Sportsbooks need to wake up

Sportsbooks have been ignoring the huge opportunities that most smartphone users have been used to for far too long. Betting trends and habits are changing and, while the high street and online have been the traditional choice for sports betting customers, it will surely now be overtaken by the need to extend this to mobile.

By 2014 there will be more than 1bn smartphone users worldwide and, this year alone, Android will quadruple this user base and overtake Blackberry’s and Apple’s market share. 2011 will be the year when mobile betting comes of age, but there are still several large sportsbooks that have been slow to react.

Sports bettors nowadays don’t just want the facility to bet on their mobiles, they also want entertainment. They want to be kept up-to-date on all the action and see live stats the instant it happens. In-play is huge online, but just think of the massive opportunities that mobile technology can offer sportsbooks. Not everyone sits in front of a computer all day waiting for the right moment to place a bet. Statistics show that the average bettor will only visit a sportsbook’s website two to three times a day, usually just at weekends, while regular mobile customers will visit a sportsbook or telephone their bookie between four and six times a day.

Think of the opportunities to offer speculative or exotic bets during the game. Allowing all sports betting customers to see the action on their smartphones wherever they are and whatever they are doing will boost betting activity no end. It’s a no-brainer. Every time a sports betting customer checks the progress of their bets, it creates the opportunity to interact more. By engaging your customers, sportsbooks and retail bookmakers are creating additional retention and a unique user experience. Offering customers the opportunity to bet and track their bets through their phones will capture new customers.

It’s not just about being in the action, sports bettors also want to be able to compete with their friends. We’ve developed the opportunity for them to invite their friends into their own personal betting leagues. We then track and rank how each player is doing. This is an effective viral marketing tool and means the sportsbook is being introduced to new customers.

Sportsbooks have only just begun to understand the importance of these kinds of social media tools by adding more customer value to their mobile sports betting offerings. When was poker just about betting? It’s about player experience, and that’s what many sportsbooks have been sadly lacking. Betting is one thing, providing a complete mobile offering is another. This is the competitive edge a sportsbook needs. Mobile betting has truly arrived.