Having finished acquainting myself with this book, I caught myself thinking that I had read an entire resource dedicated to affiliate marketing, exactly in its entirety, over the course of a whole year of publication.
I'll start by saying that I respect Mishа (I'll refer to him as Mishа in the text, not because I interviewed him, but because I sang "Konя" with him at a hookah lounge in Yerevan) for daring to systematically describe the unique phenomenon of traffic arbitration and writing a book about it. On Amazon, you can find hundreds of books about affiliate marketing, and it might seem like the same thing, but as Inna pointed out, "traffic arbitration is purely our invention."
The task of describing today's affiliate market and specifically arbitration, the existing mechanisms, principles, and approaches, is titanic, if only because the market is small but incredibly fragmented. Did Mishа manage to write a book that addresses the main questions of newcomers entering the industry? After all, that's exactly what the advertising campaign is talking about. Is it necessary to save newcomers, or do experienced arbitrageurs need this book?
I'll say right away that I suggested writing the review myself; everything written here is the author's opinion.
Only upon hearing that Mishа was writing a book, I immediately asked myself, "for whom?" although I had already been told. The format resembles either an encyclopedia, a glossary, or simply a collection of the author's notes and observations on how, in general, all of arbitrage works. A desk reference — why? An encyclopedia — you can Google faster. So why is it needed? What questions does it answer?
I'll start by saying that I respect Mishа (I'll refer to him as Mishа in the text, not because I interviewed him, but because I sang "Konя" with him at a hookah lounge in Yerevan) for daring to systematically describe the unique phenomenon of traffic arbitration and writing a book about it. On Amazon, you can find hundreds of books about affiliate marketing, and it might seem like the same thing, but as Inna pointed out, "traffic arbitration is purely our invention."
The task of describing today's affiliate market and specifically arbitration, the existing mechanisms, principles, and approaches, is titanic, if only because the market is small but incredibly fragmented. Did Mishа manage to write a book that addresses the main questions of newcomers entering the industry? After all, that's exactly what the advertising campaign is talking about. Is it necessary to save newcomers, or do experienced arbitrageurs need this book?
I'll say right away that I suggested writing the review myself; everything written here is the author's opinion.
Only upon hearing that Mishа was writing a book, I immediately asked myself, "for whom?" although I had already been told. The format resembles either an encyclopedia, a glossary, or simply a collection of the author's notes and observations on how, in general, all of arbitrage works. A desk reference — why? An encyclopedia — you can Google faster. So why is it needed? What questions does it answer?
About everything at once, but not quite in order
One of the largest chapters in the book turns out to be the analysis of verticals in traffic arbitration. In principle, what inevitably happens here (which, by the way, this book should prevent) is the lack of uniformity in narration and categorization logic. Not because the author doesn't grasp the essence of each, but simply because there's not much to say about Webcam offers, they convert, sure, yeah, it's a vertical.
And while there's a lot written about mVas (Atlas works with this vertical), and it's written well, I would even say inspiringly, when it comes to casinos, it's chaotic; about betting, it's sparse and brief – like, well, sportsbooks and all, usually near casinos. "Mobile traffic arbitration" is something I still don't understand, no matter how hard I try to figure it out.
Is this bad? Not really. Could it have been better? Most likely.
And while there's a lot written about mVas (Atlas works with this vertical), and it's written well, I would even say inspiringly, when it comes to casinos, it's chaotic; about betting, it's sparse and brief – like, well, sportsbooks and all, usually near casinos. "Mobile traffic arbitration" is something I still don't understand, no matter how hard I try to figure it out.
Is this bad? Not really. Could it have been better? Most likely.
The presence of sections on affiliate e-commerce and dropshipping in the book is not entirely clear. They are, of course, related, but e-commerce involves different approaches and methods (even though they operate on a CPA basis), and dropshipping is a form of entrepreneurship, albeit on a smaller scale.
Speaking of entrepreneurship, Mishа rightfully emphasizes that arbitrage can develop this entrepreneurial streak, as there's no better way to learn than losing your money. In arbitrage, everyone can achieve that quite easily 🙂
Next came the part about traffic sources, and it suffered from the same issue as the verticals: everything all at once and in a jumble. The discussions about how Facebook Ads work seemed speculative and conjectural to me. For that, I'd turn to Artyom Vasilyevich Kravchenko; he's stronger in that area.
Pros and cons? They belong in SEO articles targeting specific search queries. Some of the pros and cons didn't turn out to be particularly negative, rather contrived. I would tell the author something like: "Well, if you're not sure what else to add, just insert something like that." However, they did explain DSP, which currently seems to be quite perplexing in terms of attribution.
Speaking of entrepreneurship, Mishа rightfully emphasizes that arbitrage can develop this entrepreneurial streak, as there's no better way to learn than losing your money. In arbitrage, everyone can achieve that quite easily 🙂
Next came the part about traffic sources, and it suffered from the same issue as the verticals: everything all at once and in a jumble. The discussions about how Facebook Ads work seemed speculative and conjectural to me. For that, I'd turn to Artyom Vasilyevich Kravchenko; he's stronger in that area.
Pros and cons? They belong in SEO articles targeting specific search queries. Some of the pros and cons didn't turn out to be particularly negative, rather contrived. I would tell the author something like: "Well, if you're not sure what else to add, just insert something like that." However, they did explain DSP, which currently seems to be quite perplexing in terms of attribution.
Evaluative judgments
Many verticals, sources, approaches, and methods are assigned a subjective moral-ethical assessment using a standard color scheme, ranging from white to black. In the end, it's clear that white ones are considered good (e-commerce and banks), black ones are very bad and blatant scams, and gray ones are everything in between. However, questions like "Is casino advertising legal in the UK?" won't receive a definitive answer here. The author might say that the issue is gray (even though British laws actually allow the advertising of these casinos). Will readers look for the answer to this question in the book? I believe not. And if they do, they'll find out that they need to wait for "karma to come around" and that they're not quite "in tune with it."
Discussing impulse purchases, blackhat tactics, and the lack of consensus on how to spell "offer" is decidedly pointless. Simply because those for whom this book will truly be useful won't be fixated on spelling, uniformity, and language expressiveness. At times, the text seems purely copywriting, while at other times, it appears to have an SEO flavor. But how can one explain the myriad of arbitrage terms related to the technical side of lead generation? That's my problem, simply because I've seen hundreds, if not thousands, of articles about all of this.
But right here is where one of the best aspects of this book is concealed—the direct access to the contents of the mind of an individual who has experienced this life from the very bottom, someone who has forgotten more about arbitrage than many will learn in 5 years. It's not about how smart and wonderful Mishа is, no; it's just that today, things are disclosed like this. And to understand how they're disclosed today, you'll have to listen and observe this diversity of affiliate networks, buyers, and people for a couple of years. Of course, things like the timeline to reach a daily profit of a thousand dollars or how to manage finances are debatable, but it's better to know more (at the expense of sleep) with "Traff."
Discussing impulse purchases, blackhat tactics, and the lack of consensus on how to spell "offer" is decidedly pointless. Simply because those for whom this book will truly be useful won't be fixated on spelling, uniformity, and language expressiveness. At times, the text seems purely copywriting, while at other times, it appears to have an SEO flavor. But how can one explain the myriad of arbitrage terms related to the technical side of lead generation? That's my problem, simply because I've seen hundreds, if not thousands, of articles about all of this.
But right here is where one of the best aspects of this book is concealed—the direct access to the contents of the mind of an individual who has experienced this life from the very bottom, someone who has forgotten more about arbitrage than many will learn in 5 years. It's not about how smart and wonderful Mishа is, no; it's just that today, things are disclosed like this. And to understand how they're disclosed today, you'll have to listen and observe this diversity of affiliate networks, buyers, and people for a couple of years. Of course, things like the timeline to reach a daily profit of a thousand dollars or how to manage finances are debatable, but it's better to know more (at the expense of sleep) with "Traff."
I would like to separately emphasize that in some chapters, Mishа explains what traffic arbitrage is multiple times. This is truly the most remarkable thing because there is no single explanation, at all. It's like attempting to explain to your own grandmother what you do—starting from scratch every time you meet.
I would also like to note that, as it seems to me, Mishа answered the question "what to run?" on page 71 (in digits), "Note on earnings." Moreover, for some, this answer will be absolutely exhaustive, while for others, it will become a source of many questions.
I would also like to note that, as it seems to me, Mishа answered the question "what to run?" on page 71 (in digits), "Note on earnings." Moreover, for some, this answer will be absolutely exhaustive, while for others, it will become a source of many questions.
What's closer is where success and money are achieved.
Mikhail Petrov
I was unpleasantly surprised by how little Mishа talked about his experience working with a team, building a business, and all of that. Someone who has been a leader for several years now could have shared insights (discussions about tax planning—not exactly what I'd call insightful).
Who is this book for?
As it seemed to me, this book will be incredibly suitable for those who are just entering the world of affiliate marketing and have no understanding of what's going on. In other words, for those who learn about traffic arbitration not as a way to make a crazy amount of money, but when they hear during a job interview, "Well, we're in this industry, we're working with traffic."
I would utilize this book in training new writers, editors, marketers, salespeople, and project managers. This book, like an ingenious marketing campaign, will create problems for the user and then proceed to solve them.
Despite the fact that the book is chaotic and at times perplexing, it will condense people's learning process into weeks, if not months. They will understand the essence of interactions between participants and elements of the market in all of their wild diversity. Having read this book, they will find themselves immersed in questions that an experienced %username% can answer, providing novice learners with a comprehensive picture of the market.
But is it necessary for experienced arbitrageurs/media buyers/webmasters? I don't know.
As a well-known editor once said, "To start running campaigns, you need 1-2 guides/long reads. And the desire to run, not to read articles."
P.S. I hope that Mishа won't launch an arbitrage training (and if he does, I hope he'll announce it here).
P.P.S. You can purchase the book on LitRes (you can imagine, but the link is not a referral one).
I would utilize this book in training new writers, editors, marketers, salespeople, and project managers. This book, like an ingenious marketing campaign, will create problems for the user and then proceed to solve them.
Despite the fact that the book is chaotic and at times perplexing, it will condense people's learning process into weeks, if not months. They will understand the essence of interactions between participants and elements of the market in all of their wild diversity. Having read this book, they will find themselves immersed in questions that an experienced %username% can answer, providing novice learners with a comprehensive picture of the market.
But is it necessary for experienced arbitrageurs/media buyers/webmasters? I don't know.
As a well-known editor once said, "To start running campaigns, you need 1-2 guides/long reads. And the desire to run, not to read articles."
P.S. I hope that Mishа won't launch an arbitrage training (and if he does, I hope he'll announce it here).
P.P.S. You can purchase the book on LitRes (you can imagine, but the link is not a referral one).