Promoted feature: Make it personal

2023 marks the year in which user retention took over the sports betting industry, becoming the number one objective of most sportsbooks worldwide. And it is no wonder. As the industry matures and customer acquisition costs skyrocket, operators’ ability to create a long-term, satisfying ROI by acquiring new players has come close to complete exhaustion.  

Retention, therefore, remains bookies’ cost-effective alternative for profitability, yet it proves a formidable challenge. Research conducted by Betting Hero earlier this year revealed a noteworthy statistic: 77% of sports bettors indicated their willingness to switch from their preferred betting platform to an alternative. This sentiment is further underscored by a separate study, which found that only 4% of bettors are loyal to a single platform for more than a year. These conclusions align seamlessly with contemporary consumers’ trend of prioritising convenience over loyalty. 

Capturing your audience

So, how do you keep bettors active and satisfied after they’ve already availed from a generous welcome offer and placed their first bet on your platform? 

Nearly every established bookie now offers various tools to keep customers engaged. Still, in a saturated market where these tools often look and feel the same to users, sportsbooks must deliver a unique proposition – a clear differentiation that captivates their audience. 

A rich and satisfying player experience remains pivotal for user retention. Yet, the solution to addressing sports bettors’ massive appetite for data doesn’t involve bombarding them with generic promotions. Instead, the key lies in personalising this experience through tailored activations and offers. Customers will remain loyal to a platform only if it provides them with a bespoke experience similar to what they expect in other industries. This personalised approach should meet their expectations and offer direct solutions to their specific needs.

LSports tools

Having operated in the sports betting industry since 2012, LSports comprehends the pressing need for innovative and distinct solutions. As a response, we have recently unveiled a visionary product line-up driven by a narrative of personalisation. 

Alongside TRADE360, LSports’ state-of-the-art sports trading system, and BPS (bookie performance system), which monitors the market and offers operators real-time recommendations to adjust their coverage and margins, our product portfolio introduces a suite of cutting-edge betting stimulation tools. These tools are designed to deliver modern and interactive experiences to users while simultaneously addressing the challenges of differentiation and bettor engagement faced by bookmakers. 

The standout product in this line-up is our revolutionary Sports Expert Chat (SEC), a large language model utilising similar technology to ChatGPT. SEC operates as a personalised sports adviser, analysing bookmakers’ odds to provide data-driven tips. Moreover, it furnishes bettors with tailor-made insights about specific events they’re interested in, such as relevant news, weather conditions and statistics. 

Another exciting product is “Points in-play”, an interactive social betting tool that offers users engaging contests and activations during live sporting events of their choice. This feature elevates the excitement of the betting process by ensuring that bettors are engaged exclusively with content that aligns with their preferences. Much like SEC, Points in-play avoids overwhelming users with extraneous information and offers stimulating activations tailored to their favourite events. 

These innovative products undoubtedly equip bookmakers to enhance customer retention in an era where users demand more than just basic betting odds and lines. Our assessment of the industry underscores the imperative for sportsbooks to adapt to the technological reality and cater to the growing hunger for advanced personalised data solutions. Neglecting this demand may leave them side-lined. We urge sportsbooks to seize this moment and embrace innovation before it’s too late.

Dotan Lazar is the co-founder and CEO of LSports. Under his leadership, the Israeli-based company has emerged as a leading provider of real-time sports data, empowering sportsbooks with cutting-edge solutions that give them a competitive edge. Lazar’s expertise and unwavering commitment to innovation make him a prominent figure in the sports data industry and a driving force behind LSports’ remarkable success.