iGaming Business magazine In-Play Focus 2018 | Page 16

In-Play Focus 2018
MAKE SURE
YOUNGER PLAYERS ‘STICK’
Operators are under pressure to cater for an increasingly mass-market consumer. SBTech’s
Ian Bradley explores how to broaden in-play’s appeal beyond its current core constituency
One of the biggest user-growth drivers during
the forthcoming Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup
will be live betting via mobile. The ability to
appeal to younger demographics – people who
can’t be without their phones even for a moment –
will be key.
Thanks to faster data feeds, in-play is now a
fully immersive, real-time experience - there’s huge
hunger for the fastest possible bet placement and
settlement flow, especially during short sessions
and operators will soon be able to offer instant
markets on a far wider range of sports.
With so many online activities, from social
media to gaming, younger players don’t want
to spend any longer on site than they have to.
Analytics on the player journey show the time
44 | iGamingBusiness | Issue 109 | March/April 2018
spent searching for bets – especially in-play
selections – is an area that still needs to be
addressed; the providers and operators that
deliver the fastest, smoothest experiences will
reap the rewards of the in-play revolution.
No longer deemed ‘pushy’
Perhaps unsurprisingly, younger players have
a far greater appetite for live betting than other
demographics; and in-play bettors of all ages
prefer to bet during the same periods of matches
and on the markets that have delivered success
for them previously. As such, personalisation
must be central to any in-play strategy, and the
average bettor is now far more receptive to bet
encouragement overtly based on their unique