Thing to Know about CPA Networks for Beginners

Cooperating with CPA networks is becoming an increasingly popular and profitable way of monetizing a commercial website. A CPA network is a web platform where affiliates and advertisers agree to work together. The platform provides services such as campaign tracking, charges advertisers for user actions, pays commissions to partners, and helps optimize ad campaigns. In simple terms, it is a mediator between advertisers who need to promote their product and partners who are engaged in traffic generation.

What is CPA marketing?

CPA marketing is a form of partnership in which partners seek clients for advertisers and receive compensation for specific actions they perform. “CPA” stands for “cost per action.” An action can be, for example, subscribing to a newsletter, purchasing a product, filling out a form, or ordering a call back. This is a kind of affiliate marketing, where publishers can register with various CPA networks to promote offers and products from vendors.

The cost-per-action marketing model is suitable for companies that offer widely-used products with a competitive price. It is most commonly used by online stores, bookmakers, gambling sites, tour agencies, and ticket booking companies. CPA affiliate programs will not benefit enterprises selling a narrow-specialized product.

How does CPA marketing work?

The process of creating a successful CPA campaign begins with finding suitable offers for promotion. The affiliate looks for products that match the interests and needs of their audience to maximize earning potential. Additionally, it’s necessary to be confident that these offers provide worthy commissions. Therefore, the publisher turns to a CPA network for help.

At this point, advertisers already collaborate with CPA networks and voice their requirements for promoting their services in the form of an offer. The offer outlines the company’s audience, desired action, and the commission size that the affiliate will receive for their work. After joining one of the networks, it’s necessary to create marketing materials, such as advertising banners and text links as this is what actually attracts visitors. CPA networks usually provide all the necessary resources. Once potential clients coming from the partner begin taking action on your offers, it’s important to track conversions using special tools provided by each network.

CPA network terminology

• Affiliate manager is a specialist who deals with the creation, development, and promotion of existing affiliate programs or looks for new APs to adapt them to business objectives.
• Chargeback is a return of the advertiser’s commission if the action for which the partner was supposed to receive their payment did not occur.
• Category is a direction in which the affiliate program operates.
• Commission is a fixed rate or percentage that the partner receives as payment.
• Contextual link is a link placed within a text that fits harmoniously into it. Its purpose is to lure the user to the desired page.
• Cookies are necessary for identifying the user when they follow a link to the advertiser’s resource.
• Conversion rate is a percentage ratio, measured as the quality of successful conversions divided by the total traffic.
• Cost per action (CPA) is an internet advertising payment model in which only certain user actions on the advertiser’s site are paid for.
• Earnings per click (EPC) is the average amount that the partner receives each time a user clicks on their affiliate link.
• Return on investment (ROI) is the profitability ratio of investments, which helps to calculate the return on investment in a project.
• Offer page is a web page where the conversion registration occurs when the visitor performs the desired action.

Payment model in CPA marketing

CPA networks offer huge potential for both advertisers and publishers, but there are several important things that every newcomer should know before diving into this space. One of these things is the payment model. In CPA, it is based on the action taken by the user after clicking on the ad or link provided by the advertiser. For example, if someone clicks on an ad offering a free trial version of a product or service, they may be required to provide an email address or phone number to receive the trial offer.

Then the advertiser pays the affiliate, the owner of the website where the ad is placed, for each user action performed. This means that publishers can earn money without having to generate any sales from visitors who click on their ads. The CPA payment model is very similar to the affiliate marketing payment model. Payments vary depending on the niche, CPA network commodity, competition, and commission rates in different verticals.

Benefits of CPA marketing

One of the main advantages of using CPA networks is the ability to convert more visitors than traditional advertising methods. Users are more likely to trust a product when offered something with a pleasant discount, rather than immediately buying an unfamiliar product. Since payment to the web is only made after an action is performed, and not for impressions or clicks, advertisers do not have to worry about wasting money on invalid traffic sources such as bots, or “fake” user clicks.

Other advantages of CPA marketing include:

• Low risks;
• Assistance in expanding the audience;
• Ease of use;
• Payment after a sale;
• Profitability;
• Affordability.

Conclusion

CPA networks offer huge potential for newcomers, and it doesn’t matter who you are – an advertiser or a partner. The key point is understanding how they work and what advantages they have compared to other models of online advertising. With proper analytics and research, you can easily take advantage of all the benefits of these networks, avoiding mistakes that can be costly.