Hey,
RealTimeBidding and Big Data days already came.
How it will influence affiliate business?
Looks like only scaled advertisers will survive. Advertisers who are on scale able to gather maximum amount of data and build audience segments. They will have separate audience segments for gambling (which will include sub-segments of casino users, sport bettors, bingo, etc), for adult (sub-segments by adult niches), etc. More over, direct advertisers (some already do) will be able to advertise on such precise as "vip customers from moscow who spent $500+ on our product during November 2013".
RTB & Big Data trend will destroy small and middle size affiliate business or retail affiliate industry will adapt somehow?
Is it possible for small or middle size affiliate to build own segments of audience (with use of cookies) and use it on self-serve DSPs?
I think you're over-thinking it!
There are still plenty of pockets of profit left out there. RTB is not the be-all and end-all by any means, and there are plenty of advertising sources not connected to it.
Plus, big data analysis for advertising is still in the early stages: I've yet to see a killer app using it, and I know some people working in that space.
People have been claiming affiliate marketing's dead since at least 2009 - no more reason to believe that's true now than then.
The Internet is too huge for small and medium sized businesses not to find ways to prosper.
You can read tons of articles on the 'future of advertising', and yes, they might give you a rough sense of which way the wind is blowing. But are they going to stop a hungry capitalist pig from going on, say, CraigsList and blitzing 1000s of affiliate ads? Nope. One way or another, he will always reach his market.
I'm usually left cold by articles about the state of the affiliate industry.
You see articles like 'Top 5 Things I Expect to See Happen in 2014', and you think... show me the 'Top 5 Things You Did Last Year That Actually Worked'.
Or admit to being bluster in a suit.
*coughPaceLattincough*
Most of these stories are written by people paid to make vague assumptions about which way a multi-million dollar industry is heading, without spending any time in the trenches getting dirty with it.
Sometimes they are right.
But they are experts in worrying about the marginal shifts. Whereas successful affiliates are experts in making the industry work for them as it currently is.
If you write great content....you will always be a star and people will gravitate to buy from you and your site.
Add paid traffic to compelling content and you cash in 24/7.