Name: Craig-Crossland-Banner.jpg Views: 390 Size: 17.5 KB

AGE: 22
HOMETOWN: Barnsley, U.K.
LIVING IN: Barnsley
FAVORITE ACTOR: Jean-Claude Van Damme
MUST READ BOOK: Don’t read that much ?how bad is that?
SITES: lovetoplaybingo.co.uk; bestbingopromotions.co.uk

Both of your sites are dedicated exclusively to bingo. Why bingo?

Well, I am an SEO and other SEOs I’d talked to before said that they had various affiliate sites as kind of a side project, so I thought I would set up my own as well. My mum plays online bingo, so I know how the game is played, and it developed from there, really.

How did the domain name Love to Play Bingo come to be?

I bought the domain name around a year ago and I just left it for a few months without doing anything to it. I was planning to, but I never got around to it. I bought a cheap template to start with and uploaded a few bingo reviews and the odd article, but not that much. I then did some basic SEO and I got the odd visitor after a few months. This motivated me to change the layout of the site and update it more often.

The site is far from complete, and I have ideas to make it bigger and better in the future.

How long was it before you started making money?

It was around six months before I got my first lead after buying the domain name. I am still in the early days as far as making money is concerned, but you have to be persistent to be in the gambling game. Most people believe that you can throw a site up and make money the next day. Without a big budget, this is not possible.

At age 22, you're still very young. What did you do before getting into online gaming?

I used to do the odd job through an agency before I turned online to look for job opportunities. I read up on SEO and started to get clients. I’ve been doing SEO ever since.

How did you become interested in online gaming, and how did that lead to becoming a gambling webmaster?

This answer will tie in with my response to the first question. I got into online gaming after I’d heard other SEOs talking about the affiliate sites that they had. I own a bass lessons website also [www.play-bass.com], so I have been a webmaster for a while. Once you set up one site you can use the same techniques and transfer them to another domain name.

Do you have a "day job"? Or do you consider running your sites a full-time job?

My main income is through SEO but I would like to make my Love to Play Bingo site a full-time thing and work on that. There is a lot that can be done to make the site bigger, but it is just budget that is stopping me.

What advice would you give to someone just starting out in the industry?

Just keep with it, really. If you have any design skills, programming skills or know anything about SEO then you have a plus and you can save yourself a lot of money. If you don’t, I would highly recommend that you know at least some basics before you take on a website. Also, try offering users something compelling and different. There is no point in making a site that looks and offers the exact same information as 100 other websites.

Do you still see yourself working as an affiliate 10 years from now?

I hope so. I have big plans for the site in the future and as more money comes in I will continue to grow the site and make it bigger and better. I am trying to steer the site towards being more user friendly and thinking about the users rather than getting greedy with commission rates.

Do you ever play bingo yourself, either online or at your local bingo hall? If yes, what’s the most you’ve ever won?

I have never played at a bingo hall but I have played online a few times. I haven’t won anything worth shouting about; probably around ?0 was my most.

Do you expect to see significant growth in online bingo in the next year or two? Please elaborate.

I think gambling will keep continuing to grow in general, not just bingo. Bingo does seem to be more popular in the U.K. but with access to the Internet there is no reason why more people wouldn’t turn online to play. Why trek all the way to a bingo hall when you can turn on your computer and play in the comfort of your own home?

Word is, you’re trying to get Jean-Claude Van Damme to do Love to Play Bingo promos for you. Is that all it would take to drive more men to the site?

Oh man, I did not expect this question. Believe it or not, I wasn’t thinking about whether getting Van Damme to promote bingo would persuade more people to sign up or not. I would not care just as long as he was doing it. Now you mention it, I bet more men would play bingo. . . .

What do your friends and family think of your work as an affiliate?

I haven’t really mentioned it too much to them. No one has said it is a stupid idea, anyway. I would like to see more money coming in before I start mentioning it more.
What’s the most difficult thing about operating your sites? At the moment I am struggling with the design. I change it and then look at it and change it again. I am not quite happy yet with how the site looks. I am going to look more into learning how to code, which will be a challenge.

How did you discover the GPWA? And how has it helped you in your work as an affiliate?

I have no idea, actually. I just found myself signed up to the site one day. Probably through Google, though. The people on the forum are very helpful and they are willing to share information with other people.

What do you think of the GPWA site’s new favicon?

The one you have now [early April] I am not too keen about. I like a few of the other ones you have suggested in a thread. Number 25 [picture of Michael Corfman] was my favorite!

What do you wish you'd known about the online gaming industry before you started in it?

Nothing, really. You can always read up on what is new and old online. I knew it would take time to get things up and running, and I am still prepared to wait.

Do you use Facebook, Twitter or other social networks to promote your sites?

I have Twitter and Facebook accounts that I use for Love to Play Bingo. At the moment I’m not using them that much. You really need a following before doing that. I have plans for the future on how to use more social media.

If someone were visiting you, what’s the one place you would definitely take them to see?

If you mean in Barnsley I would not take them out of the house as there is nothing to do or see ?pretty boring place, really. The best place near me is a shopping mall, or there’s the option to travel to a seaside place.

What’s the first concert you ever attended in person?

Avenged Sevenfold, but it was not my choice. The girlfriend wanted to go. Was not a bad gig, though.

If you were directing and starring in a movie, who would you cast?

Van Damme, no question about it. I would not star in the film myself as I would let Van Damme do all the work. I would just give him some trees to kick down.

If you could have one “super power,?what would it be?

I don't know, there are too many to pick from. Probably not flying as I am scared of heights. Probably either to stop time or move stuff with my mind.

Which three things would you save from a fire in your house?

Depends how big the fire is, really. Is it small enough that I could try to make it die out or has it nearly consumed my house? Again, which part of the house am I in? Upstairs or down? I never really get this question when people ask it. I have nothing that is priceless, so probably what I could carry and I thought I wanted to keep the most at the time.

Tell us three things about you.

I eventually want a tattoo sleeve. I used to play bass in a band but gave it up. I want to get into playing the YoYo.