Timing. What is it?
Creating a solid communication strategy requires an ample amount of time and resources in order to create a superior customer experience. However all that is put to waste if you fail to identify the right timing when communicating with your customers.
Timing is the secret sauce, that unique ingredient that can generate more active customers. When timed well, your customer can be reached at the exact right time, with the right tonality and the right message, leading to increased engagement from your customer.
Have a look at activation for example and the many challenges that come with it. Your customer may be going onto your website, registering with your brand, but why is there more often than not no follow through? Operators tend to spend a lot of resources on acquiring new players, and getting them to register on their site. The challenge is that next step, successfully getting the player to put down a deposit.
First-time deposit (FTD) conversions can be a common area of difficulty for many operators. Of course welcome bonuses and exclusive offers can be implemented when marketing to newly registered players…however the secret sauce in this equation really lies under the timing and strategy of how you will communicate your message!
By implementing a good timing strategy, this can be a key critical factor that helps your customers take that next step and put down that deposit with your brand!
The importance of timing
In an increasingly competitive market, getting your customer to put down a deposit with your brand can easily be the difference between a make or break scenario. They either deposit and the chances of them continuing deposits with your brand will likely increase. Or the alternative option, they register but never put down a deposit, and your relationship with that customer ended before it even had a chance to start. Why is this important to consider? Fun fact: in the online and retail gaming industry, the majority of customers register but fail to the next step and make a deposit. This can mean millions of unearned revenue goes down the drain every year!
Timing can change it all. Analysing your newly registered customers and taking the time to understand their preferences and behaviours can help you develop a communication plan that when combined with timing, will hit the nail on the head. However, tailored personal messages with the right channels, at the right time can increase the number of new customers that put down a deposit with your brand.
How can timing directly impact your brand?
If your brand times your messaging properly, it could mean the difference between a good ROI and a poor investment into all the resources you put towards your communication. Many brands try to activate players by kickstarting a welcome process for newly registered customers, for instance offering a bonus offer via email or SMS. This is great, but emails tend to be generic, poorly timed, and you end up wasting the efforts because the open rate is less than 3%.
You could hire a call centre team to reach out but that can be costly, and timing again is at a disadvantage here, because it is not only costly to have a calling team, but the pace at which they reach out to customers can be quite ineffective. An agent is able to make let’s say 100 calls a day, while you may need calls to be made 1000 times an hour. So this leads to the last option. You could simply hope that the players start depositing by themselves.
The common thought is that the answer to most challenges is solved with investment in martech! Increasing investment in acquisition however simply isn’t the answer, and in-fact only compounds the problem. The real issue lies in the inability to engage properly and maximise value from existing players. Operators fail to communicate with these players effectively as they have become numb to traditional marketing, and with increased regulation, operators can no longer rely on free bets and offers to inspire actions from new customers. Using a more personal and engaging approach like adding voice calling mixed with the right timing can help increase the number of active players.
So next time you want to get your newly registered player to put down that first deposit, consider whether your message is timed correctly!
