Marketing of Sports Betting and Racing Explained 2024
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Marketing of Sports Betting and Racing

Steven D. Thompson

Updated:

Online bookmakers have perfected the art of marketing sports betting and racing in recent years. That means quality bookmakers are easier to see, and more importantly, sports bettors can now get better sports betting products than ever before. Read on to learn more about the latest marketing strategies in the betting industry and how you can profit from them.

Table of Contents

    The Influence of Marketing on Sports Betting and Racing

    Marketing is crucial when raising the profile of betting in sports and racing. The right advertising strategy informs bettors about the latest online betting products.

    That means that punters learn about the best bookmaker promos instantly. As a result, bookmakers don't have to spend tons of money to spread the word about their online sports betting products. Bettors learn about them immediately.

    So, a quality marketing strategy can have a significant effect on how fast and easy bettors get information about great best new online bookies, lucrative promos, or enticing sports betting and racing markets.

    But what is the effect of marketing on bookmakers themselves? Well, for one, they can increase the number of customers. Smart gambling advertising can increase the player base and attract new sports bettors to join the bookmaker.

    Another positive effect for bookmakers is that the right gambling marketing helps with how punters see online betting and gambling. For instance, when bookmakers partner with famous sports figures like Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, or Lionel Messi, they change sports betting attitudes.

    Sports bettors who were previously not sure whether they should check out a betting product will be much more enthusiastic about betting when they see authority figures advertising sports betting products.

    The influence of marketing on sports betting and racing The influence of marketing on sports betting and racing

    How the Betting Industry Attracts Sports Bettors?

    The online betting industry is constantly trying to find new ways to attract sports bettors. And that's great. But why? Well, the best way to attract punters is to give them enticing offers over and over again. And that's what the best betting sites do week in week out. Read on to learn about the different ways and methods the online gambling industry uses to entice players to join and place wagers.

    Online Sports Betting Promotions

    Bookmakers use a wide range of marketing strategies. However, one is more successful than the others. We are talking about sports betting promotions, of course. Online betting sites have bonuses and promos for both new customers and existing players. That's not something you get at retail betting shops. So, bonuses and promos are the biggest selling points for online sports betting and the reason why more and more punters are wagering online.

    Online Gambling Promotions for New Players

    The main goal of online gambling promotions is to attract new players to join sports betting sites. However, for that to happen, online bookmakers must offer top-quality bonuses and promos to their new clients. And that's exactly what they do. The two most common betting offers bookmakers use to attract new players are welcome bonuses and no deposit promos. Let's find out more about them.

    Welcome Bonus Offers

    Most online betting sites and racing bookmakers have welcome bonus offers for their new customers. So, how do these bonus offers work? Well, as soon as you sign up with a betting site, you can activate the welcome bonus by making a qualifying deposit and placing a qualifying bet.

    If you do that and meet other conditions stipulated in the welcome bonus, the betting site will give you free bets or welcome bonus funds. You can then use those betting funds to place wagers. If you win, you can withdraw your winnings as real money. Sometimes, welcome bonus offers come with wagering requirements, so you might need to meet those playthrough conditions first and then withdraw your winnings.

    No Deposit Sign-up Bonuses

    Unlike welcome bonus offers, where you need to deposit, with no deposit bonuses, you don't need to send any money to your betting account. The only thing you need to do is sign up with the bookmaker. Signing up is the process of opening an online betting account. It is usually pretty straightforward, and betting sites guide you the entire time.

    No deposit bonuses are not as lucrative as welcome offers. However, they don't have to be. They allow you to place online bets with no money wagered and let you withdraw your winnings as real cash. As with deposit welcome bonuses, though, most of these no deposit sign up bonus offers have wagering requirements you need to meet before you withdraw your winnings.

    Sports Wagering Promos for Existing Customers

    It's not just new players that get to feel the perks of sports betting promotions. Existing sportsbook customers also get their fair share of rewards and bonus offers. Bookmakers know that one of the ways to incentivise recreational gamblers to place more bets is to reward them with existing customer promos. So, that's what they do. Let's look at the most common existing player bonuses and how they motivate bettors to stick with the bookmaker they joined.

    Loyalty Programs

    The best way to motivate existing players is to log every bet they place and to reward them accordingly for their efforts. Betting sites know this, so they try to find ways to give more to players who place a larger number of bets and to motivate others to do the same. They do this by creating loyalty programs.

    A bookmaker's loyalty program gives you points for each wager you place. The more you bet, the more points you collect. Consequently, the more points you accumulate, the higher you climb the betting site's loyalty ladder. And the higher on that ladder you are, the better your loyalty perks get. The loyalty program benefits you can get include the latest free bet offers, cashbacks, reload deposit bonuses, prizes and rewards, and so on.

    Reload Bonuses

    Punters get bonus funds and free bets when they join a betting site. However, they also get them when they top up their online betting accounts. When sports bettors deposit money into their accounts during promotional periods, they become eligible for reload deposit bonuses.

    These promotional periods include festive seasons like Easter and Christmas, but also weekends, days like Halloween and Black Friday, special sports events like World Cups and the Olympics, and so on.

    Reload bonus offers are not as lucrative as welcome bonuses, but they are still great ways to fund your betting adventure. For instance, a welcome bonus offer might match your first deposit 100%, while a reload bonus will only match your deposit amount by 50%. However, a 50% match is better than no match at all; we are sure you will agree. Punters appreciate these gestures too, and reload bonuses are among the most valued sports betting promotions for bettors.

    Cashback

    Quality bookmakers and sports betting companies reward their customers even when they lose. They do this via cashback promotions. When you opt-in for a cashback promo, you get some of your losses back. Gambling cashback sites usually return your losses every month.

    If the bookmaker has a loyalty program, it will likely feature cashback as one of the benefits for gamblers who wager regularly. If it doesn't, you can ask customer support if the betting site has a cashback promo and whether you can take part in it.

    Cashback is often an undervalued and underappreciated sports betting promo, but it can help you with your online wagering bankroll significantly, especially if you manage to find a betting site with a 5% or 10% monthly cashback. That means you will get 5% or 10% of the money you lost back. And that's not something you should ignore.

    Enhanced Betting Odds Promotions

    Online sports betting adverts and welcome bonuses can attract lots of sports fans to join online bookmakers. However, to keep those punters happy and make sure they continue coming back to your betting site, you have to give them enticing betting markets and odds. And that's exactly what enhanced betting odds promos achieve.

    When you activate these boosted odds promos, you get better prices than those at the regular sports betting markets. As with reload bonuses, bookmakers give enhanced odds promos to players during special events like competition finals, World Cup games, playoffs, the Olympics, etc. The best way to profit from these boosted odds promos is to keep your eyes peeled and to pounce on them when you see that the bookmaker offers them.

    Sports Betting Advertisements

    All online bookmakers advertise their products. Sports betting advertisements are by far the most common form of online gambling marketing, and it comes in all shapes and sizes.

    For instance, you can see sports wagering advertisements on TV between games or during half-time. You can also hear them on the radio while driving to work. Even if you are at the stadium or horse racing track, you can see various bookmakers advertising their products on the side of the pitch or race track.

    Most often, however, you can see gambling advertisements online. You can see these sports betting ads while reading the news, at affiliate sites, or while watching sports highlights videos.

    Bookmakers' social media sites also feature various types of sports betting and gambling advertising. In other words, you can follow bookmakers' social media channels and profiles and get the latest sports betting promotions first-hand.

    Better Online Betting Products than Competitors

    Another way that the betting industry tries to attract punters is by offering better online betting markets and products than their competitors. That often includes introducing products and services that weren't available before. So what does this mean for sports bettors?

    Usually, it means that bookmakers offer a wider range of sports betting markets, both pre-game and in-play ones. Betting sites also try to give bettors more lucrative promos, better mobile apps, more payment methods, superior customer service, etc.

    As a rule of thumb, online betting sites that innovate and try to increase players' gambling involvement through innovations are the ones that have better wagering products. A good example of this is the crypto sports betting scene. Crypto gambling operators introduced crypto deposits and withdrawals to the global gambling community, something that was not possible before them.

    So, because punters could make their transactions in the cryptocurrencies they owned, they didn't need to exchange them for fiat currencies. As a result, they chose crypto betting websites ahead of regular bookmakers.

    Betting and Gambling Sponsorship Deals

    If you watch sports, you have probably noticed that most teams wear the name of their sponsors on their shirts. And it is usually not just one sponsor. Teams sign deals and partnerships with multiple companies, and a large number of these companies come from the betting industry.

    Betting and gambling sponsorship deals are so common in the world of sports that teams have the name of bookies on their training gear, on their team buses, and in stadiums. In fact, some stadiums bear the names of the betting companies that have partnered with the teams that play there.

    Players are heavily involved in gambling advertising too. Both former and active players shoot betting and gambling adverts, promote betting companies via social media and encourage responsible gambling.

    Regulating sports betting advertising Regulating sports betting advertising

    Regulating Sports Betting Advertising

    Betting sites pay a lot of attention to responsibly promoting their products and services. Even if they don't, the authorities where bookmakers operate impose rules and laws that regulate sports betting advertising. Let's look at the methods gambling regulatory bodies use to oversee and control sports betting marketing.

    Encouraging Responsible Gambling

    Sports bettors can only enjoy wagering when they recognise gambling harms and the gambling disorders they can bring about. That's why it is crucial that regulators encourage responsible gambling behaviours, as that's in sports bettors' best interests.

    The benefits of encouraging responsible gambling are evident, and most studies confirm that. For instance, a recent online survey funded by the Australian Gambling Research Centre found that safe gambling messages can have a significant impact on how much punters spend and wager.

    The Gambling Research Australia study, which included 3,000 sports and racing bettors, is only one of many international gambling studies which confirm that when punters are reminded about gambling-related harm, they tend to change their gambling behaviour and reduce their wagers, bet stakes, and losses.

    Similarly, a paper called Responsible Gambling; Past, Present and Future, published by the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation, found that the main goal of sports-related gambling should not be to remove sports betting intention entirely. Instead, the betting industry should focus on minimising gambling harm and not reducing problem gambling.

    So, there's nothing wrong with sports betting and gambling advertising as long as it is done responsibly. Most studies show that the best way to prevent problem gambling is to wager in moderation. Further research may provide some additional information, but for now, the most effective way to avoid developing a gambling disorder is to wager responsibly.

    Protecting the Young from Sports Betting Marketing

    One of the reasons why authorities regulate sports betting advertising is to protect children and teenagers. As you probably know by now, adolescent gambling is illegal and is something that sports betting companies are trying to stop.

    The first point where they try to do that is during the broadcasts of gambling advertisements. In most countries where online gambling is legal, bookmakers and broadcasters can only market betting products during times of day when children are not watching. That means that even during televised sports events, bookmakers are not allowed to air their advertisements.

    As a result, in some countries, gambling and betting adverts are usually aired during times when it is presumed that children are not watching television. 

    For instance, in Australia, TV stations are not allowed to air betting products on TV from 6 to 8.30 am and 4 to 7 pm. Moreover, when TV programs are intended for children, the advertising of sports betting and racing products is even longer - between 5 am and 8.30 pm. 

    With the latest Australian Gaming Law review from 2018, the TV programs where sports betting advertising is not allowed during these times also includes sports matches.

    Limiting Betting Promotions During Televised Sport

    And it is not just Australia that tries to limit betting and online gambling advertising during prime time TV. Many other countries are doing the same. Even though there is nothing wrong with advertising betting products, authorities are taking the better safe than sorry approach.

    That means that sports betting ads can only be aired during predetermined times of the day so that bookmakers can comply with regulations related to sports betting advertising. As we already mentioned, that might even mean that sports betting sites cannot advertise their products during televised sports. Even though it is counter-intuitive, in many countries, betting advertisements are banned during sports matches and events.

    According to authorities, the goal here is to protect children, families, and the community from the potentially negative influence of gambling advertisements. As always, online bookmakers are involved in the process every step of the way. They try to help with their years of experience working with sports bettors and are also actively involved in providing valuable insight.

    Conclusion

    Sports betting advertising comes in all shapes and sizes. For one, marketing for betting and racing events can be in the form of bonuses and promos for sports bettors. The best bookmaker bonuses areal for punters, as they allow them to learn more about the bookmaker but also benefit from some free bets and bonus funds.

    Another way in which bookmakers market their products is via sports betting advertisements. Betting ads can be seen online, on TV during televised sports broadcasts, you can hear them on the radio, or you can see them when following bookmakers' social media channels.

    Bookmakers also increase their visibility by partnering with sports clubs, competitions, and individual players. They do this so that people would associate them with proven professionals and teams. That way, they can influence the gambling attitudes and intentions of players.

    So, now that you know that sports betting companies have a wide range of products they market, you are probably tempted to check out some betting sites yourself. If that's the case, we recommend you visit some of the top online betting sites in the UK we feature here at Betpack.

    These online bookmakers don't need to advertise their betting products aggressively, as people hear about them from other satisfied bettors. Word of mouth has always been the best advertisement for sports betting sites, and that's true about all the bookmakers we feature here.

    So, pick a quality sports betting and racing site now, and start making the most of your wagers!

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What are markets in sports betting?

    When you hear people talking about markets in sports betting, they refer to the bet types and options you can wager on. For instance, these markets include Over/Under bets, moneyline wagers, and handicap betting lines.

    How is sports betting marketing affecting gambling attitudes?

    Marketing increases sports betting prevalence rates. It also incentivises punters to gamble online and try out different sports betting products. It influences betting behaviour and leads to more people gambling online as well.

    What prevention strategies do betting companies use?

    Gambling companies use various techniques and methods to prevent gambling problems. They reduce problem gambling by allowing players to set deposit and betting limits. They also list various helplines that can assist players who have developed a gambling problem.

    What are the most effective sports betting marketing strategies?

    The best gambling industry marketing strategies are the ones that result in more players joining betting sites and continuing to play there. Bonuses and betting promotions for new and existing customers achieve the best results in this regard.

    Is it legal to advertise online betting products in the UK?

    Yes, it is. However, all sports betting and gambling operators working in the UK must get a license from the Gambling Commission to be able to interact with UK customers. That interaction also includes gambling advertising.

    Can gambling be advertised?

    Yes, it can, but it all depends on the betting site that is advertised. Licensed and regulated betting sites can advertise their products under the legal frameworks imposed by governments. However, offshore gambling sites are not included in these legal frameworks, so they cannot promote their products to bettors, at least not legally.

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