Demystifying Personalisation: Exploring 3 Common Misconceptions in the World of iGaming

A short time ago, we successfully concluded our in-depth Case Study in collaboration with Rival Fantasy, unearthing plenty of valuable insights. Rival is an innovative fantasy sports platform that attracts a remarkable audience of over 1,700 daily players. With a range of distinctive games, including the one-of-a-kind Fantasy Bingo, they offer a unique gaming experience.  

One of Rival’s Fantasy challenges was personalisation, and we assisted them in overcoming this challenge through our expertise in implementing up-to-date personalisation techniques. Personalisation in iGaming poses challenges that require careful consideration. Balancing customer data accessibility, privacy concerns, and cost management are crucial to deliver a tailored experience. 

Regarding personalisation techniques, VeliEDGE stands out as the trusted partner you can rely on. We have a proven track record of providing players with an interactive, personalised, and immersive gaming experience. Our team of experts understands the complexities of personalisation and can help you overcome the challenges associated with boosting customer retention. 

Are you interested in witnessing the outcomes of our collaboration with Rival Fantasy; exploring their successful strategies, and understanding how they leveraged VeliEDGE to boost user engagement? Delve into a thorough success story described in detail in our recent article with a pdf case-study, with the specified difficulties and productive ways to overcome them. Learn from their winning moves and apply these insights to your enterprise. 

Through this article, we are aiming to demystify the misconceptions surrounding personalisation in this dynamic and captivating industry. In light of this, we have proactively initiated a series of experience-sharing sessions with Rival’s Chief Marketing Officer, Bryan K. Oldham, to leverage his expertise and insights on personalisation. 

During our discussion with Rival’s CMO we explored various theories, including:

• Personalisation can contribute to gambling addiction.

• Personalisation is intrusive and infringes on privacy.

• Personalisation solely benefits iGaming operators.

But first, let’s look closer at our expert’s background.

The issue of gaming addiction is delicate, as acknowledged by the Mayo Clinic, and its exact causes remain unknown. In the iGaming sector, several factors, including peer influence, can stimulate individuals to participate in gaming activities. Nevertheless, existing legislation strives to regulate and mitigate the effects of marketing on players.

Let’s at least look at this fact: The laws of most countries (e.g., GDPR) prohibit companies from sending personalised messages via email, notifications, or SMS unless an individual has consented to it.

To help prevent illegal activities, legislators and businesses have collaborated to introduce various preventive measures, including Know Your Customer (KYC) and Geocomply verification. Essential procedures for any gaming operator require thorough proof of a new customer’s age, geographic location, identification, and occasionally finances before allowing them to register on the platform.

Bryan believes personalising an individual’s experience does not inherently make them more or less prone to addiction, especially in iGaming. He emphasises that strategies are in place to mitigate the potential impact of marketing. For instance, players can turn off notifications within the app or opt out of iGaming email or SMS marketing, effectively reducing these influences.

In their commitment to promoting responsible gaming, businesses take proactive steps by incorporating messages into their marketing campaigns, educating players on safe gaming practices, and providing valuable tools. One of these tools is the ability for players to set spending limits and the option to join self-exclusion lists, which effectively exclude them from engaging in gaming activities across one or multiple iGaming platforms and physical locations.

Therefore, it is unfounded to claim that personalised recommendations or notifications significantly impact addiction more than other internal motivations or external influences. It’s crucial always to remain aware of the significance of responsible gaming practices and meticulously adhere to all pertinent regulations to guarantee players’ security. 

Customers have a strong affinity for accurate recommendations, but simultaneously, there is a fear of marketers having excessive knowledge about their personal information. Consequently, some individuals often consent to market practices that typically adhere to privacy regulations, leading to ongoing debates about the potential risks involved. It is within this context that the myth surrounding this notion originates.

“When you have that sense of a consistent presence in your advertising and your social media feeds, all you’re seeing are gambling-related movies and TV recommendations, all of your emails, all of your paper mail becomes related to gaming when it becomes an all-encompassing and blanketing aspect of your life I think that’s when we’ve taken it too far, and operators need to pump the brakes to  maintain a level of trust.”

Bryan K. Oldham highlights that personalisation can go too far.

However, it is uncommon for users of responsible iGaming platforms to find themselves in such circumstances. This is primarily due to regulatory laws in place.

The past decade has seen an unprecedented increase in digital privacy laws and regulations. This, coupled with the stringent code of iGaming, places privacy as a top priority without neglecting the importance of individual player safety.

Safety concerns are the second potential factor contributing to the myths surrounding iGaming. During the registration process on iGaming platforms, customers must provide extensive personal data as a precautionary measure to verify their identity and avoid any potentially fraudulent or banned activity. This might create a perception of being under investigation at that particular moment.

When utilising the gathered information to uphold trust, achieving the right balance is crucial if personalisation goes extreme and encompasses every aspect of a customer’s life in iGaming engagement marketing.

“Personalisation makes it feel a little more intimate like it’s a one-on-one relationship rather than having a relationship with some large corporation, a faceless name in a suit in an office building. So I think for the user, it’s about ease of use, comfortability and familiarity.”

Bryan K. Oldham

Personalisation is crucial in creating a positive customer experience by considering their preferences and interests. Personalised iGaming marketing can be likened to a handmade birthday card from a close friend, while non-personalised marketing is comparable to a generic card purchased at a gas station. Although they serve the same purpose, they evoke entirely different emotions.

Let’s look at the benefits of personalisation for customers in more detail.

Rival’s CMO mentions an experiment conducted by Stanford in his discussion of personalised marketing advantages. This study indicated that more choices could be detrimental to conversion rates. For instance, the sheer number of options can be overwhelming if you imagine standing in front of an ice cream stand offering 20 flavours. Even after trying fifteen flavours, it is difficult to determine which is the best, leading to confusion and indecision, ultimately resulting in not making a purchase.

However, when it comes to iGaming and streaming services, spending the entire evening deciding on a 95-minute-long movie is not desirable.

This is where personalisation plays a crucial role for customers.

Bryan illustrates successful personalisation in iGaming marketing by highlighting the case of Rival Fantasy, a company that effectively implements personalised strategies using VeliEDGE.

Rival Fantasy is introducing a new aspect to its game centred around a head-to-head fantasy challenge called Social Challenges. Players are empowered to tailor their ideal experiences and connect with like-minded people by offering the ability to customise games based on their preferences.

“Players in iGaming are getting just as much out of the personalisation for their experience as the operators are for delivering that experience and showing them where to go.” 
Then Bryan added: “When we want to reach out, we want to use players’ names because we want them to know they’re not just another number on the platform. We understand what they like and don’t like, which leads to understanding what they are playing more often. And then giving them recommendations based on that so their experiences are as seamless and fun as possible.”

Bryan highlights the effect of personalised recommendations.

So yes, personalisation certainly benefits the company’s player engagement, but its primary beneficiaries are players who get an improved customer experience.

The key tips from Rival’s CMO Bryan K. Oldham :

When running a small business, harnessing the power of recommendations could be your optimal preference for personalisation. Undoubtedly, utilise referral systems and discounts to spread the word of mouth about your business,  however, remember the value of traditional tools when enhancing your marketing strategies. 

Are you willing to try VeliEDGE and experience the future of customer acquisition, marketing automation, and retention? Reach out to us now.

Don’t let complex issues hinder your ability to retain customers. 

VeliEDGE –  powering next-generation iGaming.