Global Reviews – Which brands are winning the online sports betting boom?

A recent study by Global Reviews has revealed some interesting insights on the state of play of UK sports betting provider websites. 

The Digital Sales Effectiveness study looked at consumer behaviour and the conversion rates of bettors on the sites of some of the key industry players such as Paddy Power, Ladbrokes, William Hill, Betfair, Sky Bet, Bet365 and Coral.

Over a 12 month period, from June 2015 to June 2016 these were some of the main takeaways: 

• Online sports betting in the UK has seen significant increases in the frequency of online bettors. On average of those we surveyed, 26.7% more people (which equates to an average uplift of 51%) are betting several times a week compared to June 2015. (Sample size: 364)

• There has been a decline in the average amount of prospective betters who said they never bet online (-73%). (Sample size: 86)

• The average amount a bettor will spend on each bet has increased over the 12 month period.  (29%) more people are now spending £15 – £25 each time they bet compared to a year ago. (Sample size: 175)

• Over the past 12 months, online bettors have stated that they are happier with their current sports betting provider and are less inclined to switch.  However, this may be because punters are using multiple bookies, with 12% more people saying they use more than one sports betting provider.

So who is winning the online sports betting boom?

William Hill and Betfair are seeing the most success in converting prospective betters of those who visited their website. Since June 2015, William Hill has doubled online conversions from 25% – 50%, maintaining its ranking, but moving from 2nd to 3rd behind Ladbrokes (15%) and Paddy Power (19%) for overall conversion. Betfair has had the most success online, growing overall conversions by 3%, which is likely due to their significant uplift in site visitor conversions.

William Hill and Betfair are leading the online boom through providing a great online experience for prospective bettors. William Hill is the overall leader for site performance in the UK (69%).

Betfair are the industry leaders for accommodating returning prospects (73%), with William Hill following Sky Bet (76%) for ‘meeting expectations and building trust’ as part of their initial engagement (74%). Betfair is ranked 4th (70%).

Both Betfair and William Hill are strong on their registration form, bet slips and support, making the online experience for the customer easy whilst establishing trust through support services.  All of these factors are influencing growth and conversion for both brands.

Bettors who finally preferred Betfair and chose to bet with them, did so because they felt their betting options were easy to understand (42%), and their website was visually appealing (38%).

William Hill scored equally as well with 46% for visually appealing website and 32% for easy to understand options.

Sky Bet should be noted as a brand to watch for growth in online conversions, it’s currently leading for ‘initial engagement at 73% and channel selection 77%.