SBC Digital-Sportsbook: Smaller operators can survive by being agile, savvier
As the sportsbook market becomes increasingly crowded, smaller operators often struggle to survive. They are often competing against larger, better financed and more powerful companies, and that is not lost on them.
“It’s easy for Goliath to run and walk and change positions,” Estrella Bet Chief Business Officer Felipe Fraga said Wednesday during the SBC Digital – Sportsbook webinar “David vs. Goliath in a Saturated Market.” “We have an illustration in the company that in the beginning we are like a small boat. When you change the direction of the boat, it’s easy and faster.
“Now, we are bigger. There are bigger shifts and it’s harder to change the direction, and it’s expensive. It’s a cost, not only about money but for people, structure, how you manage all the areas of the company.”
Hosted by SBC News’ Ted Orme-Clay, the panel noted that it’s increasingly difficult for smaller operators to thrive, particularly in market like the United Kingdom where larger operators dominate.
But it’s not impossible.
“I think there are opportunities,” said Gareth Williams, the Betting & Gaming Director for TalkSport. “The market is still thriving despite regulatory changes. It’s still expected to grow into a mature market.
“Customers are used to having multiple accounts with different operators and used to moving around and taking opportunities of new offers, and testing brands as well. So, for newcomers, I think a lot depends on what your ambitions are. Coming in and thinking your going to be one or two or three in the market is unrealistic, but there are still opportunities to take that share of a customer’s time and wallet.”
One of the ways a smaller operator can distinguish itself is through customer service. FEG Group Head of Gaming & Commercial Strategy Myke Foster said that is often humbling to review customer feedback on a issue that was assumed to be simple.
“All of a sudden you get a flood of complaints because a button was in the wrong place, or the customer journey didn’t make sense or the CRM (customer relationship management) email made it out to be something slightly different than it was.
“That end-to-end experience of the customer experience is absolutely vital. I would say, certainly as a challenger brand, it’s the only thing that differentiates from the market leaders. If we can offer seamless experience, more end-to-end where we actually improve on the things that we’re doing, and we make the things that we’re doing slightly easier, it’s slightly a place for us to win.”
Superbet, which started as a small sportsbook operator in Romania, expanded into Poland, and in 2023 entered the Brazilian market. The key for a smaller operator to grow, Superbet Vice President of Online Andrei Popa said, is to be nimble and able to react to market conditions because regulators do the same.
“I do think the strategy is much more about what do you actually want to achieve in a span of five-to-10 years,” Popa said. “But then, when we’re talking about yearly things or the next two years it’s much more about you needing to be agile and able to adjust to whatever market conditions are happening.”
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