There is a “very strong case” for retail and online sports betting to harmoniously coexist, however, operators must ensure that players witness a frictionless transition between the two to ensure that the experience ultimately remains an enjoyable one.
This was the overarching message shared by SuzoHapp President Sim Bielak at the bustling SBC Summit Latinoamérica, as he began by looking at the evolution of sports betting, with a distinct retail slant.
“One of the things that I think a lot of the sportsbook providers, and operators do today, everyone’s been historically focused on market share, market gains, customer attention,” he commented.
“And most recently, we’ve seen some of the larger operators [are] now starting to look at profitability, and I think the retail solutions play perfectly into that.”
Building on multiple decades of experience, Bielak shared a belief that the “big benefit” for the land-based space is the opportunity of “sports fans becoming sports bettors”. This, it was added, is due to this being “a larger opportunity because the demographic is much bigger”.
He continued: “Whereas I think in the retail environment, it’s very conducive to be able to have an environment where players can come up and place a bet on a particular game without having a lot of education or experience, and really making that a fun experience and part of the overall event, at a sports event or at any venue.”
Subsequently, the conversation turned to the growing influence of today’s mobile heavy world, and how to ensure retail remains more than competitive against the undoubted growing influence of its counterpart.
“THERE’S A CERTAIN DEMOGRAPHIC OF CUSTOMER THAT PREFERS TO BE IN A RETAIL ENVIRONMENT”
“There is a market for retail at the end of the day. There’s a certain demographic of customer that prefers to be in a retail environment,” Bielak noted.
“Maybe they’re not a sports bettor, but more of a sports fan, or enjoying the environment at a casino or at a retail venue and looking to place a bet.”
With attention quickly afforded to “very conducive” in-game functionalities, SuzoHapp was particularly buoyant about its own solution that permits that implementation of an “unattended sportsbook in any venue” that eliminates “the high costs of labour that you have in retail.”
As the conversation switched to look at the challenges with creating a truly frictionless omni-channel experience, Bielak concluded by voicing significant expectations of what SuzoHapp can achieve through 2024 and beyond.
“So, we’re pretty excited about the sports betting growth opportunity in the US still and looking at other markets, such as Latin America and other areas that are starting to develop,” he ended.
“Our core casino and amusement business is very stable and we’ve done a great job looking after our customers in that space.
“So for us, what we’re really looking forward to next year is really continuing that growth momentum and trajectory that we’re on in the sports betting space. We’ve truly positioned ourselves as the hardware preferred supplier into the space.”
