Why You Should Get into Media Buying Early: The Advertizer Lesson

Last week in the community, a member mentioned that the resources and barriers to entry for Media Buying are on the high side these days. Over the past few days I’ve written a few pieces on the Andromeda algorithm; today I’m switching angles and using a real case to talk with you about why, if you’re going to play the Media Buying game, you should get in early.

(1) A community chat log: resources are sometimes bought with time

Ten years ago, an affiliate could make dollars just by casually running a CPI Booster utility-app offer. Now, resources and barriers keep rising, and “wanting to get started” is actually harder than it used to be.

The later you enter, the harder it is to get the core resources.

(2) Case background: Monetizer / Afflow and Advertizer

Monetizer (formerly Afflow) is where most people start with Smartlinks. Even if you’ve never used it, you’ve definitely heard the name.

But its real core play is on the back end: Advertizer, which is called a true CPA Model (for Pop traffic).

(3) My first contact with Advertizer: account banned outright

My first contact with Advertizer was in 2018. I applied for an account, got approved, ran a few hundred dollars through it, and then the account was banned outright. The reason given was a single sentence:

Account violation, we have no choice but to close your account.

I had no idea why I was banned, and support ignored me when I reached out. My feeling at the time: this platform is far too hard to play.

(4) The second application: the entry window is the advantage

The second time was early 2019. After seeing Deadz’s post I applied again. The platform had registration open at the time, users were flooding in, and I rode that wave and got my account.

Over the following years, Advertizer changed a great deal, for example:

1. From unlimited campaign creation → to a weekly cap per GEO
2. CPA feature fleshed out → CPA on trial
3. CPC ads removed, and limits on creating Push offers and on Push subscriber collection through landers
4. Registration closed completely → no new users accepted / enabling the CPA feature no longer allowed

What can you read from these changes?

The account itself has become a “scarce resource”.

Today, getting an account with full CPA functionality is already very hard, harder even than with some mainstream affiliate networks.

If you have an Advertizer account with the CPA feature enabled, really treasure it. Even if you only run a few campaigns a day, a fully functional account can bring positive returns.

If your quality score often drops below 80%, or your GEOs keep getting shut off…

For problems like these, I put together the “Advertizer Operating Tips: 6 Key Guides”. It’s built on the experience of creating 5,000+ campaigns on the platform, and it suits affiliates who want to keep their quality score up and keep the account running long-term.

One last thing:

Media Buying isn’t just a competition of skill; it’s a competition of resources and time. The earlier you enter, the more you can ride the platform’s growth dividend forward; the later you come, the more you find that barriers, rules and account permissions are closing one door after another.

The account you hold today may be a resource that others can never get again.