SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Motti Colman, VP of Revenue and Gaming at Optimove, details the CRM expert’s amplified focus on capturing AI-driven personalisation and gamification innovations for customers, providing a true single view of real-time customer engagements.
At the SBC Summit in Lisbon, Colman and Optimove will be showcasing their new Target Group Discovery tool, which leverages AI for precise audience segmentation to enhance personalised marketing campaigns and customer messaging.
_________________
SBC: What elements of SBC Summit work so well for your organisation, and why is it important for you to be there this year?
Motti Colman (Optimove): SBC Summit is genuinely one of our favorite events of the year, and it’s crucial for us to be there. The event attracts a massive number of operators and is rich in content, which fits perfectly with how we approach CRM Marketing—ensuring every marketing message is truly personalized and relevant.
The summit offers an unmatched opportunity to connect with key players in the iGaming industry, whether it’s solidifying relationships with existing clients, exploring new partnerships, or engaging with potential prospects. The panels and discussions are particularly valuable, allowing us to both share our insights and learn from others. It’s all about collaboration, innovation, and staying ahead in a rapidly evolving industry. SBC Lisbon hits all the right notes for us, making it an essential part of our yearly strategy.
SBC: What’s your key objective at this year’s event and what are the main products/services you’ll be promoting?
MC: We love attending the SBC Summit because it allows us to connect face-to-face with the people who run this industry, understand the challenges, and learn about their future plans. These interactions are invaluable, enabling us to come back each year with the right solutions to meet their needs.
This year, we’re particularly excited about holding a partner CRM Ecosystem at our booth. We’ve invited six of our partners to join us and demonstrate the power and benefits of our integrations. This setup not only showcases cutting-edge solutions but also highlights our commitment to enhancing player engagement and retention.
We will also hold our now-traditional CRM Marketing Lightning talks at our booth, led by Optimove experts. These are ten-minute quick but deep dives, into a specific CRM Marketing topic. It’s perfect for people in a hurry, with an all-insight, zero fluff approach. Expect topics like gamification, predictive models, highlights from March Madness and the SuperBowl and more.
This year we’re excited to present our latest innovation, a new AI-orchestrated gamification solution – a first for iGaming and Sports Betting operators. It is made possible by our AI-orchestrated marketing prowess, a hallmark of Optimove since 2012 and our recently announced partnerships with best-of-breed gamification leaders Captain Up and Gamanza Engage.
This new AI-orchestrated gamification solution and partnerships unlock the following for iGaming and Sports Betting operators:
- Integrated Gamification for Personalization
- Real-time Orchestration
- Holistic Campaign Measurement
- AI Optimization
With this, we are bringing an unprecedented level of gamification to iGaming and Sports Betting operators.
Additionally, we’ve introduced Target Group Discovery, a tool that leverages AI to help marketers identify and segment their audience with precision. By analyzing vast amounts of customer data, it pinpoints the best target groups based on specific attributes and behaviors, such as purchase history and engagement levels. This enables marketers to create highly personalized and effective campaigns. It offers many benefits like enhanced customer segmentation, improved campaign performance and more, and we’re very excited to demo and discuss it at the event and see the reaction up close.
SBC: What would you highlight as the biggest opportunity in the betting and gaming industry over the next couple of years?
MC: The biggest opportunity right now is definitely in the booming LATAM markets. Brazil, in particular presents a unique chance for savvy operators to expand quickly and secure a substantial share of the market. But it’s not just about pumping money into acquisition efforts. Operators must be keenly aware that players are looking for more than just big bonuses—they want brands that truly understand their preferences and needs and can provide exceptional player experiences.
It means that operators need to be savvy about their Generosity program. At this year’s Summit we will have deep insights about how operators can optimize Generosity to pinpoint and retain players that can deliver significant lifetime value.
To really succeed, operators everywhere, but particularly in growing markets, need to excel in personalization and relevance, making sure they put their players first. This means focusing on meaningful, personalized engagement and building long-term relationships with players to keep them coming back. It’s about growing fast, but doing it the right way, ensuring that every interaction adds value and strengthens the connection with the player.
SBC: What elements of your business do you feel are best placed to take advantage of that opportunity?
MC: We’re in a great position to capitalize on the growing LATAM market. We’re already working with some of the biggest names in the industry, including 8 of the top 10 US operators, and we’re rapidly expanding in LATAM with leading partners like La Tinka, Apuesta Total, Latamwin, Betnacional and more. This year, we’ve reinforced our commitment to the region by opening a second office in Brazil, which complements our existing office in Colombia.
Additionally, our ability to gather and analyze market-wide data gives our clients proprietary markets insights. Only Optimove provide robust benchmarking that our operators with access to this valuable data navigate the market with an advantage over competitors. This combination of strong local partnerships, a growing presence, and deep analytical capabilities positions us perfectly to help operators capitalize on the booming LATAM market.
SBC: What areas of the business should we be looking to for innovation in the next 12 months?
MC: In the next 12 months, we look forward to further deploy our AI-orchestrated gamification solution across the globe. As noted, we’ve combined our experience and leadership in AI in marketing automation with new partnerships with best-of-breed gamification leaders Captain Up and Gamanza Engage to deliver the first AI-orchestrated gamification to iGaming and Sports Betting operators. These solution sets a new standard for gamification in iGaming and Sports Betting.
We’re also focusing on enhancing player engagement for our sportsbook operator clients. At the conference, we will preview our ability to provide real-time, automated sports insights and tips directly to players. This leverages historical data and AI analysis to keep players engaged and satisfied with their experience.
Optimove advances in CRM Marketing represent a big push towards more personalized and dynamic customer interactions. We are relentlessly focused on perpetual improvements that drive even higher levels of engagement and retention for operators.
What new technology do you feel will have the biggest impact for stakeholders?
MC: One of the most exciting technologies continuing to shape the industry is AI-led journey orchestration. Optimove has been at the forefront of this innovation. In 2023, we scored the highest in the Journey Orchestration use case in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant companion report, “The Critical Capabilities for Multichannel Marketing Hubs.” This recognition highlights our dedication to enhancing marketing capabilities through AI and delivering personalized player experiences.
Journey orchestration provides hyper-personalized experiences that match the speed of a player’s interaction with an operator. Think of it like having a “personal betting agent” in the digital world. AI and generative AI (genAI) empower marketers to gain deep insights, automate high-performing campaigns, and personalize interactions at scale. This ensures every player touchpoint is relevant and timely, akin to the tailored service you’d get in a physical casino or sportsbook.
As noted, our latest partnerships with best-of-breed gamification leaders Captain Up and Gamanza Engage are great examples of leveraging AI to elevate players’ journey. These integrations allow operators to blend AI-orchestrated marketing with advanced gamification and loyalty features, creating a seamless, engaging experience across all channels. This holistic approach not only enhances the player journey and experience but also drives higher engagement, retention rates and elevates Player Lifetime Value.
SBC: What core challenges do you help solve for your customers/partners?
MC: While we solve dozens of marketing issues for iGaming and Sports Betting operators, I will cherry-pick a few things that are of particular interest today based on the thousands of conversations we have had with the leading operators worldwide.
Overall, we help operators:
- Leverage relationship with current players to optimize player lifetime value
- Deliver personalization at scale
- Reduce churn
- Effectively manage multi-channel marketing orchestration
Overall, we help operators in iGaming and Sport Betting ensure their best players stay longer and come back more often to drive lifetime value.
The focus is to grow through their existing players, rather than via costly player acquisition. We empower these operators to gain and deepen their players trust and loyalty. We have proven that personalized, relevant interaction with players reduces churn and increases lifetime value.
One key challenge operators face is personalization at scale. Delivering personalized experiences to a vast player base without overwhelming marketing teams is crucial. We aggregate and analyze player data, allowing marketers to create highly personalized campaigns orchestrated across marketing channels by advanced AI. This ensures each player receives relevant, timely, and personalized messages, which significantly boosts engagement and loyalty.
OptiGenie our AI suite, continuously monitors and optimizes campaigns, ensuring they are always fine-tuned for maximum effectiveness, driving better business outcomes for our clients. Our advanced analytics and AI capabilities empower data-driven decision-making, allowing marketers to understand player behavior and preferences deeply.
Churn is always a prominent challenge. Our AI-led predictive analytics identify players at risk of churning and recommend targeted retention strategies. By orchestrating personalized engagement campaigns, we help operators maintain player interest and reduce churn rates effectively.
Another significant challenge for operators is multi-channel marketing orchestration. Coordinating marketing efforts across multiple channels to provide a seamless player experience can be daunting. Our CRM Marketing Platform allows operators to manage and synchronize campaigns across email, SMS, push notifications, and more, ensuring a consistent player experience.
While I have touched on a few topics that are front and center right now for operators, as I noted that are literally dozens more than we address.
SBC: Who have you especially enjoyed working with over the past year (partner/client) and why?
MC: Over the past year, I’ve particularly enjoyed working with our clients across various regions like Europe, North America, and Latin America where we’re experiencing a massive growth that is outpacing the growth of the industry.
As the number 1 CRM marketing solution for the iGaming industry, we work with hundreds of brands, including 8 of the top 10 operators in the US, and we’re making significant strides in LATAM recently opening a second office in the region. Each operator we collaborate with presents unique market challenges and requirements, making every partnership an exciting and rewarding experience.
What’s most satisfying is seeing our clients harness the power of the Optimove platform to overcome these challenges and expand via their existing players, the right way to grow. Whether through the tailored research and consultation from Optimove Insights, our research and analytics arm, or the advanced features of our CRM Marketing platform, we’re committed to empowering our clients to enhance their player engagement and retention strategies. I find it truly gratifying to witness the positive impact our solutions have on their growth and success in such a competitive industry.
SBC: What are you hoping to learn from the conference at SBC Summit and which elements of the agenda will you be focusing on the most?
MC: I’m excited about the opportunity to connect with marketers at the SBC Summit and really get into the weeds of their challenges and pain points. It’s one thing to understand trends from a distance, but there’s nothing like those face-to-face conversations to get a true sense of what’s happening on the ground.
As for the sessions, I’m particularly interested in the discussions around Brazil and lotteries. Brazil’s recent regulatory changes, especially with sports betting and land-based casinos, are creating a lot of buzz. The marketing landscape there is evolving rapidly, especially given the country’s passion for sports. Hearing from experts and networking with others who are either established in or entering this market will be invaluable.
The lottery sessions also caught my eye. The shift in the European lottery landscape due to market liberalization is fascinating, especially with the pressure to innovate and digitize in the face of new competitors. CRM Marketing plays a key role in the success of this digitization process. These insights will be crucial as we continue to support our clients in navigating these changes
_________________
