Road to Casino Beats: Future of iGaming Advertising
SBC is set to deliver us, yet another, exciting live event. The next instalment comes in the shape of the Casino Beats Summit, taking place from 24th – 26th May in Malta.
The global iGaming industry’s established centre of excellence is back for its fourth edition, set to be the biggest ever. This year, the key focal points of learning will be based around game development, innovation and strategy.
One of the highlights of the conference agenda will include a session exploring the world of media and advertising. Looking at new ways to change the industry narrative and navigating the regulatory environment whilst still maximising brand exposure.
A key speaker for this session on the day will be Ulrich Gilot, Head of Media, Betsson. We caught up with him to hear his thoughts on the future of brand marketing and why he’s so looking forward to attending Casino Beats this year!
Why are you attending Casino Beats and why is it so important for you to be at events like this?
“What sets Casino Beats apart from some other iGaming events on the islands is that it is focusing on conferences with great ambition to bring up new topics to the table and provoke conversations that ultimately could resonate beyond the Maltese rock. I am specifically thinking about SBC Barcelona and SBC Miami as platforms where topics triggered in Malta at Casino Beats can be taken to another level and be spread abroad. I have had the honor and the joy to meet many of the SBC stakeholder over the past few months. They all share great passion for the industry and are equally great listeners and enablers. Seeding innovative iGaming topics at Casino Beats could eventually set Malta apart as a strong influential iGaming hub for the world. I love my work, I love Malta, I want to give back wherever and however I can.”
Betsson has recently partnered with leading Marketing firm Dentsu X, who are renowned for ‘challenging old truths’. Do you think it’s still possible to change the controversial narrative our industry has adopted at times?
“Dentsu X philosophy is about focusing on experience; hence the “X”. They challenge the “Old truths” (which by the way are very often motivated by assumptions) with data and relevant insights which then feed into an almost ideal consumer journey from the very moment a target audience gets exposed to a Betsson brand all the way to engaging with our products. The aim is to not only respond to iGaming industry challenges but also adopt media industry best practices set by the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).
“For example, one of the main topics that has been discussed by the members since at least 2016 is what is called “nonintrusive ads”. Aligning on media industry standards with iGaming compliance in mind is a good foundation for enhanced consumer experience. Providing personalized and contextual consumer experience through data is also another way to respond to controversy with constructive and long-lasting solutions. Our partnership with Dentsu X aligns with Betsson’s ambition to comply with the regulators while offering a great and memorable experience to our consumers.”
Gambling advertising has been clamped down on across Europe and Google’s algorithm continues to promote quality content above all. What impact will this have on our sector’s favoured or most preferred player engagement strategies?
“I started my career as an SEO specialist in New York and so Google is one of the “Big five” that I have the most respect and affinity for. Google‘s early mission statement was and still is to “organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” They became the search engine of reference by making sure that the results provided to information seekers was relevant and pertinent. Google never deviated from this mission. Contextual targeting solutions in media other than Google is a hot topic in the media industry this year.
“As one of the largest companies in the world, Google is subject to scrutiny from regulators and governments. Any mistake they make could turn into substantial penalties. Equally so, the iGaming industry does not benefit from good reputation by governments. And so, any sort of association of Google with iGaming companies could prove at times to be delicate. We need to accept this reality for the benefit of our consumers and adapt to this always changing industry while adopting new media solutions.
“I feel that with the 3rd party cookies being soon fully abandoned leaving place to 1st party data and the relationships many key media AdTech companies and media agencies have established with media owners in response to this industry change, solutions such ad frequency caps, and personalized relevant ads could contribute to helping the iGaming industry’s reputation. User experience can be enhanced with other media channels and respond to optimal engagement.”
What key topic will your panel be covering at the Casino Beats event? What will the audience learn?
“I worked across multiple industries and though there is a tendency to associate iGaming to innovation for good reasons, my personal point of view is that on the topic of media specifically, there are opportunities for the iGaming industry to adopt media channels other than SEO and affiliate more.
“Also, for a very long time, many companies have been focusing on media efficiency. This was a trend and FMCG companies led the topic alongside with the IAB back in 2016. Media accountability for driving efficiency was one of the main focuses. The trend now seems to be shifting towards effectiveness with the ambition to measure how users engage with the creative. The aim is for the audience of this panel to better understand how creative and media work in tandem.
“What is exciting is that there are opportunities to accelerate and catch up rather quickly. I strongly believe that Betsson’s partnership with Dentsu X addresses just that.”
Editors’ Note:
Hearing from Ulrich has been very insightful. Betsson’s recent partnership with Denstu highlights their commitment to driving the industry forward through the power of data. They are now able to firstly, comply with regulation while still offering an almost ideal consumer journey from the very moment a targeted player profile gets exposed to the brand. We look forward to hearing more about this in the upcoming panel session.
Attending Casino Beats is important to Ulrich because there are not many other industry conferences with the same level of ambition for bringing new topics to the forefront and provoking conversations that ultimately could resonate beyond the Maltese rock!
Casino Beats Summit is soon approaching. Make sure you don’t miss out and you get to hear more sessions like this live.
