email containing a link to create a password for their account. This email serves as one of our notifications to affiliates about the change in the affiliate system. We also recommend sending an additional email after migration with the link to the new login page and instructions for resetting your password, if necessary.
Some carriers have found it beneficial to send out a newsletter containing a guide with screenshots explaining the new login process step by step. The SOFTSWISS Affiliate team is always available to assist in the preparation of such an affiliate manual if necessary.
In addition, we provide a guide for each affiliate outlining how our system works to ensure a smooth transition to another affiliate system.
In our experience, keeping affiliates informed – or failing to do so – can significantly impact a carrier’s success in the new affiliate system post-migration. Therefore, it is essential not to neglect this aspect.
About SOFTSWISS
SOFTSWISS is an international technology company that provides software solutions for iGaming project management.
The team of experts, which numbers more than 2,000 employees, is based in Malta, Poland and Georgia. SOFTSWISS holds a number of gaming licenses and provides complete iGaming software solutions.
The company has a vast portfolio of products, including the Online Casino Platform, the Game Aggregator with thousands of casino games, the Affilka Affiliate Platform, the Sports Betting Platform and the Jackpot Aggregator.
In 2013, SOFTSWISS was the first in the world to introduce a Bitcoin-optimized online casino solution.
