Soft2Bet on igaming trends: Driving motivational engineering

Using igaming trends to drive change

Keeping pace with the ever-changing igaming industry is a challenge, especially if you’re a new or inexperienced operator. From the emerging use of artificial intelligence in online games to understanding differing regulatory needs, getting to grips with the key trends and behaviours in the market can prove a tough ask for suppliers and operators alike.

But at Soft2Bet, using data to identify these key trends helps the company detect changes in what players are looking for. These shifts in expectations are then used to guide and drive successful product development.

For Zuckerberg, the trends show that clients’ demands over the past 12 months are closely linked to evolving player expectations, though some trends have remained the same.

“There are some fundamental requirements such as localised payment options, dedicated customer service and robust technical stability that have remained consistent,” he says.

Enhancing the UI and UX

In today’s competitive igaming market, providing an immersive and seamless gaming experience is always a priority. So much so that operators are requesting interfaces that are both visually appealing and intuitively user-friendly.

“At Soft2Bet, we’ve seen a growing emphasis on the UI and UX of our gaming brands from both players and our B2B partners. This is a significant change and one that we have been working hard to deliver.”

Highly customised and personalised solutions

Better UI and UX designs aren’t the only enhancements that players believe can take their gaming experiences to the next level – customised and personalised solutions are also high up on the list. Though operators and suppliers are aiming to deliver more personalised player content, Soft2Bet is going one step further.

“Clients are increasingly seeking tailored gaming offerings that resonate with the unique preferences and habits of their player base,” says Zuckerberg. “This requires us to develop and provide solutions that can be adapted to individual regulated markets, ensuring that the gaming experience is highly personalised and engaging for players. We go above and beyond on this.”

Using gamification to drive engagement and revenue

“Our gamification features produce significant upside and have played a major role in our recent growth. That is why we place such emphasis on this important and unique service that we provide to our partners.”

Gamification is the biggest trend the company has identified over the past 12 months, Soft2Bet calls the technology behind Motivational Engineering; and the growth it generates for the group is confirmation of its strategic choice to focus on gamified product offerings for its operators. 

Soft2Bet has been at the forefront of this phenomenon via its own gamified B2C brand Betinia, which operates in Sweden and Denmark. The online casino offers unique features such as Betinia Stadiums and City Builder, which allow players to participate in innovative and exciting challenges, win rewards and accumulate loyalty points that can be used as bonuses.

The proof is in the numbers: Gamification playing its part

Zuckerberg says the impact of these features is evident across its two core metrics – gross gaming revenue (GGR) and engagement levels. Soft2Bet’s data shows that gamification features have led to a 65% increase in average GGR compared to non-gamified brands, with 60% of players actively playing with the features. In terms of engagement, 52% of the player base at Betinia engage with gamification features. These players also deposit larger amounts and on a more frequent basis.

“On one of our brands, players engaged with gamification are nearly 50% more inclined to deposit larger sums and their frequency of deposits is over 30% higher.”

Furthermore, Soft2Bet says that operators offering gamification features have recorded increases of more than 70% in their average revenue per user (ARPU) numbers.

“These numbers confirm the great gamification potential of our products in the igaming industry,” Zuckerberg explains. “This demand underscores the need for constant innovation and technology integration.

“Our motivational engineering features improve profitability, but importantly they also enhance the user experience through interactivity. Our claw game Bonus Crab or Betinia Stadiums are proof of this as they combine gameplay and sports with virtual stadium building, while our newest product City Builder combines casual gaming with an online casino platform.”

Assessing the best markets for entry

The gamification solution has been a key driver of Betinia’s success in Sweden, and Zuckerberg believes it is essential that operators consider local trends as their number one priority before launching in a particular market.

As well as having both B2C and B2B licences in Sweden, Soft2Bet is now certified in Malta, Denmark, Ireland, Greece and Romania. After driving such a busy period of expansion, Zuckerberg’s advice to ambitious operators and their partners would be to develop a deep understanding of local dynamics, offer innovative product solutions and commit to creating value.

Using igaming trends for expansion

With its gamification solution making waves across Sweden, Soft2Bet believes it’s now time to strategise its move into new markets. For Zuckerberg, identifying these key market trends is only one piece of the puzzle; putting them to good use during expansion is the other.

“We assess the potential value our innovative products can create in these markets,” he says. “This ensures that we make informed decisions when deciding which markets are worthy of penetrating.

“Commercial considerations are also paramount in our decision-making process as we identify opportunities to make our products culturally relevant to the target audience and that comes with identifying what those players want.

“These aspects collectively guide our expansion efforts, and we are constantly exploring opportunities to expand into new markets in the near future.”

Meeting the challenges of global growth and regulatory challenges

Zuckerberg believes three things have helped drive the company’s success over the past year: solid development work, strategic licensing decisions and improvements in operational efficiency. The latter is often achieved by streamlining departments – but not in Soft2Bet’s case.

“Combining growth and meeting client expectations is one of the hardest objectives to achieve for any expanding business,” Yoel Zuckerberg explains. “We have done this by carrying out a major recruitment drive in our tech, development, design, marketing, strategy and sales teams.

“This activity has enabled us to meet client demands with increased capacity in our product delivery processes, all the while carrying out daily and weekly security audits and risk assessments to ensure our platforms are safe and secure for our customers.”

Looking ahead to 2024, the business is in the process of applying for licences in Germany and Portugal. It is also looking beyond Europe as it progresses towards a greater foothold in North America through certifications in New Jersey and Ontario.

“One of the challenges the industry faces is regulatory fragmentation, especially in Europe,” Yoel Zuckerberg says. “It is a key feature of the industry in the region and as a supplier we keep on working to enable seamless rollouts across all key markets. We do this by ensuring our platform is scalable and enables our partners to launch smoothly across multiple jurisdictions.

“All this activity means we are continuously enhancing our platform with innovative features and technologies, particularly gamification, and strengthening our customisation and localisation capabilities.”