The iGaming industry is booming. The growing interest in this form of entertainment clashes with the new regulations and legal framework, but one thing remains certain: tracking conversions is always the key to optimizing campaigns and maximizing revenue.
For iGaming affiliates, there are a few important metrics to keep track of:
- Registration—the moment when someone registers with an operator’s platform
- First-Time Deposit (FTD)—the moment when a new player makes their first deposit.
With Voluum, an industry-leading tracking solution used by iGaming advertisers from around the world, you can accurately track FTDs and other crucial conversion types using postbacks. This article will guide you through the importance of tracking FTDs, the benefits of using Voluum, and the setup process to track FTDs effectively.
What Are Postbacks in Ad Tracking and How Do They Work?
Postbacks, also known as server-to-server (S2S) tracking, are a method of tracking conversions without relying on browser-based cookies. When a user completes a predefined action—such as making a first deposit on a casino platform—the affiliate platform or operator activates a postback URL. This tells Voluum’s servers that a conversion has occurred.
Platforms often pass additional information with a postback:
- Click IDs that help to attribute the conversion to the original click
- Payout information that helps to accurately track costs
- Event type information that allows you to differentiate between various conversion data
- Other, such as transaction ID or currency
All this ensures accurate tracking even when users switch devices, use incognito mode, or clear cookies. Postbacks are widely used in iGaming tracking solutions because they provide reliable, real-time data without violating privacy regulations.
Why Tracking FTDs is a Critical Metric for iGaming Affiliates
FTDs represent the first major milestone in the player journey. While registrations are important, they do not guarantee revenue. A player’s first deposit signifies their intent to play for real money, making it a crucial KPI for affiliates and casino operators alike.
By tracking FTDs, you can:
- Identify high-value traffic sources – Optimize your ad spend by focusing on channels that drive quality players.
- Optimize campaigns based on real revenue – Stop relying on clicks or registrations alone and measure actual deposits.
- Improve commission structures – Many casino affiliate software programs reward affiliates based on FTDs, making tracking essential for accurate payouts.
- Enhance ROI through better targeting – Understanding the behavior of depositing players allows you to refine your audience targeting and messaging.
The Problems With Tracking FTDs Without a Tracker
Operators or affiliate platforms often do not invest serious resources into developing reliable reporting systems. Their focus is elsewhere. That’s why it is very common to serve only delayed data using a rudimentary reporting system.
Optimizing paid and SEO advertising in such setup is hard, if not impossible. A centralized tracking platform solves all these problems.
The Benefits of Tracking FTDs with Voluum
1. Real-time data for faster reactions
With Voluum’s real-time tracking, you can see which campaigns, ads, and traffic sources drive the most FTDs instantly. No more waiting for manual reports or delayed insights—get actionable data when you need it most and act on them without any delay.
2. Conversion attribution for smarter optimization
Tracking FTDs isn’t just about knowing the numbers—it’s about understanding which traffic sources, creatives, and landing pages contribute to those conversions. Voluum’s attribution model ensures that you correctly assign FTDs to the right campaigns, providing a clear picture and allowing for data-driven optimizations.
3. Easy setup with postback tracking
Unlike tracking methods that require editing pages or populating spreadsheet data manually, postbacks are easy to implement by an advertiser. No developer knowledge is needed to set them up. A user just needs to copy the URL from Voluum and provide it to an operator or affiliate platform with correct tracking parameters.
What is more, Voluum can record data from hundreds of postbacks coming from different operators and still maintain data consistency, thus enabling faster scaling.
How to Track FTDs with Voluum Using Postbacks
Setting up FTD tracking with Voluum is straightforward. Follow these steps to get started:
Step 1: Add a promoted page as an offer in Voluum.
Step 2: Add your paid or organic traffic source to Voluum manually or using a template.
Step 3: Create a campaign where you define a traffic flow and provide the generated campaign URL to your traffic source platform as a destination link.
Step 4: Copy the postback URL from Voluum and paste it to the operator platform, replacing tracking tokens for the ones used by the operator.
Example of a postback URL:
https://your_voluum_postback_url?cid={clickid}&payout={commission}&conversion_type=FTD
Once your campaign is approved in a traffic source platform, you will start receiving traffic and then, conversions.
Tracking Multiple Conversion Types with Voluum
While FTDs are the most valuable conversions, Voluum allows you to track other conversion types and distinguish them in Voluum. You can set different payout values for each conversion type to understand the complete player journey, making your iGaming advertising efforts more effective.
Voluum is the Best Solution for iGaming Tracking
The iGaming industry is more competitive than ever and tracking First-Time Deposits (FTDs) is essential for maximizing affiliate revenue. By using Voluum’s postback tracking, you gain real-time insights, precise attribution, and easy setup, making it the ideal iGaming tracking solution.
Don’t let valuable data slip through the cracks. Start tracking FTDs with Voluum today and take your iGaming affiliate marketing to the next level!
Ready to optimize your iGaming campaigns?