The Best Advertising Practices: How to Win the Hearts of Tier 1 Countries? [+Stats]

This post is also available in: PT ES

The article was first published on May 12, 2021, and was updated for accuracy reasons.

Tier 1 countries make up the GEO set of every affiliate’s dream. These are the most prosperous high-income regions, like Germany, Spain, France, Italy, USA, US, Canada, Australia, Finland, Ireland, Norway, and other plummy destinations. 

Most of the local customers are used to spending significant sums on pleasures and entertainments. At the same time, they are picky and savvy – cheap tricks won’t work with them! So you should be inventive with your creatives and make your strategies 100% thoughtful. 

Tutorials for Beginners

What is a Tier of Traffic and What Tier Should You Choose?

Along with purchasing power, such countries are also characterized by high traffic prices, severe competition, and serious governmental regulations regarding ads. Entering such a market is not easy, especially if you are a newcomer. 

However, it doesn’t mean that green affiliates should forget about the shiny Tier 1 countries once and forever. You have all chances to win and put crispy dollars in your pocket. 

Today, we will share valuable insights about Tier 1 traffic, reveal some secrets, show you stats, and point the way to success. Read carefully and arm yourself with a pack of practical tips. 

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Focus on the offer type and act wisely

Even though there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to mastering the Tier 1 countries, we have one universal advice to share with you. The result of your efforts heavily depends on the offer you choose. 

Here are some extremely important tips from our experts:

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1. Pick offers with inexpensive conversions and simple flow

To avoid unbeatable competition against real sharks that have already worked around profitable GEOs for years, you should keep your eye on the offers with maximally cheap conversions. As for the conversion flow – make sure that users don’t have to perform too many actions to complete them. Simplicity is everything.

Working with cryptocurrency or iGaming might sound very appealing, but hold on and imagine how many sharp-toothed affiliates are already operating there. We bet that you are not inspired by the idea of letting go down the wind. 

Start with something simpler, like Giveaways or Utilities – these verticals are popular around Tier 1 countries and convert well. Focusing on one of them, you will have a chance to implement a strategy and evaluate the results pretty fast without losing too much of your cash.

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2. Choose 2-3 offers to run

The universe of Tier 1 traffic is bloomy and the embarrassment of riches is totally guaranteed. There are so many offers you might want to try out and all of them look juicy. However, here is another piece of advice to avoid money-loss – cap to one or two picks only.

Instead of scattering around numerous offers, zero in a one-three campaigns and polish them from the ground up, testing different layouts and searching for the one that works best.  

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3. Mind that each vertical works best with different ad formats

As we have already mentioned, dating and utilities are the most suitable verticals for newcomers aiming at Tier 1 countries. Here is another tip for you – mind the way your ad format interplays with the offer you make. 

For instance, Push notifications are great for the Social vertical – this format grabs the user’s attention immediately and encourages hair-trigger reaction. When you see a notification that a lady of your dream would like to pick up with you right now, it is really hard to resist. And you end up clicking.

As for the utilities, you should consider using Onclick ads for them. Antiviruses, VPNs, and cleaners work great with Onclicks – you don’t need creatives or warming ups to promote them. The user sees the landing page with the download/install button right away, so the offer feels hot and relevant. 

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Some valuable targeting insights: pain points to resolve 

Now let’s get to another important aspect – smart targeting. Indeed, Tier 1 countries have pretty peculiar audiences and you need to have a special approach to them. 

In your offer, you should appeal to the meaning that stands behind the product. Remember that you are selling something more than just software or dating services. Your task is to promote values and address troubling questions.

Here is what we mean:

Be creative with your messages and focus on desires, aspirations, and problems – the pain-point approach works perfectly. 

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Statistics or “the numbers tell the stories best”

And here comes the dessert: we have prepared some stats to show you. Each of the tables is devoted to a particular Tier 1 country (we have US, GB, CA, AU, and IT in our example).

The stats show how different ad formats (namely, Popunder ads, Push ads, and Interstitials) perform around the top verticals. Please mind that we present average stats per one day.

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Country: US

Traffic Volumes:

Format	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %
Onclick	36 998 593	–	63%
Push	167 561 434	653 132	32%
Interstitial	2 756 128	215 098	5%

Onclick

Vertical	Impressions	Traffic share, %	Average CPM
Utilities	6,289,760	17%	$1.98
eCommerce	5,549,788	15%	$1.42
Media	4,809,81	13%	$2.44

Push Notifications

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
Utilities	63,673,344	146448	38%	0.23%	$0.076
Media	63,673,344	31333	11%	0.17%	$0.063
Giveaways	11,729,300	28150	7%	0.24%	$0.073

Interstitials

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPM
Utilities	1,240,257	90166	45%	7.27%	$0.009
Media	303174	13036	11%	4.30%	$0.014
eCommerce	192928	8335	7%	4.32%	$0.014

As you can see, Americans are really fond of Utilities – this is a leading vertical for all ad formats in this region. Almost 70% of US users stick to VPN to ensure privacy and safe usage of public Wi-Fi, so VPN apps are incontestable champions. Also, we have Media and eCommerce on our top list. 

As you can see from our stats, the best combination for America is Utilities plus Push or Onclick ads. 

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Country: GB

Traffic Volumes:

Format	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %
Onclick	13 897 738	–	73%
Push	55 012 380	100 233	23%
Interstitial	1 145 479	54,995	4%

Onclick

Vertical	Impressions	Traffic share, %	Average CPM
eCommerce	1,945,683	14.00%	$1.42
Utiliities	4,400,990	8%	$0.46
Media	68,729	6%	$2.65

Push Notifications

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
eCommerce	19,254,333	15,403	35%	0.08%	$0.07
Cleaners	10,452,352	33,448	19%	0.32%	$0.03
Media	8,251,857	6,601	15%	0.08%	$0.04

Interstitials

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
VPNs	366,553	11,913	32%	3.25%	$0.011
Social	206,186	3,691	18%	1.79%	$0.008
Extensions	171,822	9,674	15%	5.63%	$0.008

Great Britain really likes the eCommerce vertical. However, you should keep in mind that the finance vertical is associated with complicated conversions – users are required to perform numerous actions to complete them.

Social takes the second place for Interstitials. Everything is pretty simple here – your creatives should present pretty people – preferably, they should be typical English men and women. 

The other well-converting verticals for this region are Cleaners, Extensions, and Media. 

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Country: CA

Traffic Volumes:

Format	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %
Onclick	6 877 904	–	62.5%
Push	27 246 492	72 923	33.5%
Interstitial	734 984	32 573	4%

Onclick

Vertical	Impressions	Traffic share, %	Average CPM
iGaming	3,026,278	44%	$1.58
Extensions	2,724,649	10%	$2.56
Utilities	44,099	6%	$0.95

Push Notifications

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
iGaming	10,898,597	10,899	40%	0.10%	$0.17
Finance	4,086,974	6,539	15%	0.16%	$0.16
eCommerce	3,269,579	15,367	12%	0.47%	$0.03

Interstitials

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
iGaming	279,294	8,016	38%	2.87%	$0.014
Finance	132,297	4,723	18%	3.57%	$0.006
Utilities	117,597	5,786	16%	4.92%	$0.005

In Canada, people really like iGaming. Being a winning vertical, this one is also a complicated one – usually, it is, but pretty stuffed with affiliate veterans.

However, don’t get frustrated, because Finance, Utilities, and eCommerce are also flourishing in Canada. Finance work especially well with Interstitials and brings a nice traffic share. Think about that.

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Country: AU

Traffic Volumes:

Format	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %
Onclick	2,555,337	–	51%
Push	13,498,719	30,845	47%
Interstitial	236,135	10,974	2%

Onclick

Vertical	Impressions	Traffic share, %	Average CPM
Utilities	1,277,668	50%	$1.157
iGaming	229,980	9%	$2.21
eCommerce	204,426	8%	$1.11

Push Notifications

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
Utilities	4,050,000	5,884	30%	0.14%	$0.183
iGaming	3,914,628	7,052	29%	0.18%	$0.107
Giveaways	2,024,807	1,567	15%	0.07%	$0.09

Interstitials

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
Finance	56,672	2976	24%	5.25%	0.015
Social	42,504	2036	18%	4.79%	0.009
Utilities	37,781	2134	16%	5.64%	0.012

Australia demonstrates diverse results. The most converting verticals here are finance, VPNs, sweepstakes, content on-demand, and iGaming. Finance works perfectly with Onclick and Push. 

Also, iGaming regulations in Australia are pretty soft and people eagerly play online. However, no matter how juicy iGaming looks, we suggest that you should consider VPNs and content on-demand instead – they are less crowded with strong competitors, as you remember. 

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Country: IT

Traffic Volumes:

Format	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %
Onclick	25,695,943	–	53%
Push	106,456,522	150,022	45%
Interstitial	487,086	23,658	1%

Onclick

Vertical	Impressions	Traffic share, %	Average CPM
Finance	1,094,637	18%	$0.57
Giveaways	447,661	15%	$1.17
Extensions	305,665	12%	$1.35

Push Notifications

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPC
Finance	39,316,585	33,297	33%	0.08%	$0.029
Utilities	15,035,662	31,366	20%	0.21%	$0.019
Giveaways	3,598,572	13,312	11%	0.37%	$0.025

Interstitials

Vertical	Impressions	Clicks	Traffic share, %	Average CTR	Average CPM
Giveaways	181,777	11,693	51%	6.43%	$0.003
Social	125,688	1,612	20%	1.28%	$0.010
Extensions	42,786	5,611	19%	13.11%	$0.003

Italy is pretty interested in Finance – it works really well with Onclick and Push. However, as we have already discussed, finance is a complicated vertical, so take a look at Giveaways, Social, and utilities. They perform pretty well, too. Especially, Giveaways combined with Interstitial – 51% of traffic share is a nice perspective. 

They also work well with Onclick – compared to the leading finance vertical, sweepstakes show 15% of traffic share, which is only 3% less than finance. 

Affiliate Marketing

Big Finance Vertical Guide

Generally, stats show that Onclick is the best format for Tier 1 countries, while Push and Interstitials come next. Choosing the format, you should mind your overall strategy, aims, and types of creatives you would like to include. 

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Conclusion 

Being ambitious enough to work with Tier 1 countries, fresh affiliates should keep a couple of essentials in mind:

• It’s expensive 

Yes, advanced countries are not easy to crack and you should prepare for significant spending. You need cash for tests to see which strategy skyrockets. 

• It’s tricky

Choosing the right vertical is a must. Consider dating, VPNs, cleaners, and utilities as your starting points. Combined with the right ad format and appealing creatives, these verticals can bring you great results. Avoid complicated ones, like finance and iGaming.

• It’s possible

Don’t you listen to those who say that Tier 1 traffic is not for newbies. It’s hard, but not impossible. A smart approach, money, and a balanced strategy can do wonders. 

The idea of conquering prosperous Tier 1 countries is ambitious and takes effort. Arm yourself with our tips, grasp the insights we share, and your campaigns will definitely be more thoughtful. Thoughtfulness brings money – remember about that! Good luck!