CLUB IQ May2017 | Page 18

The Force Behind betting.club The Club industry is no stranger to wagering. Clubs have been the driving force behind the wagering industry in Australia for decades. Clubs know how to get customers, market to them and keep them coming back. So why weren’t Clubs kept in the loop when it comes to the advent of digital wagering to the industry? They have watched their customers embrace new technology but, as distributors of wagering products, weren’t encouraged nor remunerated to do the same. As a distribution channel, the Clubs industry has the power to disrupt the IQ 18 digital wagering space – and the time has come for Clubs to do just that. It is this thinking that drove the biggest Club in Australia, Mounties Group, in conjunction with Campsie RSL and Club Rivers, to build the first Club-owned bookmaker in Australia – betting.club. betting.club is the exclusive digital wagering partner of the RSL & Services Club Association, Leagues Club Association of Australia and the Club Managers Association. The basic philosophies of betting. club align very closely with these Associations - they exist for no other reason than the benefit of Greg Pickering, CEO Mounties Group & Kelly Signell, CEO betting.club member clubs and the communities they represent and support. Being community club-owned itself, betting.club exist for the same reasons, not for the benefit of shareholders. betting.club recently held a briefing session for potential Club partners, which attracted over 80 Club CEOs and Gaming Managers. This session provided the attendees with an overview of betting.club’s operations and with the unique opportunity to undertake an open Q & A with both the CEO of betting.club, Ms Kelly Signell and the CEO of Mounties Group, Mr Greg Pickering.