SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
2019 realities see bookmakers face the toughest operating and market demands, as incumbents fight for betting scale efficiencies.
Operating in cut-throat times, Eugene Delaney Director of Racing Post B2B details to SBC readers the importance of treating ‘content as a discipline’, having secured Betfred as the first content partner of Racing Post B2B provisions.
_________________
SBC: Hi Eugene, can you detail the significance of Betfred becoming the first ‘Sports Content Partner’ of Racing Post B2B– what does this collaboration mean for your business?
Eugene Delaney (Director – Racing Post B2B): We have always had a very talented collection of sportswriters that featured in our paper for over 30 years. Over the last number of years however, we have invested heavily in B2B on our sports content. Initially, this was focused purely on football now we have grown to cover over 20 sports in 70 languages. Our content is very much focused on sports betting markets which makes it unique to other sports content providers. From our range of partnerships on horseracing, we know that our independent expert analysis drives engagement and turnover for our partners.
SBC: In 2019, why do betting incumbents have to prioritise content engagement as a betting discipline?
ED: Through research with our key partners, we have seen that our high-quality content has increased dwell time, improved customer retention and most importantly driven increased turnover. The sports betting market is incredibly competitive and to stand out from the crowd, betting incumbents can provide a richer betting experience for their customers by providing engaging content. It provides their audience with valuable independent insights to help them make informed decisions.
SBC: Can you detail how Racing Post assures quality and insightful content for its partners. How do you transfer editorial and informative standards to your partners?
ED: The quality of our content comes from the team of experienced writers in-house that the Racing Post has built over the years. We have the largest sports betting focused editorial team in the industry which gives us a distinct advantage when it comes to ensuring quality standards. Our newspaper heritage means the team has the experience to deliver concise, quality sports betting focused content on a daily basis. This content is also delivered directly to our partners ensuring consistency of standards across the board.
SBC: As a B2B division you have placed a high emphasis on bridging retail-to-digital dynamics. Is Racing Post’s Sports Content API viewed as an omni-channel product?
ED: We have invested a large amount of time and effort to deliver excellent omnichannel products. And it’s not just a data feed. The team have built a number of front end solutions to assist the bookmakers to deliver our horseracing, greyhound and sports content directly to our partners end customers across all channels and platforms. Racing Post is at the forefront of the retail to digital transition, we want to ensure every customer has an enriched betting experience whether they having a bet in store or online.
SBC: Beyond market engagement, how does content help operators improve further day-to-day disciplines such as retention, marketing and player management?
ED: A key component in every product that we produce is the high level of flexibility in the outputs ensuring that bookmakers can offer a high degree of personalisation for their end customer. The content is also delivered in a way that is suitable to use across a number of marketing channels such as social media, CRM tools or over email. We have a team in place to quickly react to bookmakers requirements, based on the feedback they receive. We are constantly striving to offer the best customer experience for our partners’ audience.
SBC: Looking ahead how do you see Racing Posts content product developing?
ED: We are really excited about our development roadmap. From a Racing Post perspective not only are we constantly improving our products and services with new features and data points but we have also made a significant investment into the creation of an international database. This comes with language capabilities to ensure we can serve bookmaker requirements globally. Alongside this, we have recently launched our dedicated sports betting brand Intellr with its flagship in-play football product. Our pre-play and sports content, which has already been very popular in the industry, will form part of our overall Intellr catalogue going forward.
_____________________
Eugene Delaney – Director – Racing Post B2B
