eGR WebinarMaximising Annual Revenue Growth:
Developing an Acquisition & Retention Strategy for 2017
Post-webinar recap
Moderated by:Nicky Senyard
Managing DirectorIncome Access Group
The Panelists
In this webinar, Nicky Senyard, Managing Director of Income Access, led a discussion on building a 2017 acquisition and retention strategy that drives year-on-year revenue growth, alongside a panel of industry marketing directors and veterans operating in a range of verticals.
Simon CollinsFounderGaming Realms*- SC@getminted
Harry LangMarketing DirectorPinnacle*-HL@FactDeJour
Luisa WoodsVP of Online and Internet MarketingTropicana Entertainment*-LW@luisa_woods
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Take note of the s throughout the presentation, as they represent additional notes taken directly from the webinar.
What’s Ahead
Part 1 – slide 4Context: Key iGaming milestones
Part 2 – slide 6The changing nature of player acquisition and retention
Part 3 – slide 11How the two marketing approaches intersect and complement each other
Part 4 – slide 18How the various channels will be used to optimise acquisition and retention in 2017
Part 5 – slide 25 Conclusions and attendee Q&A with Nicky and Panel
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PART 1: Context: Key iGaming milestones
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Context: Key iGaming Milestones
1996• The first online
sportsbook launches
LATE 1990s• Launch of mobile
gaming• Google & Yahoo
restrict display ads for US-facing online casinos
2004 2007• Explosion of
micro-transactions and social gaming mechanics
2010• First iPad released
by Apple
2013• Nevada iPoker
market goes live
1998
• William Hill becomes the first UK operator to offer online wagering; Pinnacle founded the same year
EARLY 2000s
• European expansion in iGaming and exploration in South America
2006
• US UIGEA enacted
2007
• First iPhone released by Apple
2012
• Gaming Realms founded
2013
• New Jersey iGaming market goes live, TropicanaCasino.com launches
2014• UK point-of-
consumption (POC) tax goes live
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PART 2: The changing nature of player acquisition and
retention
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What would you say are the two biggest changes in
acquisition over the last decade? What is the reasoning?
What impact will this have in future?
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Growth of Retargeting & Programmatic Buying
Retargeting: Driven by increased real-time processing power, availability of third-party data and integration of mega-channels like Facebook and big ad networks.
Programmatic Buying: Programmatic has gone mainstream, with much more available inventory and targeting options.
Impact: Retargeting and competitive cross-targeting will blur the lines between acquisition, retention and co-marketing. Personalisation of retargeted messages will become much more common, and differential pricing will become more widespread.– LW
Player BonusesEver more valuable and yet complex player bonuses. Bonus value and clarity on rollover/Terms & Conditions should be better self-regulated before they get ruled on by licensing
bodies. – HL
Pay Per ClickPPC competition and increased CPA costs - bidding for ever
more diverse long tail keywords & the challenges of squeezing max value from PPC in competitive markets like the UK. – HL
Shift to MobilePlayer device preference has shifted away from desktop
towards tablets and smart phones.
Why: 85% of Gaming Realms’ usage is via tablets and mobile.
Impact: Going forward, 85% is likely to grow to 95%. – SC
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“Market is getting more and more competitive. It’s getting more costly to achieve a decent ROI; CPAs that were once $4 are now as high as $400.”– HL
“We’re not willing to spend $400 on a player if they’re not valuable. Now we need to rely on in-depth targeting to get a good ROI.” – LW
What would you say are the two biggest changes in
retention over the last decade?
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Customer segmentationSegmentation has evolved to a micro level. Going forward, business intelligence and data analysis will become even more vital disciplines. – HL
Predictive segmentation & ‘soft’ retention factorsMoving away from demographic and historical data to more ‘predictive segmentation’ based on customers’ and prospects’ propensity behaviors.
Impact: BI and data analysis become even more vital disciplines, and emphasis will move away from campaign execution to managing campaign complexity and hierarchies. There will be a return to high-touch customer service as marketing automation processing power grows. – LW
Mobile retention & channel diversification There are more channels to market now - from push notifications to SMS, direct messages and email marketing, the retention channels are diversifying ever more. – SC
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“We now have the tools to identify what kind of customer a player is going to be. We can start incentivizing them and offering bonuses based on predictive behaviours. This, in turn, allows us to snag VIPs as soon as they're in the door.” – LW
“It’s a great time to be in player retention. We can now retarget via messages, reactivate through external websites and follow-up on the phone. All while sticking to guidelines, of course. It’s important not to overreach – you don’t want to overbear customers.” – SC
“There is a huge reliance on data and business intelligence to ensure that customers get the right message at right time.” – HL
PART 3: How the two marketing approaches intersect and
complement each other
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Do you see acquisition and retention being distinct?
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“They have distinct elements but
are inherently related.” – HL/LW
“They are distinct but our teams are
working together as one unit.” – SC
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“The role of the marketing and research team is to find out what the customer wants. It’s then product team’s job to build it according to player needs. That’s how most successful companies are making it work. ” – HL
Is the best way forward for these two activities to sit with different
departments?
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“Yes – there are different skill requirements but the two departments
should sit next to each other and maintain a constant dialogue.” – HL/LW
“Retargeting is managed by both sides and so Chinese walls are
key.” – SC
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“Teams need to be talking to each other. It is vital that they understand the whole mix in order to adequately utilize demographics and data.” – SC
“ Things tend to go awry when you separate acquisition and retention. Acquisition focuses on its own metrics. When separate, you end up seeing growth in numbers, but a deterioration in quality of customers you’re acquiring.” – LW
What are the pros and cons of this structure?
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“I think the biggest positive from maintaining separate acquisition and retention programs is that
it creates a propensity to dig deep into each channel. When teams are given a very broad
purview, there is a tendency to skim the surface rather than keep digging down seeking veins of
opportunity for continual improvement.” – LW
“It is critical that the teams are in contact not only to align their efforts, but to collaborate
ideas and energise each other. Without external
stimulus a team can stagnate.” – LW
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“I’m sure everyone has come into work and thought, ‘That’s it, there’s nothing new. I’ve tried everything.’ But you have to keep digging.” – SC
PART 4: How the various marketing channels can be used to
optimise acquisition and retention in 2017
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What do you think, if anything, will significantly change in
2017? Why?
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Breaking Down the Barriers Between Online & Offline
US land-based casinos in regulated markets will focus on breaking-down the barriers between online and on-premise gaming, continuing to push the boundaries of integrated experiences, promotions and rewards.
The goal is to create a unified customer experience when beneath the surface operators are working to seamlessly integrate product verticals with different executional, regulatory and competitive frameworks. – LW
ASAApp store advertising (ASA) will become just as important a part of operators’ mobile marketing strategies as traditional
ASO. – SC
ASOASO is becoming a more accessible means of generating new
players for the ever more popular mobile channel. There will also be more merger and consolidation action that will continue to
impact the market’s evolution. – HL
Digital DominanceTraditional offline channels such as TV will increasingly be
reduced in operators’ marketing mix, replaced by an
overwhelming emphasis on digital channels. – SC
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“4.5 million customers come through the property every year - so we’re getting really old school. We’re leveraging all channels (events, booths, etc.) in order to get the 360° view of the player.” – LW
“The election in the US is a great example of the power of digital. Trump targeted the right customer at the right time - and got the numbers he wanted.” – SC
Has your formula (mixture of channel, content,
tech) changed for 2017?
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“Tropicana Atlantic City hosts approximately 4.5 million visitors each year. We’re pushing to get to know our online customers face-to-face where possible, and to reach more prospects with online gaming. Up until this year, we have done so passively; we are expanding our marketing programs to be much more active in 2017.”
“Yes – we are increasingly using digital and reducing our reliance on TV.”
“Yes of course – “optimise or perish” remains a Pinnacle marketing mantra.”
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“It’s all about going out and taking risks. You need to test things in order to find success for your brand.” – LW
“Brands are now getting way more targeted with their efforts.” – NS
“We’re shifting our focus to digital. Digital is improving its capabilities to deliver.” – SC
What’s driven this change?
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“The competitive landscape in Atlantic City and New Jersey has changed dramatically in the last 3 years. The higher costs of acquiring customers through media channels, in conjunction with the growth of our land-based business, means player conversion where they already play is becoming increasingly cost-effective in comparison.”
“The results as well as acquisition costs across our various marketing channels have driven the shift to a heavier focus on digital.”
“A bit of everything – marketing opportunities, product enhancement, better customer understanding.”
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“Our landscape has completely changed. There are now more than double the online brands than brick-and-mortar brands. This shift to online has absolutely changed the way we do business here.” – LW
“There have been big announcements around brand licensing opportunities. A renewed focus on digital activities has given us the opportunity to take things to the next level.” – SC
PART 5: Conclusions and Attendee Q&A with Nicky and Panel
Answers to posted questions coming soon!
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Thanks to those who sent in questions! Stay tuned to our
blog and social media channels for the replies.
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ONCE AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US!
If you have more questions, please email us at [email protected].
A warm thank you to EGR for hosting our panel, and to our experts who joined us for the session.
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