Opinion: Rules of engagement for live betting

Most operators already grasp the importance of the casual punter to their bottom line. You only need to watch the adverts around any major football match to see that marketing budgets are being spent not only targeting the type of player who enjoys the occasional bet, rather than hardened gamblers, but also is trying to capture a new segment – the sports fan.

With CPAs rising fast and live betting accounting for a growing share of revenues, it has never been more important to ensure customers are fully engaged with a sports betting product, especially when reaching out into new demographics.

Product has not always kept pace with this shift in marketing focus. It is easy to forget that to many, sports betting remains impenetrable and intimidating. Greeting a new customer with a page full of handicap prices or spreads is a sure-fire way to put them off for life.

Opportunty knocks

With the major regulated markets more competitive than ever and a number of new brands pledging big entries to the UK this year, a product which not only increases fan engagement but can also differentiate an operator is increasingly important.

Our new product BetUP, which goes live with Unibet soon, is part of a new generation of products with a stronger focus on player engagement, which has also seen William Hill roll out apps which provide for a simpler and more intuitive user experience around live betting.

The second-screen effect has already revolutionised sportsbook and placed mobile at the centre of live betting. The natural step forward would be for operators to offer innovative products that will aim to engage with fans and softly educate them about live betting in an entertaining way.

Engaging ways

That level of engagement just isn’t attainable through standard in-play formats and operators can benefit from a renewed focus on optimising user experience for casual players.

Creating a truly engaging sports betting games opens up all sorts of avenues for operators. For one, it can serve as an educational tool for new acquisitions who might normally churn before they find a product which suits them. And by building a story around live betting, users feel like they are part of the experience, instead of a passive onlooker.

Secondly, by creating a competitive element between users, operators can step back from the increasingly tired “can you beat the bookie?” narrative which many punters are beginning to see through.

Keeping ahead

Pooling entry fees via a tournament format similar to poker also allows those operators to offer the type of large jackpots rarely seen in sportsbook, in a way which feels far more attainable than guessing the correct-score for 6-7 different matches.

It is no longer enough to offer hundreds of live betting markets and assume the sheer force of coverage will keep customers coming back. Engagement will be king when it comes to sportsbook in 2016, and those who don’t innovate will soon be left behind.