In the last few years, there has been a lot of talk about search arbitrage. Since 2022, affiliates have seemed to flock to it like it's the next big thing. But how good is it? Is there even a point in running it today, and what does search arbitrage’s future look like?
What is Search Arbitrage?
What Is Search Arbitrage and How Does It Work?
Search arbitrage is a digital marketing strategy where marketers acquire low-cost web traffic and redirect it to monetized platforms. Users go to the parked domains and hopefully click on ads, generating revenue for the owner.
In most cases this looks like this. You buy a domain, you let a search arbitrage network host its content (some sponsored links) on it. You run traffic to that domain through paid ads or organic ways. Once the users get to your domain, the sponsored links are presented to them and if they click on any of them, you, as the owner, get some revenue.
Due to regulation and quality issues, usually this has to have a landing page in between and multiple steps to ensure that the traffic reaching the end sponsored links is there to convert on something and not just a random visitor or bot of no value.
Though the years, there have been a lot of changes in the industry and now the two main ways of doing search arbitrage are AFD and RSOC!
Arbitrage-From-Domain (AFD)
AFD is often called domain parking, and it's what most consider to be classic search arbitrage. With AFD you need to buy a domain and register it with your network. Instead of hosting your content on it, the network will host “relevant searches” with sponsored links at the end.
To run AFD properly, you should follow this funnel:
AD -> Landing Page -> AFD Page -> Offer
AFD works well for the most part, but it has some problems. The biggest one is that the networks have a hard time controlling what ads you use to point to these domains. This means that affiliates can overpromise and underdeliver with their ads in a lot of cases, which causes bad traffic to come to the offer. Networks, of course, dislike this, and this is why the push for RSOC is so big in the last year.
Google also said that they will be changing the way they work with domain parking in 2025. The current speculation is that they will make domain parking opt in instead of opt out. This will have a huge impact on AFD especially and it's likely that all affiliates will be forced to switch to RSOC or abandon search arbitrage entirely.
Rich Search Result Optimization Console (RSOC)
As the industry changed, so did search arbi. They introduced RSOC a few years ago, and for the most part it has been a positive change all around. With RSOC, the users take 2-3 less clicks to get to the results, improving user retention, conversion rates, and the general experience.
The way it works is simple. The big search arbitrage networks host their domain that affiliates make their content for (in the form of a landing page). There, the sponsored links are integrated into the page and if the users click on them, they convert right away.
Some search feed providers even make this part automated though AI. They generate relevant content on the page that is compliant, and through this limit the ways affiliates can misuse the system.
With RSOC, feed providers and networks have a much better insight into what you are running and how you are running your campaigns. This means that most things that you weren't allowed to do before, but you could due to less insight into your ads, just won't fly anymore. With RSOC you can expect same day feedback from the search provider if you make overpromising or misleading ads.
How Search Arbitrage Gained and Lost Popularity
A few years ago, almost nobody knew about search arbitrage, and if they did, they often just ignored it as it wasn't a big thing. During an affiliate conference, some affiliates showed audiences that they made millions through search arbitrage on TikTok and Meta ads. This suddenly caused a huge boom in popularity and suddenly all of the big players started running search arbi with often misleading ads and offers.
This huge popularity influx caused a lot of issues. Due to a lot of spam traffic, search feed started lowering payouts, pushing more regulation, and in the end even Google had to intervene and ban a lot of affiliates running it.
But the damage was already done. Most of the previously profitable niches got destroyed by regulations and competition, and search arbi lost most of its popularity. Now that Google also announced that they will make domain parking opt in in 2025, it looks like search arbitrage is about to take another big hit and become even less profitable for the affiliates that remain.
How To Get Started With Search Arbitrage
Getting into Search Arbitrage in 2025 is a lot harder than before as most feeds are limiting who can sign up, but here is how you can join up!
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Get Access to Search Feeds
To get started, you need to get access to search feed providers. Some of them will not allow you to make an account and work with them if you don’t already have a history with them or search arbitrage, but others are more relaxed about it. Here are some of the most popular ones:
- System1
- Tonic
- Ads.com
- DomainActive
- Sedo
Keep in mind that Domain Parking isn't the main business model for all of these companies, and for some you will need to ask specifically for their program if you want to join.
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Find Quality Traffic
Decide where you want to focus on regarding traffic. Focus on one source, and once you figure it completely out, you can switch to another or add multiple ones. Here are the most effective channels:
- Social Media: Platforms like TikTok and Facebook are great for paid ads and getting audiences to interact with your content. The only problem with them is that both are known to not be the biggest fans of Search Arbitrage, and some of your campaigns might get limited or restricted.
- Native Ads: With services like Taboola and Outbrain, you can find quality traffic and integrate your ads seamlessly into content, enhancing the user engagement.
- Search Engine Marketing: Google Ads and Bing Ads allow for targeting specific search queries, attracting users with intent. This is the least popular way of finding traffic, but it does work for some!
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(Optional) Develop a Content Rich Platform
Depending on your traffic source and if you want to focus on RSOC or AFD, you can or don’t need to make a content-rich platform. If you want to, make a website with valuable content and engaging articles that attract people. Make sure to be compliant with all of the policies and focus on the content first and monetization second.
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Implement Tracking and Optimization
Most feed providers offer some basic tracking, but if you want to get into the details, you will need to implement a third-party tracking solution. Once you have that integrated, you should find it easy to learn more about your traffic and optimize it.
Industry Changes in 2025
Here is what's expected to change in this year and how it will influence Search Arbitrage!
- Increased Competition
With the restrictions coming to AFD, most affiliates will be forced to switch to RSOC. Even though fewer people are doing domain parking now than a year or two ago, once all of the remaining affiliates all jump to RSOC, it will likely be incredibly difficult to find your own space.
- More Regulation
There are always regulations, but it looks like there are about to be even more. Some of them will have a big impact on how you can advertise and what is allowed and what's not. But we can't predict what will happen as most regulators don’t announce these things in advance.
- Better Tech
With AI, most search providers are implementing AI content generation to make engaging and compliant content for RSOC. This is likely to improve other things like tracking and monetization as well.
Conclusion
The glory days of search arbitrage are probably behind it, but it's far away from being dead in 2025! It still provides a lucrative opportunity for affiliates around the globe that want to try it out. There are a lot of changes coming to the industry very soon, and affiliates that don’t know or want to adapt will be left behind.
Have you tried running search arbitrage? What was your experience with it? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
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