Sportsbooks and casinos complement each other, but why is that? Let's outline how integrating sportsbooks into online casino platforms benefits operators and discuss the operational complexities and challenges.
Why Adding Sports Betting is a Game-Changer
All online casino operators, at some point, face the same problem: stiff competition and limited growth opportunities—all stemming from the fact that all casinos essentially offer a similar range of games since external providers create the core content. It is challenging to differentiate in a market where every operator provides almost the same thing. The cost of getting new players through affiliate programs is increasing, especially in regulated markets where this trend is even more noticeable.
For online casino operators, the next logical step in development is to combine casino and sports betting software. Many operators specializing exclusively in casinos underestimate the value of the sports betting industry: they believe that the primary revenue will always come from the casino and that a basic level of sports content is sufficient for success.
However, a high-quality sports betting platform can significantly enhance an operator's competitiveness and attractiveness. The sports betting industry draws new customers and encourages existing players to spend more time and money on the software platform. This is particularly relevant in tying new growth strategies by operators specializing exclusively in casinos and online gambling because they either have never tried sports betting software or have only experienced it on a basic sportsbook platform.
💡 The online sports betting market is growing rapidly, and with increasing mobile penetration rates, it will continue to grow further. The market is projected to reach a whopping $233.6 billion by 2034—a 10.6% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2024 to 2034. By then, online platforms are anticipated to account for at least 85% of the global sports betting market.
All this comes together to make sports betting very convenient and accessible for players and generate additional revenue for operators
Here are just a few reasons for operators to consider integrating sports betting into their online casino platforms:
Boosting Your Brand
From a user's perspective, the selection of slots, live casino games, and other offerings is almost identical across different operators. This makes loyalty form not only for the operator but also for specific games and providers. Integrating a sportsbook allows operators to enhance their brand by offering a unique, comprehensive platform that includes both casino games and the more socially acceptable sports betting.
Broader and Cheaper Advertising Opportunities
One significant advantage of integrating a sportsbook into your online casino platform is the expanded range of advertising opportunities available to sports operators. Unlike casinos, which often face restrictions on search and social media platforms, sports betting operators can advertise more freely and cost-effectively. Many advertising platforms that prohibit casino ads will allow sports betting promotions, giving operators access to broader audiences. Additionally, sports betting ads encounter less competition on these platforms than casino ads, resulting in lower advertising costs. This broader and cheaper advertising reach allows sports operators to attract new users and effectively enhance their overall market presence.
One-stop Shop for Entertainment
Casino operators compete for customer loyalty by providing bonuses and ensuring fast withdrawal processing, as customers highly value instant transactions. Providing both casino and sports betting options on one platform increases customer convenience and can significantly improve engagement and retention. This way, players can easily access both options without switching platforms.
For example, providers can use bonus engines and gamification tools like quests and achievements to improve the synergy between casino and betting gameplay. This will also benefit retention rates and overall LTV.
More Quality Traffic and Better SERP Rankings
Optimizing sports-related content with an effective SEO strategy can unlock exciting potential for attracting high traffic volumes with modest budgets.
Vladyslav Andrusenko, Head of Product Sportsbook
Adding a sportsbook opens up a world of opportunities for casino operators whose goal is expanding traffic acquisition and improving search rankings. A sportsbook expands your traffic acquisition toolkit beyond casino-only marketing, drawing in sports betting enthusiasts and enhancing overall traffic. By leveraging SEO strategies like microdata, content creation, semantic core, and link building, operators can significantly increase organic traffic with minimal investment.
When a brand has a sportsbook, it can attract more visitors than with just casino marketing. The gambling industry mainly depends on affiliate marketing, which targets casino audiences. However, new sportsbook operators often make the mistake of using the same tools to attract players. This means they don't reach new sports fans but instead bring in the same players who would visit their casino. To grow and attract new visitors, operators need to choose a high-quality sportsbook product. Otherwise, they'll only draw existing casino visitors to the sportsbook instead of attracting a new audience.
Vladyslav Andrusenko, Head of Product Sportsbook
Knowing the benefits of sports betting traffic acquisition, we excel at converting this traffic. We keep events pages active even after events end, displaying match results and upcoming matches, which helps attract and retain users. This approach can boost organic traffic by up to 20%, with half of all traffic and registrations being organic, i.e., free. Furthermore, sports-betting traffic is cheaper to attract and can be successfully converted into casino traffic, generating the same revenue at a quarter of the cost.
However, to convert sports audiences into casino players, you need a tailored CRM. Your CRM should include gamification, flexible user segmentation, and various automatic behavioral user segmentation types. For example, using these segments, you can display different content on the main page, run targeted bonus campaigns, activate different features in the gamification system, send emails and push notifications, and display more tailored banners.
All of this enables the effective conversion of sports audiences, who either arrived organically for free or were attracted at a lower cost than casino audiences. As a result, through sportsbook promotions, you save money on acquiring new casino players and effectively retain them with sports content.
Why Casino Operators Mostly Do Not Have a Sportsbook
Integrating a sportsbook into your online casino platform can open doors to new revenue streams and expand customer engagement. However, this venture is not without its challenges. From the complexity of managing sports betting industry trends to the scarcity of high-quality providers, operators must navigate a landscape fraught with potential pitfalls. Effective risk management and increased operational demands add further layers of complexity. Understanding these challenges is crucial for a successful integration. Here’s an in-depth look at the main obstacles and considerations to keep in mind when adding a sportsbook to your online casino.
Here what you need to face in terms of Sportsbook operations
Complexity and Required Expertise
Integrating a sportsbook can attract traffic more cost-effectively and offer more advertising opportunities. However, if online casinos synergize so well with sportsbooks, why do so few casino operators use this product? Firstly, a sportsbook is a complex product that requires substantial expertise and experience. There is a significant risk of fraud and loss without the necessary knowledge. Managing sports betting platforms and content, such as odds and handling bets, is far more complicated than managing casino games.
Increased Operational Demands
A top-tier service and product provider should offer content, trading, and priority management, eliminating the need for operators to manage risks themselves. Such a model prioritizes content on the main page and other areas, with the team handling margin management and management. This allows operators to focus on customer service, campaigns, bonuses, and converting sports bettors to casino players.
Our CRM and Gamification products and AI recommendation engine help our clients engage their audience after major sporting events and keep them involved in casino games or other in-play events. Our tools allow us to manage players' experiences and encourage them to explore new types of casino games and sports betting, guiding them to discover what they enjoy and turn it into a regular pastime.
We use automatic and behavioral segmentation to target specific groups of casino users and sports bettors with customized campaigns and bonuses. You won't need to spend your time managing player lists in spreadsheets because everything can be automated using our journey builder, based on triggers, rule-based segments, and calculated metrics. This means you can easily create campaigns and bonuses for specific groups of players without any hassle.
Vladyslav Andrusenko, Head of Product Sportsbook
Balancing Content and Risk Management
Sport risk management and anti-fraud have some unique and very crucial elements that prove to be tricky and unassuming for many experienced casino operators entering the field. A quality integration model should offer turnkey trading and comprehensive risk management, ensuring content remains current and personalized. This approach allows operators to concentrate on online casino marketing strategy and user acquisition without being bogged down by the complexities of sportsbook and casino solutions.
When it comes to sportsbook integration into an online casino platform, GR8 Tech has the best toolbox for that. We provide end-to-end product management and take full responsibility for maximizing the casino's profit margin. We conduct thorough interviews for clients without the necessary expertise to understand their setup and brand positioning. For instance, if the brand targets a younger audience and focuses on sports, we assess how competitors in this market operate, the odds they offer, their margins, and the specific markets and experts they utilize.
Vladyslav Andrusenko, Head of Product Sportsbook
Limited Number of Quality Providers
Very few high-quality sportsbook providers are available, making integration challenging. This scarcity restricts operators' options and can complicate the process of finding reliable partners for sportsbook integration.
Sportsbook Integration: a Bet on the Future
Despite the challenges, the benefits of combining sports betting and casino software solutions are too significant to ignore. The limited adoption of this practice is largely due to sportsbooks' complexity and the expertise required to manage them. However, supplementing your platform with a turnkey sports betting software solution like GR8 Tech's can reap all the benefits without the costs and complexities of developing your own system.
Integrating a high-quality sportsbook can significantly enhance an operator's competitiveness, attract new customers, and increase engagement among existing players. Sports betting diversifies your offerings and drives higher user retention and spending.
In summary, turnkey sportsbook solutions offer a practical and effective way for online casinos to enhance their platforms, attract a wider audience, and boost revenue without the traditional hurdles of sportsbook integration. By choosing a comprehensive service provider, operators can focus on what they do best—delivering an exceptional gaming experience—while leaving the complexities of sportsbook management to partners.
Try the synergy of casino and sportsbook
We provide sportsbooks, casinos, and combined solutions with in-house developed CRM. With our risk and margin management, unique trading, and seamless integration, we help you stand out in the iGaming market.
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