Who is a business developer, and how much do they earn in 2026?

When people hear about jobs in the affiliate industry, most immediately think of the role of an arbitrage specialist. But the industry wouldn’t be as large and developed as it is if all the professionals in it were arbitrage specialists, right?

Here’s what often happens. A beginner browses job listings and sees an ad that says, “We need a business developer in iGaming” or something along those lines. Then they sit there and think: “Is that just another name for an ‘arbitrageur,’ or what? Who is this ‘business developer’ anyway? Can I be a business developer?” and so on…

To some, this might sound strange, while to others, it’s a perfectly normal part of life. So if you don’t know what this “BDM” is that companies are constantly looking for – read this article. Today, AFFHUB will explain the ins and outs of the Business Development Manager (BDM) role, and maybe after reading this, you’ll realize that this position is a good fit for you.

Who Is a Business Development Manager?

To put it simply, a BDM is a professional who seeks out new growth opportunities for the company and turns initial contacts into real partnerships.

However, a BDM shouldn’t be confused with a sales manager, because in sales, the process may end once a deal is closed, whereas for a BDM, that’s just the beginning of the journey toward the desired goal. Their task is to build long-term relationships, understand the partner’s needs, and find a win-win model for collaboration.

In iGaming, a BDM must understand what kind of traffic a specific advertiser needs, which geos the team can scale into, how competitive the bid is, and where there is potential for growth.

That’s why a strong BizDev is part salesperson, part account manager, part analyst, and part project manager. Sometimes they’re even a crisis manager – like when the postback suddenly stops working on a Friday night.

What skills should a BizDev professional have in 2026?

Of course, basic qualities like creativity, flexibility, communication, sales, and networking skills are great. But by 2026, the market has shown that standard methods of finding partners no longer impress anyone. Unfortunately, these methods are losing their effectiveness, so a BDM needs to be able to find new approaches – and that, as you know, is no easy task.

Communication also remains a fundamental skill. Some might say, “What’s the big deal about communication? You just write a message and go chill.” But practice shows that even experienced professionals whose work is directly related to communication can not only fail to engage a partner but also ruin already established relationships.

Or consider this scenario: Assign communication tasks to someone who has never worked closely in this field. On the very first day, they’ll say they just can’t handle it. And it’s all because communicating with a potential partner is far from always leading to complete mutual understanding between the parties and the successful conclusion of a so-called deal. That’s a hefty dose of stress that not everyone can handle.

That’s why a good BDM must be stress-resistant. On top of that, let’s not forget about charisma and tact. Your communication should attract partners and build their trust in you, not push them away and make them want to throw their laptop against the wall.

And what about English? For the international iGaming industry, the language has practically become a necessity. Working with foreign partners, attending conferences, conducting negotiations, and accessing a broader market all require linguistic confidence. You don’t want situations where a specialist is asked a basic question in English and feels like they want to sink through the floor because they don’t understand a thing.

For beginners, internal motivation, proactivity, attentiveness, the ability to learn, and, of course, stress resilience are especially important. Don’t expect immediate results at the start; you’ll have to endure plenty of situations like “we’ll get back to you with feedback by the end of the week” – and not lose your desire to work.

The challenges of the profession that aren’t always discussed

From the outside, a BDM’s job may seem like almost endless networking: conferences, meetings, meeting new people, business trips. In reality, there’s a fairly high level of responsibility behind it all.

BDMs often have to stay in touch outside of standard working hours. In the international iGaming industry, partners operate in different time zones, and issues with traffic, caps, or integrations don’t really care what day of the week it is or what time it is right now.

The second challenge is accountability for results. You need to monitor traffic quality, agreements, KPIs, and relationships between parties. If a conflict arises, it’s often the BDM who has to resolve it.

The third challenge is the constant need to adapt. Different geos, market conditions that are anything but stable, partners coming and going—and what worked a few years ago may now be fit only for the trash can.

How do you become a BDM without experience?

If you have absolutely no experience, it’s quite difficult to land a BDM position right away. You need to at least understand how the industry works and how to build connections within it.

The most common path is to start with affiliate or account management, support, or another position within the affiliate network. That way, you gradually gain an understanding of offers, traffic, GEOs, working with partners, and internal processes.

If you’re starting practically from scratch, the logical sequence looks like this:

• learn the basics of affiliate marketing and understand what it’s all about;
• get a handle on how the iGaming market works;
• master basic analytics and tracking;
• develop communication skills and stress resilience;
• network.

Regarding that last point, we’d like to mention conferences specifically. For BDMs, they can be an important source of new contacts. One useful connection can sometimes be worth more than dozens of messages sent out. So if you still view affiliate events as just “a chance to come and smoke a joint,” our advice is to change your perspective.

For a BDM, a conference is, in essence, a business trip. Before the event, you need to plan meetings, create a schedule, prepare questions, and determine who to talk to first.

At the conference itself, there can be dozens of meetings in a single day. Sometimes there’s literally just enough time for a cup of coffee between two meetings.

But the most important part begins after the event. You need to maintain contact, revisit the discussion, send a proposal, and turn the initial connection into a real partnership.

That’s why a photo from the conference and the number of cocktails you drank at the after-party aren’t the result. The result is when a partnership emerges afterward.

And finally – how much does a BizDev professional earn?

A BizDev professional’s income typically consists of a fixed salary and a bonus component. The bonus may depend on KPIs, the number of deals, or the results of established partnerships.

According to research based on information circulating online, the approximate income levels in the international iGaming market may look like this:

• Junior BDM: up to $1,000
• Middle: around $2,000–3,000
• Senior: $4,000 and up.

At the same time, these figures do not constitute a universal pay scale. Conditions depend on the specific company, experience, geographic region, area of responsibility, and bonus system.

The higher a specialist’s level, the greater the role played by the variable portion of their income. For Senior BDMs, their own network of contacts, the ability to bring in major partners, and the capacity to scale existing agreements become crucial.

In Summary

Being a Business Development Manager in iGaming isn’t just about networking, high-profile conferences, and successful collaborations. Behind this glamorous image lie negotiations, analytics, technical processes, KPIs, a constant search for partners, and considerable mental resilience.

Sometimes you’ll have to reply to a work message at 11:47 p.m. But that’s the little asterisk that nobody ever includes in job postings next to the phrase “flexible schedule.”