The growing gap between gambling advertising rules and how social platforms deliver campaigns is putting licensed operators at a disadvantage, speakers due to appear at SBC Summit have warned.
The issue comes as the UK considers the possibility of an advertising ban. The Netherlands is also facing the prospect of a ban, with channelisation rates approaching 50%, driven largely by a rise in black market advertising on social media.
Netherlands shifts focus from acquisition to retention
Nicolas Fleiderman, General Manager of Holland Casino Online, said targeted advertising tools allow regulated operators to reach relevant audiences while reducing their control over who ultimately sees an advert.
He said platform algorithms and self-regulatory systems do not fit cleanly with national licensing regimes. As a result, an operator can create a compliant campaign but still have limited influence over its final audience, while unlicensed operators may use advertising methods barred to licensed businesses on the same platforms.
That imbalance has become more pronounced in the Netherlands, where untargeted advertising has been prohibited since 2023. Fleiderman said the restrictions had pushed operators away from acquisition-led media buying and towards product-led engagement.
The emphasis is now on creating an experience that players choose to revisit, supported by product investment, behaviour-based CRM and improvements to the existing-customer journey. He said this part of the customer relationship also provides the greatest scope for regulated marketing activity.
Measuring value beyond acquisition
Tax increases across several European markets have added pressure on marketing teams to focus spending more narrowly. For Casumo Chief Marketing Officer Nikola Jellacic, cost per acquisition is an incomplete measure because it records the cost of bringing a customer in without showing whether that customer stays.
He argued that contribution margin per cohort over six to 12 months is the more meaningful figure. Using that measure, some channels that appear to generate growth may instead be highly efficient ways to lose money.
Jellacic is due to join the SBC Summit panel “Designing Campaigns the Data Can Read”. He also criticised the separation between creative and performance teams, comparing the usual process to a relay in which one department produces the campaign, another runs it and the two exchange little useful information.
Creative teams, he said, should receive weekly data on which ideas generate retained value rather than clicks alone. Performance teams should also explain the marketing problem to be solved, such as audience saturation, instead of simply asking for more creative versions.
Sponsorship as a market strategy
SportPesa has used sports sponsorship to maintain its position among Africa’s largest operators. Jason Gibson, its Chief Commercial Officer, said the partnerships were intended to support clubs, teams, athletes and grassroots programmes as well as increase brand visibility.
He said sport is underfunded in many of the markets where SportPesa operates, and described support for local sporting opportunities as central to the operator’s identity and role. The company refers to this approach as the “SportPesa effect”.
