iGaming Business magazine In-Play Focus 2018 | Page 17

In-Play Focus 2018
history. What was once considered ‘pushy’ is
now part and parcel of the online experience
in general and betting in particular. With careful
calibration, it’s a win-win situation, saving valuable
time for players and increasing brand loyalty
for operators.
For that reason, mobile-first features providing
tailored quick-bet suggestions on specific
incidents during live events are now poised to
achieve peak profitability.
SBTech has also discovered that many players
end betting sessions simply because they have
zero balance, despite having one or more active
bets with cash-out available.
These findings have had a major influence
on the group’s development processes over the
past few years. A new feature that allows players
to unlock the cash-out value of an existing bet
by including extra ‘banker’ selections, to turn a
single into a double or a treble into a fourfold,
for example, now offers more control to customers
and enhanced margins for operators.
Our research has also identified that a more
gamified and engaging user interface makes
bettors stickier and more likely to spend their
leisure time and money on a sportsbook than on,
say, a freemium game. For example, we know that
simple additions such as matchtrackers increase
time on device by 20%. The next logical step is
to extend this feeling of excitement to the bets
themselves. This is why our newest feature,
Pulse, pays out incrementally larger amounts
for goals occurring as time progresses. Users
can follow the progress of their bet in the context
of a matchtracker and a countdown timer, thus
building their excitement toward a jackpot
amount if a goal is scored in the final few
moments of the bet.
This radical new approach adds an extra
dimension to live betting; by increasing time on
site, turnover, margin and loyalty, it represents
a genuine game-changer.
But perhaps the most important consideration
is convergence: how principles of personalisation,
social and peer-to-peer interaction, esports, and
gamified formats will come together to create
innovative lifestyle betting products. Ingenious
loyalty programmes are certain to be core
components of such offerings with a range of
rewards available, from free bets and bonuses to
real-world gifts, such as sports merchandise.
An entire online economy based on exchangeable
points could spring up, with sports and casino
betting at its heart, requiring powerful omnichannel
infrastructures and big-data capabilities provided
by forward-thinking technology providers with
the knowledge and experience to deliver robust,
flexible and highly scalable solutions.
Ian Bradley is SBTech’s
chief product officer and
has more than 10 years’
experience in the gaming
industry. He is responsible
for the rollout of new
features and services
across the company’s
global partner network.
iGamingBusiness | Issue 109 | March/April 2018 | 45