Anca (Anna) Gita, CEO @MaxWeb
Anca, I’m thrilled to get to know you better via this interview as I’ve been following your incredible work for some time now! Can you tell us about your journey in the affiliate and performance marketing industry and how it led you to become the CEO of MaxWeb?
Born and raised in Eastern Europe, I moved to the US at 19 to follow the American Dream. I went to school in Pennsylvania then California for a business degree and stumbled upon digital marketing when I turned 29. I didn’t look back ever since as I saw huge potential.
Given your extensive background in affiliate marketing, could you share some key insights or strategies that have contributed to MaxWeb's success in this competitive field?
Technology and People - we built a CRM from scratch to ensure every click and visit is captured and we invested in great account managers that REALLY care about our affiliates. We have over 40,000 affiliates now.
MaxWeb seems to specialize in the CPA (Cost Per Action) model. Could you elaborate on the advantages of this model for advertisers and affiliates, and how MaxWeb leverages it?
Cost per Action is an easy model for affiliates because they are not impacted by refunds or chargebacks - since MaxWeb’s model revolves around affiliates it was an easy choice. For every customer that purchases, MaxWeb pays the affiliates an average of $100 so it’s a pretty great deal if you are an affiliate.
Could you tell us more about the criteria you use to identify and partner with affiliates, ensuring mutually beneficial relationships?
For us, we create a lot of the offers which makes us the Advertiser or we partner with Vendors that create offers just for MaxWeb and they like us to handle all the services including chatting with the affiliates. What is very important is to ensure that we pick the correct affiliates for each offer - we listen closely to the needs of the product owner partners and the traffic sources they allow, making sure restrictions are always followed.
Can you share some of the most memorable success stories or achievements of MaxWeb and its affiliates, highlighting the impact your company has had on their businesses?
There are many stories of course, an important one was when one of our affiliates who used to have a very demanding 9 to 5 started affiliate marketing and made his first sale of $80 after his first month with us... and only a year later made 80k in a day… insane. But that is the beauty of hustle in our space : anything is possible with the right mindset as long as you work hard.
What differentiates MaxWeb from other affiliate marketing networks, and what value does it bring to its clients?
Some networks focus on the product owners , specifically the ones that offer payment processing for vendors. MaxWeb focuses on the affiliate. Affiliates always come first here at MaxWeb. Also every affiliate gets a dedicated account manager, indifferent if you made $80 or $800k last month. We really care. We also have the best payment terms : 3 times a week, and impeccable tech.
MaxWeb has been pioneering an AI-driven approach in affiliate marketing and I loved your videos speaking about these tactics. Could you elaborate on how predictive modeling optimizes affiliate campaigns, the strategies MaxWeb employs for automated bidding to maximize ROI while ensuring fairness for affiliates, the methods used for personalization and its impact on conversion rates, how AI aids in content creation and performance enhancement, and the role of AI and machine learning in fraud detection?
We love AI and have incorporated a lot of great tools in our campaigns. For example, we are using machine learning algorithms to analyze data and make predictions about future outcomes. In the context of native ads campaigns, you can use predictive modeling to analyze historical data on ad performance, audience behavior and predict which ad creatives, targeting, and placement strategies are most likely to be effective. Some of the best AI tools we use for the predictive model: Data Robot, H2O.ai, Google AutoML.
Automated bidding is another great way of utilizing AI tools. AI can help you automatically bid on ad inventory based on your campaign objectives and budget constraints. This can help you save time and effort while also ensuring that you're getting the most value for your ad spend.
For example, you can use machine learning algorithms to analyze data on ad performance, audience behavior, and other factors, and use this information to automatically adjust your bids based on your desired outcomes, such as driving conversions or maximizing click-through rates.
Favorite automated bidding tools: Adobe Advertising Cloud, Google Ads Smart Bidding and The Trade Desk.
How do you see the role of women in leadership positions in the affiliate marketing industry, and what advice do you have for aspiring female entrepreneurs?
Same as any other industry - there is still a lot of misogyny BUT there are many amazing men that support women in this space, so that is a huge plus. Most important advice: ask for help, ask lots of questions and don’t be afraid to ask for MONEY for a job well done. We assume rewards come with a job well done, but many people out there need to be reminded. :)
What type of clients should reach out to you and what can you help them with?
We don’t take on a lot of new vendors since we have many great partners creating offers just for us BUT if you are an affiliate and you are looking for exclusive VSL offers with HIGH payouts, MaxWeb is your home.
What are some of the things you enjoy about the legendary Affiliate Ball and are you excited for Fat Joe to perform at the upcoming one in Las Vegas in January 2024?
The MaxWeb team will be there for sure, we look forward to the Affiliate Ball!
What's the most unexpected or unusual skill or talent you possess that most people wouldn't guess by looking at your professional background?
Creative Writing. I would have loved to be a fiction writer in a parallel universe :)