SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
George Wadsworth, Head of Casino at Soft2Bet, explains how the company combines strong growth with responsible gambling and player protection.
Growth has been one of the defining features of the online gambling industry since its emergence 20 years ago and this commercial success has revealed two characteristics at which it excels.
One is the spirit of enterprise that drives so many igaming executives and the second is their ability to turn their visions into successful products that are active in the largest markets in the world. Both are examples of the innovation and delivery suppliers and operators are capable of when they put their business ideas into practice.
This commercial development, especially before the broad waves of regulation that have occurred in the past 10 years, happened at such speed that it was sometimes difficult for the industry to take into account issues like responsible gambling (RG), player safety or consumer protection. The intervening 15-20 years have led the industry to change how it operates beyond recognition.
In 2024, RG, corporate and social responsibility are integral pillars upon which leading igaming companies base their strategic roadmaps.
There are a number of reasons for this; basing your business model on players who might suffer from problem gambling or addictive traits is not good for business. The volatility linked to such customers is highly detrimental to the players themselves and can also cause short and long-term problems for operators.
When it comes to regulation, gambling legislators follow closely what is happening across a whole range of different markets as they monitor activities. Operators that abuse player safety guidelines or RG requirements will, eventually, be found out and sanctioned for not protecting players or pushing them into potentially damaging behaviours.
Such events often result in official reprimands and large financial penalties imposed on the igaming companies concerned. In addition, the reputational damage that is suffered every time a news story appears about such cases is highly detrimental to operators and the industry.
Combining growth and RG
Commercial growth and developing revenues is the aim for all operators, but one issue that arises regularly is how the industry can combine growth with RG and CSR.
One way Soft2Bet has addressed this issue is by developing the Motivational Engineering Gaming Application (MEGA), the industry’s leading gamification solutions. Powered by advanced technological innovation, MEGA utilises social and casual gaming features to drive engagement, screen time and revenues.
The fact that this gamification is content-led is no accident: it allows players to participate in a whole range of challenges and missions and collect achievements and points that go towards building up their loyalty points and rewards.
By moving up through loyalty levels and spending in-game currency within gamified mechanics such as City and Stadium Builder or Bonus Crab, players develop strong relationships with the operators that offer MEGA.
As mentioned, the engagement is content-led, and this is important. It is not based on bonuses or promotional budgets and the players return organically to their accounts as they progress through the different levels that MEGA provides. In markets such as Sweden, where there are strict restrictions on bonusing and promotions, MEGA ensures the customer journeys are compliant with local regulations, but also creates the engagement that drives players to partake in real-money gaming.
All the metrics show that MEGA contributes significantly to operators’ growth. Soft2Bet’s leading brand in Sweden and Denmark is Betinia and in 2023, the site’s .dk and .se portals recorded a 65% increase in gross gaming revenues, with over 50% of Betinia players taking part in MEGA gamification mechanics. This led average revenues per user (ARPU) to grow by more than 70%.
Redefining igaming
Soft2Bet’s MEGA has already changed the igaming paradigm, redefining how operators can generate strong growth without compromising their responsible gambling and social responsibility credentials. We do this by leveraging the vast amounts of user data and insights that we collect, classify and tailor into personalised dashboards and user experiences.
Being able to target player cohorts with powerful insights gleaned from highly accurate customer data is, we believe, a truly unique feature that leads to higher engagement, GGR and ARPU for our B2B partners and differentiates Soft2Bet from other igaming companies.
Our content-led gamification solution creates engagement levels and produces reams of user data that we are able to analyse to improve the platform. It also enables us to maintain our focus on growing in sustainable markets, improving player journeys and future RG implementations to set a new level of gaming experience for our customers. By operating in this way, Soft2Bet is raising standards as it combines gamification with responsible gambling and drives revenues and growth for its partners.
