The power of automation

Johnson Irudayaraj, CEO at OptiKPI, says that marketing automation can help operators free up valuable resources, deliver a superior player experience and ultimately drive revenues

The online gambling sector presents tremendous opportunities for ambitious operators looking to expand their geographical reach into new markets around the world. The pace at which the industry is growing is frankly staggering with additional jurisdictions opening their doors to regulated online gambling all of the time.

But where there are opportunities there are also challenges, and multi-market operators can quickly find that they are using up vital resources on compliance, localisation and marketing. This, combined with changing customer expectations and regulations that differ from market to market, is making it increasingly tough for operators to stand out from their rivals. This is certainly true when it comes to acquisition and retention where we still find operators locked in a race to the bottom based on who can offer the most bonuses and promotions.

This ultimately fails to deliver the experience that players are seeking and prevents operators from driving the highest lifetime value from their acquired customers. This is where automation comes in. Through the power of automation, business critical activities can be streamlined to free up valuable resources needed to drive growth sustainably (and compliantly). It can also allow operators and marketers to engage customers in real-time – which has really become a necessity – to deliver a personalised, superior experience.

Most importantly, automated marketing tools can help operators to better leverage the data they can access to pinpoint signs of problem gambling in real time. This ultimately creates a safer environment for players while also allowing marketers to concentrate on creating tailored offers instead of using their time to manage them. This is important for operators that are active in multiple jurisdictions and especially those that look to quickly enter new markets to gain that all important first mover advantage.

As we all know, growth in the market is inevitably accompanied by increased regulation – just look what is happening in established markets such as the UK and Sweden. But rather than see this as a challenge, we believe it is an opportunity for us to reinforce to operators and marketers the power of automation and streamlining processes. As big jurisdictional changes continue to roll out, operators will come to understand the need to manage their marketing processes more efficiently and maximise ROI from spend.

At OptiKPI, we know that regulation has been and always will be fluid and we have tailored our solutions with this in mind. Through applying a risk-based system, we are able to create simple tools that facilitate automation rules that are then applied in real time. Our modular framework allows any changes that result from regulation to be immediately and seamlessly updated within the software to ensure compliance at all times.

But it’s not just operators that benefit from automated marketing, players do as well. By optimising, personalising and measuring customer engagement through dynamic marketing tools, players can receive marketing and communications tailored to their preferences and traits. This delivers a more valuable, positive experience for the player which in turn leads to higher levels of engagement and retention – our operators can see revenue uplifts of more than 30%.

Players now expect quick, up to the minute information on demand and by using cutting-edge marketing platforms and automation, operators can deliver this. With the OptiKPI platform, for example, operators can import player data from a number of touchpoints and in real time. From this, they can instantaneously adjust communications based on the player’s behaviour and give them exactly what they are looking for, exactly when they want it.

This will help operator address one of the biggest challenges they face in a sector that is only going to become more competitive and that is boosting player LTVs and loyalty. By unlocking the capabilities of automation, brands will no longer feel the need to compete solely on the value and number of bonuses they offer which just reduces margins for everyone. Instead, they can provide customers with a customised experience that will organically increase retention and ensure sustainable, compliant growth in all of the markets they target.